A Bit of Cold

[Darth Veles]

Just as he had stepped forward to attack, the amphibious Sith moved his right foot back, immediately followed by his left leg to get out of the range of the jab, staring at the green tip of the woman's blade that pointed in his face. He had already lost one eye to a lightsaber and did not want it to happen again, still remembering the agonizing pain when a blade of green-colored superheated plasma just touched his large eyeball and... That was an unpleasant memory.

Not allowing himself to get distracted, Avreet also moved in a circular motion, either avoiding or blocking the woman's attacks, sometimes hitting her blade and moving her attack to miss his body and hit nothing but air. It was so elegant, two Makashi users fighting. Most of the time though, Avreet chose to take a quick jog backwards or sidestep when the attacks were aimed at his arms or legs. Waiting for the right moment to attack, he smiled, finally getting to reply to the woman when her flurry of attacks stopped in its intensity. "So you prefer to deflect bolts back at the ones who shot at you?" he questioned, "Other forms don't offer controlled blaster deflection like that."

As his blade still pointed at her, he suddenly flicked his wrist to hold it vertically and move the lightsaber to the left to meet the incoming stab aimed for his heart. The augmented muscles and cybernetic arm made the next move of pinning [member="Kana Truden"]'s blade to the ground quite easy. "There are many Makashi users in the One Sith," the Mon Cal finally answered, "Not many masters of the form though. With my departure, I don't think there will be anyone to teach that, as some other Sith have left as well. Also masters of Makashi." He chuckled at it and broke the saberlock by withdrawing his blade, rapidly moving it up as if to deliver a light cut across the Jedi's chest, only to change the direction and jab at her left knee.

 

[Kana Truden]

“Call it efficiency.” They had reached a saberlock. “Why simply block it when you can return to sender?”

So there weren’t many masters of it. If Kana practiced enough that’d mean she’d be tipping the scale in a sense. To practice a form known by many but mastered by few would have it’s advantages, right? She dodged the feint at her chest and then the attack at her knee. Not by much, but she dodged it. Not that she would admit how close it was.

“Lack of Makashi users is their loss then.” Kana feinted at the Mon Calamari’s leg before reaching up to strike his weapon instead. “Then again, they probably favor the more aggressive and overpowering forms.”

“Balaya favored overpowering.” A sidestare later and Kana jabbed at the Mon Calamari’s face again. “That and punching.”

[ [member="Dux Pontus"] ]​

 

[Darth Veles]

"Their loss, indeed," smiled the Mon Cal as his blade rapidly descended down to hit Kana's emerald beam from the side, changing its target from his leg to nithing but air. This move was immediately followed by a rapid retraction of his weapon hand back, accompanied by a jog backwards to narrowly avoid being hit in the lightsaber hilt, Avreet's big orange eyes watching as [member="Kana Truden"]'s blade whizzed in front of his right shoulder and cut through the air where his hand used to be.

"Nice move," Avreet commented, regaining his posture and pointing his weapon at the blonde Knight's chest once he took two more steps backwards to get some space between them. The two combatants soon engaged again. To avoid the blow coming for his face, the Mon Cal sidestepped to the left and crouched, letting the stab pass over his head. He had to act fast now to prevent the Jedi from simply slashing down and hitting him in the head. The best way to do that was, of course, attacking her. Thrusting his hand holding the lightsaber forward, the former Sith Lord moved the weapon to stab the blonde in her belly before dragging the blade down in an attempt to deliver a vertical light cut across her left leg.

 

[Kana Truden]

The burning sensation twice over as Kana was about to give her thanks were enough of a tell that he had in fact turned the saber into training mode. Still, her eyes had blown wide open and she kept them that way for a bit as her cheeks puffed up.

“Yeah, you too.” It was the least she could say as she got back into stance. “So that’s 1-0 to you.”

Wasting no time with pleasantries Kana began attacking as she closed to gap between the two to really get in close. It was after all the one thing she had the hardest time defending within as a Makashi user. Granted, she was not a master. Jab, step, jab, second stap, jab, third step, jab, circle around his back and a stab at his back or front should he have followed her.

“So, how often do you get this friendly with jedi?” Kana wiped her forehead with the cuff of her jumpsuit. “You’re a first for me.”

