Private Prophecy of the Four: Revelations

[Vizion Trozky]

FATE'S BASTION
THE APARTMENT OF VIZION TROZKY ☛ TEMPLE DISTRICT ☛ CORUSCANT
Briana Sal-Soren
Attention: Romi Jade

While he had travelled all the way to Naboo at her behest for the Gala, he had not seen more of Briana than what he did at a distance, her partner having rightfully eaten up the majority of her time that night. It was all well and good, for he couldn't know whether he would have been able to not potentially ruin her evening with what he knew. What he had seen.

But then she reached out to him, some days after that evening, asking to come by for a visit. To give him a modicum of time that she hadn't been able to afford him on Naboo. He was… careful not to see anything more into it than what it was. Just a social call, that could have the hope of furthering the mending of the rift between them. That is, if he didn't have the full intention of being forthcoming, this day. Transparent.

It was hard to say what effect this truth might have, but ahead of her arrival, he did his utmost to not wallow too deeply in misgivings and what-ifs. Tried to focus on his resolve that she, if anyone, deserved to know… even if he wasn't sure how she would take learning of her potential fate. Some people never wanted to know. Then the knock at his door came, and after passing a check on his doubt, Vizion rose and walked over to the entrance to his sparse abode, hesitating lastly with his hand on the doorknob before turning it and pulling the door open. The sight of her on the other side of the threshold easily, instantly put some form of smile on his face as it nearly always did - a weary one, in the now. So often as of late that was the case.

"Briana," he said in greeting, the vaguest pause separating her name from the rest of his oncoming words, "I was glad you reached out the other day, and I'm glad you've taken the time to drop by, now." He stepped aside, "Please, come in."

Vizion let go of the door, half-shuffling away as he was still a little bit hampered by the effects of his injuries, and would shut the door gently with a flick of the Force once she was within.

"May I get you anything? Tea? Caf?--" His thoughts ever so briefly flitted over to the near-empty bottles of liquor in the cupboard, but... no, this was to be done sober; there was no speaking for how he might feel after, however. His brows lifted in query, as he turned around to face her again. "--Water?"

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo | Equipment: Lightsaber | Location: Coruscant | Tag: Vizion Trozky ​

Seeing Vizion the night of the Gala had given Briana some small, twinkling sliver of hope that the door between them was still open — no matter how narrow that pathway seemed, and was glad when he'd agreed to meet with her after they'd failed to reconnect that night.

There was a brief period of time when she'd worried that he didn't want to see her, having heard nothing after he'd woken up from his coma, despite going to the infirmary nearly everyday for weeks to check in on him, only to miss the day when he finally woke up. Not that anyone bothered to tell her. Instead, she was left to check her datapad each morning, equal parts terrified and hopeful. Terrified, that she might see a message waiting to tell her that the worst had happened. Hopeful, that she'd get news that everything was going to be okay. Neither had ever come, eventually hearing through secondhand sources that Vizion was awake and going through the process of physical therapy.

At that, she hadn't known what to think.

After all, the situation between them was... difficult, their relationship having felt frozen for years — bound by invisible chains that prevented them from moving forwards or back.

Yes, they'd learned to work together, to be in the same room together, but nothing was ever the same after that night on Hapes and the regrettable choices they'd both made following it. The night that the ease of their closeness had officially ended. Maybe he'd finally decided that trying to salvage the pieces of what was left of their friendship just wasn't worth it.

But then, another part of her, the logical side, suggested that he probably needed some solitude and time, patience on her part. His physical injuries had been extensive and the healing process would require more than a simple immersion in bacta to restore him to his former state, not to mention the potential psychological battles he was likely facing. So, she'd held out hope and sent the invitation.

Now she was here, in his home.

"Briana," he said in greeting, the vaguest pause separating her name from the rest of his oncoming words, "I was glad you reached out the other day, and I'm glad you've taken the time to drop by, now." He stepped aside, "Please, come in."

