First Reply Bilge Rat Blues

[Scilla]

The tension lingered long after the man had finished speaking. Obviously rattled by the dark influence, Scilla remained rigid in her stance, as if waiting for some ulterior strike to come at any second. She could feel the Force for as long as she could remember. But she had never truly felt the Dark Side until now. That it could be so corrupted and unnatural was an upending of her perspective.

As if in slow motion, he assurances seemed to register with the young Kiffar, until finally she disengaged the saber, and tucked it back into her pocket. With a deep breath, Scilla became more relaxed, and back to her old self, in fact.

She grinned slyly, "I knew it. I knew you were hiding something." It was as if she hadn't gone through that dramatic experience at all, "You gotta come up with better lies than 'hanging out in the jungle alone'."

Xeno​

 

[Xeno]

Aboard the Unification
Tags: Scilla ​

"I knew it. I knew you were hiding something." It was as if she hadn't gone through that dramatic experience at all, "You gotta come up with better lies than 'hanging out in the jungle alone'."

"How would I even go about that?" Xeno asked in a rather critical manner. "'Oh yeah, just a heads up, I've got an evil pyramid-thing below deck with a thirst for blood.' You would've thought I was on death sticks."

Despite keeping his generally serious tone, Xeno's body language was clearly more at ease. It was quite the relief to the hybrid that his blunt explanation had the effect he had intended it to.

"It wasn't exactly a lie though," he continued. "I do my best thinking in a more... natural environment. That's about all I feel inclined to share with you. Now, let's try to avoid getting possessed for the remainder of your stay, okay?"

 

[Scilla]

"Psh, better than learning about it on my own and thinking you're a cannibalistic Sith lord," Scilla whipped a lock of hair out of her face, "Besides, I'm not saying you gotta tell the truth. I'm just saying you gotta lie better." Although in this particular case, it probably wouldn't have fixed anything, given her inquisitive nature.

"Whatevs. That thing gives me the creeps anyway," She crossed her arms and lazily began to walk back up to the main deck, "I'm still hungry, though."

Xeno​

 

[Xeno]

Aboard the Unification
Tags: Scilla​

"Well, it's still just that dried meat," Xeno reminded her. "You aren't still afraid that it's people, are you?"

His attention shifted to the Kiffar's lightsaber. It was clearly made by her (it certainly had a homemade quality), but it wasn't exactly clear how she had gone about creating one. The girl didn't appear to be a Jedi, and she definitely wasn't Sith. It wasn't entirely impossible, but it was certainly odd that she had been able to both find a suitable crystal and hastily cobbled together a weapon that seemed to mostly function.

"You're not Jedi," he noted, "How'd you end up with that piece of kyber?"

 

[Scilla]

"Honestly, that's a risk I'm willing to take." A joke, but she was feeling exceptionally famished. It probably wasn't human meat.

Scilla stopped halfway up and smirked; Now he was asking questions. She tossed the hilt up and back into her hand, "I ain't a Jedi, yeah, but I got some friends who are. One of 'em helped me cobble this thing together. It was pretty cool." The Kiffar continued walking, "You got a lightsaber? I can tell ya got the Force." She may not be well-trained in the Force, but she'd learned how to pick up on it.

Xeno​

 

[Xeno]

Aboard the Unification
Tags: Scilla​

Xeno became rather somber when the Kiffar asked him if he had a lighstaber.

"I did," Xeno told her. "A long time ago when I was a child..."

The half-breed had already begun reflecting on his past, but something about this really brought him back to the moment he had constructed his lightsaber. When he had found it, it had been a vibrant blue. It seemed to shimmer in such a manner that, for a brief moment, a young Xeno felt something other than fear and despair. This didn't last. Xeno's master forced him to use the blade to crush his enemies. Over time, the bloodshed tainted the weapon to the point where it was just as hollow as he was. When Xeno freed himself, he laid the weapon to rest, vowing to never take up a lightsaber again.

