Do you see what I see? (Llevana Helas)

[Figure In White]

He watched her as she stepped away, and then jumped back to his side when she was almost run over by someone. A hand lifted and brushed lightly at the back of her head. He had the feeling that she had little experience with true family, someone to care for her as a parent would. Of course that did bring into question how it was she had made it to Korriban of all places. Someone had to have brought her there.

"Relax, little one."

She talked so well when she felt there was no one around to hear her, but when she was aware of his presence it was as if she forgot how to speak. That was a little disheartening, and he wasn't really sure what it was that caused that, but then he hadn't been privy to her life beyond what little he'd seen. He couldn't begin to comprehend the things she'd been through or how they'd affected her in her life. Talking pretty much seemed to be her shortcoming aside from not being able to get over her past. That was something she could deal with in time, but she needed to be comfortable enough to tell him more.

As it was, she didn't seem too keen to talk about it.

"I can help you to overcome your past, but I need to know more about it. I know it's hard for you to talk about it, though. Would showing me be easier?"

[member="Llevana Helas"]

 

[Lief]

Another flinch, though this time not nearly as viscous as the one which had her grasping his wrist or jumping back to his side. It spoke of a body constantly on edge, on high alert. Then again, her whole life had been a fight for survival.

She swallowed down her fears, suppressing them right into the pit of her being, before chewing on her lip in thought.

Relax? Was it as simple as that..? Perhaps to some. Another look around herself, finally feeling herself more grounded, afforded her a little relief. Korriban was not her home, nor would it ever be, but knowing that she knew where she was in many regards helped.

She stuffed the pebble from earlier into her pocket, before rubbing at her left arm.

More questions. More words. It was strange having people around her that simply wanted to... talk. They didn't live each moment as it came, they didn't have to worry about when their next meal was, if they would have enough fresh water, or when the stars would next fall. Who would be taken.

Talking was a luxury many of her kind had not been able to afford, outside of necessity.

"How?"

She turned her curious gaze up to him at the mention of showing, instead of explaining. It was true, that would be simpler. Her mind was vivid, it always had been. It was her tongue that had troubles keeping up.

[member="Ignus"]

 

[Figure In White]

He tapped a finger against her temple.

"You have it all stored in here. Just a few minutes ago you were seeing it. Show me it in full. I know it will hurt, but I'll be here with you."

In reality, he could be a good father because he did actually care. That was different from what he'd experienced personally. His parents had cared about nothing more than themselves, which was why they'd sent his little brother away to be with the Jedi. They didn't care whether he had a life or not, they just wanted to be rid of him. Surprise for them when it turned out that Leos was the strongest Force User among them all. Sometimes he actually thought about going back and killing his parents, but then he realized it wouldn't be fair to Athelus or to his little brother should he ever try to come back and find them.

"I can take you back there and draw your memories out and see it all if you'll let me. When I know where you're from, I can take you to face your demons."

That was the only thing he could think to do. Besides, she didn't belong on Korriban, alone. She could not survive there alone.

[member="Llevana Helas"]

 

[Lief]

One slight step back showed her uncertainty. Her eyes showed a pain that she was doing a good job of masking. The very thought of ever having to return to the world of her origin, a place littered with debris from the heavens, pockmarked by fallen stars with what remained of her people's civilization strewn about like a child's plaything...

She shook her head, and took another tremoured step backward.

"No...Not back... Not there..."

There was nothing there for her. The beasts were gone, no doubt off to plague another civilization. She was the last survivor that she knew of, even the Elders had stated as much. All that remained there was pain.

Why would he suggest such a thing?

No one person was responsible. There wasn't someone to be tracked down and brought to justice for the genocide of her people. No...

Another step back, then another, though in truth it was not steps she wished to take. She wanted to shrink in on herself, to ignore all that was happening on this sandy world and escape back to the comfort of her daydreams. The ones she used to bear witness to on the edge of the Great Waste.

[member="Ignus"]

 

[Figure In White]

She moved away and he sighed. So broken, she was. It hurt him, honestly, to see someone so young broken and battered in such a way. Whoever had attacked her world had done a number on her to the point where she'd forced herself into useing the Force in a way that killed all of those she'd wanted to protect.

"Whoever attacked your world is out there still, tormenting someone else. And they're still inside your head, tormenting you. They always will be unless you do something about it."

It was the same reason he'd initiated his hunt of the Primeval. They were a scourge upon the galaxy that could only be removed by someone making the effort to remove them. They had killed countless numbers of his people, and he'd been fortunate that his parents had even survived that. They would do the same to another world if they were allowed to continue to exist. If he did nothing to stop them, then who was going to? Plus he wanted vengeance, which was all the more reason for him to go through with it. He wanted them dead. He wanted them gutted and left to languish in the streets of their world, and their families torn to pieces.

"Will running save anyone, least of all yourself?"

He didn't move after her. Doing so would only push her further away, which was not what he wanted. She had to make the decision herself, he couldn't do it for her.

[member="Llevana Helas"]

 

[Lief]

"I... I don't know..." Who they are.