"I'm glad you had the time to see me," Briana said, acknowledging his greeting with a warm, yet measures smile. "Wanted to see you, check on how you've been doing." her gaze briefly followed his shuffling gate, feeling her heart and stomach somehow simultaneously twist into one large knot before looking away, focusing on taking in the surroundings of his apartment as she followed him further inside.

It was all so... distinctly Viz. Open, airy, sophisticated... yet... calm.

"May I get you anything? Tea? Caf?--" His thoughts ever so briefly flitted over to the near-empty bottles of liquor in the cupboard, but... no, this was to be done sober; there was no speaking for how he might feel after, however. His brows lifted in query, as he turned around to face her again. "--Water?"

"I appreciate the offer, but I'd rather if you just sat down and relaxed. Maybe I could put on the kettle for us both? Hm?" She might not be able to cook, but putting on some water to boil? That much she could do.

 

[Vizion Trozky]

FATE'S BASTION
THE APARTMENT OF VIZION TROZKY ☛ TEMPLE DISTRICT ☛ CORUSCANT
Briana Sal-Soren

Some part of Vizion knew what she meant by her words, but recent events had left wounds just as deep on his mind as they had been in his body - those words impacted his psyche harshly, cutting into him in ways she did not intend, nor could predict. A hardness bled into his gaze, and his brows pulled together while the corners of his mouth wavered into a line, then under it. His fingernails dug into his palms.

“I don't… need… ”

The seething staccato of his response died as quickly as it had lived, his jaw tensing, then working itself loose as he struggled to pull himself back in. What he had been through must have been what a bug felt when being crushed by a swatter, yet managed to live; that, in concert with the long process of healing and rehabilitation tore into, shredded his pride. No matter how well-intentioned her request, it stung as if it were an insult, and reminded him starkly of his present limitations.

It impressed upon him that he was incapable. Helpless. It was him that had always taken care of her… or… or it used to be. If not for the help of the therapist he had been working with these many weeks, he might not be able to crawl out from under that deleterious belief. Viz’s head turned just enough to put Briana out of his line of sight, as shame crept in at the mere fact that he had been so close to taking his struggles out on her, and his eyes squeezed shut, moisture pricking at the corners. None of this was her fault; he knew this. And in knowing that, willed himself to breathe.

“Sorry… I–”

Quiet, quivering words that eked out of him a scant collection of moments after the previous ones. It was a struggle to find words at all when he had never planned to be seen in the throes of his lowest states if it could at all be helped, and a hand went to his face as weariness, as growing shame began to overtake him in ebbing waves, causing him to waver faintly on his feet. Causing him to be stuck in place.

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Wearing: XoXo | Equipment: Lightsaber | Location: Coruscant | Tag: Vizion Trozky
​

Briana should have been wiser with her words, a mistake she only realized after seeing those familiar obsidian eyes of his harden on her. As vigilant as she was to not let her gaze rest longer than a fleeting moment on his unfortunate leg, her tongue was not as schooled, often betraying her with a brazen lack of finesse. She flinched at his clipped words and the escalating intonation of his voice.

'Everyone needs help sometimes,' she wanted to counter, but silenced herself, biting the impulse away. A departure from the brazen recklessness of her youth. Another change that'd taken root during her time apart from him.

Instead, Briana waited. Silent as a steadfast sentinel. She'd stand there all night while he unburdened himself, if that's what he needed. Viz had done the same for her sake on countless occasions throughout their childhood, the very least she could do now was allow him whatever catharsis his anger might afford him. Afterall, it was a rare thing to see that ironclad control of his slip, and she couldn't help but think of how foreign all those feelings must have been to him.

Feelings of being diminished, of powerlessness. But if there was anyone who understood the discomfort of vulnerability, it was Briana herself.

But the barrage never came. Instead, Vizion turned away with an apology on his lips. Briana frowned at that, then walked slowly to him. Wordlessly, instinctually, she enfolded his waist in her arms, resting her head against the steel-like warmth of his back - a quiet offering of support and solace for the man who had once been her partner-in-crime during the sunlit days of innocence. Her long lashes pressed down to rest against rosy cheeks, relishing this familiar warmth that'd been missed for what seemed like ages.

