Private Humble Beginnings

[Skathe Mazikeen]

Dreidi Xeraic

Though it was perhaps terrible for her lunar complexion, Skathe pulled away her hood, and basked in the warmth of Naboo's sun.

"How long has it been, master?" she hummed, speaking in an accent to which her humble beginnings were unbecoming.

Theed was unlike any city the young Zabrak had ever seen. As she stepped off the shuttle ramp, the first thing she noticed were the vibrant colors. Even from the more industrialized spaceport, Skathe could see the stonework city on the cliffs above. Waterfalls painted the cliff face in subtle blue streaks, while the city roofs skylined her future home in rustic greens not unlike weathered cooper. It was like stepping into a fairy tale, and it was everything the errant knight could ask for.

"Too long," the old man finally answered.

Well, he wasn't an old exactly, just a weathered knight in his forties. The very first salt in his otherwise golden-brown beard had been trimmed away that morning, but the scar below his eye and that tired, stoic look about his face always added to his age compared to his young Zabraki padawan, who's unblemished porcelain skin and silvery hair which threaded through her black horns had always done for her the exact opposite of what his wear and tear had done for him.

She turned to look at him with a warm smile as he carried forth a box in his arms containing what few of their belongings remained, although Skathe knew most were hers, and she wasn't helping either.

The "old man" narrowed his eyes and she knew he was onto her, so chose to distract the thought rather than carry their heavy things. Besides, he had a cybernetic arm, she did not! clearly he should handle it.

"Is this the return of your infamously cryptic answers, Master?"

"Oh, am I doing it again? apologies"

he sighed and continued onwards, leaving Skathe to follow behind her grin smug and her arms empty.

"When do you last remember clear skies?"

"That would be Tatooine."

"Then it's been..." he began counting on his fingertips.

That orange haze over Nar Shadda didn't count as real sunlight. Dagobah was nothing but fog and swamp far as the eye could see, same for Rodia. Kamino was always raining far as he could tell, and they'd spent most days on various starships and stations since.

"Three weeks since we last saw sunlight." he grimaced.

With no witty comment thrown back at him however, the hooded knight threw a glance over his shoulder, only to find Skathe completely absorbed in her vibrant surroundings. He smiled, just a little, only to put on the mask of stoicism the moment she turned towards him again.

"Keep an eye out for a jedi woman. The order of Shiraya is sending someone to guide us, Master Xeraic, I believe."

 

[Dreidi Xeraic]

Location: Naboo
Outfit: Jedi Attire
Companion: Grisial and baby Aileni
Equipment: Lightsaber, Nightsister Energy Bow, Ichor Sword
Tag: Skathe Mazikeen

"Hush. Hush now, we are going to meet a couple new Jedi interested in the Naboo ongoing things. So I need you to be clean and in a good mood for when we go meet them." Dreidi spoke in her softer, motherly voice to help soothe her baby. Strapping the fresh diaper on Aileni, Dreidi gave thought about the meeting. She hadn't heard of where they had come from before, nor did she have an idea on how they might be. But they were Jedi and Dreidi figured that they would appreciate a friendly, warm welcome. It was also a pleasant day and getting Aileni out to enjoy the sun shining was important to Dreidi since Dathomir was not the world one could just take family walks.

Dressing Aileni in a onesie, buttoned up his outfit and gave him a quick kiss on the forehead. "See, all fresh and ready to explore now." Dreidi smiled to her son as she lifted Aileni up and slid him into the papoose that she was wearing on top of her Jedi attire. Grisial was jumping around, excited to go on a walk with Aileni. The Vulptex had been keen on helping the baby move around and get to the crawling stage, Dreidi swore it was so they could cause mischief together but Grisial swore it was to show how it could help care for the baby.

Walking outside, Dreidi pointed out the different sun and explained how things worked differently on Naboo compared to Dathomir, in part due to the star that they orbited. She knew it was very much going over the baby's head but Dreidi had heard that just simply talking and educating the baby could help with development and increase intelligence. Dreidi usually didn't take stock in such things but she found herself trying it anyway.

Approaching Idaro and Skathe, Dreidi gave a wave with a smile on her face. "Hopefully we didn't keep you waiting too long. Little one needed a last minute change and decided to feel grumpy today." Dreidi chuckled softly, "I'm Dreidi Xeraic, Jedi Knight. This is my bonded companion, Grisial, and the handsome lad attached to me is named Aileni." Dreidi grinned widely, enjoying the family outing and letting Aileni meet other Jedi.

It was good since she knew her son would likely need training with the Jedi one day.

 

[Skathe Mazikeen]

Dreidi Xeraic​

"How will I know when I've found her? Do the naboo jedi wear robes like ours?"

"Well..." Idaro's brows furrowed.

There were so many enclaves once, all with different rules and wear. Some wore armor, some robes, some had different robes and in various colors.

"Probably." he concluded.

Skathe furrowed her brow in kind, and kept a look out.

"Well, I see... Lots of fish. A gungan! Never met a gungan before. Err... some pastries, and-"

"Oh!"

"Did you find her?" Idaro turned to look at her, knocking the hood over his eyes.

