Private A Home Worth Dying For

[Caelan Valoren]

It had been several weeks since Caelan had been to Coruscant. With the return of his Kingdom to his control, he'd been heavily occupied with righting everything that had been done to it by the people that had attacked it. That was an ongoing process, and it wasn't going to be resolved anytime soon. Still, he had other obligations as well, and having regional governors installed allowed him to take some of the pressure off of himself to manage everything. There was still his duty as a Jedi to be considered, and given the recent events on Hapes, that seemed like it was only going to be an increasingly difficult part of his life.

Upon his return, Grandmaster Noble had made a request of him. It seemed there was some sort of dispute between several individuals and a housing owner in one of the lower levels revolving around fair and equal housing. A request had been made by the owner of the housing that the Jedi intervene on their behalf with the tenants because the tenants were being hostile. Having spent time living in the lower level when he'd first fled his home after his parents were killed, he could understand what the landlord was dealing with. It was pretty rough down there. There were, however, good people that lived there as well, so he refused to just accept the landlord's assertion that the tenants were at fault.

He wasn't going it alone, however. He'd been asked to take another padawan along with him, one that he didn't know. Having been told where to find her, he'd made his way towards the temple's gardens in search of a white-haired woman. He'd met Echani before, and he found them a fascinating people, but he didn't know their musical talents. He was surprised to find that the woman he was looking for was playing a flute, its notes lilting through the air and drawing him in her direction. Even though he knew they had a task to complete, he found himself standing off to the side and just listening to her play. She was really quite good.

"That was beautiful," he said when she finished her song. "I didn't want to interrupt while you were playing but are you, by chance, Everest Vale? My name is Caelan Valoren and I was told I could find her here by Grandmaster Noble."

A droid peeked its head up from within the hood of its robe and watched her in a manner belying curiousity.

---

ATTIRE: Link | WEAPON: Lightsaber | COMPANION: BD-F8 | OTHER: Sigil Bead (Necklace)

TAGS: Everest Vale ​

 

[Everest Vale]

​

Location: Temple Gardens, Coruscant
Outfit: Padawan Robes, Spring Tunic
Equipment: Training Lightsaber, Uneti Flute, Small Backpack

It had been a difficult month for Everest. After Jedha, it felt like her world had collapsed in on her for a while. Then she watched the news reels of Hapes from Coruscant, and a further heartbreak set in. But Master Noble's kindness had helped her to fill that fresh, painful void that had tore through her, and as time went on she could admit to herself that she was — truly — starting to heal.

Part of that healing, for her, was the construction of her new uneti wood flute. It had been years since she played the flute, and as she returned to the traditional songs of rural southern Eshan, she was reminded of the warm hearth of home, the smell of home cooking, the soft fur of Cid against her face, the soft smile of her mother. But here, in the gardens of the Coruscant temple, there was another warmth that came to her, and as she played she was invoking — inadvertently — a profound sense of calm in all who had been lucky enough to hear her humble recitation.

She concluded her piece and, eyes closed, enjoyed the silence that followed a moment, but it took only a moment before she realised she had an observer. She could feel it first, behind closed eyelids, the subtle refraction against the natural stillness that hung about the gardens. Her eyes fluttered open to see the Padawan to her side. His handsome ruggedness and scar along his face made him instantly recognisable. She smiled at him.

"Thank you," she said a little timidly, suddenly shy about having an audience. "Yes. Eve," she told him as she placed the flute delicately into a fabric bag and into her backpack. She had heard from Master Noble that she was to expect a local mission coming her way, but wasn't sure when. She nevertheless had spent the last day or so steeling herself. It would be the first time she was going to see action since...

She stood, and gave a respectful bow to the young man. "Caelan, isn't it? My Master told me to expect you. Something about a mission?" Her eyes flitted to the small droid head that popped up from out of his backpack, and she grinned sheepishly, giving a small, shy wave. She was never any good with droids, but this one? What a cutie.

Caelan Valoren​

 

[Caelan Valoren]

She had a nice smile and a pleasant demeanor. Seemed hard to come by these days. Most of the other padawans he knew were absolute terrors when it came down to it. Course, it could just be that he was a bit too rigid. Product of his upbringing and everything he'd been through of late.

"It's nice to meet you, Eve," he said, stepping forward and offering his hand to her. "Master Noble is a friend of mine. She accompanied me when I traveled to Hurikane to retrieve my lightsaber crystal and helped thwart an attempt on my life. She also assisted in retaking my world from those who attacked it."

Establishing a connection was good. They may not share a master, but they had a connection through her beyond the fact that Valery was the grandmaster of the order. And it seemed that she was enthused about the appearance of Fate, who promptly jumped up onto Caelan's shoulder and stuck out his foot towards her for a shake of his own. Show that droid any affection and he was going to love you for life. Probably why he always wanted to go and see Master Noble when they visited.

"This is Fate, by the way. He accompanies me pretty much everywhere."

Sometimes the droid was a little bit too nosy.

"There's a housing dispute in the lower levels that Master Noble would like us to look into. My understanding is the owner of the establishment has requested our assistance with tenants that he describes as unruly, behind on rent, and refusing to vacate. The security forces are apparently too busy to help."

He shrugged at the last bit. Down there, security didn't really do much anyway. What security forces existed down there tended to be bought and paid for by some criminal group or other and didn't really care about upholding the law. If the landlord wasn't in with one of those groups, and Caelan assumed he wasn't given the ask of the Jedi, then it made sense he wasn't going to get any help from them.

"Need to grab anything before we go or are you ready now?"

