Private Conflict Resolution

[Alora Davani]

Outfit: XX, XX
Tag: Sion Lorray

Alora drew a deep breath, centering herself.

The transport ship was already speeding along to the destination: a world on the Outer Rim. And though her bright eyes and pleasant calm would not betray her, there was a tingle of nerves. After all, this was her first mission with the New Jedi Order. She had only recently become acquainted with life at the temple on Coruscant.

Everything was still new.

Speaking of new, Alora was about to meet her partner for this mission. The Knight knew very little about him, only that his name was Sion Lorray and he was a padawan learner. His master had thought it a good idea for him to tag along -- both for the experience and to provide assistance. Alora would certainly welcome the help. Once she'd made herself ready, she left the small crew quarters that had been assigned to her for the duration of the journey and made her way to the meeting room.

Soft, graceful steps brought her through the corridors. As she rounded the corner into the room, she activated the holo-projector and keyed in the coordinates -- the blue-light image of a planet soon illuminated the meeting room. Alora watched it turn before her eyes and wondered just what was going on there. Indeed the reports had been troubling. She would continue to ponder quietly as she waited for Sion. When he arrived, he would be greeted by a bright-eyed stare and an amiable smile.

"Greetings, Padawan Lorray," she said when he came in. "I'm Alora Davani, it's nice to meet you."

With that, Alora motioned for him to join her around the holo-projector.

​

[/div]

 

[Sion Lorray]

Alora Davani

His first mission off-world after Teta.

It was... intimidating, but Sion was also ready. It was time to get back in the saddle. He had rehearsed this a number of times, because he wanted to make a good first impression. That was important. The first impression could make or break a mission start. Maybe Sion was worrying too much, but frankly he believed he wasn't worrying enough.

With another deep breath in Sion strode into the room and smiled.

"An honor meeting you, Knight Davani. My name is Sio-" Stretching out a hand for a shake, before he realized she had already greeted him with his name. "That... well, I suppose you know that already."

Sion flushed and gently took his hand back before a shake could occur.

"I am sorry. I am still kind of new at this. I went straight from imprisonment to the medical chambers to a war on Teta... so a mission like this?"

The flush dissipated as Lorray allowed himself to be a bit excited again. "Well, it means a lot I was assigned to this. Hopefully I will be able to assist you in it in any way possible."

 

[Alora Davani]

Sion Lorray​

Alora watched as Sion entered. As he proffered his hand briefly, her own pale hand rose to meet it... but found that he'd already withdrawn. His tone -- and words -- were apologetic, but she simply waved the apologies away with a pleasant smile. Her brows rose ever slightly at his explanation. Imprisonment. Medical Chambers. War. Each one of those topics likely had a full story to accompany it. And while she was curious, she did not want to overstep her bounds and make the young man uncomfortable by asking.

​

She nodded. "I'm very glad you were able to come," she said. "In truth, this is new for me, too."

​

Motioning for him to join her around the table, Alora lit up coordinates on the holo-display and zoomed into the area. "So," she began, glancing to her new companion. "This region here has been experiencing quite a lot of unrest as of late." Her normally jovial expression clouded over. "From what I understand, there hasn't been any notable conflicts on this world for some time. The Jedi believe there may be something... influencing the population."

​

Alora paused for a moment. "We're to investigate the cause."

​

 

[Sion Lorray]

Alora Davani

So awkward.

But thankfully Sion couldn't feel any malicious amusement flowing out of Alora. So either she was killer at keeping her emotions locked in or Sion hadn't fallen on his face too much. It surprised him to learn this was new to her too. Two greenhorns being send somewhere without any supervision from the Council?

Surprised, yes, but maybe Sion shouldn't have been.

"The Order is stretched thin on two fronts," He said softly after a moment of thought. "The Maw on one side, the Imperials on the next, it leaves little to handle these matters... that are just as important."

If not more so in a way.

Sion nodded as he stepped up next to her and watched the Holo. "Do they suspect Sith involvement... or perhaps the Maw?" The latter especially made his skin crawl. "There are a lot of ways you can influence someone into doing something. But." Brows furrowed. "A whole region in conflict? It would have to be something exceptionally powerful."

The average sentient wasn't as sensitive as he was in their empathy.

You could bend them here and there. But to cause tensions to erupt this way? A concerning thought.

"We should approach this carefully. Do you have a plan ready?" His earlier awkwardness readily presenting itself to him again, he wanted to avoid falling on his face again by telling his superior what they ought to do.

 

[Alora Davani]

Sion Lorray​

​

Alora listened as Sion spoke – and she could not have agreed more.