"Forget the tea then," she murmured softly. "Let's just talk."

​

 

[Vizion Trozky]

FATE'S BASTION
THE APARTMENT OF VIZION TROZKY ☛ TEMPLE DISTRICT ☛ CORUSCANT
Briana Sal-Soren

She could have pushed back, and moved forward with making the tea regardless of his sharp protest; it wouldn’t be out of reason for him to expect that kind of response. How disconnected from one another they’d become, such that when Briana pressed into his back and wrapped her arms around him, it wasn't a thing he'd been expecting at all.

His head lifted and turned from his hand in tandem with the other arm lifting out of the way in some measure of surprise, as his sides and abdomen tensed at the contact… and twinged mildly in warning. Prompting him to suck in a short breath between his teeth, and release the tension on the out breath as his head turned back to the fore and his arms lowered.

Negotiating some distance from the pain in his mind had been part of tolerating this most recent period of his life. Accepting being handled with that degree of detachment was necessary then to subsume his wounded pride and let go of the associated anger as much as he could manage, so that he could progress in his recovery.

Much like he had detached himself over the past few years, and avoided letting anyone close, since. The argument in his mind now was whether he should let himself be that numb, or accept her touch for what it was - a matter of consolation - and all the risk he would be opening himself to by persisting on this course, now that he could see how difficult it would be to get through the night by any measure intact. But in reality there was no choice.

His chin dipped with a reluctant sigh after some moments, “I don’t know that I’d be able to sit,” he muttered quietly, the anxious energy returning as he opted to press on, “being honest,” he forced that word out, then paused again before pushing through the rest, “you might want to, after hearing what I have to say.”

There it was. Starting to tear back the tape, and every hair along with it.

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Outfit: XoXo | Equipment: Lightsaber, Echo Stone | Tag: Vizion Trozky ​

Briana could feel the way Vizion's muscled body tensed beneath her arms; the anxiousness that he unconsciously telegraphed through the Force as the two of them stood there together. Their bond may have atrophied from years upon years of disuse, but the emotion coming off him in waves was strong enough that it broke along those diminished pathways, forcing them open again.

Silence fell after that, filled only with the sound of his shaky breathing and the tick of his heartbeat. Her hands tightened a little more securely around his waist, holding him close and closing her eyes, almost pleading. Whatever conversation he was trying to work up the courage to starting, Briana had a feeling she didn't want to know. She'd had enough fighting and division to last her a life time, and then some.

His chin dipped with a reluctant sigh after some moments, “I don’t know that I’d be able to sit,” he muttered quietly, the anxious energy returning as he opted to press on, “being honest,” he forced that word out, then paused again before pushing through the rest, “you might want to, after hearing what I have to say.”

The irrational thoughts from earlier swung back with a vengeance, those words echoing through her and turning everything inside her watery and frail. It seemingly confirmed everything she'd been trying to tell herself wasn't true.

That whatever was left of their friendship, of them, was over.

Her jaw clenched, arms falling slack to her sides as she released him and took a step back. "If you don't want to see me anymore," Briana began, her upper lip curling of its own volition, though she forced her voice to remain sounding neutral. "Then just say so. I'm a big girl, I can handle the truth."

​

 

[Vizion Trozky]

FATE'S BASTION
THE APARTMENT OF VIZION TROZKY ☛ TEMPLE DISTRICT ☛ CORUSCANT
Briana Sal-Soren

Her jaw clenched, arms falling slack to her sides as she released him and took a step back. "If you don't want to see me anymore," Briana began, her upper lip curling of its own volition, though she forced her voice to remain sounding neutral. "Then just say so. I'm a big girl, I can handle the truth."

The way her arms slacked and fell away in response to his words lead him to believe she was going to take a seat, perhaps at the table and two chairs by the window - they came as a set; it was only ever him and his ghosts, here - but in the same instant it became obvious that they were both making assumptions. His actions, his avoidance of her over the years had earned him exactly what she was dishing out… but not wanting to see her again? That was far, far, far from the mark.