"Before you ask, I wasn't a Jedi," the swordsman informed the child. "I wasn't afforded that luxury. I... don't like to think about my youth. I was used against my will as a weapon, so my lightsaber took on those traits. It was beyond recovery."

Somehow, Xeno was able to muster a faint laugh.

"Jeez, I sound like a depressed old man."

 

[Scilla]

"Yeah, ya do," Scilla admitted bluntly, never much one for social graces. Still, she understood not wanting to bother with one's past, even if her reasoning was more or less the opposite of his. Scilla was dissatisfied with her life before, because it was so depressingly normal and mundane. She wanted to experience something that was more fulfilling, and exciting. Perhaps to the more jaded among the galaxy, it would seem naive, but for her it was simply a higher calling.

"But hey, I ain't gonna make you think about it if you don't wanna. The past is the past. I wouldn't be out here hopping boats, if I was happy with how things were already going." She nonchalantly strolled in the direction of the galley again, her stomach luring her to the food source.

Xeno​

 

[Xeno]

Aboard the Unification
Tags: Scilla​

"I wouldn't be out here hopping boats, if I was happy with how things were already going."

"Huh," Xeno reacted. "You know, you're a lot more mature than I first assumed."

The Kiffar had her life together, at least in the 'knowing what I want' sense. Xeno had been on his own for years and still hadn't figured out what he was doing. Despite his best efforts, he continued to work alone, run from Jedi instead of tell his story, and hide away on remote planets. Maybe he needed to reevaluate his current condition...

"Mature or not," he continued. "You have no clue how to hold a lightsaber. You'd be better off wielding a club." He waited for an initial reaction before continuing. "I could teach you some basics. Consider it an apology for not telling you about the Holocron and almost getting you possessed."

He extended the offer in good faith, surprising even himself. Perhaps he was capable of change after all.

 

[Scilla]

"Psh, thanks?" She scoffed a bit, "I ain't a kid, y'know." Of course, 'mature in age' and 'mature in mentality' can be different concepts, but it seemed a touchy subject for her. Probably because deep down, Scilla was not exactly the most mature nineteen-year-old in the galaxy.

Rather than take offense to her lightsaber skills though, the Kiffar grew a bemused smirk. "Well, a club can't cut through anything just by touching it," Not an incorrect observation, but he was right that there was more to using a lightsaber than that, "Alright, I'm listening. Whaddaya got?" The yellow beam of her saber ignited, held at her side in waiting.

Xeno​

 

[Xeno]

Aboard the Unification
Tags: Scilla ​

"Well, the best place to start is with your form," Xeno reasoned. "For your purposes, Shii-Cho should suffice. Basic, but a good all around form."

Xeno drew his own sword, modeling the basic Shii-Cho stance, explaining it as he did so.

"In this form, everything happens at a vertical angle, mainly strikes and incoming blows. Because of this, the placement of your footing and where you have your weapon is very important. Your blade should be positioned in the front to guard and your legs should be spaced out. One in front, one in back. This will allow you to keep your distance while not necessarily needing to move as often. Think of your lightsaber in this instance more like a buffer than a weapon. It covers the vulnerable areas of your body if executed properly. As for attacking, it's pretty straight forward."

As he began to speak on attacks, Xeno began to model the basic swings of the Disarming Slash.

"Your moving in a manner that's intended to disarm an opponent by literally beating their weapon out of their hand. It favors quick strikes that are simple to execute and difficult to read, given the skill level of an opponent. It's a privative form, but it get's the job done if you like your limbs being attached to your torso. Get all that?"

 

[Scilla]

The intricacies of lightsaber form weren't exactly Scilla's style, but she entertained the idea on account of it at least seeming cool on the surface. She mimicked the man across from her, drawing the saber once more and taking a similar stance. Imperfect, but all things considered a quick learner. If she could just keep her attention on anything for more than a few minutes, she might have been well on the path to Jedihood by now.

