Roots

[Trextan Voidstalker]

A rather cold shiver ran up from the base of his spine. It was the way that she had phrased it. Taken back to his yurt as a slave. Eyebrows creased together as he considered this. She would have been a young child when he claimed her.

“A’Karr,” he tried out the word for himself, failing to quite mimic the accent. If Choli could find them again, would she? If they took her back she would be wed and likely having children within a few years. Would she just not come back from a future trip here? He couldn't begrudge her that, but he didn't want to lose her. He would never find her, never know.

“You didn't end up a slave though? What was he like?”

Just moments ago his mind had constructed its own little marriage ceremony. Where in the fading light Choli slowly peeled off layer after layer until they cemented their union. Now his mind had gone to the more sombre question of whether she would truly be happy away from her people? But he was more content now than he had been in years, he also realised. Time never stopped moving.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[SIZE=9pt]His attempt at pronouncing A’Karr’s name prompted a half smile. She shook her head, and with a quick shuffle, turned her torso and legs to face him. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“No, Aarh-kharr,” Choli enunciated, leaning slightly forward as her tongue and lips reverberated with the throaty growl. Her lips shaped each syllable, while the guttural accent seemed to come from deep in her throat. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]No one could ever say that Tusken was a melodic language. For most, it appeared to be a strand of grunts, growls, and sometimes high pitched screams. However, it was a deeply complex language; that didn’t even include the range of dialects between clans. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Now as for how A’karr was like…[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“Quiet. He rarely spoke.” Thinking back on it, it had been a rather confusing time for Choli. At least, what little she could remember. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“The majority of the Sand People do not like outsiders. Those who are brought back from raids are either slaves, prisoners, or presented as sacrifices to ward off the demons of the desert.” It was a harsh life and likely came off as rather brutal. No, it was brutal and savage. But it was their culture. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“They say that A’karr Uli-ah and his bantha had been taken by a demon. A’karr had made many sacrifices and given tributes for him to return. When I was found, they say I was intended for such a tribute.” It was so matter of fact the way she told it. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“So I was brought to the place where he was last seen.” Those color changing eyes came back up to meet with Trextan’s, the corner of her mouth gave a slight perk up, “But A’Karr’s Uli-ah’s Bantha found me instead.”[/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

Whilst he was concerned he would murder the name again, she had repeated it more slowly so he gave it another go.

It was a better attempt, but he still couldn't capture the throaty timbre of the rolling arr. He gave a almost apologetic shrug and fell silent to listen to her description of the Tusken whose care she must have come under.

The young Jedi found himself turning too. The more she spoke the more he leaned in to listen. Despite having the fully grown young woman before him he still started to grow fearful for the fate of the child Choli.

For his complaints he hadn't been thrown around as a leaf on the wind as Choli had been. Taken against her will when just a child, ripping from that life right before she could become an adult and bond with a mate for life. A month missing from being captured by the First Order.

Despite her strength he wanted to hold her and tell her everything would be fine.

But he could not interrupt the story. Not when she was just reaching the reason she hadn't had her blood spilled across the sands.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

[SIZE=9pt]“Our storytellers say that since the times that the great sea covered this land, we the people, have been tied to the Bantha.” It might seem a rather humorous detail, but the serious expression on Choli’s face made it clear that it was not. This was her culture, the belief system she grew up with. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“There is a special bond between a rider and his Bantha. If a rider were to lose their Bantha, then they would be left behind to wander the desert alone.” A rather harsh perspective from anyone on the outside looking in.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“ But, it is said that if a rider has lost their Bantha, then perhaps the Bantha’s spirit may help the rider find another. It is also said it goes both ways. “ When A’Karr had come back days later to provide more tributes, he had found instead his Uli-ah’s Bantha resting. There, huddled beside it, had been Choli’s small form.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“A’Karr’s Uli-ah’s Bantha had chosen me. It had found a new rider for the one that had been lost.” A rather simple story, but for the superstitious Sand People, considered to be a sign. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“A Tusken to return to the tribe with a new Bantha is held in great esteem. So A’karr brought me back. The spirits had spoken. I was to be his Uli-ah from then on.”[/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

Trextan stayed silent got a few more seconds. In his head he was trying to picture the scene. Being here, seeing the dangers of the wastes. The culture she came from made more sense. It didn't make knowing how different her world had been less shocking.