[ [member="Dux Pontus"] ]​

 

[Darth Veles]

Exhaling loudly after hitting the Jedi, the Mon Cal stood up and took several steps back to get some space between them again. This was a very good practice of fighting against other Makashi user, and although the blonde woman certainly lacked the experience necessary to defeat the Sith Lord, she still posed a greater challenge than the majority of Sith Makashi users, except for the Masters. Avreet could only hope this experience would be useful for her. Since the two fought against a common enemy now and Avreet considered the woman to be one of the few Jedi that were somewhat decent, he decided to give her a few tips to exploit mistakes her opponents might do. And, of course, to avoid those infamous moves that simply did not work despite being quite popular among Force users.

One of his eyes watched her precise footwork while the other remained fixed on her blade. The Mon Calamari dodged and sidestepped, jogged back or parried her jabs. All her attacks, while precise, seemed to have lacked something. Before giving her a bit of his experience, he answered her question. He could not help but chuckle at it. "As often as they don't attempt to murder me or arrest me for the great crime of being born. Though to be honest, you are the first Jedi I have ever invited for a cup of tea," he offered her a warm smile as he continued to face her even as she tried to get into his back, flicking his wrist and rotating the blade in his hand, which hit the Knight's blow and blocked the emerald beam of superheated plasma, "Most of your people are not very tolerant... but then again, I guess you could say the same about my people?" The Mon Cal suddenly shook his large head and waved with his flippered hand. "Uhm, actually, no, I have left the One Sith. They are not my people. Sith like me and Imperials are my people."

"You do know spinning around is one of the greatest mistakes your opponent can make? The moment your opponent turns their back to you, you are victorious. Since you are pointing your lightsaber at them, all you have to do it to move your arm forward and jab your opponent in the back when they spin to gain more momentum. Forgive me if you already know that." He took a step back and started circling around [member="Kana Truden"]

"Another not particularly clever thing your opponents can do is to attempt to jump over you and land behind your back. When that happens, your opponent is particularly vulnerable while in the air, as they cannot dodge your attacks. That, and you see them coing, so by the time they land, you are already facing them, possibly even attacking."

"Also, if someone is stupid enough to try to punch or kick you without locking your blade first... I believe you know what to do." All of those were logical things, yet not many combatants realized those.

Swinging downwards, the amphibious Sith Lord nodded at his sparring partner. "Right. Now, my dear Jedi friend, try to distract me before attacking. And I do not mean by throwing fish jokes my way." The amphibian let out a soft chuckle. "Use the advantage of having the ability to rapidly change the direction and nature of your attack with Makashi. A feint stab meant for my chest can quickly become a light cut aiming for my legs or arms."

 

[Kana Truden]

Kana listened to the man’s advice. She had tried many times to cut the arm off her sparring partners. There was that one person who had reached knight at the same time as her whom she wanted to really cut the hand off at times. Especially after he developed a fondness for Ataru and she realized it’d be for the greater good. Stupid acrobatics. Stupid force leap.

“I’ll do it.” There was no try, only do and do not. “Here we go.”

Kana bowed again, mostly for the sake of it. So feinting, huh? It was worth a shot. Kana got up from the bow and immediately got ready to act on the man’s advice. A deep breath to get herself ready and she went on her way. At first keeping up with the play that she wasn’t using the advice she swatted away at his saber and arms before reaching out for him in a thrust for his heart again. This time how ever redirecting the blow to his right hand shoulder.

She stepped back and immediately did the same thing except jabbed towards his face again before reaching down for his arm. A lot of focus on the arms it would seem, but it was a good start she figured.

[ [member="Dux Pontus"] ]​

 

[Darth Veles]

A nod of approval later, the Mon Cal readied himself for the strike that would inevitably come. Somehow, he found it significantly harder to defend himself now; not because of not being experienced enough to quickly deflect feints, but because he knew the young woman was going to test his advice, yet he did not know when. Half expecting each attack to be faked, the Mon Cal almost allowed each attack to hit him, knowing how quickly the blonde Jedi could change the nature of her attack. Fighting against a Makashi user who knew how to feint; not an easy task, even for a master of Makashi. Still, it offered a nice challenge, and given he did not have to fear for his life, the Mon Cal was happy to have the chance to practice with [member="Kana Truden"] and perhaps even teach her how to refine her style a bit more.

The attacks aimed at his weapon and arms were met with swift parries, where instead of waiting for the blade to get too close, the amphibian's own beam of pure energy rallied to meet the woman's green blade. The first of Kana's attacks failed; seeing the blade going for his heart, the amphibian moved his sword to push it to the left, preventing the blonde Knight from completing her plan of attacking his shoulder. Avreet smiled and gave her an encouraging nod as the two took a step back before closing the gap again. This time, the Jedi Knight finally outsmarted the Sith Lord.

