Private Emergence

[Rhia Kesyk]

It had all been a blur.​

​

One moment they were pulling abruptly out of hyperspace - so abruptly in fact that Rhia and Ideon both found themselves flung off balance - and the next they were being bundled into the only escape pod on Varo Shif's vessel. "Come on," the girl said, holding a hand out for her Master; there was an urgency in her tone, and even as she said it the sound of the other ship's tractor beam threatened to drown her out.​

​

Much to her horror, the Kiffar did not comply. Instead he shut the pod door, and stared through it at the pair of them for a lingering second. Just a second, that was all she got to set his face to memory, a face she'd never felt much haste to remember before, and then they were gone. Shot out into the vast void of space, the escape pod barreled into nothingness. Whatever sounds they made inside were none existent beyond, they might well have screamed into their own minds for all the good it did.​

​

Inside, Rhia rushed to the tiny viewing port which afforded her a view of the terror-ship of the Maw. That too was a fleeting moment, before the void erupted in a shower of light. An equally as inaudible an explosion rending hulls apart.​

​

How long they drifted afterward she could not say for sure. Likely not very long at all. It felt to the inhabitants of that pod like an eternity, however.​

​

She had barely even processed the fact that they were aboard a ship. Barely even processed the fact that they'd actively left the pod behind. She walked as though on autopilot, Ideon clinging to her so tightly that it threatened to cut off her supply of air, or blood circulation, or both. She held him just as fiercely.​

​

At some point the fog began to clear. Ideon lay with his head in her lap, trousers still damp from his unyielding tears. Rhia had simply been sat, eyes unfocused. They focused now, focused in on the dining space they'd been led to. A circular table, with a circular booth-like-bench. She was brushing her fingers through the young boy's hair. Her gaze dropped to him. Sleeping. Sleeping and unscathed. They were both unscathed.​

​

Varo, though?​

​

Her gut twisted.​

​

Varo was not...​

​

Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

Marus had decided.

He was never going off on a mission on his own again.

Sure, sure, simple proposition, go to a space station, find info on the smugglers, bring it back to the council on Kashyyyk, maybe he gets a promotion in the cult or something. But no, instead he gets captured by slavers, has to fight them off, and then ends up stuck in the middle of a warzone and getting chased by some Sith person intent on killing him. He barely managed to make it out with his skin still attached, stealing another ship.

Of course, that didn't turn out well, considering he'd been followed, attacked as soon as he dropped out of hyperspace, and now—

—well, now—

Marus swallowed hard, leaving the cockpit and walking back to the common area of the transport he'd commandeered. The escape pod he'd managed to rescue had already been jettisoned, but judging by the reactions of the two in it, they'd been travelling with at least one other person, and their ship was captured, and, well, based on the radiation burst he'd seen just as he jumped into hyperspace with his new passengers...

He glanced around the corner surreptitiously, taking note of the pair. The kid looked to be asleep, at least. That was better than it could've been. The girl, well, one look at her face said enough. Still, it wasn't like he could just go the entire trip without saying something to them, and clearly, they needed some sort of taking care of.

So did he, for that matter, but right now it seemed like he was in the best shape.

Damn. Okay, here goes nothing.

He rounded the corner, stepping out into the common space. "Hey, uh...would you like anything to drink? Water, at least, I know this ship'll have. Probably some sort of food, too, if you're hungry."

Great start.

"Also, I know there are cabins and beds, if you want to move him. Probably be better for his back than that bench seat, and I think you're going to need all the comfortable accomdation you can get."

Somewhat worse wording. He didn't wince or cringe, though, he was much too good at controlling his face for that. He just waited, somewhat apprehensively, for the reply.

