Festival of the Lost | CIS Dominion of Krant (Y,44)

[Crocell]

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Location: On the shores of Lake Aleng​

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The raven-haired beauty sat upon a rock, staring off into the distance. Curls of smoke from a hundred burning fires & a soft fog combined, lending an ethereal, ghostly quality to the silent waters of Lake Aleng. In the distance, Ivory could hear sounds of celebration and ritual; tribal drum beats and piping flutes caressed her ears, matching her heartbeat in-time. She had been waiting in this very spot for nearly an hour - content to simply be alone, waiting to see what might show itself from the depths of the powerful vortex within Aleng's waters.​

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She shifted her gaze, staring down into the waters which gently lapped at the shore a few meters away. She picked up a stone from beside her and softly lobbed it into the depths of the lake; it skipped a few times then sank. The tiny ripples of movement flowed like quicksilver outward in all directions...​

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And it was then that her consciousness began to change.​

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She allowed the visions to come - faces from her past, in a steady procession as they marched from the depths of the lake into her mind...​

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Silus Crow, an old friend from her time in the depths of Coruscant... She had watched him die, falling from a ledge with nothing to save him... falling... falling... falling... until she'd lost sight of him in the darkness. ​

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A woman with long red hair, with one eye missing from her head; a companion she'd once known, but couldn't save from the knife which took her eye & her life.​

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A Rodian, dragging himself from the depths of the waters to stand, legless, before her on the stones before continuing on his march. She'd watched him crushed beneath a landspeeder, and had let him pass into the Great Unknown. Again, unable to save him. ​

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A balding man with a goatee, who gazed at her with cold eyes... Even in death, she recognized the spiritual representation of a lightsaber hanging at his belt. ​

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And the list continued... It seemed as if a hundred faces passed before her eyes, each of them a ghost from her past, reminding her of better times... worse times... Reminding her that life was precious. ​

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"I'm sorry..." She said, and began to weep. ​

 

[Jaron Lesan]

Location: Lake Edge​

Wearing: X​

[member=“Dianah Vi’Dreya”]​

Post: 2​

**********************​

Her voice rang clear in his mind. So, she had been learning things from this new master of hers. A contented sigh escaped his lips as he walked toward her. Of course the moment they were together again it was as though they had never parted. There was nothing in the galaxy that felt more right than this. His arms held her for as long as she was content to lean into him, though that was not for too long.

“People... you want the lake to be your only way to meet me?”

Jaron was teasing, and his chuckle gave it away. She knew he didn’t like crowds. It was odd for a Lesan, but he supposed that came from his mother. Kara did not like crowds either, and after Jaron made the choices he had, seclusion had come to easy. Dianah was doing what she could to draw him out of it, but the man was as stubborn as a mule in regards to how much progress he was making. After all, he was still wearing black.

Her lips came into contact with his neck, and a low and contented sigh graced their ears. Jaron had missed her, and he wanted to be with her always. This was a reminder as to what he missed when they were apart. He missed all of her and what came with her. His hand immediately began to caress the curly locks of her hair. He loved them, even if it was nothing like what he had been used to with his mother.

Dianah’s question cake some what as a surprise to him. His eyes paired with hers, studying to see if she truly didn’t know.

“Now if you have to ask that, you haven’t listened to any of my stories. There is only one person in the entire universe that I would ever hope to see come out of that water tonight.”

Under his breath he muttered the daily remembrance of the Mando’ade culture in their own tongue, and he named his mother. Dianah one’s she just needed to be reminded.

“She would like you...”

 

[Darth Miseria]

Location: Edge of Lake Aleng​

Wearing: [x]​

[member=Jaron Lesan]​

Post Three​

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'Not just any people! My people. Ivum and Metus have been dying to meet you. Regardless, I will get you out of your shadow one day... even if it's only for a moment.'

Time seemed to pass slowly in those few seconds of silence where they simply embraced each other. It was in moments like this that she wished her hardest for him to stay. Dianah often wondered what it would mean for him to do it, but the thought of forcing him to give up anything for her just seemed silly. He still had his own life and his own commands as she did hers. However, there was a glimmer of hope that their paths would merge for good at some point: the vision.

It seemed strange, but a few months ago the very thought of it would have turned her scarlet. Since then it had become her motivation. It was the whole reason she was determined to make something of herself. Before it was for selfish reasons. She wanted fame and glory and merits of her own. All of that still mattered, but it came second to him.

'Of course I listen... I knew who it was. It just took so long for you to talk about it properly. The thought of upsetting you by bringing it up at the wrong time is scary. Even a Goddess has to be cautious sometimes.'

There had been no doubt in her mind about who they would see that night. Dianah had been made aware of one other woman who stood where she stood in Jaron's heart. His Mother. The way he had spoken about her that day on Gallinore had taken Dianah's breath away. She was strong, fierce and formidable and the more Dianah heard of her the more she liked her. Though they hadn't ever met this mysterious woman already held a special place in her heart. The mere mention of her name put such a mesmerising glow of adoration to Jaron's eyes that she couldn't help but love her too.

At his words she flashed a bright smile, leaning away from his shoulder just enough for him to see. A blush appeared on her cheeks and stained them rose red. It still amazed her how he seemed to know everything about her, down to her very bones. He had answered the most burning question in her mind without the words even leaving her lips. It earned him another beguiling smile that was followed by a rather passionate kiss.

'I can't wait to meet her.'

Dianah touched his forehead with her own and let her eyes flutter to a close. There was no point in mentioning who she thought she might find in the fog that night. Both of them were fleeting thoughts in her mind, like paper floating on a light breeze. Her own Mother would likely not even recognise Dianah, which was just fine for her. But if it was Hadashah... she was a different story entirely. The thought of it had originally placed a blanket of anxiety over the already eerie night but that had disappeared the moment Jaron arrived. Nothing else mattered now he was here.

 

[Maple Harte]

Maple did not miss the ingrained reflex--she'd been trained to notice such things--the way she folded her hands behind her back. Stewjon was a cruel place, Maple thought. It was cruel to its very bones, and [member="Alwine Lechner"] had had it far worse than some crap stay at a misogynistic jail.

But it was the answer she gave that made Maple's blood run cold in horror, though she did not show it. This poor woman had snapped from mistreatment and commited an act of such irreversible gravity Maple wasn't even sure what the consequences to her soul would be.

Maple would never know what it was like to have a mother. Ursula Sandraven had been a mentor, not a Mother, per se--Training Maple, then known as Uri, had been her primary concern. Friendship was a second place sort of thing, though even Maple would admit Ursula had been at least that much, once.

"My condolences on the death of your...innocence...I won't question your reasons. I saw what was going on down there. I'm so sorry things reached a point for you that such an action was your only means of getting anything resembling closure." Maple said with all sincerity. It was not an insult or condemnation. That had been what had happened when she took the life of the one who had brought her into this world. Any hope of retaining innocence was lost. The mother had likely brought it on herself, given Alwine's tone, but what a horrid price for being a bad mother. And what an even more horrid burden for Alwine to shoulder. But it had been her choice. And the choice of her brothers, it seemed. One Maple had no doubt would make them all wake up in the middle of the night, sweating, staring at their hands and seeing only the blood someday. It happened to Maple often enough, certainly.

It was hate that brought her here, and hate that kept her rooted. It was a hatred that risked burning her out, if Alwine wasn't careful. But when she stated her objective, Maple knew Alwine's rookie-ness was showing itself.

"I'm not so certain a ghost can be killed, Alwine. Not truly. Ghosts are energy like anything else. Energy can be neither created nor destroyed. Dispersed...redirected...but destroyed? You would not be the first to try, certainly...A spirit can be imprisoned to suffer though...I trapped the Spirit of a Sith Lady that tried to put the moves on me once. Nasty bunch, never go into their tombs without a plan if you stumble onto one. Most cases its just best to back away and bombard the site from orbit...I mean, if you're badass and everything, than of course rob everything in it, including all their evil Sith Lord ice cream in their evil Sith fridge. (Maple said this because one of her fellow Shadows had once found just that. The Sith Lords were an insane and decadent cult, through and through.) But if you're not badass, just walk away when you spot one. It usually ends with non-badasses getting torn apart or liquified or driven violently insane, or all three at once. But there are ways to hurt them...you just need the proper equipment. Medallions, scrolls, amulets, achemized weapons, all of this will work. But you'd need a hell of a lot of personal power to destroy a spirit, I think. I'm just speaking from experience, so sorry if I'm bearing bad news."

Maple didn't offer an opinion whether her mother actually deserved such a fate. That was Alwine's business. The woman had such a hold on her, even in death. Maple wondered if Alwine realized that, on some level. But it was for Alwine to come to that understanding, should she ever manage to fight through the hate long enough.

"I know what its like to be driven by hatred...first time I picked my restraints in a Sith prison camp the first person who died was the camp director via toilet swirly..." she admitted to the Lupine, quietly, her gaze running across the lake as she said it, green eyes blinking. Skip. She was an imperial soldier, trying to hunt down Alwine, who was a Jedi Master in this delusion. Skip. Back to normal.

"Oh, I could tell you some stories, certainly...as for who I'm here for, that'd be Kadmus Riath. He was an old buddy of mine back when I was a Jedi Shadow. Saved my ass more than once..."

Maple's gaze turned steely as she gazed upon the lake again.