As she made the jabbing motion towards his large head, he twirled the blade in his hand in a horizontal position, expecting to push Kana's blade downwards while taking a step back. The woman's wrist suddenly moved in an unexpected direction and not even the quick and planned step back could save Avreet from feeling as the hot beam touched his arm and slid over the cloth of his sleeve.

"That was an excellent move," the Mon Cal praised his 'student', extinguishing his blade and clapping his hands. "Oh, yes; make your opponent move their blade in a direction that leaves them open to attack if you quickly change the direction of your attack." The smile grew wider as he re-ignited his blade, pointing it at Kana again.

"Since I am already giving you advices about Makashi... is there something specific you'd like to know about the One Sith?"

 

[Kana Truden]

Was there anything Kana wanted to know about her enemy? ‘Everything’ would seem a bit too vague to ask for and as such Kana had to think on it. What was their plans? Where would they strike next? Really, the questions were many and they all seemed too big for just one Sith to answer. There was just one thing.

“Who is in charge of the One Sith?” She tilted her head. “Any names that I should particularly stay clear of? Is there a dark lord?”

“There are more questions in my mind than I fear you have answers for. I know of Balaya, I knew of you but I don’t know who else is in their merry little group of villains. Who is this dark lord? What’s his deal? How can they claim to be bringing a galaxy to order when their methods consist of fear and anger to do so?”

“I’m sorry, but how about we start from the beginning. The One Sith exists becaaaause? …”

[member="Dux Pontus"]​

 

[Darth Veles]

Giving Kana a surprised glance at the many questions she had, the Mon Cal slowly nodded. The Jedi probably did not know much about the One Sith, so every bit of information helped. He had expected every member of the Jedi Order to be informed better though, meaning the Jedi Council either found it unnecessary to inform all Jedi about the One Sith and how they worked, or they did not know it themselves. "The One Sith exists because the Republic was not satisfied with the Sith Empire's destruction. The Republic started looking for a new enemy to fight, as it is based on constantly having an enemy to wage war against. The Sith obviously had no intention of being exterminated. When you and your culture face annihilation, you can either die or fight back. The One Sith simply united the Sith majority under one banner to fight against your government that intended to kill every single person unfortunate enough to be born in the Sith Empire space." He shrugged, turning off his lightsaber with a hiss, and locked his eyes with Kana's gaze. "The Republic is not capable of maintaining peace or order. It stomps on the basic sentient rights and freedoms. The One Sith sought to bring true peace to the galaxy. Make no mistake, the One Sith back then and the One Sith now are two different things. We used to be popular among ordinary citizens. Always did our best to avoid civilian casualties. The ideals and methods are lost now, which is why I have left."

"The Dark Lord is in charge of the One Sith," Avreet answered another question, clipping the hilt to his belt as he did not expect the duel to continue while he revealed her some information about the One Sith, "He often speaks through the Eye of the Dark Lord, Lady Isolda. Then we have several Voices of the Dark Lord, each in chage of the One Sith forces in their respective sector of the galaxy. By the way... the Dark Lord is rumored to originate from Voss. Don't you find it suspicious that the homeworld of the leader of the One Sith is currently inhabited by an army of Dark Jedi that are officially allies of the Republic, but have yet to help you in the conflict? It does not help they have betrayed the Republic shortly before the fall of Coruscant and that they use the Force as a weapon with the help of the Dark Side," he flashed a wide grin, "Indeed. I believe you have an enemy gaining power and expanding their empire behind your back, waiting for the Republic to be weakened enough before striking and delivering the final blow to you. Just so you know...," His last words carried unsettling tone, almost as a warning.

Falling silent for a while, he thought of the many names he could give to the blonde Jedi. Too many, in fact. "I will give you the names of people you should consider to be allies. Banshee. Zarrah. Kotass. Volitu. I trust them with my life." Revealing the identity of his friends certainly posed a high risk, but it hardly mattered now; they have followed him and left the One Sith as well. "I beg you though; do not tell those names to any other Jedi than Corvus. The Republic likes to hunt down lone and unimportant members instead of going after the true problem, the Dark Lord, his Eye and Voices."

[member="Kana Truden"]

 

[Kana Truden]

So there was a Dark Lord from Voss which was a planet run by dark jedi? Kana ran a quick scan through her brain for which held jurisdiction over Voss. Her expression turned into a confused one as she realized who he was talking about.