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

She could feel him, lingering nervously just beyond the doorway. One did not find themselves raised by a purely Sense-based Master and not pick up on a thing or two. For a moment she imagined how proud Vero would have been for her quick assessment of the situation, for taking note despite all the unseen obstacles in her way; then the dreaded realization set in.​

​

Tears welled within her eyes all over again, and before he crossed the threshold she hastily wiped them and all evidence of their existence away. At least in so far as her one free hand could manage. The other remained dutifully upon the boy, upholding the soothing motions she'd unconsciously begun.​

​

And then he was there. She didn't recognize him though she doubted they hadn't come face to face at least briefly after he'd hauled their escape pod onboard. He was likely the one who had led them to this common space in the first place. But everything was just a blurry mess. She wiped her eyes again, as though somehow that might clear up her vision, and looked upon him again as he made an offer of sustenance. Did she want to partake? Could she? Her stomach grumbled, but somehow she felt as though she might genuinely be sick if she even tried.​

​

Water though... Water might make sense. The girl inclined her head. "Water, please... If it's no bother." Her voice was hoarse, more hoarse than she'd been expecting. She swallowed as though hoping it might solve the issue, but it didn't. With a little more time speaking, and some water in her system, she did not doubt it would fade.​

​

It took her a little while longer to pick up on his uncertainty insofar as the ship was concerned. Probably food, know there'll be water or cabins in some capacity... Was this not his ship? If not his, then whose?​

​

Her expression turned a little more defensive, rather dubious. She held the boy in her lap a little closer. Even in her state of grief, Vero Shif did not raise no fool.​

​

"Whose ship is this?" she asked. It was... Probably not the most pressing question, not after what they'd just been through, and yet the reality was it now fell upon her shoulders, and her shoulders alone, to exercise caution for the both of them. There was no Master lingering behind the scenes, watching them from afar. There was no safety net. There was just Rhia, and Ideon, and that was that. She had to take his place now, in some capacity.​

​

And Vero Shif was nothing if not cautious.​

​

Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

"Water, got it, I'll get right on—"

Marus had just been turning away when she asked whose ship it was. He paused, looking back.

"...Mine?" he supplied weakly. "Listen, I'll get that water, set the two of you up some beds...by the Maker, I'd love to sleep in a bed, I've been in that cockpit for four days..."

He shook his head as he said that, a wave of tiredness falling over him. At least they were in hyperspace now, heading farther away from Maw territory, and if the galaxy was kind they wouldn't get interdicted on the way. That should give at least three or four days just to rest and recuperate. "And really, it's not a bother, not any more than anything else has been lately."

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

Her question paused him in his tracks, at least momentarily. The stranger was being surprisingly accommodating all things considered, he didn't know who they were, or why they were there, or what had happened with their ship. He'd brought them aboard, and now was offering them whatever they might need in the meantime.​

​

It almost made her feel bad for doubting him. Almost.​

​

Until he lied through his teeth that is.​

​

"You're a terrible liar," she stated, and yet despite that the way in which his voice had slightly warbled as he'd tried to claim ownership over the vessel, and the next few phrases out of his mouth, led her to softening her expression even if only a little. She decided then not to press the issue too much further. Not right now, at least; his fatigue was genuine.​

​

As gently as she could, Rhia moved the boy from under her and reached out for something soft to settle beneath his head in her absence. A cushion perhaps or a sweater. Whatever, she found something in the end to serve the purpose. Then she slid out of her seat, and approached him. Every step felt strange, like she wasn't really touching the ground at all. She powered on through despite that.​

​

"I'll get the water. Why don't you, uh... sit."​

​

Somehow the prospect of having something to do, as insignificant as it may have been in the grand scheme of things, helped to quieten her mind. A simple act of service. Sure it may have been partially to herself, but she wholly planned on fetching him a glass too.​

​

And she did.​

​

Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

"I'm not lying, as far as any legitimate galactic government knows this ship is mine!"

That protest was probably too much information. He shook his head, trying to clear the tiredness from his mind. Once he looked up again, the girl had managed to remove herself out from under the sleeping boy, and his mind momentarily went blank as she walked up. After everything leading up to that point, Marus was awfully susceptible to distractions, and the gentle sway of her athletic hips was dangerous in more ways than one.