Her focus was more on his words as he continued, the saber more or less just waving gently in front of her in time with the swinging movements he was showing off. When Xeno finished, Scilla hummed, "I guess. Why do I need to stand like that just to whack a guy's hand? Can't I just-" She demonstrated with action, whiffing the saber like a blunt instrument.

Xeno​

 

[Xeno]

Aboard the Unification
Tags: Scilla ​

"I guess you could," Xeno replied with a shrug. "I mean, you'd leave yourself open to punishment, but you could."

Xeno reassumed the basic footing to demonstrate.

"Think about it like this," he began to explain, "What you suggest to to change your footing to strike, right? In doing so, you put yourself in a stance that is harder to defend against an incoming blow. Something as simple as maintaining balance can put you in a life or death situation. Don't think of your attack and defense as two separate things. When you boil it down to the basics, they're the same motions used for different objectives. If the footing for your attack is the same as your defense, you can imagine it would be rather easy to switch between the two. Any edge that can be taken to see you successfully to the end of a confrontation should be taken, even if it seems unnecessary."

Xeno assumed a more casual stance, returning his sword to his sheath. A distant chime caught his ears, seemingly originating from the cockpit. It was the ships navicomputer. They would be coming out of hyperspace soon.

"Kashyyyk is close now," Xeno informed his guest. "No more than twenty minutes now, I'd guess."

 

[Scilla]

Scilla's eyes danced over the ceiling in some semblance of contemplation. "I guess I see what you mean…" She shrugged, "Still, they can't really hit back if I knock their head off first, right?" The Kiffar grinned slyly.

Well, at least some of what he was saying was getting through to her. Baby steps.

The fact is she had never really been in a situation where it was necessary. Sith were little more than rumors and secondhand stories to her. Fights were rarely any worse than a brawl on the street. She simply had different experiences, and a relative lack of vicarious perception needed to see the fuller picture.

Scilla disengaged her blade, and tossed the hilt into the air before catching it. "Sweet. I guess I can survive twenty more minutes without food."

Xeno​

 

[Xeno]

Aboard the Unification
Tags: Scilla ​

"Well, this has been interesting," Xeno remarked.

This had certainly been an odd day all things considered. It never crossed his mind that he may have a stowaway at any point in time, let alone one so... unique. While she seemed to just be getting started in the world, Xeno was beginning to realize that he still had much to learn in his own right. Redemption was out there. The swordsman just needed to find the right path to walk to get there. Maybe what he needed was to make some friends. In the meantime, he had a bizarre encounter he needed to see through to the end.

"I'm surprised I'm not annoyed given our... differing personalities," he continued. "Maybe try to choose your rides a bit more cautiously in the future, though. You might end up stuck on the ship of a psychotic Sith-cannibal."

 

[Scilla]

"Sure," Scilla remarked back, decidedly more casual about the strange interaction than her counterpart. Her mind began to wander idly, as did her gaze over the ship's interior. It's not that she thought little of their encounter, she was just much more casual about, well, everything.

"I get along with everybody," Very much untrue, but people she disliked didn't often take up much headspace for her. "Hey, I'm always careful," Also very much untrue, "I didn't get on a Sith cannibal's ship this time, did I?"

Xeno​

 

[Xeno]

Aboard the Unification
Tags: Scilla ​

"This time," Xeno admitted reluctantly.

As they spoke, the Philosopher came out of hyperspace over Kashyyyk. Xeno made his way to the cockpit, assuming that the Kiffar would follow.

"Well, looks like this is it," the swordsman continued, taking a seat to prepare for entry into the planet's atmosphere. "I gotta get that old thing hidden... and I'm sure you've gotta catch another flight."

The half-breed dug around in his pockets, pulling out a few credits.

"Get yourself on a transport this time," Xeno told the girl. "And thanks."

He wasn't going to elaborate any further. Xeno was in a new headspace now. Maybe, someday, he'd make a meaningful connection and not fear the demons of his past. They were still a threat to people, at least for now. He still had some growing to do, but now it seemed possible.