Private Rumble In The Jungle

[Alina Tremiru]

It'd been a while since she was last on Yavin IV. Well no. Alina had never been to the jungle moon. But she was here now. Curiosity brought her here. An old outpost of the Sith.. Secret intelligence group. She wasn't sure what the term was. It was likely burned out, wiped of any information. But maybe there was something left over? Foolish thinking, perhaps. But the ex Sith was.. She needed something to do. More than fight the mindless Sithspawn in the Coruscant underworld and pretend to live a normal life among the Sithspawn who pretended to do the same.

She let out a heavy sigh as she walked through the tall forest, her glowing gaze distant. Man, her life was boring.

Adriana Fortemps

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

Well that's the last of it, the Lord Inquisitor thought to herself as she finished sealing the last of her sensitive files.

It was a weird feeling, knowing that this would be the last time she would step into this office as Lord Inquisitor. The wars had ravaged the Sith Empire and the Echani hadn't planned on going down with the ship. She stuffed the last of her datapads and paper files into the knapsack, careful not to take anything that would lead the Sith remnants to hunt her down. Though knowing Sith as well as she did, it wouldn't help. Her new employers would have to help on that front.

Her shuttle waited on in the forest, the official ports wouldn't be the best bet for someone of her significance to leave Sith space through. Some old favours had to be called and a ship she hadn't seen in a long time would be waiting for her in a clearing in the woods, the looming trees ominous in their own way at this time.

It wasn't long into her midnight hike that the frigid air felt more callous than normal, amber eyes searching left to right for any beasts of the woods that would stop the Lord Inquisitor from leaving. It wouldn't be long before her eyes found what they had been searching for. A tall woman stood in the distance, already facing towards the Echani.

It wasn't the best thing to see when one was attempting to flee a planet without being noticed.

"Greetings." The Lord Inquisitor called out towards her, hoping to use words over violence. A fight wasn't exactly conducive to escaping. "Beautiful night for a walk is it not? Can't say I was expecting to run into anyone else out here." She continued as he worked the bag off of her shoulder, avoiding her files coming to harm if they came to blows, and positioned her hand close to her lightsaber though not quite grabbing it.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

The sound of a heartbeat. Footfalls through the underbrush. The scent of blood pulsing through veins. Alina's gaze focused where Adriana Fortemps would emerge from, warry. Tense. A bounty hunter, perhaps? A native? A threat? Her hands tightened to fists as she readied for combat. Yavin was a usually empty world. To run into someone like this, so close to an base of the now fallen Empire, could only spell trouble, right?

Sure enough, someone suspicious came into view. Her faintly glowing eyes narrowed.

"No one goes for walks on Yavin. Who are you. What's in the bag?"

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

"Oh, you know," Her hand stayed near her lightsaber tensely, even as her voice remained calm. One didn't become Lord Inquisitor by showing nerves. "Snacks, provisions, maybe a few magazines."

The woman's fists tightened. Jorryn didn't care if it was defensive or aggressive, either way, it meant she was ready to fight. The Echani had too much on the line to risk a Sith or Bounty Hunter killing her here.

"Now I would love to stay and tell you my life story over some tea, but I'm afraid I have to get going." The Lord Inquisitor's eyes darted beyond the blonde, searching for the lights of her shuttle. "Unfortunately my path is behind you, so if you could politely back off. That would be much appreciated."

"And..." Her voice trailed off as her dark fingertips brushed the lightsaber hanging from her hip gently. "It would bet much safer for both of us if you stepped aside."

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Her gaze shifted behind her, looking for something. Whatever it was Adriana Fortemps mentioned being her path. A ship? In the distance her sharp eyes could see it. "Safe can be boring." All sorts of warning bells were going off in her head. Someone in a hurry here of all places, so close to the building she was hoping to scour. With a pack and a lightsaber. Her glowing eyes fell back on the woman, narrowed.

"Are you Sith?"

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

The woman's eyes noticed Jorryn's and followed them into the darkness of the woods.