His mind revved into overdrive at the mere suggestion, eyes widening and fists clenching as a plethora of retorts vyed for dominance in his thoughts; her neutral urging nonetheless provoked him to whirl around to face her, frustration and anger welling in his throat…

“For Force Sakes, Briana!”

…only to promptly lose his balance and stutter one foot back in a successful bid to re-establish stability. “Feck!” he spat, that same frustrated anger continuing to bleed out of him as he persisted in recovering his normal, upright stance, and searched for a way to steer the conversation back to its intended course. He was trying to get to the matter that had weighed on him these few long years, and doing a terrible job of it.

“That’s the last thing I want,” he managed, exasperated, raising open palms when he came around to facing her again, “the last thing I ever want.” It scared him. Vizion dropped his hands, settling into steadying, calming breaths despite how unsure he really felt. On with it, then.

“I never wanted to hurt you, either, but,” again, that same reluctant, weighty sigh, “for that, I can only offer you the truth.” And by it, clarity. He had apologised enough for what had gone on that night. Vizion approached the table, offering her a weak smile that belied the fear inextricably entwined with that truth, as he ambled past. “Please,” he implored her as he pulled out a chair and invited her to sit with a gesture towards the seat, “allow me to explain.”

He rested his hands atop the back of the chair, keeping his breathing steady while fear and doubt tried to claw him back, screaming at him to not do this. He watched her, instead, every move, every expression - twice already in so few minutes had he gauged her wrongly. He wasn’t going to make that mistake again, if it could be helped.

“I only ask your honesty in return, and that you reserve any judgements on my place in your life until after. At best you’ll think I’m crazy... I can live with that.” He’d taken a lot of time - literal years - to think this through. He'd come to accept that they could never go back. “At worst--” there was that weak, wavering smile, again. He shrugged; she’d already said it, he couldn't. As if speaking it would make it real. “--but that’s not my choice to make.”

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Outfit: XoXo | Equipment: Lightsaber, Echo Stone | Tag: Vizion Trozky​

Her cheeks flushed red at his tone — the rare one that he took on to imply she was being irrational, ridiculous. He didn't need to outright say those things, for her to understand it. Part of her felt like she should be annoyed at him, for being annoyed at her — if he didn't want her jumping to conclusions, then he should have communicated with her better.

...Not that you're one to talk.

But when he spun too quickly to face her and nearly fell, that building desire to go toe-to-toe with him sluffed off and she found herself instead moving to his side out of instinct, offering her hand to try and keep him balanced. Perhaps she shouldn't have, given his previous reaction to when she'd offered to help him — then again, he could take that damn wounded pride of his and shove it in the Nether.

"Quit being such a fraking stubborn nerf brain already. Do you want to re-aggravate the injury?" she asked rhetorically, sliding her fingers beneath his elbow without hesitation to help him stabilize on his feet and regain his balance.

True to form, though, Vizion righted himself before she could actually do anything meaningful to help him, immediately taking on that presence of still-water calm that she'd come to expect from him over the years, pulling out a chair and inviting her to sit down.

She glanced between the chair and the pleading expression in his eyes. If she kept pressing, they were only going to end up going around in circles all night. It wasn't an issue either of them would relent on, and also not what was most pressing — if his presence through the Force was anything to go by.

Briana pulled a deep breath into her lungs and folded her arms as she listened to him speak.

She'd learned to live with many things—regret, anger, and the weight of unsaid words. Could she live with hearing whatever truth he spoke of laying at her feet? The same that'd left him so apprehensive and fearful?

Walking slowly to the chair, Briana perched herself as comfortably as she could get. Both hands folded in her lap, her expression open and expectant. The warrior, the friend, the woman who had once stood at his side — was offering him the chance to speak. Perhaps they'd find a way to bridge the gap that had grown between them, or at the very least, maybe she'd understand the forces that'd driven them to opposite sides of a chasm neither had intended to create. "Whatever you have to say, whatever you want to say — I'll listen, and I promise to give you my honesty in return, as you've asked." No matter what that honesty might look like.

