Private Detention In Dungeon

[Madrona A’Mia]

Korriban
The Tunnels Below Kor'ethyr
Some Weeks Following the Woostri Invasion
[VIBES]

Trouble Makers: Lysander von Ascania / Haro Aven / Naamino Zuukamano

​

Displeased.

That was what she was feeling.

The neti had found things irksome in the past, irritating or even painful at times. For the first time though, students had finally managed to make poor enough decisions that she was well and truly disappointed. Their small contingent of Kor'ethyr students had done reasonably well on Woostri, all things considered. The Order experienced a victory and her students had played no small part in the battle.

Despite setbacks she'd faced and delays caused by her opponent Corazona von Ascania , A'Mia would have been able to report back to Korriban with a nearly spotless debriefing. Were it not for the brawl that broke out on the ship that the Empress herself had lent them, that is...

Darth Thaliax, Kor'ethyr's battle-master, was far more commonly the one to discipline students that so spectacularly karked up. However, A'Mia assumed personal responsibility for those she'd taken to Woostri and therefor it was her responsibility to eke out punishment upon the responsible parties.

She'd already personally seen to the mending of Lysander, and experience he wouldn't soon forget despite being unconscious for the vast majority of his recovery. Then there was the hard headed, rather taciturn zabrak who held almost no interest for her. She had reason to believe that Elmindra Xitaar saw potential in him, but the neti couldn't be bothered with students that were anything short of genius. What she had not forseen was that there'd be a non force user amongst the primary trouble makers.

"You three have a long day ahead of you. There will be no short cuts, and any further attempts to murder eachother will result in all of you being turned into fertilizer for my newest shipment of syren plants."

She paused, an unusually sour expression on her face. The woman was also a bit smaller and her hair shorter then normal, still recovering from her own injuries. But she looked down on all of them despite that. A'Mia targeted Haro, reaching out to press a bag of items into his arms as she peered down at him.

"Three daggers, three bottles of water, three datapads- they won't connect to the holonet down here, so don't bother. You are tasked with mapping this series of tunnels and perhaps even caverns. Each of you will annotate your maps for the sake of allowing us to triangulate the points later to increase accuracy. You must log a minimum of five kilometers in a general direction, then and only then, you may begin your journey back."

The woman paused and her affect finally began to lighten a bit, perhaps because she'd soon be rid of the miscreants for a while.

"There are dangers in these hallways, spectres some say." A'Mia tilted her head and smiled.

"Not only will you complete this task together, but you must return together too. If one of you happens to suffer mortal injury down here, all of your lives are forfeit. Understand?"

The woman fully straightened up, unnerving eyes gliding over each of them. She clasped her hands behind her back then nodded, turning away to begin ascending the long stairs. She had a rather outrageous bill and a friendly letter to send off to dearest Cora.

 

[Lysander von Ascania]

Trouble Makers: Haro Aven | Naamino Zuukamano
​

Lysander stood rooted in his spot, a myriad of emotions brewing beneath the surface as the detention group was addressed. The thought of being near the Zabrak, Naamino, irritated him.

No—it left him seething.

His feelings toward Haro were different. In a reckless moment of rage, he'd punched him in the face, and now guilt gnawed at the acolyte for it. Of them all, Haro was probably the most innocent. Perhaps that was why he'd been handed the bag, packed with whatever A’Mia deemed essential.

His anger at the professor was like a flame that refused to die. He was still pissed; after all, she'd used Sithspawns against his sister. Still, a smirk blossomed on his lips, born of pure satisfaction, as he noted Amia's altered appearance. It seemed Corazona von Ascania had given the evil tree lady a run for her credits, attacking with a ferocity that had evidently left a mark– a testament to the other blonde's prowess.

The worst realization was like a knee to the stomach— he couldn’t connect to the HoloNet. Between adjusting to the academy, the battle on Woostri, and recovering in a bacta tank, at least a month, if not more, had gone by since he expressed to Sibylla Abrantes that he’d keep in touch after leaving Naboo. In a strange and foreign way, he really hoped she hadn’t let him fade from her thoughts during the absence.