Kark.

The Echani had slipped up in her impatience, the blonde woman now turned to her. The hair on the back of Jorryn's neck stood as her amber eyes were reflected in the woman's, narrowing to stare her down. The Lord Inquisitor wouldn't wait for the girl to make the first move, talking the blonde down seemed to have the opposite effect. Every answer only put her more on edge.

Fully setting her pack down, a pale red lightsaber ignited as Jorryn gracefully swung it from her hip.

"Well, I should hope this would answer your question." The blade drew in front of her, lighting up her furrowed brow before aiming towards the woman. "I'm sorry dear, but I do have to be going. Would you be so kind as to flee?"

The Echani didn't wait for an answer. Instead, she drove forward. The crimson blade stayed out in front of her, aiming towards the woman's shoulder. It wasn't a lethal strike, Jorryn would prefer to disable the woman or injure her enough to escape. But the only thing that mattered was getting off Yavin and if some woman needed to die for that to happen, then it would happen.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

The strike came, and Alina moved. Inhuman like reflexes had her duck below the strike, her eyes ever focused on Adriana Fortemps . Fists raised, her stance changed. The training she'd gotten in shockboxing coming out in every movement. Fists raised further to cover her chin. Body tucked in to make herself a smaller target. A rapid punch was thrown, faster than humanly possible, aimed right for the Lord Inquisitors gut. Something quick to immobilize.

Alina didn't want to kill the woman either. Instead, incapacitate long enough for her to retrieve the pack for herself. The red blade made it obvious the woman was Sith, but that didn't mark her for death in the Vampiress's eyes.

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

She was fast.

Jorryn hadn't fully committed to the move in anticipation of a counterattack, but she hadn't thought it to be half as swift. Dodging wasn't realistic. She had to bring her knee up and drive her elbow down, but she still didn't catch the blow in its entirety. The woman's fist caught her ribs, as well as push her knee into her side.

The Lord Inquisitor managed to catch herself before she fell, lurching over as her left hand soothed the point of contact.

"Well now..." A smirk crossed the Echani's dark lips as she raised to her full stature once again. "You're quick."

She knew enough about fighting that her fencing would be a liability against someone so fast, the lightsaber blade retracted as she quickly clipped it back into her belt. It was at times like these that Jorryn appreciated the effort she took to relearn her culture. The Echani stood back as she removed her jacket, she couldn't risk being encumbered against this opponent.

Taking a more open fighting stance than the boxing her opponent held, the Lord Inquisitor slowly drew back in towards the blonde, hands still raised to meet any punch that came her way. Still, the last punch was strong. Giving her opponent the opening move would be risky. Her back foot came out swiftly, pushed by the force towards her opponent's shin. Boxing was footwork, strength comes from the back and hips. If Jorryn could force the woman on the back foot and grapple her, the fight would be in her court. Or so she assumed.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

She wasn't down.

That wasn't good.

Alina's lips thinned as she kept her guard up. Neither moving after Adriana Fortemps or the pack as she intended. More was going on than she'd like. Was it skill? Training? A higher ranking Sith than she anticipated? The saber being put away was it's own surprise. Bewildered, she just stared. Alina had already proven herself inhuman with her own speed, why would someone choose to disarm and fight?

Too many questions. But she recognized the stance Jorryn took, and all the questions suddenly had an answer.

"Echani."

Surprising she didn't pick it up sooner, given the classic silver hair of the other woman. The faintest smile formed in place of a frown. She didn't admit it as much now, but she loved a good ol' fashion brawl when the chance arose.

The kick came, hitting her shin with more force than the Vampiress expected. She blinked as she stumbled back half a step, trying to keep her footing as she launched a quick jab for Jorryn's throat. Trying to keep the other woman from closing in. Then she reached out. All at once the Force's natural flow was gone. A void was left in it's place, a dead zone where the sensation of life should be.

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

"Echani."