"The woman I am tracking is a shapeshifter who shot him in the back of the head. I found his corpse on Geonosis. She's in the same line of work I used to be in...pure assassination. And she despises me on an extremely personal level for reasons I do not understand...reasons even she herself claims to have no answers for. We fought on Felacat, but I lost the trail. Now I'm here, because I have only been able to dig up so much. Kadmus must want payback for getting capped, at least, plus being dead, he HAS to know more now than he ever did alive. I'm hoping he knows her base of operations, maybe even an actual name besides that karking art-house designation she gave herself...'The Amalgam'. Just hearing her speak would make you wanna do some old-fashioned punching."

Maple knew this situation could only end with one or both her and The Amalgam dead: She'd shot Kadmus. That alone would have marked her for one of Maple's bullets.

But for being a threat to all her friends as long as she lived? Maple was gonna dig Uri out of the grave if it meant putting The Amalgam in hers.

And Uri had never really had anything better to do with her time than kill people like the Shapeshifter.

"She's been a pain in the ass for weeks now, appearing sporadically, harrassing me, just on the peripherals. She knows me...but I don't know her. And that is unacceptable. You make a lot of enemies in that profession. And she is the one enemy I have absolutely no context for how she even became aware of me...granted, you make enemies in this business if you live long enough...but most of the time you at least have the small blessing of knowing 'why' someone is your foe..."

[member="Caid Centurion"].

 

[Caid Centurion]

Location: Lake-side
Nearby: [member="Alwine Lechner"] | [member="Maple Harte"]
Post: 2

Bright eyes returned to the placid waters. In the darkness, it appeared little more than a black, lifeless void. For a moment, he was reminded of his earlier years...the times before the Gulag Virus. Ugh... Caid almost physically wrenched at the thought of allowing his mind to drift to the distant past. It wasn't that the man did not have a healthy respect for history, quite the contrary. Caid was an avid studentof the actions of past individuals and nations. Because of that reality, he knew enough about his own family's history...to be wary of allowing errant thoughts to rule his mind.

Out of respect for his ancestors, though, there was surely something he could do. Gazing into the reflection of lights from around the village, a mischievous smirk adorned the Sith Lord's lips. If there was one thing his ancestors had certainly been known for, it was their very simple, nearly constant pursuit of whatever pleasure engaged their interest.

With a slow exhale, Caid pulled back the hood of his cloak and bent down to a knee. Unfastening the clasps of his boots, the large Viceroy removed the two garments, allowing his bare feet to fall upon the cool surface of the rocky shoreline. Stepping forward, Caid shed the large cloak just before his feet touched the water. In an instant, the light scarring on the back of his muscular frame disappeared beneath the inky waters of the lake.

Several seconds and probably three times as many meters towards the center of the lake, silver-green eyes would seemingly materialize from the surface of the lake before the upper half of Caid's body followed to lay back on the lake's now disturbed surface.

 

[A'Runda]

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Location: Shore of the lake​

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After A'Runda opened his eyes, the expression behind his mask went of neutral to shocked. Seeing what looked to be a two individuals standing in front of him by the lake. Leaning back he propped himself up with his arm and got onto his feet. Now looking down on the two in front of him. Better seeing the people before him, the Tusken noticed one was a women, and the other a man. After getting up the man let out a sigh and looked down. "Look at what those savages have done to our boy?" He asked the women beside him. Disappointment weighed heavily in his tone. However, the women remained silent. Finally looking back up at A'Runda they spoke again. "Based on your reaction I'm confident in that you can't even recognize your own parents. Isn't that right, Powkav?" Then it dawned on the Tusken. These spirits were his parents.

"Wait, you're...?" A'Runda replied, but didn't finish his question. Also now just realizing what his birth name was all these years ago.

"Oh, so you do speak basic. Well, I'm glad you managed that you've somewhat managed to come back to civilization. But clearly not enough to wear actual clothes, instead of those filthy Sand People wraps." A'Runda's father saw that his son was taken back by those statements. It seemed clear now that they'd come to ridicule there only child after all this time. No mere presence of a warm welcome or hospitality. "So, are you gonna take off that ridicules mask and let us at see who you've become?" Clearly they were giving him no real time to react, or even process their presence. Once again A'Runda seemed taken back from his father's words. "Well, are you?!" they added, much more harsh. They seemed to understand that such an act would be an insult to a Tusken. Were they testing him? But the more A'Runda looked into their eyes they more impatient they seemed to become.

Hesitantly he began to reluctantly bring his hand up to his mask. Slowly undoing the wrappings. Eventually it became loose, and he pulled it off him. Now, with his face exposed, his parents gazed at him long and hard, and right before A'Runda was about to speak he was cut off. "So, you even let the alien ▰▰▰▰▰s mark your face. Even tainting your physical form with their ways." His father scoffed. A moment later A'Runda's open hand became a clenched fist. But once again before he could defend himself his father shot first. They were relentless. "We see that you've even garnered Force abilities, and to think that our son, our first born could've been a Jedi. Instead of being some kind of barbarian with a glorified glow stick." Now A'Runda had gritted his teeth. Seeing now that they were taking some real deep jabs into him. They weren't just trying to insult Tuskens. They pointing crucial aspects about him. They weren't just saying that Tuskens as a whole were bad, but instead putting the focus on those parts about him and saying he was bad person because of them. That something so crucial, something he felt so positive about himself and his background, was bad and disgusting.

"That's not just it either..." His mother finally spoke, the tone was as if he was dead to him but still had a soft feeling to it. As if he wasn't even worth her time to be upset over. "But to think that probably love the very individuals who killed your very own parents and stole you to be one of their own. Well, there are no words to describe such disappointment." After hearing that A'Runda had to physically take a step back. He just couldn't believe what he was hearing. To see and hear his parents for the first time, and for them to just rip in and tear him apart was just shocking to him. For his whole life he wondered what kind of individuals birthed him into this world. To speculate how much they loved him and if they were ever proud of the man he'd become. Only yo be greeted with such hostility to the point where he didn't even know what to say.

By now his fist wasn't clenched and his teeth weren't clenched. Instead he appeared to have been overtaken with shock and horror. All just from their words and knowing how they felt about him. It's one thing if they were just strangers. It's a whole other mess when they're your parents. The very people responsible for you. Then after letting their words sink in they both spoke together. "We wished you were slaughtered like us..."

And like that, it was as if he could physically hear something snap in his head. Followed by what felt like an endless echo. He felt emptied. Like his body had just become hollow in a instant. Soon a look of sorrow and despair took over his face. His jaw and lower lip trembled and his eyes began to well up. His breathing started to become random mess and he looked away from the two of them to the shore below. Closing his eyes he tried to hold back how he felt. He could let this get to him, but it was too late. He couldn't even think at the moment. Falling to his knees he brought his wrapped hands to his face and wept. Tears soaking into the cloth that covered his hands. They had told him just how much they despised their one and only son. To now know they thought he was better off dead like them. With a morbid sense of satisfaction on letting their voices be heard they turned their back on their alone, and weeping son and left him their on the shore as the lakes high tide crept ever more. From now on A'Runda was gonna need to live out the rest of his days know the kind a resentment his parents had felt for him.

In that long moment of feeling that he was alone once more. A'Runda continued to keep his head down int his hands and arms on the shore. However, that wasn't actually the case. But his mind was so overwhelmed that he couldn't of sensed a new presence that was with him. Behind A'Runda took another figure. Not one of his parents, but someone even more familiar to the Tusken. In fact, it was the spirit of a Tusken that was now with him. Watching him, knowing what had just taken place and who too was saddened for A'Runda.

 

[Alwine Daye]

Location: At the lake
Wearing: Little black dress
Tags: [member="Maple Harte"] [member="Caid Centurion"]
Post: 6

Alwine had not snapped from the mistreatment on Stewjon. It was quite the opposite. Of all she knew of being a Lupine, she was not supposed to have survived those months of torture with her mind still in tact. But she had, and there was a reason for that. She knew that if she'd snap, if she'd become weak of mind, her wolf would take over, and then not only would she be dead by the hands of her jailers and torturers, but so would the rest of her family. For her parents, she had no mercy to give, but she could not endure the thought of putting her brother Varick in danger. It was his safety, her concern and love or him, that had pulled her through it. If he had been gone away from Stewjon the same as Gerwald was, Alwine would not have survived the first week before she shifted. Perhaps two, at most.

As for her mother... That woman's death had been Alwine's dream for years before it actually happened. It was no state of snapping that had caused her to finally do it. No. It had been cold, somewhat badly calculated (since she would not have succeeded without her brother's help), but a long time coming. There was no mercy nor forgiveness for those who had made the lives of her and her brothers a living hell. A slip, she could understand, she could forgive. A few months of stupidity, that as well. But years, her entire life, the entire lives of both of her brothers... No. There would never be forgiveness for that. If mother Lechner's ghost appeared tonight, she would find a way to kill it as well, and then hope to forget the woman with time. Forget, but never forgive.

It was not a burden on the young wolf's shoulders. It was emancipation. But she let the matter go for now, figuring she would have to know this Maple Harte better before they could discuss such things with the amount of attention and depth they deserved.

"You are a Witch," Alwine said in response to Maple claiming she was not certain ghosts could be killed, "as the matter has been explained to me, this means you believe you have a certain connection with the spirits of the dead. Or spirits who claim to be of the dead. There is a lot of blind believe involved in all of this, from what I understand. I don't know much about energy and other things of science, but I know that what exists, can be undone. People can be killed. Animals can be killed. What is a ghost if not a person or an animal belonging to a slightly less tangible race?"