As the Nti turned and began to depart with disdain, he shook his head in disappointment. Her final words lingered uncomfortably in the air, blending with an oppressive atmosphere that pulsed with dark energy. Lysander felt as determined as he did with any task, but the camaraderie was clearly absent.

Distracting himself a moment longer, he glanced down at his knee and flexed the joint. Fortunately, it was still responding without any pain, functioning just as it always had. A barely visible scar traced his eyebrow, a reminder from when the Zabrak's horn had caught him. His fingers brushed against it as he turned to Haro, his voice steady. "I'd like my dagger and the bottle of water; you can keep the tablet."

 

[Haro Aven]

​

LOCATION: KORRIBAN > KOR'ETHYR ACADEMY > UNCHARTED TUNNELS​

TIMESTAMP: WEEKS AFTER THE INVASION OF WOOSTRI​

EQUIPMENT: CASUAL CLOTHES | BODIE | DATAPAD [3] | DAGGER [3]​

OBJECTIVE: MAP AT LEAST 6 KILOMETERS OF TUNNELS, ENSURE ALL THREE OF US RETURN ALIVE​

TAGS: Naamino Zuukamano | Lysander von Ascania ​

It had been over a month since they’d returned from Woostri and Haro had thought the ordeal with Lysander von Ascania was behind them. Evidently, he was very wrong. The evil tree lady had just been biding her time, waiting for Lysander to heal enough to properly punish him along with Haro and Naami.

Despite her reduced size, Madrona A’Mia was still as terrifying as ever, perhaps even more so given that she was clearly displeased with the three of them. During the handful of times Haro had the misfortune of being in the Neti’s presence, she’d been chipper in an eery and affected way, often dawning a smile that didn't touch the unblinking orbs that were supposedly her eyes. This time though, she wore a scowl which left no doubt in Haro's mind that she would make good on her threat to turn them into fertilizer if they did not obey–a truly distressing thought considering who he was stuck with and how close they were to killing each other last time they were together. When she honed in on Haro, he visibly blenched and it took everything in him not to physically shrink back for fear that the show of weakness might encourage pursuit.

"There are dangers in these hallways, spectres some say." As if on queue, what sounded like crumbling stone echoed from deeper into the cavern and Haro tensed, glancing over his shoulder nervously.

Of course, he silently lamented, they weren't just stuck mapping caverns together, they were stuck mapping haunted caverns together. Without access to the Holonet, and no way to call for help.

"I'd like my dagger and the bottle of water; you can keep the tablet," Lysander said in a calm steady tone.

Haro just looked at him for a moment, expression unreadable, his keen crystalline eyes glowing faintly in the dim light of the cavern as they studied him. Finally, he turned to face him, spine straight in a rare show of good posture to accentuate his comparable height, even if he was a bit more slender than Lysander.

"Alright," he acquiesced in a reasonable tone. "Fine. But let's agree to something first. All of us." Haro glanced sidelong at Naami with a pointed, almost beseeching look, as if asking his friend not to fight him on this. He continued, addressing them both.

"I, for one, wanna get out of this alive without becoming plant food, and I think the best chance of that is to get some things straight before we get into dangerous territory. So, I propose a deal. Lysander apologizes for starting the fight that got us into this mess in the first place. Naami apologizes for going too far and beating Lysander nearly to death. If you think I owe you an apology, Lysander, speak now or hold your peace. Then we shake on it and we leave it here at the vault door, and Naami and I will have your back as long as you've got ours." He paused.

"Deal?"​

 

[Naamino Zuukamano]

Outfit:
Simple black athletic clothes,
moon-blue hand wraps, dagger,
datapad, and water bottle.


[VIBES]

​

Evidence of Naamino's foul mood would have been difficult to find at first. He was the very picture of deferential respect while Professor Madrona explained their punishment. When she'd first fetched him, annoyingly right in the middle of a morning workout, he'd plead his case for being able to bring his backpack along with some rations. She'd flatly refused and hauled him down into the depths below Kor'ethyr with his friend Haro Aven and newly pieced together rival, Lysander von Ascania .

The zabrak's cold eyes narrowed as the blonde boy spoke, but he remained quiet, even relaxed looking with no outward signs of anger.

Yet.