“He adopted you and raised you as his own,” he said. It was more than just a clan and family. It was individual people she had been raised by, been raised alongside.

Trextan realised that he had never heard Choli speak quite like this before. There was a tempo to it and a change in the tone of her voice. He found he was listening more intently than usual, hanging off her words already.

“They treated you as their own then? But I don't imagine that it was easy to pick their ways up?”

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

[SIZE=9pt]Choli replied with a quiet nod. “They did. While I might not have been born into the tribe, to them, I was chosen by the Bantha’s spirit to become one of them.” as if to emphasize the decision, the howl at the maw of the cavern by the ongoing sandstorm gave another groan. Choli’s lips gave a slight twitch.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“No, but like anything, it takes time.” her hand came up and with deft fingers, she gave Trextan’s forehead a light flick. “And practice.” [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“[/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]A lot[/SIZE][SIZE=9pt] of practice.” Choli brought her hand back down to her lap, snacks forgotten. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“But I imagine that is no different elsewhere. Same with you, no?”[/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

Trextan looked towards the mouth of the cave when the gust howled. It was just a noise but he was starting to feel there was more than that drawing him towards the entrance. Just his mind playing tricks.

“Oi,” he protested the flick with a grin. “And yes… Over and over again until I can make silly whirlwinds in the sand to show off.”

He hadn't realised that the symbiosis between the herd and the riders had such a spiritual foundation. He had known for a long time there was a bond there. His uncle had mentioned how precious they thought the bantha were.

“Was there someone you were.. Well would have been arranged to…” Trextan stopped mid question and gave a little shake of his head.

“Sorry, its not fair to ask that.”

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]


[SIZE=9pt]There did not need to be enough light to catch the sudden abashed expression that swept over Trextan’s angular visage. The shake of his head brought forward dark forelocks of hair, laying them along his brow as he suddenly seemed to pan his attention elsewhere. The ground. His hand. Even his fingers gave a little inward curl in a light grip. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“You mean a bloodmate?” Choli said aloud, watching him curiously. Part of her wondered why he was so curious while another only echoed the similar train of thought the Rogue had wondered back on Skor. With the Mirialin. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“No,” a shake of her head confirmed the reply. “A’karr had not found a suitable Bloodmate for me.” thinking back, it had often made her wonder if it was because she was an outsider or due to other reasons. A couple of years later, Choli began to believe that perhaps he simply did not want her gone yet. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“If by the time of my coming of age rites there was no suitor, then I would simply take my place as a full member of the tribe. We were nomadic, so there was still much work to be done.”[/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

It wouldn't have mattered, he told himself, not really. It she had been - in a way - betrothed to another that was several years ago now. The clan would have moved on. He wasn't really worried about a Tusken male tracking them through the wastes to claim Choli back. But it would have played on his mind.

Trextan smiled again. “I like listening to you talk about it,” he said quietly. He was sorry that she had been taken from her people. She wouldn't stand for him feeling sorry for himself so it seemed prudent to think about now. About that glow that was still there from the good they had done in wastes.

“I wonder if a tribe that stops at the oasis when it returns will wonder why it came back.”

Not wanting to reach into her lap for obvious reasons he held out of hand, palm up, and made a small beckoning motion for hers. He wasn't even sure she would know what he wanted.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]


[SIZE=9pt]The mention of the oasis and the return of the water brought about a brighter transformation. Choli’s smile grew wider, pearly white teeth flashing against the dusty olive skin. Even in the soft glow of the blue halo lights one could see the lightning hue of pleasure in her eyes. There, they had brought back a balance to the desert. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“I don’t mind talking about it.” it was nice to. Few ever really inquired about her past. While it had been hard to communicate her rearing, Choli was by no means ashamed of it. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“They will likely…” her hand came up, gloved fingertips reaching up to push against the edge of Trextan’s hovering hand, playfully nudging it. “.. believe that balanced had been restored as it was meant to be. Once again, it will be considered a sacred place. Perhaps they will celebrate, the Storytelling rounding them up around the fire to once again tell the tale of whence we came.” a flurry of fingers and again, Choli gave a playful poke to his hand. The concept of reaching out to hold it not quite a standard for the teenager yet. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“So, have you felt anything here?” a loaded question. “With the Force?” Ah, clarity on what she meant. [/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

“That's a nice thought,” he said. He tried to capture her hand but it slipped from his grip before he could find purchase. He watched it with amusement and narrowed his eyes. “Being part of a story that gets told.”