​

 

[Vizion Trozky]

FATE'S BASTION
THE APARTMENT OF VIZION TROZKY ☛ TEMPLE DISTRICT ☛ CORUSCANT
Briana Sal-Soren

Vizion lifted his hands from the back of the chair, only helping to tuck Briana into the table before slipping away from behind her and placing himself opposite, in the chair at the other end. Settling in, shuffling his seat into place, the Brentaalan then brought his forearms to rest on the surface, and folded his hands together in front of him. His head bowed initially as he reined in his thoughts.

“Before I get into it,” he began, finding his mental footing and lifting his head and eyes to give his undivided attention to she who had been his oldest and dearest friend… once, “I… want you to know that there is no outcome I expect from this,” he was trying to be clear, careful, “and that I know there… is no going back, for us.”

She had to know where he was at. Where his mind had ended up. They were both different people now, changed, for better or worse, and he wasn’t certain if he could have done anything differently. He blew out a heavy breath, and gave a momentary, firm smile. This was the first hurdle, admitting what he never, and perhaps should have said.

“I... did always love you, Briana,” Vizion spoke softly, his brow knitting together faintly, “I hope you know that.” And he would have done just about anything she asked. To an excessive point, at times. It was hard not to, back then. Watching her for a shade of a moment, he swallowed, and pressed on. “So when I tell you what tore us away from each other wasn’t at all duty, but fear,” and not of commitment, he hoped she had known him better than to come to such a conclusion, “When have you ever known me to be afraid? Of anything?”

This was important; it was context for why they were here like this. His deepest fears had to do with identity - not wanting to become what his forebears had been - and… losing her. Which he had nigh-on convinced himself he had, in every single way that mattered... or at the very least, he was open to the permanency of that risk. It hadn't been easy to get to this place.

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Outfit: XoXo | Equipment: Lightsaber, Echo Stone | Tag: Vizion Trozky ​

Briana let out a breath, a soft, almost inaudible sigh that somehow seemed extremely loud in the silence that'd followed his admission, as if the wind itself had quieted just to hear what her response would be.

"Fear," she repeated, the word feeling strange, yet fitting as it left her lips. "I always imagined it was something else, something I'd done, or... wasn't enough of." She rubbed her forefinger and index against the corners of her eyes, as if to stave off the tension building behind them.

For years, she'd harbored the belief that it was her own shortcomings and imperfections that'd been the barrier that kept him at bay — that failing, that sense of being found wanting by the one person whom she'd believed would forever stand by her side—defend her, embrace her, love her, despite her myriad flaws—had cut deeper than she could ever express. She'd been spiteful towards him because of it, and unwittingly, played as significant a role in their estrangement as his shadowed silence. "You always seemed so certain, Viz. So sure of your path. And when you pushed me away..." She paused, a flicker of the old pain crossing her features before she composed herself.

It was like being severed from her only anchor and left to drift in a galaxy of uncertainty.

"I won't lie and say it doesn't hurt, knowing our friendship frayed to near breaking because of a fear you wouldn't share all of this time. But...I know that whatever it was, it was because you felt like it was the right... maybe only thing to do. Even if it meant giving up what we had." Or rather, the possibilities they were never afforded.

"But...what's done is done. We've both walked paths since then that have shaped us. I'm engaged to Aiden now, and he's a good man. I want happiness, Vizion... after everything that's happened... and I've found a measure of it with him."

A soft sigh escaped her as she continued, "But there's a part of me that will always care for you, will always love you and wonder." She folded her hands in her lap and straightened up her spine, as if she were bracing herself for whatever other revelation he was about to lay at her feet.

"We can't change the past, but we can make peace with it. So, tell me about this fear of yours. Help me understand. Because no matter what happens, I want to walk away from this conversation knowing that the rift between us wasn't just some... tragic miscommunication."