Skathe was already bowing to Dreidi Xeraic in greeting by the time her master turned, then carefully tugged his robe to pull the hood down, as his hands were still full.

"Hopefully we didn't keep you waiting too long. Little one needed a last minute change and decided to feel grumpy today." Dreidi chuckled softly, "I'm Dreidi Xeraic, Jedi Knight. This is my bonded companion, Grisial, and the handsome lad attached to me is named Aileni."

Idaro paused, looking at little Aileni. It was strange to him, seeing a jedi raise children, though he was aware that most jedi held very different beliefs than he did nowadays. Even stranger however, was how much Dreidi looked like Skathe.

"Knight Xeraic," he bowed his head all the same.

"I am Knight Tir Idaro, and this is my padawan learner, Skathe Mazikeen. We appreciate the order accepting outsiders even after all that's happened. I believe it will be good for my padawan here to learn among her fellows."

While the two conversed, Skathe was rather occupied with the jedi knight, especially her tattoos, something she'd never seen on a jedi's arms before. That, and little Aileni and Grisial were positively adorable, each receiving a wave of her pale hand before she turned her attention to the conversation at hand, lacing her fingers behind her back.

"Knight Xeraic, might I ask, does the temple look much like the city up there?"

She pointed towards the Palace of Theed in the distance.

"It's quite pretty."

 

[Dreidi Xeraic]

Location: Naboo
Outfit: Jedi Attire
Companion: Grisial and baby Aileni
Equipment: Lightsaber, Nightsister Energy Bow, Ichor Sword
Tag: Skathe Mazikeen

"Greetings, Knight Tir and Padawan Skathe. Please, feel free to just call me Dreidi. Titles always feel a bit too formal for myself." Dreidi chuckled, they also made her feel drastically older than she was, though she knew that she was going to deal with a that process no matter what for thousands of years to come.

As Skathe waved to Grisial and Aileni, Grisial sat and looked the Padawan in the eyes with a sign of intelligence not known in his species. <Hi there!> His voice was young and excited, as if he was young teenager looking to have fun and cause mischief if he could get away with it. He was also excited to meet someone new. <Aileni can't wave yet. Aiming to help him crawl soon though, he seems excited to be able to do that so he can follow me around.>

Dreidi knew that her companion was speaking to Skathe but she did not pry into what was being exchanged. "Well, the Order of Shiraya is a great place to begin training and learning amongst fellow Padawans. There are plenty of Padawans who would get along great with her. It can also be a great place for you to stick around as well, Tir." Dreidi mentioned to the Jedi Knight.

Looking back to the palace in the distance and then to Skathe with a chuckle, "actually yes. Most buildings on Naboo, especially Theed, tend to be beautiful in design." Dreidi softly chuckled. "Compared to where I was living, Naboo has a tranquil beauty that I can understand others finding relaxing." It was definitely a safer world to raise Aileni which was a massive boon. However, she also felt that Dathomir was more suited to who they both were, Aileni was Dathomiri by birth and Dreidi had heavily adopted that culture now.

"Hopefully you both spend time here to enjoy that."

 

[Skathe Mazikeen]

Dreidi Xeraic​

Skathe blinked.

"Knight- err, Dreidi? is your pet supposed to talk or did that Nar Shaddaa air scramble my brains?"

"Well, I didn't hear anything, so it must be insanity." Idaro said dryly.

The zabrak's eyes grew wide in horror until spotting the faintest inklings of a smirk about her master's bearded face, to which she crossed her arms and sighed.

Right. telepathy...

She gave the strange talking vulptex a gentle scratch behind the ear before moving on with the others.

"Well, the Order of Shiraya is a great place to begin training and learning amongst fellow Padawans. There are plenty of Padawans who would get along great with her. It can also be a great place for you to stick around as well, Tir." Dreidi mentioned to the Jedi Knight.

"Hmm." Idaro hummed uneasily.

This was something of a trial phase to him, a means to determine whether this new order was suitable grounds not only for his padawan to learn, but for himself to avoid past entanglements.

"Perhaps."

"actually yes. Most buildings on Naboo, especially Theed, tend to be beautiful in design." Dreidi softly chuckled. "Compared to where I was living, Naboo has a tranquil beauty that I can understand others finding relaxing." It was definitely a safer world to raise Aileni which was a massive boon. However, she also felt that Dathomir was more suited to who they both were, Aileni was Dathomiri by birth and Dreidi had heavily adopted that culture now.

"Hopefully you both spend time here to enjoy that."

"You hear that?" Skathe smiled warmly, and nudged Idaro with her elbow.

"Relaxing. Maybe you'll find it quiet enough to meditate without complaining."

"Have you remembered to meditate?" Idaro quipped immediately.

"I meditate on the blade~"

He couldn't help smiling just a little at her smug, and incredibly Zabraki response. He'd find time to ensure she was meditating properly of course, but there was validity in developing muscle memory he figured. Especially considering her following question;

"Miss Dreidi, has the republic encountered sith yet? I hear the cult shares a border with us, do you think they'd ever attack Naboo?"