“The Silver Jedi Order?” Her voice sounded incredibly confused. “They’re a splinter group to my order. But to think they’re dark jedi? What?”

Never had she encountered these people but she had heard rumors, she never believed in rumors until proven true. She would likely treat whatever the Mon Cal said with the same skepticism but she let him speak his mind nonetheless.

“I thought they were jedi just like me? We come from the same order… Originally.”

[member="Dux Pontus"]​

 

[Darth Veles]

Another naive Jedi to believe the propaganda! Snorting at the Knight's lack of knowledge of the "Jedi just like her", the amphibious Sith shook his head. This exact lack of knowledge was the main cause of the Silver Jedi still gaining more members, naive fools who believed them to be the 'real' Jedi. Kana appeared to be one of those fools, but she could still be warned. The last thing the former Sith Lord needed was yet another Dark Jedi roaming the galaxy.

"They may have originated from the same order, but they are hardly alike. Don't you know anything about them?" the amphibian questioned, but it was a rhetorical question, one he did not expect to be answered, "If they were the same, they would have remained in the Jedi Order, don't you think? There must have been a reason for them to leave..." Smirk formed itself on his lips as he spoke and knelt on the floor, hands on thighs, gaze fixed at the blonde woman, staring straight into her grey eyes. Even the Mon Cal's mental defences lowered abit, to give the Jedi a chance to sense he spoke the truth. "I've had the... pleasure... of meeting several of their members. Those who did not try to murder me on sight explained much of their reasons. They have left the Republic and the Jedi Order because they felt rectricted by the Jedi Code and morality. Their beliefs, their laws... and the fact they had to share power with someone else. That alone might raise your concern... if you consider yourself a Jedi." He did not mention the exact origin of the information or the fact he had a complete plan of the Silver Jedi Temple in his possession, including all data detailing the security measures, the strength of their army and somewhat outdated knowledge of the Council.

"Conveniently, many Jedi vanish shortly before the One Sith invade Coruscant. Those Jedi conveniently settle themselves on a homeworld of the leader of the One Sith. One might think they will have a hard time adjusting to having nothing, but no. Swiftly, they build themselves a massive Temple full of state-of-art technology. Pretty good for a few dozens of rogues, don't you think? Also consider the fact they came uninvited. If you look into the subject, you will find out there was an uprising of the natives who did not want the Jedi to be there... which was extinguished painfully. Soon, young men are drafted into the Silver Jedi militia, receiving training from battle hardened mercenaries. Where did the mercenaries come from? Who is the secret manufacturer that provides them with ships, weapons and armor? More questions that need to be answered."

"You have an Order that does not follow any Code or rules, uses the Dark Side, kills innocents who get in the way, brutally impose their will upon others and invade planets in the same fashion the Sith do. Of course, you cannot know that; those information rarely get out. They take no prisoners, show no mercy. Is it the Jedi way?" asked the Mon Cal Sith, his eyes narrowing.

Pausing, the amphibian frowned, puzzled look crossing his face. "Isn't it a bit too suspicious? I have no evidence of the Silver Jedi actually working with the One Sith, but if you think about it, it makes perfect sense. Silver Jedi are the triumph card of the One Sith, one that will deliver the last blow to the Republic. And if you still don't believe me... watch this." Reaching up to his eyes, his clawed fingers dug underneath the right orb, yanking it out with a wet . The empty eye socket filled with electronics revealed it to be a cybernetic replacement. His other hand took out Avreet's datapad and plugged the eye to it before offering it to [member="Kana Truden"]...

 

[Kana Truden]

A grimace spread across her face at the wet sound from Avreet dug out his synthetic eye. She grabbed the pad and watched the video. It was a mess and seemed to take place somewhere on a battlefield. Though hard to decipher it seemed like the Jedi were assaulting her, battering her before dragging her off. It was horrible.

Putting the pad down she looked over to the Mon Calamari with wide open eyes. In the back of her mind ran the idea that it was a fabrication and it seemed very plausible. She wanted to believe it but surely that wasn’t something jedi could have done, was it?

“This isn’t a fabrication is it?” The question had to be asked. “This is… It’s…”

[member="Dux Pontus"]​

 

[Darth Veles]

Closing the empty eye to not creep [member="Kana Truden"] out too much, he calmly watched her as she observed what he had recorded on the datapad. The expression on the blonde's face displayed shock and disbelief for sure, but was the video enough to make her open her eyes? Not daring to guess, Avreet unplugged the eye before sticking it back into his head, blinking a few times before it positioned itself properly and correctly projected the image into his brain.