Jorryn gave a smirk that mirrored her opponents, an acknowledgement of her stance. The smirk widened as the Echani's boot connected with her opponent's shin, the momentum falling back against her opponent. A jab came for her throat but the Echani used her own abilities to speed herself up and catch the fist with the opposite hand.

Amber eyes glowed boldly into her opponents, white teeth shining as she felt the opportunity come. The Force ran through her as she shift her weight down into the left side of her hip, planning to drive her knee up into the liver of her opponent. The momentum was in her favour, the strike could end it all if landed right.

But the force never ran through her leg. And the strength she used to hold back the woman's jab began to weaken. The smirk faded from her face as quickly as the amber drained from her eyes, leaving a pale purple in the orbs. A new colour that plainly showed the disgust and worry that immediately crept over the Silver-haired Sith.

Instead of driving her knee up into the woman, she used the weight to throw herself back. The Lord Inquisitor was still quick, a bred fighter, but her speed and power weren't the same. And the boldness that proclaimed her victory had faded into worry as quickly as she fled. Jorryn fell into a wounded position, keeling as if her heart had been ripped out.

She had never felt like this before.

"Wh-what did you do to me."

Her words breaking as they came out, like a child that was told they would never see their mother again. Jorryn felt hollow, empty. She had never experienced such loneliness in her life, unable to even muster anger towards the woman. In its place fear took place, she placed her weight on the back foot. Unsure if she was going to flee or fight.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

The beat down she avoided was a welcome relief. Alina knew too well just how strong an Echani fighter could get, especially up close. Adriana Fortemps had her. They both knew it as Alina tried to pull her fist free and braced herself for the coming knee. Thankfully, she was right. Jorryn's strength came from the Force. The Vampiress wrenched her cold to the touch wrist free of the other's grasp just as the Echani fled.

Where she should have continued forward, after the woman, pressing this advantage, she didn't.

"Not used to it, huh? Most aren't." Alina let her guard drop, hands lowering as she stepped around and past Jorryn. Towards the pack. Keeping that dead zone up.

"It's what it feels to not have the Force. It's not permanent, don't worry. I'm not that cruel. Will you tell me what you're here for?"

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

"You stole the force from meu?"

Disgust crossed the Echani's face, confused and hurt at having something so precious ripped away from her. Jorryn wasn't left as powerless as the blonde had assumed though, moving quickly the Lord Inquisitor secured her pack before the woman could reach it. She was shocked, but not so reliant on the force that she was infirm without it.

"I'm here to Leave." The bravado of the Echani's words didn't ring with the same confidence that they had earlier. "That's it. I don't care whoever sent you or why you're here, but you aren't stopping me and you aren't taking these."

The Lord Inquisitor wasn't exactly in the position to be making threats, but she had never been this desperate before. Realization quickly set in as the Echani's face softened, her posture becoming more skittish. If she had to run she would, but that didn't seem likely to help.

"Why are you here." Her words were soft and scared. "What do you want from me?"

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Alina paused. Watching. Listening. ".. You're not lying." At least, Adriana Fortemps 's heart rate wasn't changing like she was. Panic made it harder to hide those subtle ticks. The facial expressions, the change in breathing, none of it escaped the glowing yellow eyes. As she spoke, the field dropped. The Force returned, as if it hadn't been taken away in the first place. ".. Nothing of importance, I guess."

She let out a needless, exhausted sigh. She hadn't needed to breath since the change some years ago, but old habits never did change. Her arms crossed over her chest as she looked towards the outpost.

"If you're leaving the Sith, I'm not going to stop you. Get out while you can is all I'll say."

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

Relief filled the Echani as the force reinvigorated her, eyes returning to their amber shade. It was as if air had returned to her lungs or blood to her heart.

A smarter Sith would have taken the opportunity given and left, but Jorryn hadn't become Lord Inquisitor for her lack of curiosity. Her reinvigorated amber eyes followed the woman's towards the outpost then turned back towards the victor. Something was off. Jorryn had assumed the woman a Sith, her eyes were a clear sign of the corruption of the dark side. But here she was denouncing them.