She had been thinking about the matter for a few weeks now. Of course, she had other suspicions, other things she wished to discuss, but... But aside for Maple, she only knew of one Witch with enough power (or at least who claimed to have as such), and she was not one that Alwine would ever trust with anything, let alone important matters.

"How did you trap the Sith Lady?" Alwine asked then with a big smile. Maple, while being a Witch, was apparently a form of warrior as well. That was what bounty hunters were, were they not? Alwine had immense appreciation for that. "How do you... Spot, one? And were would one get all the things required for it?"

Alwine did not understand the sentence with the toilet and the swirly, but she let it go. It was a big galaxy. She expected not to understand everything. The scope she was dealing with now was so much greater and bigger than what she had on Stewjon. Learning would take time.

"What is a Jedi Shadow?" was the next question that came after Maple mentioned her former position.

And then... The mention of a shapeshifter. Alwine blinked. So that meant Lupines were not the only ones who could do it. Did that mean there was a species-connection between the Lupines and those shape shifters? She wished she had an intuitive answer. And still, she stored the questions away for later, letting Maple continue her story and her reasoning for being here. It was a good reason.

"Did she not make herself your enemy when she shot your friend?" Alwine asked once Maple was done, "if you have been working for long, perhaps she merely knew of you? Perhaps you have hurt one of her loved ones as collateral damage?"

It was then that a color caught her attention. Alwine looked to the side, seeing the bright green color rising from the lake. Instinctively, she took a few steps back away from it. "What is that?" she asked with a growl.

 

[Kurayami Bloodborn]

Location: Lake Shore

Wearing: Flightsuit

Post: 1

Kurayami had long been fascinated by tales of a planet steeped in the dark side, and yet the corruption was not nearly as visible as other places. He recalled conversations long ago of the planet with Raylia, mentions made of the name Krant. While both of them wished to visit and see what made the planet so unique, if the legends were to be believed. As he entered the atmosphere he could feel the aura of malaise that covered the entirety of the planet. There were whisperings that the CIS had once had sway on this planet and that now through very generous donations, that was made true again. Tonight though he wasn't here solely for a bar crawl, maybe after he had worked up a thirst while exploring. Most likely that would play in at some point if he was completely honest with himself. Granted he made no move to actually land at the spaceport as normally he would. This time he found a clearing not far from the main point of interest for him. A lake.

The clearing was a short walk from the lake, but not overly far, maybe five or ten minutes at a leisurely pace. A fortunate fact given his penchant for rarely ever rushing himself when he didn't have a set goal in mind. Legends told that once a year the spirits of loved ones would rise from the lake, oddly not in a hostile sense given the overwhelming darkness that permeated the planet itself. No, it had instead turned into a festival of sorts, open to any who would make the pilgrimage and seek out the lake. Inwardly Kurayami was more than a bit wary of such tales, many legends he had heard turned out to be vast exaggerations at best and not even close to reality in the other cases. It was the few that DID adhere to the truth of the tale that intrigued him most, and it was those he tried to weed out from the others through careful research and in some cases such as now, traveling to the location itself. Thus he ended up here, at the edge of a lake, a single lightsaber hanging at his left hip and his helmet held loosely in his right hand as his eyes wandered over the scenery before him. So far the taint of the dark side was easily felt, but he saw little physical evidence of it so perhaps this was one of the legends that had at least a grain of truth behind it.

Instead of trying to drive the darkness from his mind, he opened himself fully to the FOrce and allowed himself to travel along the currents of life present. He knew the dangers of staying in a trance such as this for a long while. It could easily cause one to lose all sense of self, but this was a risk he was willing to take to gain a greater understanding of where he found himself. After what seemed like hours, but had likely been less than a minute, he slowly withdrew from the trance and took time to recenter himself. Once he managed to do this, he took a seat at the edge of the lake and let his eyes lose focus as he stared out over the water. Only time would tell what his experience here would be, and if it were as he hoped, who would appear to him. Perhaps no one, but he would be patient and see where this went, besides even if worst came to worst, he'd still end up with some good drinks at a local cantina he was sure.

 

[Jaron Lesan]

Location: Lake Edge​

Wearing: X
[member="Dianah Vi'Dreya"]
Post: 3
**********************

“Yeah, so they can kill me,” Jaron teased as he pointed to the lake. “You’d be coming here to meet me regularly if that happened.” He was teasing her of course, but Jaron also was aware that fathers and brothers had a way of being protective of the women in their family, and he did not expect Metus or Ivum to be any different. A soft chuckle escaped his lips as he remained loathe to let Dianah escape his embrace. They had been apart for too long. Jaron wasn’t going to allow that to happen again.

What Jaron wanted more than anything was to know it was Dianah behind the door, and to bring about what he saw in the vision. Their family would bring the galaxy to its knees, and where Jaron once sought to see worlds saved by the darkness he embraced, he know craved the power he’d seen on display. Jaron hungered for it, and the fear and reputation all of it would cause. His legacy would run as rich as names like Darth Bane and Plageius, and Dianah and their son would be at his side. It was his destiny, and a birthright of sorts.

“No, not anymore. Stop being cautious around me. You’re the only person I’m an open book to. How could justify hiding anything from my goddess?” Jaron lifted her chin so their eyes could meet.

The kiss they shared was passionate, and only when it broke did Dianah respond. Yes, she wanted to meet Kara, and Jaron wanted her to meet his mother also. It was his hope that meeting would take place tonight. As their foreheads rest against each other’s everything around them went quiet. Jaron was lost to the world when in moments like this with Dianah, and when he was here like this now it seemed as if they were the only two that existed.

“Feels like she’s the only other person in the entire universe, doesn’t it ner, ad’ika...”

The voice was clear. Jaron knew it at the start and could pick it out from any other voice he had ever heard. It was his mother. She stood in her armor with her helmet hanging on her belt. Jaron just nodded unaware that she was standing there at the lake’s edge watching them. He was still too lost in the moment.

 

[Luna Vega]

Alengside | Krant​

Post: 1​

Mention: [member="Ivory Stroud"]​

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Why am I here...

Because the drinks are endless and you're not paying. A short nod accompanied the musing in her head and Luna smiled wryly, "Reserve, double. No ice." The pirate drew back in her seat at the bar,brown toes of her boots tucked just under to keep the lass from falling. This had not been a time where Luna Vega had seen better days- in fact, her strange blue hair had been recently touched up and fixed into a mass of braids- braids that were now banded and strung into a mid-ponytail hitting just past her shoulders. She was clean, the only grit was the black coal smudged around her pale gray pools. It was a drastic change-in-pace for the corsair. There were far too many ways and too many words to drone on about slavery and the conditions. Instead, she simply marveled in her new found freedom and snaked her inked fingers about the fresh tumbler of whiskey.

With a sigh, Luna pulled the free drink to her lips, allowing only a swallow to savor as she drank in the room. Lights were of a similar hue to her poison and a soft violet... so soft it could almost be white and strung from high metal rafters to dance in the air. Were there more glass, it would have appeared an underwater grotto with the moonlight splashing the various trinkets. A sound near the bar roused her from her imagination and she tilted the short, clear glass back letting the remainder of contents burn a sweet line from her throat to her belly. A slow drop of her arm and the empty container tapped against the slick wooden top.

Stormy grays met with the tender's blues and before she could begin to speak, the refreshing sound of liquid dropping into glass tickled her senses. Luna pointed on finger while the others dressed the recently filled tumbler- I see you and many thanks. Her nails tapped idly, while her other hand pilfered a thin cigarra from the confines of a leather vest and slipped it betwixt two fingers, then her bare lips. Vega held it there, nipping the tip with her teeth and those same digits delved into a different pocket for a light.

With one flick, the immediate area about her filled with light plumes of iridescent smoke, near glittering in the alien light.

 

[Karlie Lynn Destat]

Location: In the village by the lake
Wearing: Casual red shirt and jeans
Interacting: open to anyone
Post: 2






One being not too keen on trusting foreign cuisines, had broken her fast by mid morning, opting to eat what she had brought on her ship. And not to mention she had slept there overnight under Krant's stars, quite securely under the dura-glass canopy of her ship's stateroom cockpit.

Now past noon, she was well into the festivities, despite being solo. Karlie really had made no friends to speak of since she had been out of the academy and into the services of the Bureau. Sure, she had countless associates, but something always seemed to distance her from the norm. Maybe because she was disconnected entirely from just about everyone...and everything. But that had been a conscious choice of hers and one out of necessity. Karlie really had no choice but to let go of everything which had made up her essence. But that essence had not all been her, but that which had been constructed by her mother in order to one day prepare Karlie to take over her body and soul.

Karlie had been freed of her mother's physical influence by the time she was 12..only to then be haunted by that undying same spirit in her dreams. Of course, she had scholars...force users who re-educated her through those trying teen years. But it wasn't till she was totally free of midi at the age of 20 that her true self and recovery started to exponentially bloom.

As expected, through all those trying hard times, Karlie had little social interactions with people her age outside of private schooling and then the academy....thus, the lack of individuals one could come to call friends. But she wasn't at all an introvert. in fact, she was quite one who dove into pretty much a lot of unknowns. She had grown up with no shyness, and no fear...her mother's hand. And even after the demise of her mentor, she remained as such to the present. Karlie for the most part had retained her true self despite the dark years and inquiring mind remained undaunted.