"It is not a fabrication," he replied silently, his expression as cold as the icy wind raging outside of the ship, "It is what your allies truly are... Dark Jedi masquerading as your allies, building their empire while your eyes focus on the visible threat in front of you." The large orbs of the Mon Calamari narrowed in a frown. "Do with this information as you will." His Imperial-accented voice was almost soothing as he spoke, trying to avoid making her feel like she was under any pressure or obligation. He fully understood it was not easy to accept such betrayal; even if coming from other 'Jedi' Order. Still, if she truly believed those people to be Jedi just like her, her confusion after witnessing their true nature had to be great, thoughts running through her mind, possibly trying to come with a logical explanation of the incident. Avreet knew she still saw him as an enemy, a Sith that wants to deceive her. Should she believe the former Sith Lord she had just met or other Jedi?

There was nothing more to be said. The decision on what to do with what she had learned depended entirely on the young Jedi Knight.

 

[Kana Truden]

Excuses, causes, reasons, anything to explain what she had just seen. Was she a traitor? No, what Avreet had told her hadn’t said anything about that. Maybe they were infiltrators? No, their numbers were too big for that. Was the Silver Jedi really that far from the path? She had heard mentions but she would never have believed it.

Being a woman of impartial approaches was proving hard. She did indeed have a former enemy showing her a new potential threat, on the other it was news troubling enough to be a potential threat given time. Picking an approach was hard and she chose to go with silence as her eyes darted indefinitely. What else was there to do when a door you didn’t even know existed was opened?

She set her eyes on the Mon Calamari. Silence still running free as she tried to find the words when none were to be found.

[member="Dux Pontus"]​

 

[Darth Veles]

Staring right back, their remained constantly locked except for the occasional blink. The deafening silence was broken once the Mon Cal decided to speak up and ask [member="Kana Truden"] a question. The expression on his face has become soft and indicated the former Sith Lord had decided to completely switch the topic, one of the reasons being this matter with the Silver Jedi appeared to be uncomfortable to the blonde Knight. "Lady Knight," Avreet started, the look in his eyes strangely distant despite the fact he continued staring at Kana. Even his Imperial accented voice seemed to have lost its edge and firmness.

"Since you haven't spent your entire life with the Jedi, perhaps you could offer me a piece of advice on a rather sensitive matter," he blinked, the gaze finally shifting away, "There is a lady I love very much. I'd like to give her a present. Something that will express my feelings. If it helps, she is a Togruta, 45, Sith Lady. She loves the Sith Order above all else... yet I believe she would leave the One Sith for me. Do you have any idea of a gift I could give to such woman? Corvus suggested new clothes,..." The same topic he had discussed with Corvus, so he naturally had to ask the blonde woman as well. He wondered if she knew he had disguised himself as her back on that terrible planet full of slavers... If nothing else, this topic would give Kana enough time to recover after the revelation concerning the Silver Jedi. Another topic was in Avreet's mind, less pleasant than this one.

 

[Kana Truden]

Kana chuckled at the change of topic. Of course Corvus of all people would suggest new clothes. She calmly shook her head and looked at Avreet with a look that let him know he was approaching this the wrong way.

“That’s now how gifts work.” She said calmly. “A gift has to be personal.”

“Don’t buy a gift based on what she wants as much as something you both have a connection to. If you know what she likes, her hobbies and pleasures then buying something, anything, based on that would be good enough. The thought behind a personal gift is more important than the actual gift itself.”

At least that’s what she had read and gathered from others. She personally had never actually received gifts but the focus on the thought and not the item seemed plausible enough for her to go with it.

[member="Dux Pontus"]​

 

[Darth Veles]

The chuckle that came from the Knight indicated Avreet had truly managed to successfully shift her attention to something less serious than the matter with the Dark Jedi. Kana's advice sounded almost like the one from Corvus; something the two of them shared and had a connection to. That presented quite a problem; despite knowing the Togruta better than anyone else who still breathed, Avreet did not know of any object that fit the criteria. Quite shameful, considering he had spent years with his former Master. Understandably though, he had focused on learning the Sith way from the woman, keeping it professional even after he was knighted. Grima definitely liked the Sith as a whole... and she also definitely liked him, as evidenced when she had placed her apprentice above her loyalty to the Sith several times. Avreet knew what she really disliked; water, sand, flowers. That very much ruled out any vacation or visiting Korriban. Given her incredible wisdom, the Mon Cal guessed the Togruta might enjoy a good book... The best bet would probably be to observe the older woman for some time and see if he can come up with anything better.