"That's the thing," she said, brows knitted together in thought. "At this time, they don't suspect the Sith or Maw are involved. At least, there's been no notable activity in this area."

Of course, that didn't meant it wasn't the Sith.

As she watched Sion, she could sense he was holding back. She canted her head slightly, a kind smile on her face. "Indeed," she said, nodding. "It will require a careful approach." Did she have a plan? Not really. "If you have any ideas, I'd like to hear them." Though she was a Knight, the healer was very open to collaboration – she felt it was needed at times like this. Two minds were better than one, as they often say.

Most of her own experience was based around healing, not battle. Perhaps Sion had more experience in that area.

​

 

[Sion Lorray]

Alora Davani

No Sith suspicion?

But what else could it be.

A region doesn't just start sliding into turmoil out of nowhere. There was always something there. But maybe Sion should keep an open-mind. His Master always said that if you immediately locked yourself into one possibility, you clouded yourself from any others. This was exactly the wrong tack to take if you were investigating.

Nodding there one Alora encouraged him to speak her mind. He smiled to her, before stepping a bit closer to the hologram.

"We shouldn't go in there as Jedi. If there is a Sith presence, it might go to ground the moment they hear our steps." He tapped a button and it brought up the demographics of the planet.

"Instead, it might be wiser to arrive there in a role. Trader, spacer, something- then quietly investigate." He rubbed his jaw as Sion looked through the list of species that populated the planet. "If there is something there influencing these people... Sith or something else, it shouldn't be long before we encounter its presence."

Then a shrug as he looked up at Alora.

"Well, that's just what I think, but I am-" just a Padawan. But what had Osarla Ridor told him a few weeks ago? If someone asks for your opinion and you present it, don't undermine yourself by backtracking. "-interested in your thoughts. Maybe there is something I am not seeing?"

 

[Alora Davani]

Sion Lorray​

​

Alora's brows arched as he spoke his idea. Her expression mingled with surprise momentarily, but a sure smile formed on her lips. "Yes," she said, nodding. "That is quite a good idea."

For her, the idea to disguse her identity as a Jedi hadn't even occurred. It was such a part of who she was now. However, she could see the benefit. Indeed there were those that might react... negatively towards Jedi. It wouldn't do them well to give themselves up so easily.

"I think traders might fit the bill," she said, glancing thoughtfully towards the holo-display. "Given this world's remote location, I should think traders might be welcome." At least, she hoped so.

Her own outfit, if she took away the cape, wouldn't give her away. And Sion could always add a jacket to his ensemble, perhaps there was a member of the crew that would allow him to borrow something if he didn't have one.

Alora zoomed in on the holo display.

"The unrest seems to be the worst in this area," said, pointing. "Shall we drop onto the fringes, just there?" Again, her slim index finger showed the way. "And have a chance to see what we're dealing with?"

 

[Sion Lorray]

Alora Davani

He took a closer look to the location she was indicating.

It was an average-sized settlement. By the looks of it they had a clear line towards the forests around them and a river cut through its border. The attached information suggested they were a lumber-exporting town. That would work in their favor. It meant they'd be used to people passing by and new faces showing up.

"Good pick, yeah." Sion murmured thoughtfully as he studied the landing zone. "It will be a bit of a rough landing. But safer than trying to park at their small spaceport. Less eyes on us."

His arms folded behind him, hands squeezing together in a token sign of anxiety.

First mission without Ridor looking over him.

"Do we have a speeder or something? If we come in on foot, they might have more questions for us, less so if we have a clear mode of transportation."

The locals shouldn't know they had access to a spaceship. After all, they'd wonder why they didn't just park in the port itself, like any normal person.

 

[Alora Davani]

Sion Lorray​

Their plan seemed to be forming.

Despite the many unknowns ahead, Alora didn't seem anxious -- unlike her companion. She'd noticed him wringing his hands. However, she chose not to say anything. Instead, she did her best to radiate a calm confidence through her force aura. When the question of their transportation came up, Alora blinked.

"Ah," she said, as if remembering. "You know, there was a speeder in the cargo hold."

The ship -- a rather nondescript transport -- wasn't terribly large, but it ran supplies and people from time to time. Soon, very soon, they'd be setting down on the planet, and the real work would begin.

---

Once they'd made a safe, if rocky, landing, Alora grabbed her backpack. There wasn't much inside, but she felt that a trader needed to have things. She'd left her white robe behind, now in a sleeveless tunic and tawny pants. For good measure, she'd added a belt and a blaster on her hip. Force save her if she had to actually use it, though.