"You know, that actually sounds like a...hey, wait!"

But he wasn't that easily swayed. As she started to step past him, he turned quickly, catching up in a few steps. "Listen, whatever I've been through in the last few days, I've at least had some opportunity to rest and process it. You haven't really, yet, and I'm the one that knows the layout of this ship."

He just hadn't fully looked through it for supplies yet, as busy as he'd been dodging Maw patrols and the like. He turned rapidly, standing in front of her to stop her from continuing doggedly along, and his tone shifted. Softer, gentler. Of course, he didn't notice how she'd already managed to fill at least one glass with water.

"Seriously, it's no trouble. We all may need rest, but I really must insist that the two of you—"

The reflection of glowpanels on the water caught his eye. He glanced downward—

—and further downward, intentionally, so that he didn't look impolite—

—and noticed the water.

"Wow, you're fast."

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

"Yeah, yeah" she'd muttered dismissively beneath her breath, frankly lacking the energy to pursue it any further. Nope, she was already headed toward the kitchen even as he hastily caught up with what she was doing and tried to stop her. Clearly he hadn't noticed just how far she had gotten though, because by the time he pushed his way in front of her, and demanded that she stop, one of the glasses had already been filled.​

​

In response she sort of just peered up at him, at such a close proximity their usually miniscule difference in height made it difficult to actually catch his gaze.​

​

"Answer me this; what use is a ship's Captain that hasn't slept?" Before he could answer, Rhia shook her head and took one small step back, they'd been too close for comfort after all, and let out a sigh. "I, uh, I don't need to be coddled... whoever you are." She only just realized no names had been exchanged. Whoops. "I can make a glass of water, no problem. In fact, I want to. So... Please. Let me."​

​

Pleases. They were important when you were on someone else's ship, right? Even if it wasn't really even their ship in the first place. Still he'd saved them from the void, so if he wanted to claim ownership over it who was she to stop him?​

​

His gaze shifted down to the glass, as though only just noticing that she'd already done half of the work. Something about the act had the tips of her ears burning though.​

​

"Up here," she snipped, before crossing her arms and waiting to see if he'd step aside so she could do this one simple task.​

​

Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

Marus blinked and looked back up.

He really was tired.

"Right, alright, sure, I'll just—"

He stepped aside, to get out of her way. Probably wouldn't be smart to keep standing there, she might actually start getting mad, and that would be bad.

Hey, Marus, that rhymed!

She'd already crossed her arms though, and the way her...green?

Wait, why is her complexion kinda green?

No, no, shake it off.

Her green complexion had started shifting towards red, so clearly, his attempt to force himself to look down at the glass hadn't been as successful as he wanted. Now he had to make sure not to look again. "I'll just go get some beds set up. First mate's cabin and captain's cabin, keep you both comfortable..." He was mumbling a bit as he thought through it, circuits desperately trying to close in his brain to complete a full idea.

Of course, as he started to shamble off to do what he said he was going to, he didn't manage to think of how what he'd just said might sound, given one of the cabins he was offering and how he'd just claimed himself the captain of the vessel.

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

"You take the Captain's cabin," she told him, pointedly, as he stepped away from her and made to leave in order to set up the rooms. "I'm not leaving him alone tonight."​

​

Whether he chose to listen or not, the fact would remain the same. Even if she ended up bunking on the floor, she would not allow Ideon to wake up on this strange ship, with Force knows what sort of memories rattling around in his noggin'. No. Sorry. Not happening.​

​

Either way once alone she set about making the second glass of water, and then - since obviously she was done long before him - she turned her attention to the kitchen storage. Rhia might not have been hungry, but if he hadn't left the cockpit in days she did not doubt their host would be. So she rummaged, and she searched, and by the time he came back, provided he didn't just collapse into one of the beds outright, she'd have a little something made. Probably some sort of prettied up rations, let's be real, given that he had no idea what the ship even had.​

​

Warm though, seasoned. Yeah. Better than it would have been ordinarily.​

​

She set it on the table, then sat back down beside little Deon. The lack of names was beginning to bother her; she drummed her fingertips on the table top, to avoid just outright demanding to know who he was. With as out of it as she was feeling it probably wouldn't come across the right way anyway. And now, without anything left to focus on, no drinks, no food, she felt herself slipping back into that unfocused state.​

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Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

The girl's words fell on deaf ears.