Still, the only thing she was reluctant to do...and for good reasons...was diving into new foods. Especially foreign foods. This was due to her weakened system. Not so weak as one being sickly, no. Just that without the presence of midis in her system to make all kinds of foods palatable, many foreign foods just were not. And for that reason, she wore a specially designed cronograph on her wrist with micro injection anti venom that counteracted her allergic reactions like anaphylaxis that result from such incompatible food groups.
So on most occasions where she can wish to try such foreign food groups, she most always would ask to sample it first.

The local beer crafter laughed, thinking she were jesting when she asked for a small shot glass of the brew.
"No really, seriously.... I would just like to take a sip first." Karlie didn't take offense, as she'd been through countless chapters of the same scene.

"I don't mind paying for the entire pint...just need to taste it first..." She put down the local credit for what could acquire her several pints.

The man looked at her for a moment, trying to figure out whether she was still pulling his leg or was she really serious. Why not just take the pint, as it's paid for anyway, he reasoned
.
"Well, I don't wish to insult you if i cannot take more than a sip and then waste the rest.." Ok, well, she had a point however little sense it made to him. But she wanted a shot-glass of beer to try; he reached for one of the spirit glasses and poured a thimble in the shot-glass, sliding it over to her like it was a full pint.

Karlie smiled at him and took the shot-glass to her olfactories a moment before sipping the content and then let it tingle on her tounge. She then finished the shot glass in its minute entirely.

"Hmm... " She replied, putting the ridiculous small beer sampling glass down.
"That went down smooth....
Ok, I'll take a pint to go, if you please."

The man looked at the credits she had put down before, then over to Karlie, before sliding them over to his side and off the table.
He then did just that, fill up a good glass of the pint and placed it down before her, still looking at her quite strangely.
"Glass is your to keep...all good little lady."

With that settled, Karlie picked up her cold glass of pint and walked away after a sip.

"Enjoy!.." She heard the man shout.

She simply raised her pint as acknowledgement without looking back, before melding in the festive crowd.

 

[Kurayami Bloodborn]

Location: Lake Shore

Wearing: Flightsuit

Post: 2

So far there had been no activity on his end as far as seeing old loved ones was concerned. Perhaps he had come to terms well enough with their losses? Or they may have felt that there was little else they could do to help. Either way, he was about to make his way into the town proper when he felt a slight chill, something he chalked up to sitting on the shore of a lake for the past hour or so. At firs he tried to brush away the feeling, a bit disappointed that this particular legend had turned out not to be true. He could recall his trip to Korriban and the dark side twisting the words of loved ones whom had passed on long ago, taunting him for failures, whether beyond his control or not. It would have been interesting to see at least one of them again, whether his blood relatives or not. Well if his blood relatives were dead, he honestly did not know, and it didn't really matter. He had tried to reach out before and find them but records from the breaking of Corellia were...spotty at best. All his inquiries had come up empty and they had either met with the same issues, or simply hadn't even tried.

Lost in thought as he was the almost silent whisper was easily missed by the man. His eyes had glazed over as he continued to watch the water. As he stood and dusted off his flightsuit as he readied himself to head into the town a familiar voice could be heard, becoming more distinct as it neared where he stood, his back to the water for now. It wasn't who he had expected in any sense. The single voice was soon joined by others, and for once Kurayami was frozen in place. As much as he wanted to turn around he physically couldn't bring himself to. This really was happening wasn't it? he clenched his gloved hands into fists, pushing through this paralyzing fear of who he knew stood behind him with all the willpower he could muster. It was a slow thing as he turned and faced three old friends. His gaze steeled as his eyes lifted from the edge of to water upward. Some may see this as an odd display from the usually overconfident and borderline reckless Corellian. Before he could even ask why they had come he, was cut off by the only female present in the group.

So, finally my big brother seeks out his adoptive family. Any reason it took you so long? Guilt perhaps? And yet look who else has come to speak with you. One who swore vengeance and the other you felt you abandoned, even if the order came from him to do so. Dietrich and Erich may or may not speak. That is up to them, but I can tell you that we have been watching you from beyond the veil.

Those words alone sent a chill down Kurayami's spine. Before she could start speaking again, he took his chance to speak, finally raising his head and looking to each of the three in turn.

"Why did I take so long? Yes, guilt played a part, but more importantly I knew that nothing I did could reconcile in my mind what happened..."

Again he was interrupted, this time by Dietrich, the man who had sworn to kill him when Amara was lost.

Ah, Kurayami, some things never change do they? You still fly under your old callsign, all your ships bear the colors of Aquila Squadron, and even your flightsuit is based on our old ones. Did you think that this would alleviate the guilt you felt? That flying with even more abandon than you ever did before would prove that you could have prevented everything? Look at what you have become, what you have pushed yourself to. Was I upset when you were chosen to be next in line as flight lead? Of course, I hated that the newest member was granted such an honor. I hated you for that and pushed myself to outperform you in every sortie afterwards. Training or not I had to prove that you weren't ready to lead, that you were too unstable...that you were too attached to your wingman. I saw Amara as your greatest weakness, watched you push the envelope to save her, risking your life for her, but I never realized why you did so.

In the end I was jealous of the close bond you two shared, how you could work so perfectly together. No matter how I trained I never could manage that closeness with another, never had the ability to seem as though I was of one mind with my squadron mates. For you two it was effortless, and now that I know why I no longer hold to the hatred I once did. Perhaps you made the decision to open your mind to hers and create a bond, perhaps it just evolved. I found out about your sensitivity through a contact I had when you were on Naboo. I am not proud of what I did to take revenge on you, but it is time you know the truth. The 'bounty hunter' who killed Jenni, who sent you her belongings and a holorecording? That was all set up by me. I blamed you for the loss of Erich and Amara. My closest friend and the closest to a family I ever had. So, I took from you what I felt you took from me. Then on Boz Pity I caught up with you. How wrong I was to have faced you there. You outflew me in every possible way. In killing me though, you freed me to see the truth of my actions, how much I had allowed the hatred to twist who I was once, to see that I never deserved to have even flown the same skies as you. Once you had been a good friend, someone I could trust fully with anything. I am sure you remember those times as well. I have said my piece though, and hope that one day you may find it in yourself to forgive me for my misguided actions.

The spirit of his old squadmate shimmered above the water for a short time, slowly dissipating into the aether once more. There was nothing he could say but the rage bubbling within brought a surge of adrenaline through his system and his whole body shook from adrenaline rush and the anger towards the words he had just heard. Erich was next to speak up.

Now I finally get to put your mind at ease. What happened when we were on that supposed suicide mission was certainly unfortunate, but I had also noticed Dietrich's growing disdain for you. You managed to keep your cool no matter what he threw at you. It was for that reason that I chose you, I knew you would do all you could to keep all your squad mates safe. I am happy to say that I was not wrong. You pushed the envelope of your ship further than we thought possible, even with the modifications. Aggressive but not without honor[, you would let a wounded enemy ship limp away from an engagement. You saw no need to kill someone who couldn't continue the fight on equal terms, and yet if they pushed the attack you would still put them down with no reservation. You knew the flow of battles better than any I had ever seen, and watching you and Amara work together was truly amazing. Where Dietrich saw weakness I instead saw strength. You two flew with such synchronicity that even in three to one odds you still pulled out with minor carbon scoring on your ships.

Your other squad members saw this as well, you had earned their loyalty. Another reason I chose you. I am afraid though that my choice is what started the chain of events that culminated in the events your former rival mentioned. There is nothing I can do to ease the pain of that revelation, but I can say that I am exceedingly proud that you have not let the reputation of Aquila 13 fall into obscurity. Know that we all watch you and are not eager to see you on our side of the veil. Rest easier knowing this old friend.

Well that was two of three down and shimmered away. Amara was the only one left, and still he had no voice after listening to the other two. His head was bowed not daring to look at the young woman whom he had called his sister, and who had been as family to him for years. He wouldn't show weakness now, and he feared that if he looked her in the eye that is exactly what she would see along with the fear of knowing this was only temporary.

 

[Darth Miseria]

Location: Edge of Lake Aleng​

Wearing: [x]​

[member=Jaron Lesan]​

Post Four​

​

​

'I would go to the ends of the Galaxy for you anyway, a lake wouldn't make much difference. You are going to have to meet them at some point.'

The flattering quip was followed by a serious glance in his direction. They were joking of course, but the last part of her sentence was nothing but the truth. Her family was more important than she could begin to describe so eventually, yes, he would have to meet them all. At least, he would if he wanted to stick around. Not only that but the vision had promised them much more than just a fleeting romance. It had promised them a child and all the complications that came with one. Dianah hadn't formed much of an opinion on this particular part of the vision. She still felt far too young for it all just yet, but she would be lying if she said the thought didn't excite her a little.

'You always were an open book, my love. It was just a question of how carefully I could turn the pages. But still, I'm pleased to hear it.'

A soft smile of joy curled the corners of her lips up, then the delicate touch of his fingers sent shivers down her neck. Her eyes locked onto his. There was something in them that took her breath away. Perhaps it was the colour of them, deep brown mixed with flecks of gold. Or perhaps it was the emotion that she could see coursing through them as the pair stood close. Once he had his gaze on her there was nothing she could do save for stare back in wonder.