Another attempt, another dodge from the smirking rogue and another poke. He was supposed to be a swordsman and agile than this.

“Yes. I think. I was going to say that after we've rested I might meditate for a while. Try and get my bearings and see if the Force can give me guidance. You know I could almost feel that shift in the balance when the water started to flow.”

As her playful expression shifted to curiosity he set his ambush into motion. Right hand snatched, left hand caught her retreat. He held it fairly loosely but a playful tug had both leaning slightly closer from the waist.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

[SIZE=9pt]“Hey!” there was a mock expression of aghast followed by the girl wrapping her fingers. A smirk drew over the Rogue’s face and she proceeded with a playful counter tug. A soft huff in amusement drew from her lips and her nose gave a slight scrunch.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“Think you’re so fast.” she added, with the reminder, “Lucky it isn’t your prosthetic arm.” devilry reflected with knowing glints then. Choli had no hesitation when it came to using all her skills for winning little competitive games. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Another playful tug and she inched closer, enough to catch the fine grains of salt over her forehead and catch the line of grime where her goggles had sat around her eyes. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“Not almost. You did. It was as if a parched man was taking a drink, hmm?” that tension that seemed to vanish when the water went tumbling back into the earth. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“It comes and goes. You’ll feel it return at dusk.” when the mist rose again. Those pale eyes once again met Trextan’s own. A slight flutter rose in her belly, tickling her from within. [/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]Umm…[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]What was I going to say?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]The more sensible part of her mind brought back something from the fore. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“We should [/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]probably [/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]get some rest.” nevermind her voice fell an octave then, that anxious anticipation rising again. The one she couldn’t quite figure out just yet. [/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

“The prosthetic arm is…ah,” he corrected himself. He knew well enough what she could do with machines. That would not have been fair, but she had her own compass of what was fair and what wasn't.

Trextan wasn't quite sure when he had come to see her in a different light. The nurse had noticed the way he had asked about her after Skor. But that moment of silliness on a sofa in the hospital common room had been a turning point. The start of several rather more anxious days that were very different to the carefree ones that had come before. Before he'd awkwardly kissed her, pecked at her really, before leaving the hospital.

“And…”

Why did her eyes have to do that? Instead of thinking about his words he was watching the way those colours pushed in from the edges of her irises like little shards of frosted glass.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]


[SIZE=9pt]“[/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]And??” [/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]Choli echoed, a humorous parroting of the Jedi. As if in emphasis, she gave his another little tug to get his attention. If that didn’t work she was going to flick his forehead again. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Actually, might as well do so![/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]While the Rogue had his hand within her grasp, her other free hand came up, as if to once again reach over to poke at the middle of his forehead. That is, if Trextan didn’t manage to capture it in time. It was a rather silly action, but sitting here with him in the dark, with the sand storm raging outside, what else was there to do other than be silly?[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Asmus of course would have said [/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]other things[/SIZE][SIZE=9pt], but Choli’s mind was in more amusing ventures. It was almost a mirror snapshot to the playful horseplay the pair had done back in that hospital bay. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Almost.[/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

Leaning back he still caught her finger at the top of his forehead. Trextan narrowed his eyes, but his smile widened. Had to keep her from holding his prosthetic for long or else she would take control of it again. Also, despite his increase in control he was still nervous that in a play fight he might use more of its strength than he intended.

“And yes. We should probably get some rest….”

He started to turn away but he wasn't the best actor. His hand slipped from her grip and went to gently poke her just beneath the ribs. “...soon.”