Why was it so difficult to speak? It wasn't as if she had any reason not to. This individual seemed... Tame compared to most. He wasn't looking to use her, like Matsu, or abuse her like the beasts. In fact she did not have any idea why he had taken it upon himself to help her.

He simply had.

She swallowed, fidgeting in place. Part of her wished to flee, the other part wanted to keep her feet firmly in place and explain.

But the knowledge she had was fleeting. She still saw their attackers as beasts with long snouts and bulbous eyes, despite knowing - despite having seen for herself - that this was simply a mask. It wasn't true.

She didn't need revenge. Returning there... Returning there would fix nothing.

"They're... All dead." Everyone.

A long exhale of breath, and she decided to remain put. Neither stepping closer to him, nor continuing to flee. Stuck in limbo.

She closed her eyes, and wrestled with a past that did not want to come to the surface. Not consciously at least. And then, when finally she seemed to have a grasp on it, when her lip was trembling under the strain of keeping it all from pouring out, she closed the few steps which had been between them without opening her eyes, and placed her hand against his.

And then she allowed herself to metaphorically bleed. All that she had witnessed at their hands spilled free from her. The Eclipses, children being herded away. No parents to be seen. Just the youngest of children, and the most aged of Elders who had far more to worry about than bringing up the children with care and comfort.

Survival. Base survival.

And then came the stars. Ignus would no doubt recognize it as turbolasers, but even so he would see them as stars due to the skewing of her memories. Then the great beasts which flew along the beach - starfighters - and lastly the monsters... With their elongated faces and horribly dead eyes.

Gas masks. Nothing more.

Her people had been bred for slavery, she knew that. She learned that after, when the picked her up. Even knowing did not mean she understood it though, and her memories had never adjusted to fit.

There were more memories, of course. Of the day the Elders were removed, the day the Eclipses ceased to be. When the children were left to fend for themselves. Of her manipulative ways, efforts which kept the final group of six from falling apart though she despised using her gifts in such a way. And then their deaths, on the beach, with the monsters in pursue.

She realized that they were exterminating them, that their world was being emptied. A failed batch, no doubt. It didn't make it any easier though.

In fact, it was barbaric. The whole damn thing.

By the time she was done, Llevi was well and truly drained, and she fell to her knees at his feet with her head hung heavily.

[member="Ignus"]

 

[Figure In White]

Yes, he knew as much from what he'd seen before. She'd killed the last of her people herself when she'd been trying to save them. It was unfortunate, but it was what it was. There was no changing that fact. She could, however, exact revenge, and stop them from doing to others what had been done to her and her people.

Through their contact he saw everything as she had seen it. He knew from her reaction before that the falling stars were actually blasts from a turbolaser battery. Someone had been shooting at her world, trying to slaughter them just as much as take them. She saw the starfighters flying over the water as beasts, but he knew what they were. They'd been attacked by a powerful force, and he couldn't truly be sure who they were as he was seeing through her eyes and not seeing what they actually were. Based on the vision of the people in masks it could have been the empire or it could have been some other powerful force. But he knew her pain.

When it was over she collapsed. He reached down and scooped her up, cradling her against him protectively.

"I come from a world called Mirial," he said to her as he held her. "It's a cool world as far as temperature goes. There used to be a great many of us living in many cities. One day, when I was not there, a group of people that calls themselves the Primeval came to my world and killed most of my people, leaving the rest to live in ruins. I know the pain of losing your people, little one. If you'll show me the way to your world, I'll help you find the people that attacked you, and stop them from doing it to others. But not right now. You are tired. Would you like me to take you somewhere to get something to eat?"

[member="Llevana Helas"]

 

[Lief]

Her body felt as though it were floating. Between blinking she had gone from the solid, dusty ground to an aloof position midair. Arms cradled her, she came to realize, a feeling she had not experienced since before her Grandpa was taken from their home. He had always been so gentle with her, moreso than duty bade him to be. But he was gone before she had seen even her first Eclipse, leaving her with a pit that could never be filled.

Not even Emeri had managed it, though he took the girl under his wing even when times became tough. Another loss to the Eclipse.

She might have fought with the green skinned stranger, demanded to be set back on the floor, but she didn't. It wasn't exactly comfort she drew from him, it was simply... Neutrality. He wasn't there to harm her, and that lent itself to safety. For now at least. Neutrality and safety. Two things she hadn't experienced in forever. Possibly not even in her whole lifetime. The more positive emotions were foreign to her, this was as good as they came.

Lay there she listened to what he had to say. He spoke of a world likewise torn asunder, and her heart ached with empathy. When the time came, would she know the route back to Thirty Two? That she doubted. Her ship, one of the only things in the entire Galaxy which even had the planet listed, was in Matsu's possession. And she had been lifted from the middle of space.

It would not be so simple.

Could she face that world again? Could she walk amidst the star-strewn fields? Dip her toes into the deep blue abyss? She could not say for sure. But right now she did not have to decide.

Food... Did not sound like something she wanted, however. She shook her head to the offer, exhaling slowly. Truthfully she felt somewhat... Ridiculous. He had managed to wrap her whole existence into an alternate plane, all without batting an eyelid. And she divulged snippets of her past, into his mind not even to his surroundings, and was absolutely drained.