​

 

[Vizion Trozky]

FATE'S BASTION
THE APARTMENT OF VIZION TROZKY ☛ TEMPLE DISTRICT ☛ CORUSCANT
Briana Sal-Soren

They'd never spoken of her relationship, and he had always recused himself from inquiring about it, and who the man was that had stolen her heart, resolving that it was never his business. Accepting that she would have told him if she felt the need to, but part of him simply didn't want to know. Seeing her in the company of the same man time and time again was proof enough.

But it was never so real as when she spoke it into existence in his presence; the admission of her engagement didn’t sting any less, with all the possibilities he had foreseen. He was unable to be certain if this reality would be different had other choices been made, and there was no way to change any of it, a fact she also voiced. The past was set in stone…

“When we–”

…but the future was always shifting. Maybe, just maybe, their friendship could be salvaged, whatever form that took. Fragile hope.

“--when we embraced that night, it was both the sweetest taste, and for the longest time, the most inexplicable event in my life,” a thumb tapped a silent staccato in the fold of his hands, “it’s hard to say whether my training had anything to do with the volume of what I received, but I have no strict predisposition to visions.” The tapping stopped for a brief moment. “At least, that’s what I used to believe; after recent events, I’m not so sure.”

His brow furrowed, and he continued on at the same slow pace, harbouring the small worry that he might sound crazy.

“I’m not even certain if that kiss was the catalyst, or if it’s all a coincidence, but I have seen so very much that would drive a simple man to madness, Briana,” all of this was difficult to string together, “and most of this collection of visions was difficult to tease apart and make sense of until I was laying broken and comatose, recently.”

The Force had been about as forthcoming as he had been with this.

“But what drove us apart, then, was the most overwhelming thing I have ever felt, and took to believe as a warning, when some of the clearest images burned into my mind that night were,” he swallowed, fear working across his face, and into his voice, making it waver, “of you laying dead, and in some cases, the knife is in my bloodied hand.”

That was the fear which drove him, and coloured his actions all this time.

“I can’t be certain how you might have taken it, had I told you of all this, back then,” he continued, shaken by the recounting of those life-altering moments, “but we’ve become different people, walked different paths, as you said.” His hands unfolded, brown eyes scanning her face, “Was I wrong to have made the decisions I did?”

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Outfit: XoXo | Equipment: Lightsaber, Echo Stone | Tag: Vizion Trozky ​

Briana sat in stunned silence, her mind reeling to try and catch up, to try and put all of the pieces together following Vizion's confession. She'd always known there was something he wasn't telling her, some secret he kept hidden deep within himself. But this...this was beyond anything she could have imagined.

The visions, the fear, the belief that he could be a danger to her...it was a lot to take in. And yet, as she looked into his eyes, she saw the truth there. This was real for him. This was his reality, one he had been living with for years in silence, alone.

Briana inhaled deeply and let it fill her lungs to capacity, her sculpted brows furrowing before allowing her face to fall into her hands, finally releasing that same deep breath after several moments. She thought back to the night of the kiss, and the subsequent distance that'd grown between them. It'd always felt like a part of him was gone after that, like he was pushing her away without any reason why.

Now she knew, and Briana didn't know what to do with it.

"Was I wrong to have made the decisions I did?" Vizion's voice was barely above a whisper, full of uncertainty and fear.

Her gaze slowly rose, light blues sweeping up to meet his chestnut ones, studying him. What she saw was a man waiting on the edge of his seat to hear her answer, his shoulders slumped like he was trying to pull in on himself. This was a side of him she had never seen before, an unguarded moment of raw emotion and vulnerability.

His question though… were his decisions wrong? Briana considered that for a long moment. She’d spent so long feeling hurt and angry over his actions that night on Hapes.

She hadn't known what she was doing, only that she'd felt so scared, lost, and vulnerable after the Cataclysm. Her father presumed dead, Bastila Sal-Soren in a coma, Brandyn Sal-Soren vanished into the Unknown Regions.

And then that kiss...it’d been the only thing that made a lick of sense. Until Vizion up and left her, too.

Leaving her with all of the questions that he was only now so readily providing answers for.

By trying to protect her, he'd hurt her anyways.

If it hadn't been for Aiden Rennek or Lossa Aureus ....

