Private Blinded by the Light

[Shey'da]

The taste of iron on her lips was a pretty regular occurrence.

Her right hand experimentally prodded the side of her face, flecks of blood coming away on her fingers. Living under Duna’s roof as long as she had it was by no means a new sensation. She’d learned to absorb pain like sponge absorbed water. As if it was expected of her.

“There’s really no need for violence.” The girl said bluntly, the blood dribbling down her nose forcing the delivery to be a bit nasally. With the back of her sleeve, she wiped her face free of crimson as her gaze dipped down to the man who'd just punched her. A Cathar with more piercings than fur– now seething and bucking against the ironclad grip of an imperial droid.

“Like I said. Just tell me who your contact is and we can both walk away from this.” Shey’da fell into a crouch, her lifeless eyes now level with the Cathar’s.

Expectedly, he answered with a wad of blood and saliva aimed at her feet. “Kark you” he hissed, “And tell Duna he can go kark himself too.”

Under different circumstances, Shey’da might have followed through with that demand. In all honesty, she’d dreamed of it. Just like she’d dreamed of gouging the tracker from her arm- just like she’d dreamed of stowing away on some shipment to a faraway planet and never having to see this wretched dumpster fire of a home again. But Duna seemed to find her too valuable to allow her freedom to entertain such plans.

And so here she was, doing his bidding for a week’s rations.

“Keep this up and you might just get the opportunity to tell him yourself.” She straightened, a sigh escaping her. What she wouldn't give to go one day without a bruised face.

Aadihr Lidos

 

[Aadihr Lidos]

ROCK AND A HARD PLACE

Outfit: Casual Attire
Weapons: Walking stick / Lightsaber Pike

Something itched in the back of Aadihr’s mind. Like a shadow flickering at the corner of his nonexistent eyes. The Force Sight his Miralukan heritage granted him picked up colors of pain and despair, a hint of resignation in one of them, desaturated, bitter, and cold hues.

The source of the pain he could pinpoint, but the transparent nature of inorganic objects in his mind’s eye made it difficult to navigate closer. Aadihr used his staff to sweep gently along the building’s wall, finding tactile sensation to support the Sight to find a door leading to what was an otherwise unoccupied building.

He was definitely sticking his nose where it doesn't belong, but this was exactly why he wandered away from the ivory walls of the temples years ago - to make a real difference where it was needed.​

There was a spike of pain from both auras - physical and internal. It seemed like something inorganic was within confining the victim. With a sense of urgency, Aadihr lowered the head of his walking stick to the locked latch if the door, igniting the Lightsaber Pike just long enough to grant entry to the run-down building.

The creak of the door announced his presence to the room, ridding any element of surprise, though he did not seek it. Without obscuring walls his force sight was clearer. A woman was inflicting the pain, a man - a Cathar, was being restrained by a droid. An interrogation, it seemed, that Aadihr’s presence was disrupting. He played dumb, once more using the ‘walking staff’ as a cane, shuffling into the room.

“Hello - is someone here? It sounded like somebody was hurt.”
Aadihr said - the concern in his voice was not feigned, but his body language conveyed uncertainty, testing how far his simple blindfold and staff would take him in this ruse.

Shey'da​

 

[Shey'da]

Shey’da froze with clinical immediacy, her head canting over her shoulder as if that would provide any insight to whoever just waltzed in. The occasional beat of a walking stick colliding with its surroundings gave her pause. A blind man?

Huh, the universe certainly had a strange sense of humor.

“YEs.” The Cathar yanked against his iron restraints, practically trying to throw himself at the feet of the man, “SHE'S TRYING TO KILL ME” He whined, frantic and relentless, “Do something!”

Shey’da only raised a single eyebrow, cloudy eyes tracking the Cathar as he tried to squirm his way to safety. “I feel like that may be a misrepresentation of events.” She mumbled, not bothering to move from her position.

Her gaze drifted to the interloper.

“This really isn’t your business."

Aadihr Lidos

 

[Aadihr Lidos]

Outfit: Casual Attire
Weapons: Walking stick / Lightsaber Pike

“YEs.” The Cathar “SHE'S TRYING TO KILL ME” He whined, frantic and relentless, “Do something!”