As they approached the speeder, Alora's upbeat steps slowed until she stopped. "Do... you know how to drive one of these?" Yes, that was a rather important detail she'd overlooked.

 

[Sion Lorray]

Alora Davani

Cargo pants, tunic, jacket over it. And a cowled cape so he could pull it over his head, if need be.

His scar always managed to draw some attention.

That was probably not a good thing in this case.

Just as Davani he got a blaster, his from the armory, but he had only a little bit more training than her with it. Enough to hit a stationary target from some distance, but that didn't mean much. Unless any particular enemy they faced would be so polite to wait for him to aim. That... was probably not gonna be in the cards.

But it looked good on the belt.

"Oh." Sion looked over the speeder, crouching down next to it, so he tap its hull. "Oh, yeah, I haven't ever driven one of these. But back with the Academy we used an older version."

Without hesitation - and some confidence returning now that Sion felt he was actually contributing - he slung his leg over and settled on top of the speeder. "Hold on tight though, if this one is anything like its grandparent... it's gonna have a kick to it." The fact that Sion had never had a cute girl wrap her arms around him was something he tried to push as deep down as possible.

Distractions would NOT be wise here.

"Ready?"

Once Alora confirmed he'd engage the engine. The speeder lifted up into the air and hummed loudly. Like being on top of a big purring Nexu. But this one wouldn't try to chew them up.

He pushed the controls down and the speeder zipped away. It was a nice feeling, the air beating at their clothes, the horizon in front of them. You could almost forget that they were here on an important life-or-death mission. Almost. It would take them about fifteen minutes, before the sight of the town would slowly gain in sharpness in the distance.

Even at this hour it was busy. Ships landing, ships lifting off, it was a bustling affair.

Over the engine it would be difficult to talk, so he tapped the comms and his voice filtered through her earpiece. "Should we try and hit a cantina? Bars usually are good places to get the lay of the land."

That's what... the shows said anyway.

Not like Sion had ever been IN a bar.

 

[Alora Davani]

Alora let out a tiny sigh of relief when Sion mentioned that he'd had experience with speeders before. "Oh, right!" she said, nodding as he instructed her to hold on. After climbing onto the speeder bike behind Sion, Alora's arms encircled his midsection. "Ready," she confirmed.

The healer let out a gasp and held tighter to him as the speeder took off.

With the wind whipping through her strawberry-blonde locks, Alora smiled as they rode. It turned out, this was a great way to get sense of the planet -- even if it the scenery was flying by. It was clear that it was a hub for trade, what with the ships coming and going. With any hope, the two Jedi would be able to blend in with the crowd.

"Cantina?" she asked. "Yes, that should work."

Like her companion, Alora had never set foot in such a place. When the speeder came to a stop, Alora hopped down and gave Sion a nod as if to say, 'good driving!' She probably looked a bit wind-swept and disheveled, but perhaps that was for the best. As she let her senses grow alert, she had to admit to a strange sense of... unease.

"Shall we?" Alora canted her head to the side, then stepped into the cantina.

They were immediately met by tabac smoke, a think cloud that made Alora bring a hand to her mouth to stifle a cough. The light was dimmer than outside, and that fact seemed to make the inhabitants feel more at home. Almost every table was full at this hour, but there were some scattered places available by the bar. And Alora didn't need the force to know that there were eyes upon them, many pairs.

"Ah, erm." She cleared her throat. "How about a drink?"

Sion Lorray

 

[Sion Lorray]

Alora Davani

Slowly nodding there and following behind her.

Maybe it would have been smart to come up with more details about their cover identity. Like who they were to one another. Business partners, friends, lovers, but they hadn't thought of that. Mistakenly. But it showed they weren't dedicated SIA agents. Those would have arrived on planet with dedicated cover stories, a history of agents already seeding the way for them and more.

They had their robes, utility belts and hopefully a lightsaber they wouldn't have to use.

"Good idea." He nodded again, trying to ignore the looks as Sion led the way towards the bar. "A spritzer, please." It probably would have made more sense to order something alcoholic in a place like this.

Sion hadn't thought of that however.

"Nice to get something cold and fresh after a long journey like that, huh?" To Alora but in a way it would be overheard. Then once the drinks were there and attention slipped away from them (for now) Sion leaned in. "Don't know about you, but this feels so awkward." Murmured softly into her ear as he casually glanced around.

"Just a month ago I was a green horn who wasn't trusted with..." Sion realized that being very specific could be detrimental, if they were overheard so instead he shrugged. "Anything really. And now here we are."

Then a little grin.

"Kinda exciting, isn't it?"