Then Haro pitched his very reasonable proposal, and Naami's lip curled in a silent snarl. He suddenly seemed the very embodiment of an angry tuk'ata, proverbial hackles raised. Despite all the outward signs of distaste at the idea of working with Lysander, let alone apologizing to him, Naami's voice came out quiet and deadly calm.

"I don't think I owe this schutta much of anything at all, particularly if he's already planning to slack on mapping."

It was juvenile perhaps, to talk about the tall boy as if he wasn't present. Naami didn't care. He crossed his arms and finally took icy eyes off the Von Ascania to regard Haro coolly, with none of the same venom he'd packed just moments before.

"If you want an apology from me... That is something I could agree to."

 

[Lysander von Ascania]

Trouble Makers: Haro Aven | Naamino Zuukamano
​

Lysander cast a sidelong glance at Haro. Skepticism was etched across his youthful features as the boy began to initiate some kind of truce. Only a few words actually lodged themselves in his stubborn mind. A heavy sigh escaped through his nose; it carried the weight of an empty stomach, and all the other frustrations that were beginning to bottle up. The last time he'd had a solid meal was before the battle on Woostri.

Even a chalky ration bar sounded amazing right now.

While collecting his thoughts, exhaustion began pressing heavily upon his shoulders. It was painfully obvious that his current physical condition was weakened, and his energy levels weren't much better.

The acolyte crossed his arms tightly over his chest, tilting his head slightly so his nose lifted with an air of superiority. "I'm sorry for punching you, Haro" he started, the words tasting bitter on his tongue. "It was wrong of me.. no matter how heated things got," he added, his voice carrying notes of sincerity. A beat later, the stubbornness returned, cutting through him like a vibroblade.

A slight shrug was all he could manage, a twitch of the shoulders as thoughts of the others now lingered in his mind. "My aim was just.. off. But I won't be apologizing to Naamino. My only regret is not being able to put him to sleep. And I don't care what that hairless Wookie Professor A'Mia thinks about all of this either. I have some choice words for her too after this ridiculous task.”

His gaze suddenly narrowed and locked onto the other boy. "What the feth did you just call me?" The words were heavily laced with venom; whatever a schutta was, it wasn't sitting well with him.

The acolyte shifted his stance, standing tall, peering around Haro to meet the Zabrak's gaze head on. “You know what, Naamino? You need to relax. You’ve got more horns than brain cells!”

 

[Haro Aven]

Naamino Zuukamano | Lysander von Ascania ​

Haro could feel the silent rage radiating from his friend before he even spoke. He had hoped Naami would just go along with it so they could get this over with, but he had admittedly expected a reaction like this from the stubborn Zabrak. Even so, Haro rolled his eyes and sighed before his disappointed gaze landed pointedly on Naami. He was about to explain to his friend that apologizing to him was not the point when Lysander spoke up and made his own apology. A part of him felt validated that the two of them at least seemed to agree Haro hadn't done anything wrong, except maybe put himself between these two knuckleheads. Yet, here he was again...

For a moment, Haro thought they might be able to make progress, but then Lysander had to go and ruin it. Haro's eyes darted in the direction A'Mia had gone, suddenly terrified that the Neti might have overheard Lysander's comments about her. Did this guy have a death wish or was he just stupid?!

The moment Lysander shifted his stance and squared up, Haro stepped up to interject, gesturing stand down behind his back to Naami as he did so.

"Hey, no, NO. We are not doing this again. Not here," he insisted, looking Lysander in the eyes.

"You guys don't wanna apologize to each other, fine. But before we go any further, I won't accept anything less than a promise that we will all do everything we can to get this done and get out of here alive. That means no slacking on mapping, no sabotaging, and no karking fighting. If you can't agree to that, I suggest you leave now and take it up with A'Mia. I'm sure she'd appreciate the opportunity to find other creative ways to punish you." His tone was firm and unrelenting, uncharacteristically cold even.

Haro held the blonde boy's gaze for a moment longer but his expression soon softened a bit and he sighed, as if relenting to an idea. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a candy bar that had happened to be there when he'd been collected for this task. A'Mia hadn't allowed him to bring additional provisions but she hadn't had him searched so he still had what had been on his person at the time. It was a hardy candy bar too, more of a protein bar really, packed with nuts and caramel. He held it up but didn't quite offer it yet, making it clear it was a bargaining chip to sweeten the deal.