The Cathar's plea was as honest as his occupation. Aadihr didn't need to inspect his aura to know that. The Cathar's tone of voice seemed to reflect opportunism rather than pure desperation, as if this interruption was a lucky break and chance for revenge. Still, a life was a life. He was harmless enough while restrained and his motivations were quite simple. Aadihr was not so naive as to believe this ganger would part ways without seeking retribution. The Cathar could wait.

The aura of the woman, however, hesitated as it sought recognition of Aadihr’s presence, even when he should be in clear view. Either the room was pitch black or...

Aadihr couldn't hold back a small mirthless laugh. The Force had guided him to one with eyes who also cannot see the visible spectrum of light. A mirthless smile splayed under his blindfolds that concealed his empty eyesockets. There were no true coincidences when the force was involved.

“Relax, still yourself and let me speak to your captor.” Aadihr spoke to the restrained Cathar, keeping his demeanor calm and making it quite clear Aadihr wasn’t going to rush in and pick a fight to just to save him.

“I feel like that may be a misrepresentation of events.”

“The claim he makes is heavy, and he seems a bit too excitable at the moment to provide a clear explanation.” Aadihr gazed at the Woman’s aura further, searching for shifts in color or spikes of emotion as he replied.

“This really isn’t your business.”

“Unfortunately, I'm not the type to, -ahem- look away from a situation like this.”
If he knew how to identify an eye roll through the Sight he was sure he earned one. Aadihr rested his weight on his staff, taking a more relaxed and settled posture.

“By all means, please give us a proper representation of the situation?” Despite the blindfold, Aadihr turned his head to the Cathar before he could object, giving the impression he was glaring at the man through the cloth.

He didn't need to read into the force to take a guess at the situation.

“I take it that the release of this man will result in your death, or some form of punishment, particularly if he’s not forthcoming, yes?” adding a pointed edge to his tone in the direction of the captive as Aadihr continued, “and that his injuries are a result of his reluctance to speak the truth.”
Aadihr pause for effect, checking if the Cathar felt the gravity of the situation or was confident he'd get away.

“If both my assumptions are not too far off the mark, then, in a way, it would be in this man’s best interest to share what he knows to avoid being slowly beaten to death by someone also pursuing survival. Is this what you want, a grisly death in an abandoned building, never to be seen again?”

Hopefully the added pressure would help convince the man to talk before that happened, but Aadihr needed a better understanding of the depth of the puddle the force guides him to step into. Interfering here may just change the blood spilled and place it in his hands.

Returning to face the blind woman Aadihr spoke earnestly, “Your motivations are a bit harder to guess. Survival, yes, but why beating this man is your key to it."

Aadihr removed any lingering edge from his voice and brought an honest and calming tone. "I'm not here to screw you over. I'd like for everybody to walk away from this alive. Help me see eye to eye about this.”

Aadihr was taking a gamble, sticking around and trusting the woman, but it was the best he could do without making the situation worse for either party.

Shey'da​

 

[Shey'da]

Oh, so he was funny too. Shey’da wrapped her arms across her chest in what she hoped the Force would communicate as irritation- like a cat flicking a fly from its ear. A quiet, unmoved expression on her face that neither could see. “You’re insightful…”

“I wasn’t planning on killing him.” She mumbled dryly but with a hint of defensiveness. The man had some authority to him and he wielded it well. Well enough for Shey’da to fight the urge to curl in on herself like a child being scolded, “I could also do without an angel whispering over my shoulder. There really isn’t a way to inject morality into this.”

She ignored his comment about her motives– her survival– a response only coming in the form of a bristle in the Force. As if she was shielding herself from a raw nerve and his inscrutable way of unearthing it. He was certainly perceptive for a blind man and she couldn’t help but squirm under his scrutiny. Why did he feel the need to swoop in like a white knight? To try and bring some reason and maturity to what was only ever going to be an explosively bad situation? As if he knew, instinctively, she was on the verge of doing something she’d regret and needed to be protected from herself.

Her gaze traveled down to the restrained man in emphasis. A gesture which would only mean anything to the visually unimpaired Cathar.

“He does have a point though. It’s definitely in your best interest to fess up.”

Measured steps took her closer to her victim, who glared back venomously. His gaze switched between the two swiftly, as if taking in the absurdity for himself. “What?! You’re just going to let her keep torturing me? Me? An innocent man?”