For a few moments everything went still. Dianah could hear nothing but the rustling of trees, the gentle rhythm of their breath and the steady thumping of two hearts beating as one. She wrapped her arms around Jaron's neck and brought her body closer to his. In the midst of her shuffle a softer voice sounded out. It sounded like it was being carried on a breeze so light you couldn't feel it, almost as if it wasn't real. Dianah was desperate to turn her head, to see who or what belonged to such a euphonious voice, but deep down she already knew who it belonged too. It was that fact that set a firm nervousness in the pit of her stomach that felt like a solid stone.

Aside from a few rare people Dianah had never had the deep desire to impress anyone. There was never any point as sometimes people liked you and sometimes they didn't, that was the way the Galaxy worked. But the woman who was standing just a few feet away from them made Dianah anxious to impress. For the first time in her life she felt like she wasn't enough. After all, no other love could compare to a Mother's love and that included Dianah's love for Jaron.

Dianah lifted her head away from Jaron and found his fingers with her own. Their hearts were no longer beating in time as Dianah's had crept up to a galloping speed. She was completely lost for words and instead chose to give Jaron a blank stare. Some part of her that had been tucked away never really believed anyone would come from the misty fog surrounding the lake, but she had been proven wrong. After a long steadying breath she turned to face the ghostly figure with what she hoped was an affable smile. There was nothing for her to say now because she knew the moment Jaron saw her she would fade into the background. At least for a few moments while they had their emotional reunion. Dianah didn't mind it this way. It was just as it should be.

 

[Jaron Lesan]

Location: Lake Edge
Wearing: X
[member="Dianah Vi'Dreya"]
Post: 3

**********************​

​

"I know..." Jaron shrugged. "I want to, and I want your dad's respect, but I am barely out of recluse mode as it is, and this place... It is bad that I want you to meet her... before anything else happens?"

The joking turned serious in that moment. Jaron had a way of moving seamlessly between both. While meeting Metus and Ivum were a priority, this was the one opportunity they had to allow Dianah to meet his mother. While he wasn't sure about the truth of the stories, Jaron was very optimistic about it. He had to be.

"Well, turn away with those pages. Careful and gentle certainly went out the window on our way to Dantooine."

Like fluid. Jaron chuckled at his own comment with a statisfied look on his face. Dantooine held many good memories for him, as did Gallinore. It had been the one trip that defined their position on the vision. Both of them had admitted they wanted Dianah to be the one behind that door, and the weight of that had turned their banter filled relationship into something much more intimate. They wanted everything the vision offered, the power certainly, but the intimacy, the child, there was a permanence to it. Jaron wanted everything. Which was why this meeting needed to happen, and why he had to meet Metus. It wasn't just his respect that Jaron wanted, but he wanted the man's blessing.

The moment Jaron heard his mother's voice he froze. Part of it was not believable, and the other part of it was he suddenly felt nervous. There was a soothing quality to hearing her say what she had though, and Jaron simply nodded in reply before he he pulled away to look at her. There was smile on his face unlike anything Dianah had seen on his face before. There was an ecstatic joy that only a miracle could produce, and this certainly fit that category.

Jaron took Dianah's hand. He was not going to let her remain in the background for one second. She was part of who Jaron was now, and no reunion with his mother would be complete without her.

"Always... buir... I want you to meet..."

"Dianah, yes. Just because I marched on does not mean I stopped knowing what is happening with my son."

They both chuckled, and the woman looked over to Dianah. Her eyes wandered over her as if she was assessing her, stopping at the scars she bore from her battles and training. It drew a smile to her face.

"And it seems my son had the common sense to find himself a warrior that is as fierce as she is stunning. Tell me young one... why my son, and please tell me that you can make him a much less miserable man."

 

[Maple Harte]

"Well, not spirits of the dead, per se--though we do interact with such beings often enough. Admittedly I am quite new at it myself. But its spirits who are born and formed from the residual energies of nature that Ryloth and Dathomiran traditions gain their patronage from. In the Mandragora, the three main spirits are Lylek, Jart and Doashim. These are not spirits that were originally mortals. Pacts can be made with them, granting one boons. You are correct on a surface level...almost anything can be destroyed, but once you get into the spiritual realm? Its a sort of 'fabric of reality' thing. Now, granted, the spirit you wish to destroy is the remnants of a mortal, and therefore not anywhere in the same category of power as the Patron Spirits...it would still require a massive amount of power to destroy or even injure, power you simply do not have with you. A ghost is immune to fang and claw. Lightning can disperse them...temporarily...but they always reform. And it has one more advantage, despite its weakness...it can hide in the infinite, ever changing reaches of the spirit realm, so deep, perhaps, even a ritual could not compel it before you..." she explained. How to destroy a spirit, really, truly destroy it with ease was a huge question. Maple got the feeling it had never really been extensively investigated by both sides as an insurance policy against total, irreversible destruction of the self for all time. Had to be limits to the feud somewhere between Sith and Jedi.

[member="Alwine Lechner"] then asked how Maple had trapped the Sith Lady.

"I got lucky is how, to be honest. It had a choice between entering its own jewelry, or entering the stomach of the vampire feeding on its corpse. It was an evil Lich...sort of a super-zombie that uses magic, very annoying and deadly. Was trying to drain the life from an entire planet, so it was a bastard in addition to all its other unpleasant qualities. Spotting a floating, snarling corpse ain't gonna be hard, trust me on that..." Maple chuckled. "But a spirit...especially if they are powerful, can look like anything. They could appear in your dreams. Or be a simple voice. Standard fair is a ghost in a blue tinge. Thats usually when the spirit would prefer to communicate directly. As for getting the items to at least hurt them, you need to learn alchemy, or be pals with someone who does, or, as I said earlier, just rip it off from your local evil tomb if you're hardcore. Or a Jedi tomb if mischievous AND hardcore."

When Alwine asked what a Jedi Shadow was, Maple gazed across the lake, her green eyes spotting [member="Caid Centurion"]. Swimming. In the Lake of The Dead.

Ten creds says he gets a hunger for brains she thought to herself for a second before answering.

"A Jedi Shadow is a Jedi Knight trained to hunt and kill Dark Force Users, preferably before they become a large scale threat. They use stealth tactics most of the time. That's how I reached your cell."

Maple didn't mention the part where that one guard had gotten her cell door open and had been a second away from shooting Lechner in the head before the tranq round had gotten him. Alwine didn't need more nightmares.

"Shadows operate in small groups or solo. They are trained to fight methodically and with cunning. They are often the closest to The Dark Side due to the methods they rely on..."

Maple's hands clenched into fists as she continued staring out into the lake, the wind rustling her long, chocolate colored hair, her verdant eyes lost in the frustrations and disillusionment of the past.

"It is a brutal, soul crushing profession that will rob you of your best years, to say nothing of your mental youth." she said softly, seeing the faces of all those targets. That insane republic colonel she had murdered with a machete while camouflaged in mud after sailing down a river in the jungles of Felucia. That media mogul who tried to start a war, dying from the giant drill she had rammed into him. That First Order operative that had a cover as a billionaire trying to use a concealed Geonosian laser super weapon to destroy a field of mines, killed by tossing him head first into an engine turbine. The aurodium merchant who tried to devalue Correlia's economy by raiding one of its bullion storehouses and trying to irradiate the bullion supply, killed when she had ejected him into an airlock. That was the only death she smiled at, because he had put her on a table and tried to cut her in half with an industrial laser. Screw that guy. The other deaths disturbed her however.

When Alwine suggested Maple might have hurt The Amalgam's friends or loved ones, this caused Maple to shake her head, as well as elaborate on her earlier answer.

"That woman has never had friends or loved ones. I saw her eyes. The Job is all that matters to that creep. I'd stake my career on it...what's left of it, anyway...She could have found out about me, but the last time she was seen was decades ago. Her species is long lived, can look like damn near anyone. She could look like you, if she wanted...but for the life of me I cannot figure out what made her resurface. I know what she wants...she wants to turn me, assist her in becoming this...creature I was warned many years ago I was destined to be a slave to. It does not explain in the slightest why I was chosen. Or why this hatred she has for me is so personal. And it IS personal, Miss Lechner. I KNOW I have done nothing to anger this creature. I never even heard of her until Felacat. But that anger, like I wronged her or something is still there...she claims my eyes were the first thing she saw when she 'woke up'. I have no idea what means. Wake up from cryo sleep? Coma? Hyperspace accident?" Maple questioned. "She mentioned she had been in a 'Sleeping Death'...but I have never heard of that term. Is it like a coma? So many unanswered questions is why I need to talk to Kadmus--"

Alwine then stepped back, seeing a green glow from the lake. Maple went closer.

"Speak of the Devil..." she trailed.

A water logged man with a smoking hole in the middle of his head emerged from the water, clad in black robes, floating above it, hands clenched in fists to his side as his boots dangled inches above the water. He was young looking, like Maple, his black hair floppy and not going past his ears. Slate gray eyes with bloodshot whites stared at Maple in recognition. His fair skin now had a corpse pallor, and he was dripping wet.

He hovered silently over the water a few seconds, hands placed firmly close to his hips and clenched into fists, legs pressed firmly together, toes pointed straight down.

"...and he shall appear..." Kadmus Riath spoke, his Coruscant accent coming through.

"Kadmus! Buddy!" Maple called out to the ghost, overwhelmed at seeing him, struggling not to cry because she was so happy.

"It is good to see you again, Uri...though admittedly not under the most pleasant circumstances..." Kadmus said with a solemn nod of acknowledgement.

