Private Crimson Spirit

[Anneliese Kaohal]

Items: Lightsaber I Engagement Ring I Outfit X X II Equipment X X X I Theme Song I Bloodline Tattoo


Tags: Tycho Arak
Location: Coruscant Gardens
Objective: Post Tython​

She sat alone on a bench, the wind catching her hair gently and tugging at the unruly strands of fire that now danced against the vast tapestry that was the skies of Coruscant.

Tython.

That word stung heavily within her mind and hung heavy on her heart. The aftermath following the Galatic Alliances defeat was... taxing. They had suffered yet another defeat -- but, their light had yet to be extinguished... for as long as they all drew breath, the darkness would not win. Her body ached in sheer protest as she sat stiff on the hard bench... her mind was still foggy from all that had transpired on the dark moon of Bogan. Ghostly sounds from battle haunted her memory, her mind replaying each and every kill over, and over, and over. Her usually brilliant emerald eyes were dull, tired -- and distant. In the end, Anneliese had fought brilliantly -- feth -- she'd fought the last part of battle with one arm, the young woman sitting there, her left arm in a sling, various cuts and scraps now scabbed over -- the Bacta tanks were inundated currently, addressing only the highest priority patients first and her arm had been deemed a lower priority -- she'd have to wait her turn to see the healers.

Anneliese didn't care... she was just glad she'd made it back. Glad Roman Vossari was safe. Glad she was able to keep Caelan Valoren safe... but so much had been lost.

War was the hardest and cruelest taskmaster of them all.

She'd received a message from Tycho Arak , asking to meet at one of their usual spots. In her mind, she'd known that Tycho had gone to Tython as well... but all she knew was he hadn't been on Bogan -- she'd hoped and prayed just like with her own Master Valery Noble that they were safe and that they had both escaped relatively unharmed. She would hear from Val soon, she was sure of this -- as well as Azurine Varek ... there was much to catch up on now, with everyone.

As she let out another sigh, she looked down in the waters that lie in front of her -- noticing her own reflection.

It had changed... but not necessarily for the worse.

She'd gone to Tython with one purpose in mind -- to battle the demons that'd followed her since her first campaign. She'd conquered them on Bogan when she'd fought for more than just herself. She'd exhausted every ounce, every reserve of strength she'd had -- and even pushed herself past the point from which she'd thought she'd never been able to. Anneliese was now no longer the same timid girl that she'd set out as -- the sleeper had awoke and the Krayt had spread her wings and bared her teeth. She'd roared and the fire had spread and shown all she would not yield -- that her resolve was absolute. She had been victorious in her own right... and as she sat awaiting Tycho, she allowed her mind to become blank once again, trying her hardest to numb out the sounds that still echoed in her mind.

 

[Tycho Arak]

Outfit: Sentinel Standard
Weapons: Lightsaber
Tags: Anneliese Kaohal

"The measure of a person is not whether they win their battles," Tycho said as he drew near to the bench upon which his daughter sat, "but how they learn from them and how they grow from it."

He sat down beside her, and the only thing she might note was that his left arm seemed stiff, and there appeared to be a brace on his shoulder beneath his tunic. Despite that, he didn't seem worse for wear, just tired. The fight he'd had on Tython had exhausted much of his energy as a result of what he'd been fighting against. Force Vampires were a nuisance. Their very existence was a perversion of the Force and he hoped that one day he would be able to finish his fight with Dyans Keto by removing her head, not just her arm.

Having sat so his right side was near her, he turned to look her over, noting the arm in a sling.

"How bad is it?"

Even though he'd known she was going to the front he had hoped that she would be careful and avoid the majority of fighting. Hoped, but not expected or demanded. Never would he make demands of her unless there were immediate repercussions that needed to be avoided. Her life was her own to live and as a Jedi he knew that she had a duty to serve the Alliance and the Order, which meant she likely had to go.

Didn't change the fact that he'd worried about her. Didn't change the fact that he was pained to see that she was injured. But even though he felt that way, he didn't let it slip out. Always the warrior, always collected. That was how he'd been taught to exist for his whole life and even with Annie he felt it a struggle to let his feelings come forth. Ran had succeeded in getting some from him, and Annie had gotten joy from him when she'd called him dad, but there was still much hidden inside him.

He reached a hand over to her injured arm and lay it gently upon it, allowing warmth to flow through it as he channeled the Force towards her injuries. He did not have the same requirements as the healers of the Jedi so he could prioritize her.

"Tell me about what happened on Bogan."

​

 

[Anneliese Kaohal]

Items: Lightsaber I Engagement Ring I Outfit X X II Equipment X X X I Theme Song I Bloodline Tattoo


Tags: Tycho Arak
Location: Coruscant Gardens
Objective: Post Tython​

Her ears rang slightly as Tycho spoke -- his touch, wasn't unwelcome, but she felt otherworldly, as if somehow she was witnessing her body while indwelling in her body. Speaking, but stammering slightly on her words, she kept her gaze afixed off into the distance, her tired eyes not once hinting of any emotion.

"Tis ok -- the pain hasn't bothered me much, I think I'm used to the ache at this point."

That was a slightl lie -- yes, it wasn't some awful pain -- but the dull ache ate away at her self control and caused her over the last few days of being back to lash out at other people due to her lack of patience and restraint... but she didn't want to be a burden. Coupling the other issue that seemed to have compounded now overnight, her nightmares. Ever since her return from Tython, she'd been plagued with dreams that kept her in a state of unrest... and as the two of them sat she spoke, keeping it as a matter of fact.

"They were everywhere... the Sith Spawn... I can still hear their guttural growls and shrieks in my head, its not something you forget... just like the sound of a man taking his last breath."

