A Helping Hand

[Connor Harrison]

Met with a resilience – or stubbornness – akin to his own, Connor took the hand away as she got up herself.

”Harrison. Connor Harrison.”

He stuck his hand out for her to shake.

”And no, no other…wise lessons today. I don’t do wise lessons. I do hard truths. One day you’ll see what I meant. I don’t do this for fun, you know.”

Whether she took his hand to shake or not, the fact these two were unknowns to each other brought together by Ara was irrelevant. Soon they would be allies and have to work together, so knocking down walls early on was important, and a level of trust had to be established.

While Connor’s methods weren’t always favourable, they were just that. True. What you saw was what you got.

”I just want to know, after all this, why you feel trapped between both Light and Dark. Do you really doubt yourself so much?”

[member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

Now that Kaalia was on equal ground, she reached out to shake [member="Connor Harrison"]'s hand. "I understand that one day I will either understand or die. But today, I felt no guilt tapping into the darkness around me." His truths helped her see what was needed, and it was a step forward. "When you disoriented my mind, it brought me somewhere else. There was only black except for two people- they were both me. Different versions of me." She recalled what went on in her mind, linking it to her actions in the sparring room as she did. "One told me to kill the 'pretender', the other told me to lock her away. I had to choose." The redhead started pacing. "To listen to the voice that told me to lock away the other would've changed nothing. I would've continued lying to myself." She closed her eyes and shook her head. "I wasn't going to let that happen. And so I listened to the other voice, and killed her. The warden of the shackles that keep me chained to the light is dead."

The woman came to a standstill, and looked at Connor. "That warden, the shackles, they caused me to be torn between Light and Dark. Now that the warden is gone I can start breaking free." Kaalia brushed her hair behind her shoulders. "I doubted I'd ever be able to achieve that, but now that's a different story. You helped me realize what has to be done, and for that you have my thanks."

 

[Connor Harrison]

With a firm shake, Connor nodded to acknowledge the girl.

It sounded like she was ready for more, and there was one person who could certainly provide more.

”Trust me. That's all I ask. I know I am blunt, and at times may push you to breaking point, but...when it comes to it, I am your ally now. We are in this together and I will push you to the very edge until I see greatness just as I did with those morons in the Jedi. A waste of my time. But you,” he patted her shoulder, ”are worth a dozen of their strongest Knights.”

He walked across to the wall and pulled a sword from it, spinning it in his hand and cleaving the air.

”Would you be willing to travel with me to Dxun with a friend of mine who helped break my shackles to the Light?"

Connor looked at her as he span the blade.

”She will push you further than I have today, and will make you find your inner strength to survive. If you don't, you may die. But if you survive...” he embedded the blade in the floor with a satisfying thud, ”...you will be more powerful than you can possibly imagine.”

The friend, of course, was [member="Taeli Raaf"] and if the young Ren was willing, then Connor would make it so.

[member="Kaalia Voldaren"]

 

[Kaalia Pavanos]

A simple chuckle couldn't be resisted after [member="Connor Harrison"]'s claim that Kaalia was worth a dozen of the Jedi's strongest Knights. "If you say so... You're putting a lot of faith into a single disciple." She looked at the collection of swords that were embedded into the wall, nodding contently. "I will bend, but not break. I won't allow it. Push me as far as you can, only then will I be able to find the greatness you want to see. I won't say I won't lash back at times, hell, I would be lying if I told you I didn't want you dead just a minute ago." The laugh that followed the words came off her tongue a little too easily for her, sending the slightest of shivers down her spine.

The redhead listened intently to his proposition, and eagerness welled up within her. "I have gotten to this point already, I'm not afraid to die in my pursuit of the darkness. I'd rather be burned alive than have this soulless corpse walk around propagating 'how the Light brings peace'." She called one of the blades in the wall to her, letting it hover in front of her. "I probably sound like yet another initiate to the Dark side who is in way over their head when I say this, but I'm not planning on dying anytime soon." The woman turned the sword downwards. "I will find my inner strength, no matter what. I won't allow myself to find any other outcome." Kaalia willed the weapon to shoot down into the floor, and it complied. "So, yes. I will travel with you to Dxun."