Maybe it was best if she didn't return to Matsu in this state. Would he understand as much? Would he keep her from the Academy until she regained her strength? Surely he understood that weakness meant death, or worse?

[member="Ignus"]

 

[Figure In White]

The apprehension he felt from her was palpable. She shook her head at his offer of food, which caused him to frown, but at the same time that was alright. If she wasn't hungry then so be it. Still, her apprehension meant something, and on top of that, she hadn't moved from his arms. Did she want his protection? Was that why she didn't pull away? Someone had obviously brought her to the world, and he did feel a somewhat familiar presence in the vicinity. Not too far away from him, but still far enough that it wasn't an immediate threat to their position. But he figured that she might be better off with him for the moment.

"You've been picked up by another Sith, haven't you?"

He might be honing in on someone else's apprentice. That wouldn't be a good thing most likely.

"If I had to guess, the apprehension you feel is because you're so drained. You needn't worry. I'll sit here with you until you feel up for going back from whence you came."

Though he did set her down so she could sit beside him instead of him holding her the whole time. She hadn't exactly embraced his attempt to keep her calm. It was likely that she was just too tired to do much of anything. If she sat beside him it would at least keep her safe and comfortable. Or, at least, reasonably comfortable. It was better than the alternative, probably.

[member="Llevana Helas"]

 

[Lief]

Was it so obvious? Did the mark of Matsu lay heavy on her soul?

Truth be told, she was not the woman's student. She wasn't really anything to anybody here. She had been picked up from the middle of the void, pulled into the spider's web, and now... Who knew what was supposed to happen. Thrown to the vultures, would the Witch even notice that she was gone?

Likely not.

So she shook her head. Maybe that was a dangerous thing to do... What did she know?

When she was set upon the ground again Llevi's eyes reopened and she peered to her side. Already she was beginning to feel better, but energy was a fickle thing. A slight yawn escaped her before she could hide it, and to compensate she looked the other way and watched the workers continue their vigil across the City.

"Thank..you?" That was what you said, right? When somebody helped you? The uncertainty in her tone was palpable. When was the last time she had used those words? Surely it had to be before the first stars fell... So very long ago now. A lifetime ago.

She seemed quite comfortable just sitting there. Even if it meant being so close to the green-skin. Even her usual urge to flee had dispensed, how odd.

[member="Ignus"]

 

[Figure In White]

"You're welcome."

Not that he knew what she was thanking him for. It wasn't as if he'd done something amazing or something. All he'd done was find out the truth of her situation and then give her the option of trying to help him to help her, all while she was drained of energy. Sure he was keeping her more or less safe while she recovered her energy. Any decent sort would do that. If she was going to be training, or dealing with other Sith, then he was just giving her a fair, fighting chance of dealing with them herself. It wasn't as if he'd done it just to protect her, was it? Ok, perhaps it was. Perhaps he looked at her and wanted to help her just because it was her. He couldn't help himself, really.

She was a cute kid in need and he wasn't the monster some people thought he was. Leos had a heart, and he enjoyed the feeling of using it.

"What will you do from here?"

What he wanted to know was where she was going to go, and who she was going to be with. If she was going to join the Sith, then he wondered who it was she was going to join with. If she wasn't, where was she going? Who was she going to be with? If he didn't know, he couldn't check on her. That he didn't want to abide.

[member="Llevana Helas"]

 

[Lief]

Patience was something so few had ever shown her. Life had always been a rush, from one safe house to another. From one battle to another. And now that she was able to slow down, to relax and close her eyes without fear of what might jump out at her, she could not help but feel relief.

She knew it would not last. Knew that soon this strange green-skinned man would leave her, just as everyone else had. But she did not let that diminish the now.

Rubbing at a spot between her eyes, before blinking a handful of times in quick succession, Llevana felt her body begin to right itself. Were she to stand at this point she knew she could quite easily pull off seeming fine. No need to rush it though, there was no sense in heading back and risking further training so soon after her experience out here in the City.

She licked her lips in thought when he next posed her a question, and again another meek shrug was initially all she could muster up. Do from here? What could she do from here? Looking around herself, awe set back into her expression.

Everything was so foreign. While this lay the epicenter of a battlefield, just as Thirty Two had, that was where the similarities ended. Every new sight, sound, smell... Everything was intense. Vibrant. Terrifying, in many regards. And if this was just the first world of what she now knew to be many?

"My head is going to explode if I even try to comprehend..." she began to mumble under her breath, before remembering that he was there and freezing up again. Had she been this bad around the others? Emeri, Kaour?

No. She couldn't have. She had been silver tongued back then, what felt like an entire lifetime ago. She'd had to be, to keep them all together. To keep them safe.

Another short sigh, before she took some sand into her hand and watched it trickle free. Before she grimaced. It felt odd to the touch, all those tiny little surfaces fighting to be felt, to make themselves known.

"Live" she finally said, though she knew not what that would entail on a world such as this. Who knew when she would be able to leave it. Who knew if she wanted to see what else lay within this strange Galaxy which had only just made itself known to her. "Survive." Always survive.

[member="Ignus"]