She rolled her eyes for effect, “You stole an entire shipment of goods from my Master’s dock. Did you really think that would go unnoticed? And trust me, I haven’t begun to torture you.”

There was a practiced severity in her voice, clearly this wasn’t the first time she’d levied such threats. The Cathar fumed, his gaze latching onto the floor in clear deliberation. He was quiet for a moment, and Shey’da nearly hummed in premature victory. Then, suddenly, he was a blur– body slamming the droid restraining him to the earthen floor before somehow weaseling his way from its grasp. There was a blaster kicked just out of his reach from when Shey’da had first gotten the jump on him. Naturally it was in his hands before she could even blink.

The woman took a tense step back, trying to reorient his position as indistinct motion lurch in front of her. Her head turned– a bit frantically.

The Cathar could care less, a blaster in hand switching its aim between his captor and the strangely noble newcomer.

“I’m not telling you chit.” He growled. Or well, hissed.

Aadihr Lidos

 

[Aadihr Lidos]

BLINDING WITH LIGHT

Outfit: Casual Attire
Weapons: Walking stick / Lightsaber Pike

“I’m not telling you chit.” the Cathar hissed.

“Careful where you point that thing, you might shoot someone's eye out” Aadihr calmly spoke to the Cathar, stepping slowly to place himself between the woman and the now armed and hostile Cathar, making slow movements to keep his trigger finger calm. Aadihr gambled that his unknown motivations would give him enough time to get a few words in with the Cathar. Aadihr loathed violence, but wasn't incapable of it.

“And I think that would be a bigger loss to you than either of us.”

Unseen to the Cathar, Aadihr had his hand wreathed in the Force, ready to deflect a bolt the moment the fur-lined aura showed intent to pull the trigger.

Aadihr had seen the hues of the woman's aura that confirmed some of his suspicions. She held herself together well, but some of his words struck her aura harder than he anticipated. He felt a pang of sympathy. It was like seeing someone flinch at a sudden movement - it hinted at a history of fear and vulnerability.

The Cathar, however, was a thief and likely part of some larger organization, seeming arrogant and vengeful. With bullies like this a little preventative intimidation couldn't hurt. This really wasn't Aadihr's preferred manner of posturing, but some things just worked better.

Aadihr smiled mischievously. An idea has occurred to him.
He would simply lie.​

“Besides, you don't need to tell us a thing. I've already read your mind for the answers I need. I read hers, too - the cargo's being tracked and her folks already have have plans for your folks. Your capture is just be a distraction, your corpse meant to misdirect your buddies. Into thinking they didn't already know while they set up. Sorry fella, I think you’ve underestimated the poodoo you've fallen into." Aadihr put a bit of genuine-sounding pity into that last sentence.

"Put down the blaster and maybe I can get you both out of this alive, yeah?”
This was, of course, a bluff. But the Cathar was already not thinking clearly from the beating and his heightened state of panic seemed to consider the possibility of it. Aadihr never mastered the Mind Trick, but it would have been useful here.

Piecing what Aadihr could together, the Cathar’s group stole a shipment from the woman’s, perhaps contraband or something else smuggled. He would naturally want to inform his people to search for a tracker if there was even a suspicion of such, let alone an ambush. If he ran, all Aadihr had to do was track him with far-seeing. If the thief cooperated, he could be tricked further and give enough intel that Aadihr could minimize harm. If he fired that blaster... well, Aadihr wasn't a guardian or particularly powerful with offensive uses of the Force, but his deflection and healing were well-honed, and a walking stick hurt as much as any other bludgeon. A single criminal with a blaster didn't pose much of a threat; Aadihr let that confidence project into his voice, posture, and aura.

To cement the lie, and for a bit of self-indulgent dramatic effect, Aadihr lit the crystal in his lightsaber Pike, two and a half feet of blue light extending from the top of the unassuming walking stick illuminating the room in both the visible spectrum of light and within the Force.

Aadihr had no intention of using the blade for anything other than cutting apart the Cathar’s blaster if he fired. The butt end of the staff would serve well enough to give the Cathar a bump on the head if needed

Appearing Visiblely relaxed but ready to pounce like a coiled spring, Aadihr planted his feet.​

“Let's just say self-righteous do-goodery is a hobby of mine. You seem like a gambling man. Want to place your bets on that blaster or on me?”

Shey'da​