Really, though, she's green. That's weird.

Marus had his mind set on priorities, like figuring out what would make a girl green, and getting the beds set up. The ship didn't really have much by way of creature comforts, even in the nice, single-person cabins, but it would be comfortable enough. That, and the relatively spartan accommodations did make it easier and faster to get them set up. "Alright," he said, proudly. "A cabin for the kid, a cabin for the girl, and...the cockpit for me." Did the seats up there recline? He hadn't even had an opportunity to check yet.

Why is she green?

He stepped out of the cabin, starting to walk back towards the common room. Inasmuch as it could really be called a room, and not just a junction of the few hallways of the transport. Athletic, too. Looks like she knows how to handle a weapon. But he didn't get the same sense of outright hostility from her he had from any of the ones on Csaus, so theoretically, theoretically, she was with one of the better cults-or-other-organizations in the galaxy. The kid looked to be in similarly good shape, but he was young enough he'd have to be kept somewhere out of harm's way, but if anything bad was to happen, if they got boarded or anything like that, the two of them, him and the girl, might have a decent chance of defending themselves and the kid.

And he was at least at home on a ship, rather than down in the undercity on Taris, getting swarmed by rakghouls...

He had to stop and shudder at that memory. That was still more horrifying than landing in an active warzone after running into a group of slavers. Existentially horrifying. He went reading up on it later and learned that rakghouls could make people into more rakghouls just by scratching or biting them, and he'd come very close to getting scratched or bitten on that trip.

Another few steps afterwards, though, and he was back in the common room, and—

—And she had found the food.

He blinked again, glancing at the plates, then back up at her, where she sat. Back to the plates. Back at her.

Think, Marus, think.

wow she's wonderful​

food and water, right after what she went through? so resilient​

how does she do it and how does she manage to keep looking good through all of this​

and look how caring she is that she keeps trying to take care of the kid and some spacer she's only just met

marry me
​

Eventually, although this time it didn't take him too long, he managed to force a thought through the fog of tiredness. "Thanks," he said, giving her a genuine, albeit still exhausted smile. "Really, after everything today, this is impressive. I honestly don't know how you're managing it." He went to sit down, glanced at the food, and one thought managed to rapid-fire through his brain without any necessary effort on his part.

His name. He still hadn't told her his name! He couldn't eat without telling them his name, that'd would be rude, even if he had just rescued them.

After they got caught in a bad spot that was partially his fault.

"My name's Marus, by the way. Nice to...meet you, I guess?" He frowned.

"Nicest part of the entire last week, at least."

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

She felt his approach though he seemed a little staggered, like he kept stopping and starting along the way. Absentminded.​

​

Yeah, after all that had happened she couldn't fault him for being a little out of it. Weren't they all? Part of her envied Ideon's ability to sleep through it, though she knew that his exhaustion was borne of shock and strife and not any real peace. It was a lie, a well crafted mask. Still, peeking down at him, he looked peaceful enough.​

​

Force, let him sleep longer... Let him sleep through as much of this process as he could. Let him wake only when Rhia was of sound enough mind that she could shoulder it for the both of them. That she would not buckle and break as she feared she would. For now the Force relented, the boy did not awaken.​

​

Rhia had not touched her plate, not even when he arrived back in the room and acknowledged the existence of food. It sat there in front of her, smelling not half bad, and yet she could not bring herself to taste even a single bite of it. So she didn't, and she was grateful for the distraction the spacer provided.​