"I accept and appreciate your apology, Lysander... can we count on you?" He asked, his tone disarmingly genuine and even kind, though still a bit cautious. He found most people mostly responded well to kindness and it sure felt a lot better to him than being mean.​

 

[Naamino Zuukamano]

Lysander still had some fight in him apparently, despite the fact that he looked like his spirit had been feasted on by an enclave of hungry ghosts rather than coming directly from the med-bay, where he'd been healing for weeks. Contrary to the snooty lift of the nobleman's chin, Naami's brow lowered dangerously and icy, calm eyes watched from beneath dark eyebrows.

He made a small grunt of approval when the boy apologized to Haro, arms still crossed as he listened and the human went on. Naami's eyes narrowed a bit as Lysander's pride reared its head and he bit back verbally. But the zabrak kept his cool and Haro stepped in before he decided on a reply.

The moment Lysander shifted his stance and squared up, Haro stepped up to interject, gesturing stand down behind his back to Naami as he did so.

The zabrak straightened up a bit himself, raising his head so he wasn't quite so menacing with lowered horns. He also let out a slow breath, almost a sigh, committed to letting Haro and Lysander work it out. His friend's offer took him by surprise and it showed in the wry raised eyebrow, the curious tilt of his head as he looked at the offered food.

Wow, he really means business if he's offering this chit-head some of his candy, Naami mused to himself dryly.

His posture relaxed further and he even turned to gaze down the dark hallway, assessing the task ahead. It was clear the zabrak wasn't going to interrupt and in fact, seemed ready to bury the zhaboka just so long as things continued to go smoothly between Haro and Lysander.

 

[Lysander von Ascania]

Trouble Makers: Haro Aven | Naamino Zuukamano
​

Once more, Lysander already felt the familiar surge of adrenaline, something that seemed to always lie just beneath his exterior, waiting for the most minor provocation. With the other two students before him, that spark was already there, irritation transforming and providing just a bit of strength into his drained muscles that surprisingly felt good.

One side of his mind urged conflict, while the other leaned toward rationality. When his gaze locked with Haro’s, it almost felt like a quiet challenge. However, deep down, he was relieved that Naamino remained silent; the Zabrak saying anything in return might have been enough to make the situation escalate.

But then, the movement of something else caught the acolyte’s eye— a candy bar. The storm brewing within him vanished as quickly as it had gathered. His attention locked onto the wrapped treat, every trace of aggravation becoming a distant memory. Yet, the gnawing hunger still growled loudly in his stomach.

Suddenly, the boy's lips twitched into a grin, and the tension in his shoulder began to melt as he echoed Haro. “Fine. No slacking on mapping, no sabotaging, and no fething fighting. And I promise.. I'll do my best to make sure all of us get out of this alive.”

It felt like a verbal contract had just been signed.

He cast a quick glance at Naamino once more, releasing a sigh he hadn’t realized he’d been holding. Running a hand through his blonde hair, Lysander found himself enveloped in silence; empathy was nudging at him. Tagging right along with it was lingering guilt. It was totally uninvited, disgusting even, but he couldn’t shake it off. He then reminded himself that if his mentor Revna, even with all the Sith tales surrounding the Outer Rim, had turned out to be really cool, then maybe these two weren’t so bad either.

Though he hated having to apologize, as it twisted his insides, he would finally manage. It came out a little awkward. "My bad about what happened on the Vorpal Fang.. I can’t even really explain what was going on in my head, but it was wrong of me either way." It might not have come across as the most heartfelt, but for anyone who knew him, it was still progress.

"I guess those horns of yours are more than just a fashion statement," he added lightheartedly.

 

[Haro Aven]

Naamino Zuukamano | Lysander von Ascania ​

The moment Lysander's eyes locked onto the candy bar, Haro knew he had him. As if his eager gaze wasn't enough of a giveaway, Lysander's stomach then growled loudly. He had used this tried-and-true tactic countless times back in the Undercity to keep the peace between the urchins and orphans because of it's effectiveness–in the end, there were few drives more powerful than the need to eat. Haro flashed a roguish grin back at Lysander when he fulfilled his side of the bargain.