"And what is it you're after?" The pack stayed held behind her back, even as her posture softened. "I beg your pardon, but you are Sith yourself are you not?"

There was something strange about the woman, Jorryn could tell as much from the coldness when she grabbed the woman's wrist. Why else would the woman be out here if not to detain the Echani? There was something else at play here.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

"Not since before the Empire fell. I'm just a relic, I suppose." Ironic, given she barely looked like she was in her twenties. The price of eternal youth. Annoyance littered her face as she reached up to rub her brow. Why was she here? There was no reason that came to mind. Stop the Sith? Like she could. Was it just because she was bored?

"Purpose, I guess. I have no purpose."

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

Jorryn smirked as the woman mentioned having no purpose. Perhaps some flickering ember of her old ambition remained, but all Jorryn could think about was how useful that was.

Weight shifted into a more confident and comfortable pose, regaining her composure as thoughts began to churn in her head. It wouldn't do to have someone as special as this simply disappear into the night.

"Well." The grin from earlier returned to the Echani's black lips. "I don't believe that a woman with your talents should be wandering without a purpose."

"I can't say it's everyday that I'm defeated in a fight." Her eyes returned to the outpost, the last of the Sith Empire preparing to leave from the forest planet. "The Sith Empire is done, but that doesn't mean we have to be as well."

A hand stretched out to take the blonde's, a friendly expression overtaking the grin. "Ah but where are my manners. My name is Jorryn Fordyce,"

 

[Alina Tremiru]

"I don't play well with Sith, I'm wanted by the New Imperials and the Alliance. I live in some abandoned building feeding off strangers I find in a club to survive. It's far from the life of luxury I used to live." She scoffed, but she at least listened. Adriana Fortemps had a high opinion of herself. Rarely defeated in a fight? It brought a chuckle from the Vampire, one that turned more to a sad smile after a moment. Right. They didn't have to go the way of the Empire either.

She blinked in surprise at the sudden change. Even Alina, who fed off of people's blood, couldn't help but stare blankly at the extended hand. Which she did eventually take in a handshake.

"Alina Tremiru."

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

The Echani had met some interesting people in her travels in the galaxy but even as sly as she was the shock in her face couldn't be hidden.

"Feed on...." Her hand was limp as Alina took it, Jorryn still attempting to process what the woman just said. "I'm sorry but did you just say that you feed off strangers."

The hair stood on the back of her neck, but it didn't mean that their conversation had to end. Is that what the Echani was to this woman? Prey? It was certainly lucky that the girl was amicable to a discussion. As unfortunately accustomed to some of the more shocking ends of the Dark Side Jorryn had become, this was the first time that she met one who openly admitted to feasting on others. Gruesome pictures flew in her mind but she couldn't let it deter her, Alina had at least proven diplomatic.

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Oh, right.

Alina pulled her hand away from Adriana Fortemps , trying to avoid upsetting the other woman any more than she had with the casual revelation. A nervous smile formed. One that purposefully showed off her fangs.

"I don't kill people to feed, but I do drink blood, yes."

 

[Adriana Fortemps]

// LORD INQUISITOR FORDYCE //
// Alina Tremiru //

---

---

"Well," Jorryn picked up after taking a moment to process what this woman was showing her. "I can't imagine you'll find much of that down here these days, the Sith Empire had cleared most of their stuff out from these offices some time ago."

"I'm here to-" She stopped herself, avoiding revealing anything before she turned back to the woman with a smile. "How did you come here anyways, I can't imagine Yavin IV being the planet of choice for someone of your... Inclination."

Perhaps it was a bit of a grim way to mention the woman's affliction but it was true. Yavin had hardly been a beacon of civilization, finding fresh blood here would be difficult. The Echani had come to use a remote terminal to gain access to particular files, but most of the main forces stationed here had already left and fled with the rest of the Sith Empire into hiding.