​

"It's the least I can do" she offered with a shrug, making sure to take a sip of water every now and then to calm her stomach. He seemed genuinely surprised that she'd been up on her feet and doing something, and frankly she was a little surprised of that herself. It was funny what the body could do, what it could endure, wasn't it? And how much the mind could compartmentalize. For some people, at least. Others crumbled under pressure, others shattered and were left helpless. Worse than children in their despair.​

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"I have someone relying on me," was the only response she could really give. It was fatigue laced, it was tense, Rhia was very much on the edge, at breaking point, but the boy at her side was fighting with that urge, fusing her back together whenever the seams tore too far. If she gave up, then who would be left to advocate for his safety?​

​

Though he'd made to sit down, he paused last second. Then blurted out his name. Well that was one less thing for her to tackle. "Marus," she retorted. In that moment she was far too tired to play the which name are we going with today game. There was no gas left, no room in her brain to conjure up an alias. So she didn't. What difference was it going to make, anyway? If Marus wanted to do them any harm, well, he had them right where he'd need them.​

​

"Rhia," she added after giving it a moments thought. "I, uh, my name is Rhia. This one's Ideon..." Nice to be met? Perhaps... But under these circumstances? No. She couldn't even respond to such, so she didn't. She just took another sip of water. "Come, eat," she urged him, unable to shake the role of caregiver even though the spacer was not her charge. "I'm sure your bed is calling your name. Which room is the one for Deon and I? It might be best if I lay him down now, so he can settle."​

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Then... Then maybe, once food was done, and everyone had retired, she could afford to fall apart a little.​

​

Just a little. Enough that she could sew herself back up come morning.​

​

Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

Rhia. Rhia and Ideon.

Good to have names to put to the faces. It didn't escape him, though, that she hadn't touched her food yet. He frowned again, but he knew well enough that telling her she needed to eat wouldn't do any good; she likely already knew, and just couldn't or wouldn't regardless. And the talk of the rooms. Sharing a room? His frown remained.

"Captain's quarters are the first door on the right heading back towards the cockpit," he said, nodding back in the direction he'd come from. "First mate's is right across from it." He lifted up a hand before she could protest, and quickly continued: "I'll be in the cockpit. It won't do us any good if we get pulled out by an interdiction field, run too close to a mass shadow, or anything like that, and I'm in a nice comfortable bed unable to wake up. I think the seats in the cockpit can recline, that'll be enough for me for now."

The food was really tantalizing, but he had other things to take care of first. "If you won't take it for yourself, then take the sheets, blanket, pillow...hell, take the mattress. Keep yourself comfortable, not just him. Speaking of..." It would be obvious to anybody with eyes that the girl—that Rhia—was pretty near her breaking point for the day. He was stumbling along because he was tired, she was stumbling along like she'd just had half the weight of the galaxy dropped on her shoulders. So, Marus drained the glass of cold water, let it shock his brain a little further awake, and stood back up with renewed vigor.

He had people to take care of, and by the Maker, or the Force, or whatever-else-there-was-in-the-galaxy-to-believe-in, he would make a good showing of it. "I'll carry him. Save you a bit of trouble, and it really doesn't look like he's waking up any time soon."

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

Rhia did not approve of his response.​

​

She let him finish, of course, before she responded, she wasn't going to be rude and try to talk over him, but the idea that he had to suffer just so she could rest was ludicrous. Nope. That wasn't right.​

​

"You need to rest too" she told him, firmly. "'And not some fake rest lying in a damn pilot's chair'll afford you. No..." Rhia shook her head, and let out a soft sigh. Her brain was racing a mile a minute trying to figure out some sort of compromise. She understood his concerns, not least because of all they'd just experienced, but there had to be another way.​

​

"We could take turns. Resting, watching. It works in the wild, whenever we'd make camp someone would always sit watch and then we'd switch out. Surely that can work here? That way no one person is being made to sleep in a literal chair... Would that work?"​

​

Force, why did she get the feeling he'd try and argue with her on this too?​

​

That meant she wouldn't be stealing the bedding from the second room. It didn't bother her, she could bunk with Ideon it wasn't as though they hadn't topped and tailed before, and besides she'd better know if he woke with night terrors that way.​