"Alwine? This is Kadmus Riath. Kadmus? Alwine Lechner."

Kadmus nodded to the Lupine. "My congratulations on your recent emancipation from Stewjon, Miss Lechner. It took me a while to gather the strength to manifest, but I heard some of your conversation with Udinia on my way here. Uri is a great ally to have in one's corner...even if you do have to pull her ass out of the fire once in a while..." the spirit joked.

"You're 'never' going to let that thing with the half cooked sausage go, are you?"

"Uri, that led to you being chased all over Jakku's desert by that strange, sweaty man wearing only a chef's apron and wielding a giant pair of scissors. I'll make fun of you over that until the stars burn out."

Uri rolled her eyes, though it did not hide how happy she was. "Kadmus...you know why you're here, right?"

"Lemme guess...shapeshifter, fair skinned, purple eyes, perfect figure? Can almost choke the air from her spiritual corruption?"

"Yep."

Kadmus sighed.

"I can only tell you so much, Maple. The other side restricts me from devulging secrets too important."

It was Maple's turn to sigh. "I was afraid of that."

"I can be only as direct as I am allowed to be. Sorry Uri. There's red tape and beauracracy of a sort even where I am. Can't get around it. But I will answer what I am able to." Kadmus assured her.

"Let's start with a name for the witch who popped you."

"Her real name is Leejun Forrwiirmeni. Started out in the streets with no one, and had to survive on her own through petty thieving and murder. Largely self educated--had to teach herself to read and write. Tried to go normal, took up art as a calling, was discovered to have very high potential in the Force by a Witch connected to the Demon haunting your sleep."

"That's better info than I've gotten in months. Where's her base of operations?"

"I'm sorry. I'm afraid I cannot answer that."

Maple paused, blowing some hair from her face.

"Known vehicles?"

"She's like you...has a taste for classics. Schutta chased me down in a vintage X-70B Phantom." Kadmus answered, his figure eerily still and unmoving as it hovered over the lake and over both Maple and Alwine. He clearly wasn't breathing.

"So she's Imperial?" Maple inquired, raising an eyebrow.

"Only recently." Kadmus clarified. "But she has otherwise operated on her own for a long time. Extremely dangerous deep cover infiltration specialist, due to both her physiology and more...specialized methods."

"Such as?"

"I'm afraid I cannot be more specific, Uri."

Maple frowned, put her hands on her hips, paced about. The roar of festivities was close by. Across the distance, she saw strange, floating lamps of paper sailing over the sky.

"How'd you get on her trail. And how'd she sniff you out?"

Kadmus frowned. "I did not realize how weakened your connection to the Force had become. Uri...she's been hunting us all down. All the Marksmen. She killed Grisham, V'Droc, Torrence...did something worse to Lura. Bryan and Laersha are still in the running, though, So is Hadrian, Xavier, Angus--"

"--Stop..." Maple choked out almost falling to her knees, wishing her kneecaps would stop whispering to her about a trip to the dark black sea of her heart. Even now, she could never remain fully lucid for a full conversation.

"I'm sorry you had to learn it this way." Kadmus said gently, though his posture remained unchanging.

Maple looked back up at his corpse face.

"Ursula?"

Kadmus frowned, and his eyes looked away from her face and down at the water.

"Ursula is gone."

"How?" Maple whispered, tears streaming down her face.

Kadmus looked at her.

"Ursula is gone." he repeated.

Maple was hyperventilating from shock and rage. A rock next to her split in half and flung itself into the river.

"What the hell does she want with me? Why does she hate me?"

"She believes she is making you a better person. Preparing you for service as a powerful agent of the Dark, and transforming her into this 'Mind-Binder' you fear in the process...in her own twisted way she believes herself to be your benefactor. But as for why she hates you with such a passion...I cannot answer that."

"Where's she been the last twenty years? She had no activity matching her M.O. until eight months ago. Where was she before that?"

"I can't answer that. I'm sorry."

"What are her covers? Her fictions?"

"No permanent ones currently. Its actually extremely unusual that she is operating so openly. You're causing her to break her pattern significantly."

"Did I kill anyone she liked, like Alwine suggested?"

"Your instincts are on the mark to say The Amalgam has never had a friend, let alone a loved one. Miss Lechner here is a thousand percent more fortunate than that wretch by comparison..." Kadmus answered sadly.

"That almost sounds like pity, Riath..." Maple said as she wiped tears from her eyes.

Kadmus looked down at the water, bloodshot eyes tearing up.

"Death gives one...perspective. Perspective enough to make you wish for blindness...but perspective all the same..." he answered just as sadly. "Ursula left you a present on Tattooine, Uri. I can answer only one more question."

"Is The Amalgam destined to be The Mind-Binder?"

"Only a part...if you are so unfortunate as to be tricked into letting it happen, and letting such a dangerous creature become real. Though you may be able to mitigate your losses depending on what other ingredients you use."

"Huh?"

"I'm sorry. I've answered all I can. The other side will not permit me to answer any further queries. The rest, I'm afraid, is very much up to you. Just...do it quickly...when you find the one that killed me...don't waste time making her suffer. Its beneath you."

Maple paused at this, then nodded. "Thanks, Kadmus...and goodbye. I'm so sorry I wasn't there for you. Or the others."

"You were in no condition to help us. You would have only gotten yourself captured." Kadmus reassured her. "You bear no blame for our deaths."

He drew a small smile. "Try not to piss off any more sweaty fat men in aprons, okay?" he asked gently.

Maple gave a weak smile. "I'll try, Kadmus."

Kadmus nodded, descending into the water silently, making no ripples amidst the roars of festival goers on the lakeshore.

Maple finished wiping her tears from her face, turning back to Alwine. "Well, at least I know more now than I did before."

 

[Srina Talon]

​

Location: Beside Lake Aleng​

Wearing: XXXX​

​

Everyone that had come to Lake Aleng seemed to exist in their own little world. She could see figures in the distance. Men, women, a couple embracing. It was sad. They were all together here and yet Srina had never felt so far away. [member="Darth Metus"] had stated that he planned to join her but she had yet to see the dread-locked Sith Lord. Perhaps the ale in town and caused him to lose track of time.

Her expression remained blank. Silver eyes were empty as they stared at the glassy surface of the water. Waiting. Just waiting. The wails of the living and the dead whispered on the wind and Srina was tempted to leave. This place was a hall of horror filled mirrors that reflected what they most needed to see. The things they had lost. The reasons they all fought as hard as they did.

Such deafening silence. Such emptiness.

Srina Talon had lost many. Yet two lingered. One in particular. The spirit that appeared before her eyes, slow, and sweet from the mists could not talk. She crawled. She laughed. She played. She had been stolen from the galaxy before she’d had the chance to bloom and grow into the wonderful woman Srina envisioned. Her niece, scarcely out of infancy, had been cut down in an act of cruelty. In the same stroke, her sister-in-law had been also lost her life.

Arms made of light and crystalized stars swept Iuuna Aeris Valkun up from where she made eyes at her Aunt. They begged her to come and play, to tell her a story, to sing, to take care of her as she once had. Srina had been there when Iuuna had been born. She didn’t think one way or the other about children but Iuuna had been special. From her first cry—to her first breath—Srina remembered it all. Her small fingers, dainty tones, and precious little bones.

“It isn’t your fault.”

The voice that flowed belonged to Aela Valkun Talon. Srina closed her eyes against the purity of soul that spoke to her so easily. How could she? Why would Aela come to her? The white-haired woman could scarcely keep the beating of her heart from flooding her ears. Her skin seemed to grow paler in the dusk and gloom. Everything about her seemed to lose all color, all shine, when pain swept through her unbidden. This visiono of Aela seemed to forgive her but she never certain if [member="Nysana Talon"], her beloved Tellu, truly had. It wasn't something she could ask. It would only cause her pain. She was glad that [member="Darth Metus"] had delayed. Glad that [member="Aryn Teth"] had other matters to attend to.

They didn’t need to see. Didn’t need to know.

“I will avenge you. One day—I will.”

“Nysana needs you. Now, more than ever. Don’t let your hate consume you.”

Srina remained silent. The laugh of Iuuna broke her heart. It was high, light, and so full of joy that she nearly got up and left. Instead, she simply remained.

“Why don’t you read to her?”

Srina froze. It was something small that she had done with her niece. Partially in the interest of starting her education as early as possible, but partially, because she seemed to love it so. The white-haired Echani had often felt ill-equipped to handle a child. She was not fun. She could not cook. She couldn’t do any of the things that a caretaker should, save for changing, and for making sure that others did for her what could not. But—she could read to her.

The book she had was not a children’s story, not a news clipping, or anything so specific. Just a book of random prose that she had picked up in town. So few places bound books with paper anymore that she couldn’t help herself. Slender fingers found the thick binding in the silk beside her and she began to pick up from where she’d left off. It felt mechanical. At the same time it was the first normal thing that she had done in a long time…Srina had simply forgotten how.

“Now, the Star-Bell Sneetches had bellies with stars.​

The Plain-Belly Sneetches had none upon thars.​

Those stars weren’t so big.​

They were really so small.​

You might think such a thing wouldn’t matter at all.​

But, because they had stars,​

All the Star-Belly Sneetches​

Would brag,​

“We’re the best kind of Sneetch on the beaches.”​

With their snoots in the air—“​

Iuuna laughed again, gurgling, with her hands outstretched. Srina could only stare. It was such an innocent response that she couldn’t help but feel as if this lake were more than smoke and mirrors. Was it really the dead returned? The slip of a woman set the strange book down her lap and fought every instinct that told her to leave. This ruined her focus.