"Excellent," he said, handing over the candy bar without hesitation as promised.

Haro had started digging into the pack to divvy up the items when Lysander spoke up again. To Haro's surprise, the boy had decided to actually take accountability for what had happened on the Vorpal Fang, awkward and dispassionate as his delivery might have been.

"I can't even really explain what was going on in my head," Lysander admitted. Haro glanced at his friend, recalling conversations they'd had after Woostri when Naami reported a strange sensation of being overcome by a power greater than himself during the battle, of not being fully in control. Based on how it had felt to Naami and the fact that Haro hadn't felt anything of the sort, they had theorized that it must have been related to the Force. So it would make sense that Lysander might have been effected by it too.

Haro huffed a bit of a chuckle through his nose at the comment about Naami's horns and nodded, handing a dagger and data pad to his buddy first. He opted to keep Naami's water bottle in the backpack for now, unless he asked for it.

"Heh, yeah, no kiddin'. Those things are serious business," Haro agreed, nodding toward Naami's horns with the hint of a smirk. He stepped up to Lysander and handed him his provisions next, similarly offering to keep his water until needed, before he slung the pack over his shoulder.

"Hey, thanks for being cool about it now at least. It was a crazy battle for all of us and I'm just glad it's behind us." Despite Haro's affable tone, he didn't trust Lysander and he would certainly be watching him closely, especially if things looked like they might get hairy. That said, he was grateful for his change of tone and he was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt for now.

Haro took Bodie out of his pocket and held his hand out. The little bug droid unfurled in his palm and started levitating in the air before them, chirping as it came online.

"Hey bud. We've got work to do," he said to the little droid which beeped and whirred, pivoting to shine a light down into the cavern ahead.​

 

[Naamino Zuukamano]

The surly zabrak's bearing relaxed further, though his guard was clearly still up. After Lysander intoned his promise, Naami shifted focus to the task ahead of them. Despite their grievances, the blonde hadn't yet given Naami reason to believe that he was a liar. So he was willing to take him at his word for now, particularly after the apology to Haro.

He moved to his friend's side and eyed Lysander sidelong as he recounted the events of that day as being hard to explain. The zabrak accepted the items, nodded at Haro's decision to hold onto the water bottle, and initially just gave a grunt at the comment about his horns. But his friend's follow up made him smirk in response. He managed a playful elbow in the lean boy's ribs before settling back into stoicism.

"Alright yeah," he finally grumbled, flipping the knife in one hand as he thumbed open the datapad with the other.

"That's Bodie. Haro's in charge and the droid is second in command as far as we're concerned."

It was matter of fact, tone brooking no argument, and the first time Naami directly spoke to Lysander since the start of this ordeal. Cold, calculating eyes fell to the candy bar and showed no sign of the brief pang of sympathy the zabrak felt at the human's weakened condition.

"I can take lead position while Lysander eats," he looked to Haro for confirmation as he continued his pitch.

"Then I'm thinking we drop pings one after the other— in a line, like those dumb connect the dot art projects for kids? Would help us keep track of directionality a bit, and reinforce the later triangulation of data. Like Professor Madrona said."

He shrugged, open to hearing from the others, but turned to walk half a dozen paces ahead to where Bodie illuminated the path. Naami decided to stow his knife in his boot for the time being to free up a hand, and dropped their first marker. Silently, he was more than a little preoccupied by Lysander expressing he wasn't sure what had come over him after Woostri. Naamino Zuukamano did not like to think that he had quite so much in common with his peer.

 

[Lysander von Ascania]

Trouble Makers: Haro Aven | Naamino Zuukamano ​

Lysander wasted no time in taking the candy bar from Haro’s hand, feeling pulses of invigoration jolting through him just from holding it. The sensation was almost like standing near a Force nexus, with heightened awareness and renewed clarity. Any lingering thoughts of conflict suddenly vanished. And though the boy may not have been Force sensitive, he certainly seemed to have his own version of a Jedi mind trick. "Thank you," he said, the words laced with sincerity and gratitude. Warmth spread through his chest. It was no small gesture to the blonde, who had never enjoyed sharing food; perhaps, it was a trait from growing up in a large household where dinner was always a race, and the fastest eaters usually got the most.