 

[Dreidi Xeraic]

Location: Naboo
Outfit: Jedi Attire
Companion: Grisial and baby Aileni
Equipment: Lightsaber, Nightsister Energy Bow, Ichor Sword
Tag: Skathe Mazikeen

Dreidi chuckled softly when she heard Skathe become shocked with hearing the Vulptex in her mind.

"It is due to the Force Bond I have with Grisial. Whether something due to my Magick or the Force as Jedi know it... I don't know. But a shared connection has given Grisial a heightened intelligence. Supposedly." Dreidi stated the last part as a tease to Grisial who huffed audibly and looked offended in an equally teasing manner.

There was a lot of conflicting and non-committal thinking in the Jedi Knight and Dreidi could understand why. From her understanding, similar to Cerys, he had a much more stricter view on the Jedi ways. On the issues surrounding attachments and romantic bonds. It was something that Dreidi could understand since she had seen the consequences and grieving that one did when losing a loved one. Her mother had been someone she had seen in a problematic way because of the grief they both suffered and poorly handled.

However, holding her son and raising him over the months that she had, there was a love that strengthened her connection to Magick but also made her wish to be more active in protecting others.

When the topic of Sith was brought up, "the Royal Naboo Republic has had some conflict with Sith. Not ones attached to the Sith Order specifically but we also as individuals have fought Sith, either as part of the Galactic Alliance or on missions of others." Dreidi herself had fought several Sith already, "however, there are no plans to invade the Sith and as for the Sith invading Naboo, I can never state it will not happen, but I can hope we will delay that possibility for as long as we can."

For Skathe's benefit as well as the benefit of her own son, whose head she was gently caressing.

 

[Skathe Mazikeen]

Dreidi Xeraic​

"Magick?" Skathe asked curiously, "I thought only dark witches called the force such."

Idaro glanced aside. He knew more than he let on, certainly enough to see that his padawan was about to get herself into a load of trouble.

"Forgive my padawan, I didn't think to teach her much of Dathomir's ways."

Knight Xeraic was clearly the expert however, and so he would give her time to explain before moving on to the matter of sith, a subject he seemed hesitant to speak of outside the necessary details.

"As for the sith, they are admittedly one of the reasons young Skathe and I are here. To my understanding, republic lines have been drawn along imperial borders, yes? They won't like that. The Alliance can stand on it's own well enough, but I imagine the republic could use more shields so to speak."

"Which is why we should approach that battle carefully." he looked to Skathe in particular.

There was no reason yet to squash her hopes and dreams by forcing her to see this dark future as he did, but neither would it do to allow her eagerness and pride to get the young zabrak killed in the true war. She wasn't ready to face the eternalist crusade unscathed. Perhaps it was something it speak about with Knight Xeraic.

"Well I for one feel pretty confident in your republic, miss Dreidi." the zabrak chimed in abruptly.

"This is already more jedi in one place than I've ever seen, Master Idaro and I have done well enough on our own, I can't imagine what an entire temple could do."

Yes, she could picture it now! rows of jedi knights adorned in white and wielding golden sabers, just like her holobooks. They even lived in a castle! or close enough at least.

"Miss Dreidi? how many jedi live in the temple here? Master Idaro told me there were once ten thousand knights before the ancient clone war, is this republic the same?"

 

[Dreidi Xeraic]

Location: Naboo
Outfit: Jedi Attire
Companion: Grisial and baby Aileni
Equipment: Lightsaber, Nightsister Energy Bow, Ichor Sword
Tag: Skathe Mazikeen

Chuckling, Dreidi shook her head, "it is okay. Part of what I do is to provide inside on the ways of Force cultures that are not Jedi or Sith." Dreidi mentioned, not that worried since she had heard the views expressed by Skathe before. Looking over to Skathe, she gave a smile, "all witches from Dathomir call the Force that they use Magick. They also do not see things as merely light and dark, it is the actions they do that matters most. With some clans being more altruistic and wanting to help others, not necessarily following the ways of the Nightsisters."

"There are witches from Brendok that view the Force differently, giving it their own name as well. Calling it the Thread." Dreidi mentioned, "all the same thing but different names, different views on how it works. And just like there is the Sith, there are those who are seeking to cause harm using that name but there are those more in line with the Jedi while using their preferred term for this power we wield."

Looking over to Idaro, Dreidi nodded her head, "we appreciate all the support that we can get. Currently, we hope the Sith's gaze will remain focused on the Alliance, the obvious bigger threat while we build our foundations here as a faction and as an Order." She smiled to Skathe as the Padawan chimed in with her views and the way she saw things.

"Well, I am glad you have so much faith in use Skathe." Dreidi bowed her head, grateful for the kind words of support from the Padawan. "We aim to grow as an Order and I am sure there will plenty that you can learn here from other Jedi." Starting the walk back to the temple, leading both Idaro and Skathe to the temple. "I am not sure on the number exactly definitely not in the thousands yet, but we are heading to an age where there are thousands of Jedi out in the galaxy. Especially between us and the NJO."

Looking over to Skathe, "what type of Jedi are you wishing to become?"