​

When he approached where she and Ideon were and made an offer to carry him to a cabin Rhia looked understandably dubious. Defensive even. "I can carry him" she assured him, expression hardening as though somehow that would prove her point. Her gaze moved from man to boy, softened for a moment, then flicked back to Marus.​

​

"You uh... You could get the doors, though... If you'd like..?" It would help given how much Ideon had grown in recent years. Carrying him wasn't as easy as it had once been when he'd first come to Vero and she. Still... He was her responsibility, and Rhia would see his needs met. She shuffled out of the seat, and turned to gently lift him up.​

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Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

"Rhia."

That might've come out a bit sharper than intended, but between being tired, having had a terrible week, and now having two others to worry about, Marus's face had taken a sterner set than earlier. Than ever before in his life, probably, he hadn't been stuck in a situation like this yet. "He's not the only one here to take care of, and I don't mean me. You're already carrying enough with you as it is." He stepped over, stooped down, and gently lifted Ideon into his own arms, her protestations be damned.

"Take the bedding, take the bed itself and just leave the doors open, either way. He's at least getting one, and let me tell you, a pilot's chair is a lot nicer than being stuck in a slaver's cargo hold or curled up against an engine radiator in the bowels of some space station. I'll be fine, and I'll make sure the two of you are too."

Rock, meet wall. It was probably a good thing Ideon wasn't awake to see the two of them trying to out-stubborn each other. As Marus started walking towards the first mate's cabin—knowing that, no doubt, Rhia would be following—he spoke up again:

"Eight hours at least, and you can have free reign to argue me around as much as you want. Right now, though, I'm taking charge before you burn your hyperdrive generator out completely."

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

The way he said her name actually gave the girl pause. He was tired, crabby, and no doubt just wanted this whole thing ironed out so that they could all get to where they were going and sleep would come faster that way. Just a guess of course.​

​

Turns out she was wrong, because he very quickly explained himself. He thought she was neglecting her own care? Psht, nonsense...​

​

Her eyes drifted to the untouched plate of food, the barely sipped water, and then she looked down unable to meet his gaze. Why did it feel like Vero was the one staring at her in that moment? Trying to remind her to focus on more than just the boy. Before she could respond or do much about it, he was taking Ideon up into his arms and leaving her stood there aimlessly.​

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"Hey, but.. I.. he..." Cheeks flushed a weird mixture of red and green as she tried to process it all. Embarrassment, frustration, confusion, uncertainty, she couldn't quite settle on any one emotion. In the end she sort of just ended up slumping back down into the seat she'd previously occupied. She wanted to fight him on it, but even now she could feel the exhaustion wicking away at her.​

​

'I just... Need him to know I'm still here." Her voice was a little deflated then.​

​

Marus did not pause long, soon he was hauling the boy through the ship and toward one of the cabins. Rhia forced herself back to her feet and followed after them, like a fussing mother who had reluctantly handed over a newborn to some estranged family member she didn't wholly trust. ​

​

"Why do you get to call the shots?" she finally asked, some of the punchiness returning to her tone as she caught up with him. Take this bed, use this blanket, get this many hours of rest... Ugh. "You're not my Father, and you're certainly not my Master." Who was her Father? Psht, nobody knew, but all the same it couldn't be this boy. Not green enough, and far too young. So there.​

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He had said she could fight him on it tomorrow though... Could she let go of the reins for one night?​

​

She glanced to Ideon in his arms, and realized that in some way she already had.​

​

Sithspit.​

​

Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

"Eight hours," was Marus's immediate, knee-jerk reply as he was laying Ideon down on the bed. The scrawny kid wasn't too difficult for him to carry, all things considered. He glanced back at Rhia, his face softening a bit. "Listen, I'm not blind, you know? I can tell that you weren't prepared for any of what you've just gone through. I certainly wasn't prepared for the last few days, but I've also had that time to get used to it. It's still fresh for you." He pulled the cover up over the sleeping boy, then stepped back and stood up again.