"Thank you for the advice," the former member of the One Sith said politely, "I will keep your words in mind." One had to wonder if pleasing a Sith Lady was any different from pleasing an ordinary woman. One certainly did not have to worry about being subjected to Force lightning and other power like that in the latter case. But love was a powerful thing and not even a stream of the pure manifestation of the Dark Side into his body would remove the feeling from his heart.

Time to move to another topic.

"Corvus told me about the existence of Jedi Shadows. She also revealed herself to be one of them," started the Mon Cal softly, knowing he walked on thin ice by revealing he know of a group that was supposed to remain hidden, "Are you, by any chance, also a member of this group? Knight Raaft claims to have killed many Sith on the missions, yet refuses to brand the Jedi Shadows as assassins. What do you think?"

[member="Kana Truden"]

 

[Kana Truden]

“No, I’m not.” Yes she was, technically. “I am not particularly well-versed in being sneaky. Quite frankly I find it a bit unnecessary, my weapon of choice glows in the dark and hums when turned on.”

She had to think on her words carefully. How much information was too much and what information was necessary? Corvus would hopefully have kept shut about most of it. If she knew her friend right Corvus would have given Avreet the history and purpose of the Shadows. As long as the fact that Kana was an asset and occasionally assisted them and nothing else remained a secret it’d be a good thing.

“Though she has a point. They aren’t assassins as much as they seek to eliminate the Sith as well as known dark side artifacts. I know some draw the similarities between assassins and shadows but I prefer to call them inquisitors, almost.” That was something they had in the Sith. At least from what Kana had heard but she had not a single clue what that meant on their side. “In a very basic and simple explanation they seek to ‘balance’ the force through eliminating these artifacts.”

“I don’t ever see the dark side going away though. The temptation will always be there and those weak enough will always fall.”

[member="Dux Pontus"]​

 

[Darth Veles]

The explanation was not particularly persuasive. Of course, it was perfectly logical that one who wielded a weapon that glowed and produced a characteristic humming noise could not have been an assassin. And yet, Avreet was a living proof that even one wielding two of such weapons could remain undetected. The Force was a powerful tool to control.

"If they seek to eliminate the Sith and Dark Side artifacts, how do you explain I am still alive after meeting your friend? She is quite alive as well. That makes me think they are not simple murderers who want to exterminate the Sith." He shook his head. "No; if their mission is to kill certain people as requested by their superiors, they are assassins. Corvus stated that she has yet to receive an order to kill someone, but we all know it is only a matter of time before your superiors realize what kind of a tool they have in those secret agents of the Light Side." Grinning, the Mon Calamari let out a soft and polite laugh. While he was undoubtedly making fun of the Jedi and their ways right now, he did not mean it in a bad way.

"The Dark Side will never go away, nor will the Light Side. The only ones who can be driven off are Force users. But then you'd have to eradicate both those who use the Dark and those who use the Light, as when one side reigns supreme, the other will rise from the former's ranks. As evidenced by both Sith and Jedi."

"If you want to help your brothers and sisters in their fight against the Dark Side, you might as well strike me down right here and now. I am a Sith. A Dark Side user. As you Jedi say, my very existence is corrupting the galaxy. Think of how many you will save by slaying me! Do not worry, I won't defend myself." Another smile.

[member="Kana Truden"]

 

[Kana Truden]

“We didn’t cut you down because of the same reason you haven’t cut either of us down.” She returned the grin. “While I may simply be speaking for myself I don’t think of it as trust as much as respect.”

She gave Avreet a lighthearted shrug. He could feel that she didn’t fully trust him yet she had decided not to act on the distrust she felt. For some reason Kana had simply decided to not do anything. Did she expect him to try something? No. Did she still stand prepared in case he did? Yes. As much as she wanted to put complete trust in her former enemy she simply settled for this, and as a sign of respect spent time getting to know his side of it all.

“I mean, we were both sworn enemies yet we’re not arguing about who is right and wrong. We’re discussing the topic but we’re not outright stating the other is wrong. Simply put we’re trying to understand each other and that is why we’re not outside in the snow trying to paint the floors red.”

​

[member="Dux Pontus"]​