But, they deserved to know she mourned them. Even if it wasn’t really them. Her voice was smaller than it usually was when she finally did speak again.

“Le melin.”

I love you.

 

[Lirka Ka]

There was one who broke this bubble, actively fought against it. And it was Ka, it was always Ka. Such a twisted and aggressive soul wasn't one to mope around the dead, especially when the dead were majority screaming at her for one reason or another, a pestering headache more than anything else. She refused to let them come to her, it was a past life. Regardless of it all.

And she actively avoided the lake because of that as well, trying not to skirt to close as she drank away with this world's booze. Enough to ease it to a manageable way, she noted that. Booze helps keep spirits a little bit more quiet.

Of course, the solitude was a killer thing. She just got to stand around and watch everyone else mope and experience was killer enough, and of course the spirits pestered the back of her mind and slowly began to creep into her mind, she couldn't fight it away forever. She just needed to go and talk, to distract herself from this all. Actually approach people for once in her life without it being because they owed her money or some other meaningless nonsense.

Of course there was really only one person she could say she had any sort of ""relationship"" with, sad excuse of one it was. She knew [member="Srina Talon"] and that was about it. She didn't approach much, just staying a little further back and watching for a moment, she could've laughed at her own situation. What was she doing? She didn't know this woman at all, and in a place like this? Probably on the list of one of her major bad ideas. Maybe put it at number 30.

 

[Karlie Lynn Destat]

Location: In the village by the lake
Wearing: Casual red shirt and jeans
Interacting: open to anyone
Post: 3




"Gasp...huh?" Karlie's heart raced. Was her mind playing tricks on her...was someone else playing around with her?
She heard her name just now, didn't she? She wasn't sure. Wasn't sure if it were of man or woman...it had been so faint. And had it even come from the lake?
No, maybe not. maybe it was her imagination.
She had been looking at the ornate lamps dotting the path on west bank of the lake, that had just come on. Solar, no doubt. Maybe the lamps cycling on had thrown her off?...some were still coming on, but no sound were coming off them. Karlie paused, when all of the lamps finally came on listening... ears perked up, picking up every minute sound near her like the lapping of the gentle waves near the water's edge. It was as gentle as can be.
The few boats out there weren't powered, but moved by sail. And there wasn't much to be said about the summer breeze...it was barely felt.

"Sigh..." A moment, then two went by before she checked her pulse. It was still a few beats above normal, but she was still working on leveling it off. Something so silly shouldn't have spooked her as such, she told herself shaking her head. And no one was about any where near her, where she could have overheard someone speaking. Despite she couldn't make out anyone close enough to her, Karlie still didn't rule out someone pranking her... or perhaps even her own imagination. She hadn't really put too much thought on the folk lore. But it didn't rule out her subconscious drifting off.

Looking around her a few times, she opted to go back towards the more populated area...back maybe to the center of the village. After all, she was quite skeptical about this hocus pokus fodder anyway. She had been free of the haunts for five years already. She was her own person and her mother was stone cold dead...incinerated actually. No funeral pyre...just simply plasma burned her dead carcass. Karlie had been 12 when her mother met her physical demise. But for 8 years following her spirit had seemed to call her from the beyond. It wasn't till Karlie was 20 that she took matters into her own hand and totally disconnected herself from such spetre, as force ghosts. Since then..since the following of the Sebrix-9 project, she had not only become free of her mother's ghost, but of midicloreans altogether. Well, at least what she was able to host. Karlie still had to eat, drink and breathe. The midi were everywhere. Only now, her immune system kept her free of the virus. What she ingested with food and such could not survive long in her body. So for the most part, the most she could be infected with was what she ingested. And that too quickly were attacked by her own immune system. If one were to take a measurement of her midi count, it would vary by what and when she consumed anything. And the most she ever recorded was so minute, that even a small guppy had more live midi's than her.

Maybe she needed another beer...or something. Yes, she needed to stop her imagination from running away on her. She scientifically proved it was impossible to be influenced by what she knew and remembered to be the force. Sure, she missed it at times. But it had been a crutch and easily an addiction. And it had been the means of her sith mother to posses her at the time. Again, Karlie found herself thinking about that vile woman who had given birth to her for the sole purpose of cheating death and aging. Oh how that witch had fooled everyone..including her father. And it was her father who had sent that witch to her after life. Unfortunately it were many years later that her influence through nightmares ceased.

Her walk back was quite uneventful, aside from a few compliments and greetings from passerby's and festive groups. In all not everyone was hung up on having the dead visit them. She had a few conversations with whom she considered well educated individuals that were here annually to observe the festival. Sure, they had witnessed many who seemed to be hallucinating. But given the means of mind altering compounds and hard liquors at the festival...

"Hey you... " She got to the same vendor whom she had gotten her beer earlier.

Naturally he remembered her. And why wouldn't he? She had been one peculiar customer with quite a odd way of ordering a beer. He asked her if she needed to sample again.
"No, don't think so. looks to me you are still tapping the same keg anyhow..." And she was right, he laughed as he poured her a fine pint.

Again, she gave him more than enough to cover the glass stine. She was taking it on the go again. He laughed, nodding her oddity. But credits were credits and if the woman wanted to buy the stine along with the beer...so be it. Hell, he lost a lot of stines with individuals just walking off. The loss was kind of built into every pint. But if the woman was honest enough to rightly pay for it...he respected that.

"Thanks..." She said, picking up the glass and looked around first before walking away. Her coming back was not per chance. It had been her intention. After all, she had sampled his beer and deemed them safe. Her sensitivity to foreign food and drink kept her as a regular to those establishment that she didn't get an allergic reaction to. Her wrist crono had the means of counteracting what could easily bring about anaphylaxis shock. That was the price she paid for being midiclorean free. The midi's had made just about any food groups from pretty much the entire galaxy palatable to everyone. But Karlie being midi free meant she was susceptible to allergic reactions to many foreign foods, as they were no longer compatible to her system. She had in a way turned back millions of years of her human evolution that had made humans compatible to countless systems, by way of adaptation to a symbiotic coexistence with the virus midiclorean.

Karlie was back amid the more festive portion of the village, than the scattered soul searchers that were dotting pretty much the entire perimeter of the lake...well, at least this end of it.
From what Karlie had seen, she hadn't seen much at all concerning the return of the lost or whom supposed to return. She figured if anything had any truth behind it, it were mostly what individuals brought with them...memories and emotional heightened hallucinations. Sure, she had come across one..two individuals and a family that were in a sort of an altered state of hysteria...talking to nothing but the light lapping of the lake's water against the banks.
But for the most part, the festival was quite interesting. What kept her in check were the fact that just about every vendor and shop owner and staff..mostly locals she figured, weren't all that anxious to even go lake side.

"Hmm... certainly make some good stout, that's for sure" She spoke to herself as she continued to walk toward one of the gazebos where a distinct melody were being performed. Walking over as she enjoyed the cold beer, it was nothing like she had even heard, no doubt of local origin, she figured.
It reminded her-... no. It evoked some long lost memory of a time long past. It was quite easy to let the melody wash over taking her to a time she had not recalled in a very long time. She was six..maybe younger and there were no dark feelings but one of a girl..Karlie running and laughing with her father and mother in tow. It was no doubt on one of Castagne's many paradise islands. Perhaps a vacation of sort, for she had no memory of schooling during that happy time.

"...don't get too far ahead to get lost Karlie..." she could recall her mother saying as she seemed to run ahead on the white sands.
A smile graced Karlie's features as she took another good sip. Yes, funny how everything seemed so simple and clear back then. How had she forgotten what her mother at the time meant to her. Her mother was everything to her at that age..it was golden, she recalled, remembering quite clearly that beach..that sun and her parents walking along hand in hand.

"Wow...yea...." Karlie clearly remembered how her father and mother were so..so close...so in love..

"I never stopped loving him...you.." her mother then said.

"Gasp!... cough, cough!..." Karlie spat out the ale in a sort of fit, that had gone down the wrong pipe.
That was no memory that was her mother's voice she heard!

 

[Darth Miseria]

​

Location: Edge of Lake Aleng​

Wearing: [x]​

[member=Jaron Lesan]​

Post Five​

​

​

​

There was something strange about the notion of wanting a blessing from someone who had no input in their relationship, but one Dianah could understand. After all there was nothing but a deep desire to please the illustrious woman they were here to meet. Still, it did confuse her that it seemed so important. Regardless of what either parent thought Dianah knew nothing would come between them. Previously the thought of all of this had sent her reeling. She was wild, unruly and completely free. The idea of being tied to someone forever was unnerving. In a way she now belonged to Jaron but the weirdest part of it all was Dianah didn't mind in the slightest, because he belonged to her too.

'I wouldn't worry about Metus. He's wrapped around my finger almost as much as you are. It's Ivum you should be scared of.'

She patted him lightly on the cheek, but there wasn't a single part of her that wasn't serious. Metus would eventually fold but Ivum had an iron will. Since their reunion in Sinner's Well the two had force bonded and now shared a connection so deep it was beyond words. Dianah had made a point of keeping the full extent of their relationship under lock and key for the moment. She was nearly sure Ivum had no clue past the fact that Jaron existed but she had no doubts that he would find out eventually. There was nothing to suggest how he would react to the knowledge of their physical relationship, but she wasn't worried about that. It was his probable reaction to the future they had both seen that day on Arbra that concerned her more.