"I wouldn’t even share with my sister," he admitted with a wry smile. "But I appreciate your understanding. Now that I'm out of that damn bacta tank.. maybe I’ll have some time to reflect and learn from it in my meditation. No guarantees.. but with any luck, next time I'll know better."

Securing the dagger at this side next, Lysander was much more keen on giving his body the sustenance it demanded rather than messing with the datapad. His gaze flickered over to Naamino, who seemed to grunt more than a bantha, but was at least more formidable than one. Whether the Zabrak truly accepted his apology or not, it didn’t really matter. Under the mask of a jester, he possessed a pragmatic mindset, and if he learned anything from the enclaves, it was how to collaborate on shared objectives with those he didn't care much for. The odd Padawans from the Inner Rim taught him lesson that real quick.

Finally, the time had come. Peeling open the candy bar, Lysander began taking bites, savoring its richness as it breathed life back into his ghostly pallor. Listening to Naamino and his authoritative words, he merely offered a nod of the head. “Shuuh, wha'ever yoo say. I kin folla ya,” he mumbled, peanuts and bits of chocolate tumbling from his mouth.

The gears began turning in his mind as Naamino spoke once more; his brow furrowing made that much clear. He then wiped his mouth with the back of a hand. The acolyte's lips twitched upward into a slight smile. "Dropping pings in a linear sequence is definitely a logical approach, and I think it’ll keep us from retracing our steps unnecessarily."

There wasn’t much else to say on the matter; instead, he stepped forward several paces, prepared to follow.

His focus shifted down to the dagger tucked in the Zabrak's boot, then over to Bodie, and finally back to Haro. Confidence settled over Lysander, as if not a single danger lay ahead. Just three young guys with blades— it seemed like they were geared up for a little knife party today.

 

[Haro Aven]

Naamino Zuukamano | Lysander von Ascania ​

More of the tension eased from the group with Lysander's expression of genuine gratitude and his apparent regret for his actions on the Vorpal Fang. So he does have some manners after all, Haro silently mused to himself, nodding in acknowledgment of being thanked. His curiosity piqued at mention of a sister and he made a mental note to ask him about it later during their long hours trapped together. Now that Lysander's mood was turning around a bit, Haro was starting to see more of the boy's personality and charm shine through as he spoke of maybe learning something from his mistake now that he was mostly healed.

Naamino, on the other hand, wasted no time with small talk or pleasantries and predictably jumped right into establishing the pecking order. The Zabrak's militant rigidity had once annoyed Haro but, now that he knew him a bit better, he found it to be rather endearing. It helped that he'd earned Naami's respect and was no longer on the receiving end of his power plays, for the most part. That said, Haro was more than a little surprised at being placed 'in charge' by Naami, who ironically proceeded to suggest courses of action much like someone in charge.

"Yeah, great idea, buddy. We can actually make it even more efficient by assigning the pings a series number whenever we turn down a new tunnel, and we can note the direction we're traveling in. That way, only one of us actually needs to be dropping pings at a time, and we can be on rotation," he explained as he casually calibrated the settings on his data pad like it was second nature to him. He took a moment to secure the dagger at his side, then he looked up, eyeing his fellow troublemakers with a bit of mischief behind his glowing green eyes.

"Since I'm in charge, you'll refer to me as Captain Aven," he declared with no small amount of smugness, indicating himself with a hand on his chest. He then gestured at Naami. "You're my Lieutenant, Horns. And you…" He looked Lysander up and down, scrutinizing him. "You'll be Munchy. Unless you'd rather be Punchy," he teased playfully with an impish little smirk, continuing one before the other boy could answer.

"For now, Bodie and I are in charge of plotting the course and dropping the pings. Horns, you're on sentinel duty. If we run into trouble with hostiles, we follow your lead." He nodded to Naami then looked thoughtfully around the chamber.