---

ATTIRE: Link | WEAPON: Lightsaber | COMPANION: BD-F8 | OTHER: Sigil Bead (Necklace)

TAGS: Everest Vale ​

 

[Everest Vale]

The little droid looked at Eve expectantly and Eve, in turn, gave a timid smile. Droids were... strange to Eve. They were like animals, except not? In many ways, they were more unpredictable that animals, who at least she could understand with relative ease. But droids, who know what was going on in all that circuitry. Nevertheless, Eve couldn't deny how sweet Fate looked, poking out of from Caelan's robe, holding out his little foot. She couldn't help but oblige the sincerity of the little guy.
"Nice to meet you, Fate," she said, taking his foot and giving a very gentle. She wasn't sure how delicate these things could be, after all. He seemed to give a whirr of delight which caused a small giggle to escape her. Maybe droids weren't so bad after all.

She turned her attention back to the matter at hand, as Caelan briefed her on what to expect. A simple dispute seemed simple enough, though a part of her struggled to understand why people couldn't just... get along, and she furrowed her brow a little at the thought of conflict between others. With any luck, today would go off without a hitch, and they could help find some kind of agreement that would satisfy both parties, so she hoped, perhaps a little naively.

"Need to grab anything before we go or are you ready now?"

Her thought immediately turned to her backpack.
"My flute," she said. "I'd rather leave it here. I'll meet you here shortly?"

And with that, she flew down through the hallways of the temple to her dorm. By the time she had arrived, whilst she found herself lost in thought about the mission, it suddenly dawned on Eve who Caelan actually was. She had been adamantly watching the news feeds of Hapes from the safety of the temple, heart breaking all the while. But Caelan was right there in the palace, right at the epicentre of all the chaos that ensued on the planet. She furrowed her brow as she made her way back to the gardens, hurting for him, and all the others. She didn't know him, but that didn't make a difference to her.

"Ready," she told him when shes finally made it back. She didn't have much else on her, but she hoped that a training lightsaber would suffice for this situation. With any luck, she wouldn't need to even use it. "C-Caelan," she said, before they moved, and a stillness took hold between them for a moment as she formulated her next words. Watching everything unfold on Hapes had been utterly devastating to her. The very thought of war perhaps made her weep for all those affected, more than it scared her directly. She wondered silently how the Prince of Lazerian IV might be handling it all, plus whatever else may have weighed on those shoulders.
"Hapes... I—" She frowned, frustrated at herself for not knowing the right words. But finally, they came, simple and honest. "I'm glad you're okay."

Caelan Valoren​

 

[Caelan Valoren]

Fate was definitely pleased about having his foot shaken. He whirred in delight before dropping back down into Caelan's hood. Even out of sight he was beeping and chattering away about how polite the new girl was and how he enjoyed the fact that she treated him like another person rather than just a droid. Caelan could only smile and shake his head at it all. Fate had never been very much like most droids. He had a real personality, probably something to do with years out in exploration. Most droids were just machines programmed to do. In fact, most tended to be annoying.

"Sure. We'll wait for you here," he said when she mentioned putting the flute away.

He watched her go and then leaned against one of the nearby trees. Though she had shaken Fate's leg when he'd offered it, she seemed hesitant to do so. Was there some animosity there between her and droids? Had something happened to her? He wondered about that while she was gone, his mind pondering that and their mission until she returned and he heard his name being spoken, albeit hesitantly. Why was speaking as if something was wrong with saying his name? Was she scared?

Then she mentioned Hapes and that she was glad he was alright and his demeanor softened further. He offered her a smile and reached out to place a hand upon her shoulder.

"Thank you, but I assure you I'm doing just fine. I have seen my fair share of turmoil this past year, it's true, but it's shaped me into who I am now. For the better, I think, since I must serve both as a Jedi and as a leader for my people."

He let his hand fall away and then motioned towards the exit to the gardens.

"Shall we? I have an airspeeder waiting for us."

---

ATTIRE: Link | WEAPON: Lightsaber | COMPANION: BD-F8 | OTHER: Sigil Bead (Necklace)

TAGS: Everest Vale ​

 

[Everest Vale]

Eve was in awe with his resolve. As Caelan spoke of his duties as both Jedi and Prince, she realised how woefully simple her own life was in comparison to some of the people in the Order she worked with. It wasn't envy that she felt, but rather some vague sense of inadequacy for what she had to show for herself, or lack thereof. Nevertheless, the prince's resolute attitude inspired her, and she gave a gentle but assured nod to his words.

"Shall we? I have an airspeeder waiting for us."
"Mhm," she affirmed somewhat timidly, recalling the only few instances she had been on a speeder, all of which only since becoming a Jedi. Each time, it sent a lurch through her stomach. Nevertheless, she steeled herself for another experience moving at unnatural speeds. Where were the horses when she needed them?

They made their way down to the speeder pads. Away from main temple complex, the polluted smell of the city became ever more prevalent, attacking Eve's nostrils without discrimination. Every time she had to breathe it in properly, it made her nauseous. But this time, she would have to put up with it. The journey itself down to the lower levels was 'pleasant' enough, if one could consider moving at high velocity through a sterile hellscape of man-made structures pleasant. Yet as the sun spilled through the towering structures before them, casting shadows and twinkling against metal and glass, Eve did find a strange sense of magic about it. Alas, it was only an inkling.

The lower city was far worse than the upper levels. The place rank of a cocktail of scents thick in the air; smoke, stale alcohol, miscellaneous grime, vomit. Eve couldn't help but pull her sleeve over her mouth as they walked through the thrumming lower districts steeped in a harsh poverty. She had never seen something like this before, and it sent chills down her spine that anyone was forced to live here like this. Her eyes threatened to water, and she wasn't sure if it was from how upsetting the whole scene was, or from all the pungent smells that threatened her sense of smell. She tried to take her mind off of it all.

"So, we're going to the landlord first?"

Caelan Valoren​