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]


[SIZE=9pt]He managed to poke just under a rib, prompting a sudden jerk and mock cry of alarm. Thankfully it was more half gasp half cry than a real one; the latter would have woken R4 or Vee Three from their power down believing that something was amiss. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Almond shaped eyes gave a sudden narrowing, and one didn’t have to guess what the sudden stubborn and determined expression that set on Choli’s olive face meant - [/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]payback![/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“Oh, now you’ve done it!” she managed to utter under her breath, eyes practically glowing with jade glee. Rocking her weight forward, she gave a twist of her hand, attempting to lock his prosthetic arm down to the ground while her other hand made way to poke at his own side. The swaths of fabric from the robes would be more of a hindrance to reach her objective, but that didn’t matter. While she didn’t use the Force this time, she was certainly quick to try and give Trextan a taste of his own medicine. [/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

Yes, he had done it. He should have expected the counter attack, but he was slow to react and felt a shock run up his side from where her finger struck home. He tucked his left foot underneath himself so he could move and stop himself from being an easy target.

She would feel the machinery at worked as he moved his prosthetic arm sideways. It moved in a blur to come down back on top of the hand that had pinned it. Because he did not want to grip too tightly his prosthetic hand took a loose, but firm grip. There was likely enough room for her to slip her wrist free.

It wasn’t quite the same as back at the hospital. He was far more conscientious of where his hands might end up going. Rather than try and find a point of attack on her body he waved his other arm around trying to capture her other. Trextan was laughing again.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

[SIZE=9pt]By now, Choli had pushed herself up and out of her cross legged position, coming to a half knee as she gave the attempt to twist her wrist free. Success was met with a “Ah-hah!” followed by a scoot and a subsequent attempt to block Trextan’s swipe at her arm. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]However, coming to a half kneeling position didn’t quite land her in a state where she had perfect balance. So when the Rogue drew back to avoid the swipe to her wrist, she managed to lose what purchase she had. Her free hand gave a rather comical and frantic wave for a last ditch effort to regain her balance, but at this rate, she was going to land on her butt. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“Oh ch--” the half curse, half laugh went, eyes widening for a moment despite desperately trying to maintain control of their horseplay[/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]. If she could just get his hand --[/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

As she tried to grip him Trextan lunged to try and stop her fall. He should have done so telekinetically. Choli had already picked up momentum and his knee trapped a flap of his own robes. So instead of stopped her he went over with her.

He felt the air knocked out of both of their lungs as they hit the sand-dusted floor. He became quite aware that his head was against her below the chin. With fingers around both her forearms he raised his chest upwards and flung his right leg out so that he came to straddle her and box her in with his arms. It was half motivated to win gain the upper hand, but half motivated to avoid any overly intimate accidental contact.

“Pinned!” he whispered, prematurely declaring his victory.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

[SIZE=9pt]The sudden weight of Trextan’s ninety-five kilos knocked the wind out of Choli’s lungs, stunning her for a moment as the pair struggled for dominance. Needless to say, before she knew it, the Jedi had managed to pin her arms down, his own arms boxing her in as he half hovered over her. Their little struggle prompted Choli accidentally knocking the halo light a few feet away from the pair, barely illuminating their bodies amidst the straining breaths, the scrape of fabric against the ground, and their muted laughter. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Nevermind the way Trextan’s hair lay askew and all too close enough to feel the fan of his breath with that murmured declaration of victory. So much so that the dark strip of skin along her neck gave a little shiver. At least until what he said registered.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Oh no, you don’t![/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]Practically speaking, Choli knew that she shouldn’t rise to such bait. They were already on the floor. Her satchel was just a few feet from her head and now they scattered their sole source of light with an accidental knock. Ahh, but in her mind she could already imagine the half smug smirk Trextan likely had. It was all in her head of course, but that didn’t [/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]really[/SIZE][SIZE=9pt] matter. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]With a grunt, the Rogue took stock of her position. His leg was across hers and he was straddling her. But if she could just throw him off balance….[/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]A sudden lift of her hips brought hers right against Trextan’s, attempting to throw him off balance as she pressed herself close and tried to roll to the right. [/SIZE]