She paused as her breathing began to become hitched, but she pushed through and pushed it down.

"We kept advancing towards a temple, the group I was with -- until I ran into an unexpected guest... a Padawan, someone I hold in high regard, like a brother... he followed me to Bogan. It was bad Tycho... he shouldn't have been there." Her right fist tightened as she spoke. "When we advanced into the temple, we were ambushed. He pushed me out of the way, he got hurt... I killed.... and kept killing with one focus in mind. To protect, to survive -- I can't even tell you how many we lost -- how many I killed... because I lost count...." A dry, coarse and humorous laugh escaped her mouth. "I just, lost count..."

Her hand came up to her temples as she rubbed them, clearly fatigued written all over her body and face.

"I'm sorry -- I haven't been sleeping well since I got back..."

 

[Tycho Arak]

Tags: Anneliese Kaohal

Whether she realized it or not, he could tell that she was hurting. It might be that the arm didn't bother her that much, but she was certainly still in pain. The least he could do was work to fix her arm for her. He shifted and used both of his hands to rest them upon her injured limb, letting the Force flow through him and into her, mending her wounds. Might take a little bit, but he had the time. After all, he had wanted to see her. It was important to him that he make sure she was alright.

So he let her talk. Sometimes it was talking about the terrible things that you'd been through that helped make things right. Or, at least, that was his experience in talking with the few people he'd ever told his life story too. It always seemed to take more of the weight off of him, ease the pain away, when he shared his past. He no longer felt the weight of it, nor the hatred of his parents. He'd disconnected from that part of him.

"Killing is not something we should take lightly. Too many of us do," he said, watching her closely. "I'm guilty of it myself. I've killed in the name of justice or helping others and never batted an eye at it because I was taught not to."

Couldn't really be a soldier in someone's army if you were bothered by killing. They'd almost completely beaten those feelings out of him. Almost. The last little bit of decency he'd had left in him was the reason he'd rejected that life. He was still working on bringing back the person that had been taken from him, but he was certain in time he would be better. Especially with Annie to help him.

"I know it sounds callous but you need to let go of the fact that you lost count. We can't change the past and what's done is done. It's more important that you move forward from this, learn from it and apply what you learn to how you do things from now on. You'll never forget those sounds, but you can find good things to overcome them."

He lifted a hand to brush some hair from her face, and then reached for her hand. The other continued to work on healing her.

"Remember the training we did before? Focus on that for a second. Where did I tell you that strength comes from?"

 

[Anneliese Kaohal]

Items: Lightsaber I Engagement Ring I Outfit X X II Equipment X X X I Theme Song I Bloodline Tattoo

​

She wasn't callous to the killing -- no, like Samuel Creed had pointed out, the heightened sense of awareness that her first kill had brought to her had been kicked into overdrive now by the slaughter which was Tython that they had all just survived... and it was a high she felt she couldn't come down off of... it was a high, she quite frankly didn't want to come down off of -- rather, she now wanted to search and seek strength that she did not have, so that when this came knocking on her doorstep again, she would be better prepared for it.

As Tycho tended to her arm, and his hand came to move strands of hair from her face -- she stared straight ahead as he ask the question of where her strength came from.

"It comes from within..."

That was the other thing that, well -- she wouldn't say quite bothered her, but gnawed at her mind. Out of her age group -- there were several strong and talented Padawans -- but something, surprised even her and that was how tenacious even she'd been during the crucible of battle. Her own drive, her own strength -- but yet, even then, there was a desire, for more.

"Hey Tych-- Dad... was there ever a time when you wanted more... more strength... but I mean that in the sense of now power, but strength to protect more, fight harder, longer -- does that make sense?"

 

[Tycho Arak]

Tags: Anneliese Kaohal

"Correct. When you feel troubled about something that has happened, remember that, and draw on your strength to help you get past what ails you."

She continued to stare straight ahead and he was starting to worry that he was losing the girl that had that fire in her. The fire was still there, but it was diminished, smoldering coals. When she'd had that raging inferno he'd always felt that she would be able to do what she put her mind to. Now she seemed subdued, muted. Almost like she was missing something. Part of him wondered if it was caused in part by her connection to the beast that terrorized her family. Could it be partly caused by the mark that she bore?

What he really felt was that she was just beaten down by what she'd seen and done. Truthfully, in that very moment, she reminded him more of himself when he'd left Quarzite as a teenager. Staring into the distance. Introspection. Feeling somewhat lost in it all. He could sympathize. When she called him dad again, it made him smile for just a moment, because it reassured him that she was still there.

"Everyone who desires to do good and protect others feels that way at some point. It's the worst when we've lost someone that we couldn't save. Like the stolen children I failed to save when I was just a Kage Warrior. I wanted to save them. I felt that was what I had become a warrior to do. But I hadn't and it seemed that if I'd only been faster, stronger, I could have.

"Reality was that I couldn't have. Even if I'd had the training in the Force that I do now, I wouldn't have been able to save them because someone else was working to harm them.

"I've felt what you describe more recently, though. When you were coming to train. The first time you called me dad. I wanted more from myself because I want to keep you safe, and those you care about safe, and I will fight to do so. But even then I know I can't fight your battle for you. As much as it pains me, I have to let you face what bothers you."

He gave her arm a light squeeze. Partly he was testing to see how his healing was doing, and partly as a means to comfort her.

"You can train until the day you die, become faster, stronger, have more energy, but even if you do, and I've seen this myself and tell myself this often, there will always be people you lose. That is the way life is. We can't save everyone, but what separates us from others is that we try. And when we fail, we pick ourselves up again, and we try again."