"Now. I'm going to go eat some of that food, and then head to the cockpit. You can join me if you'd like, or I can just bring some to you in here, either way." He had to put a little bit of effort into keeping his focus then, and doing what he could to keep in control for the short while he was in control of the situation.

Had to try not to get distracted by that bit of a blush she had. Even if it was more green than red. A mystery he still couldn't figure out, and figured it would probably be rude to ask. "Just...remember to take care of yourself a bit, alright? You can't keep looking out for him if you don't take what opportunities you have to keep yourself held together, so if you won't do it for your sake or because I asked, at least do it for him."

Then he gave her one hopefully-reassuring pat on the shoulder and walked back out into the hallway.

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

She just sort of stared at him for a long moment as he said his peace, tucking Ideon into bed and the like. It took her a moment longer to realize that was her job, but when she moved to step around Marus in order to redo it she found he'd done more than a good enough job. She'd only run the risk of waking the poor boy and for what? To prove she could do it too?

Her hands fidgeted aimlessly at her side, and she let out something of a short sigh. Though Rhia only vaguely paid attention to talks of food and where she could eat it - because apparently no matter what she would be eating it - what Marus said before he made his way out of the room really seemed to stick with her. If not for herself, if not for Marus, then for Ideon. She had to be at her best for him, and you could not pour from an empty cup.

And Rhia's cup was more than empty. It was bone dry.

"I... But... Fine..."

Fine. It would have to be fine for now, wouldn't it? 8 hours of sleep, food in her stomach, and entrusting their fate in the hands of this stranger who, by the way, didn't even really own the ship. Force, the Universe was really testing her wasn't it?

"I'll... I'll catch up with you in a minute."

She waited until he was gone, and the door was closed, before slumping down to the floor beside the bed and using it for support. Settling her head in her hands, she allowed her remaining strength to wane and provide space for grief to come crashing down. Quiet in that moment, even as the tears flowed freely, she did her best not to wake the sleeping boy. Her knees came up and she wrapped her arms around them and buried her face.

Day one, she realized. This was only day one. What about tomorrow, and the day after that, and.... Where did she even hope to go from here?

Rhia was gone for a few minutes longer, but when she finally emerged from the cabin she'd done her best to rid herself of any signs of why she'd been absent. She made her way back down the hall, and out to where the table was. She slid back into her seat, reached for her jacket which had previously been covering Ideon, and pulled it on over her head, hood up for comfort. Then she pulled the plate of food closer, and began to pick at it. Barely eating it, but managing a small mouthful here and there.

Enough that he might not call on her to eat it all.

"Thank you" she whispered, "For bringing us in from the void."

Who knew what would have happened if he hadn't.

Marus Saretti ​

 

[Marus Saretti]

The rations weren't much. A bit better than standard military rations, definitely better than pure survival food, but nothing really to write home about, not on a normal day. This, however, was not a normal day, and Marus had to make a point of not just inhaling the food before the girl came back out to at least pick up her own plate. Even if he did want to, because he was hungry, he was a bit cold (he'd forgotten how cold a starship in hyperspace could get, and he hadn't found the thermostat yet), and because it'd be a good way to distract himself from why Rhia hadn't come back out yet.

By the Maker, he didn't like leaving her alone in the state she was in. He'd always hated when others left him completely alone in a similar state, but different people worked in different ways, he supposed. At least it wasn't very long before she made her way back out, and started slowly picking away at her plate. At least everything was quiet enough he didn't really have to strain to hear her when she spoke, although the words did leave him a bit dumbfounded.