But… she couldn’t bring herself to say that she thought he was wrong, or even that she was angry — not anymore, anyways. The event happened years ago, and she'd more than come to terms with it since then.

After all, he’d been just as broken and scared as she was, just in a different way.

"No, Viz…" she said finally, her voice soft with a faint smile touching her lips. "You did what you thought was right, what you thought you had to do to keep me safe.” she reached out to take his hand, squeezed it lightly. “I can’t fault you for tha—” But the rest of her words died on her lips as a blinding light seared across her vision, tearing a gasp from her, her grip on Vizion's hand turning vice-like as the Force surged through her body like wildfire.

A vision, more vivid and powerful than any before, unfolded.

In its heart, Vizion stood, his lightsaber a beacon of fierce blue. But it was the aura around him that commanded her attention - a dark, swirling energy that seemingly warped space itself, as if he held the gravity of a black hole within. Ravenous, endless hunger radiated from him, a perilous influence that threatened to consume all.

And then, in a flash of insight, understanding dawned on her. Vizion, her friend, her confidant...he was one of the Four. A Guardian, or perhaps a Peril, born of the same Prophecy that Romi Jade told her she belonged to, as well.

Then, the vision shattered as suddenly as it began, but its warning thundered through her, temporarily blinding Briana to the contours and shapes of the room and deafening her to every other sound, save the hammering of her heart and those final, haunting words…

And in the time of tribulation, their actions will echo across the stars...

and between them the galaxy shall scream in pain or breath in salvation...​

Slowly, so very slowly, Briana began to come back to herself. First registering Vizion’s warm hands wrapped around her own, the sound of his voice. Grounding reminders of where she was, and whom she was with. She tilted her chin slightly up, meeting his worried gaze. “You…” her voice trembled. "It's you. You're one of the Four. The Peril of Hunger.”

​

 

[Vizion Trozky]

FATE'S BASTION
THE APARTMENT OF VIZION TROZKY ☛ TEMPLE DISTRICT ☛ CORUSCANT
Briana Sal-Soren

Part of his fear was of her answer; though he was prepared for any result, the possible futures that cut her out of his life were the hardest to come to terms with, and that went hand-in-hand with his greatest struggle of all: letting go. It had been an inexplicable torture of sorts with each distance that settled in, between them.

And a hole he had tried to fill, only to be consistently met with the complaint that he always appeared to be somewhere else. That he wasn’t present in the ways that mattered, being emotionally unavailable and distant as he had become; he stopped trying. What he had been through recently and the ensuing therapy because of that trauma had begun to unravel it all.

Then Briana finally began to answer, her words bringing forth tears and releasing a breath Vizion had been holding. His head dipped, and his eyelids squeezed shut, moisture pricking his eyes and stinging. Her hand squeezed his, and his head continued further down as his other hand went to his face. Overwhelming relief.

When her words cut off, and that gasp tore out of her, it would have been easy to assume she was overcome by emotion as he was, but there was pain in that gasp, and just as soon in his hand. A vise-grip that threatened to bend his fingers beyond their normal range, the pain shooting clear through the roil of his emotions and pulling his head sharply up, drawing his wide eyes back to her.

“Briana?!”

Her name came out a pitched-up hiss as he tried to wrench her grip loose, but the way her jaw tensed from clenched teeth, the way all of her went stiff made a realisation dawn on him... if his eyes could have gotten any wider! Was she seeing what he had seen?! Despite the pain, Vizion stopped trying to peel her hand from his, and instead placed his free hand over her own. If that was the case and she was viewing his visions, there would be nothing he could do but wait. So wait he did, focusing on managing the feeling of pain by other, force-given methods, and just as soon as it began, the painful grip on his hand began to abate.

He gasped as his knuckles eased slowly back to normal but didn’t remove his gentler grasp from her hand. He knew by now how disorienting a vision could be, let alone many of them; pity and worry worked their way into his face in tandem. Words were one thing, but he wasn’t ready to show those visions to anyone - least of all her - and yet, it seemed the choice had been taken away from him, or so he believed. Yet when her eyes rose to find him, and words came out of her that he had no reference for, he wasn’t sure what to make of it.