*​

​

His smile lit up his face with emotion beyond anything Dianah had seen on him before. For a moment he looked like he had the entire Galaxy glinting in his eyes. Dianah couldn't pick a moment in their time together that defined how much she truly loved him. But times like this, when he was bare face and unashamed, made it feel like something tangible. It was so heavy in the air she couldn't help but smile at him adoringly. In that moment nothing existed but him, he stood in a bight halo of light that overshadowed anything else. Jaron found her hand and laced their fingers together comfortingly. Partly for him but mostly for herself Dianah gave it a reassuring squeeze.

The soothing voice continued on in its entrancing tone but this time it was directed at Dianah. Her eyes went wide for a few moments and she shifted nervously on her feet. If there was any moment she truly showed her real age, it was this one. With his mothers eyes pouring over her by way of inspection she felt rather unworthy of him. She asked a question that Dianah asked herself nearly every day. There were so many reasons it was hard to choose just one, so in true Dianah fashion she went on a short rant.

'He's such a gentlemen and he respects me beyond anything I've ever known. He's the only man in my entire life who's kept the promises he made. Above all else he makes me happy. I can't explain how or why, but he does. It's effortless. I've never felt safer or more loved than I do when he's around. He motivates every decision I make, every path I pick, every choice I'm offered... I can't and won't imagine life without him anymore.'

For a moment her gaze shifted from the ghostly figure clad in beskar to the man attached to her hand. A playful smile danced across her face. She didn't want to change a single thing about him, even his stoic personality, but there was no denying he was a different man today than he was back then.

'He wouldn't be my miserable cyar'ika without his despairing ways, but I think I'm rubbing off on him.'

 

[Karlie Lynn Destat]

Location: In the village by the lake
Wearing: Casual red shirt and jeans
Interacting: open to anyone....hello...anyone.
Post: 4




"Good God, no freak'n frak'n way!..." Karlie flung the stine in the direction she thought the voice emanated from, at the same time she started to scramble away.
Of course in her state of panic, as her feet were way ahead of her rational state of being, which at this time was immediately shot to hell, she slipped and went down midway on the path and grass.

"Gah!..." She caught herself before she went face down on the grass, scrapping her hand and forearm. But her feet still ahead of her kept to the flight line, causing her to somewhat scramble for a meter or two on all fours before she got herself more upright in a sprinter's run....which of course needed a slight vectoring lest she lost her balance and skidded down the adajent ditch to the left of the foot path surrounding the lake.

"Karlie, don't yield to the lies. You are my daughter..." She heard her mother's voice in the faint distance but so close to her still. It was like a whisper in her ear. It was weak, but clear enough for her to recognize that very same voice she had fought for so long in her dreams so many years ago.
Her buttoks slid down the ditch, getting grass and dirt up her lower back. Karlie for a moment didn't know in what direction to go..back up or just run down the center of the ditch.

"Hey...you Ok little lady?..." A man's voice called from above. karlie's face seemed to be in an hysteria panic as she looked to her right, her left and then up at the man.
In other words, she looked like someone whom had seen a ghost...only it was a voice of her deceased mother that she had heard.

"Calm down...it happens..." The man spoke, trying to keep his distance enough not to spook her any more than she was.
"You know you're by Lake Aleng, right?... the lore?....it surprises a lot of folk... "

"Pant, pant....it's real?...Oh my God...pant, pant... it can't be real..." She let her back rest against the incline taking a moment to catch her breath. How the frak could it happen here? It had been over 5 years since she last heard that voice. Statistically it was impossible...why this lake?..why this system?...why now?!...she was trying to rationalize.

"It's real enough for many folk. " He replied, standing his distance.

"You...you didn't hear anything?" She asked between breaths, as she looked over her cuts and scrapes.

"No...no one but those who are visited do... Here, take my hand..I'll help you back up" he slowly took a few steps closer to her from his standpoint above her. She was only a meter down and could easily scale the embankment. It was after all a drainage ditch that kept the mud from the rains washing into the lake...and helped prevent erosion, keeping the path fairly graded.

Karlie slowly got up on her feet, brushing the dirt off her buttock, pulling her shirt back down. She was definitely a bit scrapped up...hand, forearm..lower back. nevertheless she reached for the man's hand and was easily pulled up.

"Not my business, so I won't ask. Kyle, by the way.." he said, releasing her hand.
"You should maybe get those cuts cleaned up... they don't look too bad...I'm sure you're worst for wear.."

"Uhm...yea...yea, just got spooked s'all..." Karlie looked over to the lake..the few on lookers who had stopped by who had seen her freak the hell out.
They asked if she were alright. Karlie nodded, more apprehensive of what she had experienced with the voice than being embarrassed. Her heart rate was still over the top and she could hear it pounding in her head like a mallot. She went ahead and checked her pulse. Yea, way up.
"Whew...wow.." Karlie huffed trying to get back her composure

"Yea, don't sweat it...a few folk react that way. I'm guessing this is your first visit." the man took a few steps back, to give her some breathing room to recover.

"Huh?..Oh, yea...
Yes, first time here...." She nodded, looking at her scrapped hand. Good lord had that been real or her imagination? Karlie dared question herself. But so far no mother's voice rang in her ear. Just her pulse.

"You going to be Ok?... maybe whatever you heard passed. They say it comes and goes.." He shrugged his shoulder. He couldn't explain as to why or how it happened to begin with with some folk. But it did and that was all he knew.

"Yea...I'm Ok. Think I best be getting back..." Karlie replied, looking once more over the lake. By now those whom had stopped kept on their way.

"Alright then...just keep on the path and watch where you step...
hehe..and don't run. It's not that far back to the center of the village. Just know that no one has ever been jumped by any spirits or ghosts."

"No?.. well that's good to know." She replied, trying to find relief in that knowledge.

"Ok...well take care."

"I'm sorry, what was your name again?" It was understandable that she had not recalled his name, being in the stste that she was.

"Kyle. Kyle Durston... local rescuer of damsels in distress..." He made light of the situation.

"Karlie...and thanks.." She managed a smile.
"Well, best I get a move on and get cleaned up." She nodded, giving herself one quick brush. No doubt she would have to get back to her ship and get herself fixed up again, if she even had an inkling of returning to the festival. The sun was setting below the horizon and dusk was revealing all of the village's festive lights and decorations that certainly did away with the eeriness of what the festival seemed to be representing.

Karlie had parted her way and was passing the vendor again whom she had the pleasure of sampling his stock.
"Oh my goodness...you Ok?" he said as she was passing by.

"Oh...yea..just slipped on a path and into a ditch..s'all." She replied, kind of hiding her scratched elbow.

" Sorry to hear that... how about one on the house...seeing you've been one of my prettier customers." He offered as he reached for a stein.

"Uhmm...no. No more beer thanks." Karlie replied. Well, she was however parched as she had chucked the last pint by the lake, in her fright. Stress often makes one thirsty.
She nevertheless stopped a moment before turning to walk over to the vendor.
"You wouldn't by chance have a glass of water?... like, clean drinking water..?"

"Hahaha... Clean water is what we have a lot around here. Lots of it..." he then motioned with his eyes toward where the lake was.
"It's all fresh water...the lake is feed by underground springs...all of it. That ditch you slipped in...we try to keep rain water from washing from the road to the lake...
Hell, my stouts are made from the lake water. It gets purified..cleanest water anyone can drink." He then turned about to pick up a pitcher of iced water and poured Karlie a full glass.

"Here...take a little taste of it...it's so pure, it's sweet." he presented her with a cold glass of crystal clear water.

Karlie naturally did what she had done when she first sampled the beer, sip it and feel it on her lips and then tongue. It was indeed pure and yes..sweet somehow...naturally sweet.

"Thanks..." She said taking a decent sip, before reaching for some credits.

"No, no no...take it with you..glass and all. My treat...on the house, remember?"

"Yea...thank you.... " Karlie smiled and continued on her way...taking another sip. Yes, she was feeling better..her heart beat back to normal and damn..it was good tasting water. No wonder the beers were so good, she realized.

Karlie wasted no time trekking back to her ship, which was parked away from the rest of the visitors vessels. As she walked, she poured a little of the water in her bruised hand washing off what little dirt was on her scapes. Then she did the same with her forearm and elbow. The cuts and crapes weren't deep at all..just cuts and scrapes really. Nothing which some bacta ointment would't heal overnight.
She reached her ship and as she neared it, the vessel came to life on its own. It did have an AI nav comp after all.
The ramp lowered down and she readily went inside, with the ship sealing itself once more.

"Kat fight?" her comp asked as she headed to the refresher.
Karlie wasn't in the mood and the comp picked it up.

"Want to talk?...or should I mind the ship?"

Again Karlie didn't answer, taking her shirt off and readying the shower.
She tested the water...
"Hmm... not as crystal clear.." She commented to herself, before looking over to the glass of water from the vendor she had brought inside. Well, she might as well drink it up as it wasn't going to get any fresher. And down she finished the glass of pure lake water.
Putting the empty glass down, she slipped out of her jeans and delicates to enter her shower.

"My...I had perky boobs like that...you certainly take after me..." her mother voice sounded out, as Karlie closed the shower door behind her.

"EEeeek!" Karlie screamed.
Screamed like the woman in a horror flick who was taking a shower when a psycho mother entered with a knife.