"It'd probably be good to note the approximate dimensions of the chambers and anything out of the ordinary that we come across. So, Munchy," he addressed Lysander again, clearly enjoying using his new nickname. "I'm assuming you've learned your letters. You'll be the notetaker." It was a lighthearted dig at Lysander's slightly entitled bearing that seemed to go hand-in-hand with nobility in Haro's experience.

"Here, I'll show you how to use the measuring laser on the data pad," he said, approaching the tall blonde boy and motioning for him to hand him his data pad so he could pull up the proper programs. Once everything was in order and the three of them were ready, Haro took point with Bodie and started down the cavern at a steady pace. He glanced back at Lysander.

"So, you got any cool Force abilities or other skills that might be helpful to know about while we're stuck down here?"​

 

[Naamino Zuukamano]

It seemed they were all falling into place, each of them taking a role. Haro Aven in particular seized the moment to assume leadership and making sure to emphasize their various tasks, as was befitting a leader. For his part, the zabrak gladly maintained "sentinel" and listened in on conversation as it occurred near him. His friend’s enthusiasm for the task ahead did manage to get a small smile out of him.

He shared a companionable kind of silence with the whirring little droid, eyes keenly scanning the way ahead as the plan was fully made. Then they regrouped at Haro's orders, Naami stowing the datapad in his waistband for the time being and switching it back out for the knife which he held right handed.

"So, you got any cool Force abilities or other skills that might be helpful to know about while we're stuck down here?"

Before Lysander von Ascania could answer there was sound up ahead. Suddenly Naami brought his left hand to bear, readying Force blast at a skittering movement in the shadows. Thankfully he held back as it was soon revealed to be a little rodent of some kind, no doubt startled by their presence. He unclenched his jaw and let the energy ebb away from his outstretched palm. The boy followed up Haro's question with an emphasis of gruff curiosity.

"Yeah, we didn't get to see much of you in the field on Woostri. What's your general focus of study for martial skill?"

 

[Lysander von Ascania]

Trouble Makers: Haro Aven | Naamino Zuukamano
​

Lysander's gaze fixed intently on Haro as the boy revealed the plan like a seasoned strategist. His spirits now lifted from sustenance, the acolyte's mind shifted into higher gear.

It was also noted how the boy's confidence showed through, which was reassuring to say the least. He had suffered through several trials with Padawan's who brought only uncertainty to the table, and it was definitely an aura he didn’t want anywhere near him. "Sounds solid to me. Lucky for you, efficiency is a language I'm fluent in.. and well, you already have my full support on this.”

Amusement began bubbling to the surface as ranks and titles were handed out; Lysander had to bite the inside of his cheek. The timing of it all was perfect; he was also chewing through the last bite of the candy bar when the nickname Munchy was bestowed upon him. The blonde's lips twitched upward. As if on cue, he is posture straightened. “That would be Private Munchy.”

In truth, being lower in rank didn’t seem all that terrible, especially if it came with less accountability.

Slipping the wrapper into a pocket, he offered a small nod. “Sure thing,” he said, handing over the datapad without a second thought. “Just don’t be surprised if I spice up the notes a bit. Makes for a better story.”

However, the next question posed by both of them did catch him slightly off guard. Starting late as a Padawan meant his skills often lagged behind others his age, and his experiences at the enclave hadn’t been the most fruitful experience.

While collecting his thoughts, a distant noise tugged at his attention. Naturally, a hand reached for the dagger. Using any of his limited Force abilities would just deplete him further. Once the noise turned out to be a small creature in the shadows, a relieved sigh escaped.

"I guess you could say speed has been my greatest asset so far," he confessed, a spark of mischief igniting his green eyes. “My focus has mainly been lightsaber dueling. But as of late, my interests have shifted towards history and politics.. House Derriphan has been quite the experience so far."

Images of Woostri resurfaced in his mind's eye. A Cathar calling him Vader because of his helm, then an unorthodox attack involving a musical instrument to distort his senses, it was a rather absurd encounter. Some stories were best left untold.

A faint smirk betrayed him. “Woostri was.. interesting. I was caught up in the courtyard for most of it.”

Curiosity settled, which helped distract from the task at hand. "So," he began, addressing both Haro and Naamino, "which House are you two from? And how long have you been here on Korriban?"