[ I’m… what? ]

Vizion looked at her, worry, confusion, and the dregs of overwhelm present in his face, painted as it was with drying tears, “Hey, what just happened?” He treaded carefully with his words, speaking slowly, a thumb rubbing unconsciously at her hand, “Are you… okay? You’re not making any sense.”

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

Outfit: XoXo | Equipment: Lightsaber, Echo Stone | Tag: Vizion Trozky FYI: Romi Jade , Brandyn Sal-Soren , Lossa Aureus ​

Still holding onto his hand, Briana drew in a deep, shaky breath, grounding herself back into the present, into the apartment that smelled faintly of caf and the sterile crispness of Coruscant. Her grip on his hand softened, but her fingers didn't let go. She needed the connection, needed the reminder that he was here and not the dark figure she'd seen in her mind.

"Viz," she began, her voice rougher than intended, as if the vision had scraped her throat raw, "I... I saw it. You—us—everything." She paused, her chest still heaving as she tried to find the right words. "There is a Prophecy that Romi warned me about months ago, after my parents died. She told me I was part of it, that she believed Brandyn could be connected in some way as well... it goes something like this...

The shadow will rise, and darken even the smallest corners of the galaxy.
And those born, according to Prophecy, shall stretch their hands forth to catch this shadow...
Four perils or four guardians...
Embodiments of ignorance, hunger, wrath, and hubris...

And in the time of tribulation, their actions will echo across the stars...
and between them the galaxy shall scream in pain or breath in salvation..."​

The room seemed to quiet after she spoke, as if even the noise of Coruscant outside the walls had been muted by the significance of the words. Briana felt the familiar twinge of disbelief in the back of her mind—how could something that seemed so far-fetched, be real? She'd spent a long trying to dismiss it. And yet the Force had made it real, time and again, pressing it into her consciousness in ways she couldn't ignore. And now it was not just about her, or Brandyn—it was about Vizion too.

"I used to think it was all nonsense," Briana admitted, her voice quieter now, filled with a kind of resignation. "I didn't believe in any of it, not really. But then Romi..." She trailed off, pulling her hand from his as she sat up straighter, her fingers running through her hair, pushing it back out of her face as if clearing the way for her thoughts. "Then the visions started. About Brandyn. About me... and now you."

Her eyes searched his face, seeing in him the echoes of the vision she had just witnessed. The shadow of what he could become. "You're tied to this, Viz. Just like Brandyn and I are." She shook her head, "It's like the Force is pulling us all into the same storm, whether we like it or not."

Briana leaned back in her chair, releasing a frustrated groan, eyes fixed on the ceiling as if, somehow, it held the answers she couldn't reach. It was all more than she had ever bargained for, far beyond anything she had been prepared to deal with. And why, she wondered bitterly, did it have to involve the people she cared about—the people she loved? This wasn't some vague prophecy, hanging on the edge of some distant future. It was immediate, personal. The Force hadn't simply nudged her into place; it had maneuvered them all like pawns in a game none of them had agreed to play.

Her eyes slipped shut, lashes brushing her cheeks as her mind churned, memories surfacing in rapid succession. The deaths of her parents, the strain in her relationships, her engagement to Aiden—each memory over the last five years flashed through her consciousness, pieces of a puzzle she was only now beginning to see. But how did they fit into the larger picture? The galaxy, her life, everything felt like it was spinning out of control, and the unsettling realization hit her: the game had been set in motion long before she had even known the rules.

She took several long, grounding breaths before finally turning her attention toward Vizion. "I saw The Peril of Hunger when I touched you. I saw what you could be, your potential, good and bad. That's what I saw. And I don't know what it means. I don't know how to control it, but I know it's real and I can't pretend this isn't happening anymore. And I think..." She hesitated for a moment, then continued with more certainty. "I think you've known it too, deep down. Maybe not all the details, but...when you pulled away from me at Hapes, you saw it, didn't you? You knew it, all the way back then."

​