Thanking him for not leaving them to drift? What a weird thing to say. "You know, even if I'd wanted to leave you for some reason, I couldn't, right? That's one of those rules of space travel that everybody knows. Never abandon someone who's out drifting, never take shots at a pilot that ejected from their starfighter..." There were few sins, if any, that could be considered greater amongst one of the many space-borne people in the galaxy. He'd grown up hearing tales of horror from older men and women that had been left floating in their escape pods for days on end without any help, and some from pilots who'd found escape pods—on well-traveled routes, no less!—where the occupants had long since succumbed to dehydration or starvation, or the lucky few who'd had something to kill themselves with.

Never knowing why the ships that did pass by ignored the distress beacon and just sped on along. Even the possibility of it being a fake, pirates lying in ambush, wasn't enough to deter the true spacers from stepping up to rescue another who needed it. "Want my advice? Don't dwell on that too much. You're on a ship, you're on a route back to safe space, everything is better than the alternative." He took a short moment to take in her features, again, now that she wasn't putting up such a constant fight against him for control; compared to before, she seemed oddly vulnerable.

"Got anywhere you want dropped off? Currently all I've got is heading back to Kashyyyk, but if you don't want to deal with the cult there, I don't blame you. No doubt I'm going to get an earful once I land and hand this thing over to them..."

Rhia Kesyk

 

[Rhia Kesyk]

There were rules for this sort of thing? Rhia looked at him with thinly veiled disbelief. With how many nefarious beings tended to rove along hyperlanes and the like, seeking out ships prime for ransacking, the last thing she expected was something of a code of honour along these routes. Maybe she just had a skewed perspective of space. Maybe what they'd just been through was making her bitter.

"What, is some space patroller going to come and get you for leaving someone behind?" The mere notion of that made her shake her head, the tiniest wave of humour running through her body and forming a miniscule smirk upon her lips. It didn't last long, but it felt good to be silly for a moment. Just a moment.

His advice came then, and it was simply: don't dwell on it. Easier said than done though, wasn't it? It was so much easier to sit and think about all that might have happened, all that had happened, when one's mind was already wired toward trying to process it. Still she understood what he meant. Didn't mean she was going to dignify it with a response though.

Not until the question came at least.

"We, uh... We were on route for Tribunal Station" she explained, "Though how close or far we are from there I don't rightly know." It took her a moment to properly hear what he'd said, and then an actual, genuine laugh loosed itself from her lips. "Wait, what? Cult?" She laughed again. He was calling the Jedi a cult? "Yeah, it kinda is a cult isn't it?" Certainly insofar as Rhia's twisted experience with them it was. They'd told her so many lies and mistruths about the Galaxy at large, so many that Cotan Sar'andor had found himself quite the difficult task of helping her to unlearn them.

Thinking about him made her heart ache all the more than it already did.

Rhia didn't have much of a track record with Masters and Father figures, did she..?

Marus Saretti​

 

[Marus Saretti]

"Right?" He was glad to see her smiling and laughing a bit. Progress in the direction of a better mood was always a good thing. Beyond that, her laugh was adorable. "First this old woman reverse-cons me in a game of Pazaak when I'm just trying to get money for food, and makes me think I've just bet myself into indentured servitude. I follow onto her ship, thinking about how I'm going to get away, and then she starts saying all this stuff about the 'Force' and how I've got it or whatever, and then drops me off on Kashyyyk. Then a bunch of people run some blood tests on me, ask me a few questions, and all of a sudden I'm in the cult, I guess."

That had been a weird week. At least as weird as the one he'd just been having, although far less stressful. "Then they all start calling me 'apprentice' or 'Padawan,' telling me to go to all these classes. A lot of guided meditation. I uh...I just sleep through most of it, if I'm being entirely honest." He speared some of the rations on his fork, bringing them up to his mouth. They looked like fried Corellian potatoes. Tasted...mostly like potatoes.

He was about as sure they were actually potatoes as he was sure the Force existed.

"So, Tribunal Station? That's the headquarters for the Judges, right? Run by that guy, Coren Starchaser ?" He paused for a moment, racking his memory. "No, wait, I think he's another member of the cult, runs his own temple on Kattada from what I heard some of them saying..."

Rhia Kesyk