See What I've Become

[Ronan Nakasla]

Miss Vega,
It has come to my attention that we haven't ever spoken before. Not face-to-face, anyway. I would very much like the chance to truly meet you, and from there I have some matters I wish to discuss with you. I hope to see you in a timely manner, at the coordinates provided alongside this transmission. You may need to bring a change of pants.

Sincerely,
~ A.V.

A simple letter, Ash thought to himself as he tapped the send button. It had its own little dash of innuendo alongside that air of importance and seriousness. If Vega was the woman he remembered, it would draw her out from curiosity if nothing else. Hopefully. Honestly, he wasn't sure what he was doing right now. He suspected that Rhou was manipulating him again, as he did when he'd retaken Sudoka Industries. Unlike reclaiming a business, however, reestablishing contact with this girl was something that Sigma did not see the point of. There was a confusing muddle of emotion that lurked there under the surface. Squirming under the scrutiny of the war-born monster. It wanted to be let out, but he kept it under his thumb. He couldn't afford those kinds of distractions.

Still, he seemed to be inviting them. Whatever his reasons, or Rhoujen's reasons, for trying to pull [member="Luna Vega"] out of the dark and back into contact were, they weren't certain at all. This would be one of those dreaded times that improvisation would be key, and there were so many possible outcomes should such a meeting take place. If it even did. There was always the chance she wouldn't answer. That she'd changed, or that she'd moved onto other things. Other places. Sigma frowned and clicked off the terminal. There was an unwarranted gut wrenching at that thought, and he swept it aside as easily as he would any other mundane obstacle. Held it aside and out of his way. There was a Way for things, whether they Rose or Fell, and he would be in control of his Way. Not chemical imbalances in his mortal flesh.

And so these things were pondered and mused, even as Valente washed himself and dressed in some fairly casual, yet still nice, clothing. He combed his hair and grabbed any freighter from Sudoka's hangar. Where was he headed? Corellia. Protectorate space it may have been, but as such it was fairly safe. Especially with his commitments to governments dissolved. He was free to roam again, and roam he would. Why Corellia?

Why not?

 

[Luna Vega]

Squeak! All arms and fingers flailed, if that were even possible and the pirate's head jerked when the mountain of bottles collapsed, clanking, clattering, smashing.

In the midst of concentration, or the lack there of... Luna Vega, privateer. Not a monk, nor a mage. The closest she came to meditation was one too many hits off the pipe, or that moment when you've drank yourself into a sober-stupor. Anyways, bass had dropped- the sound off to a message received from her personal, albeit thrown together, com device. Which in actuality was nothing more than a glorified media player that so happened to have the capability to send and receive messages. The same thing that interrupted her long, hard work. She would almost bet it was Zane.

The sigh of defeat reverberated in her small cell or meditation chamber. Damn near chiming along the shards of glass piled just in front of her and she moved with booted feet, scuffling to the corner of the room where a small table resided. Atop it of course was the small blue-yellow-silver media player and she snatched it up as if it would suddenly fix things. Gray eyes narrowed in contempt at her only company and she slid her finger across the surface, tapped in a code to gain access to the interface.

Before the beryl headed woman even read the message, she scrolled to the end to find the sender. A.V.? Who in the bloody karkin' hell... The first thought that came to mind was: I di'no do eet. Wasn't me. Meet? Matters? Pants? Generally speaking, only Zane, the Authority and her crew had a way of getting in touch. This wasn't her trainer, nope. Not her crew. The Authority? Honestly. What could they possibly want from her? At any rate, Vega was due a day or two off approved or not and she was curious.


[member="Ash Valente"]

 

[Ronan Nakasla]

Mid-class. Nothing ritzy but nothing trashy. Decent music, Ash guessed, but he could have done with it being a little quieter. He sipped his drink, a Corellian brandy, and checked the time. He blinked at the hour and reclined in his seat. She should be there soon. The song shifted to that familiar tune from the lift when he took over Sudoka and his head bobbed subtly to the beat. He was quite fond of this particular jam.

It was a little club located on a side road of Coronet. Not too far from the main stretch to be dangerous but not close enough to make a quick getaway. It was somewhat of a strategic choice of meeting place. Something a bit of thought went into. It also avoided the prying eyes of any faction overseers, unless they too were looking for a getaway-not-getaway. In which case Sigma would have no concerns from them. Entering the establishment, one would first be greeted by a bouncer who merely wished to maintain peace, and then after a weapons strip-down (or a bribe), one would be allowed in. The initial sight was more like a restaurant than a dance club, with a large fish tank and a receptionist. That individual would then guide the guest to either the dining room or the party room. Sigma was on the party side, which was significantly larger. The dining side was more of an excuse to sell from the bar to people less likely to start fights. A little extra low-risk profit.

In Luna's particular case, after choosing the party end, she'd be directed toward side room 22-C. It was pretty randomly numbered, being adjacent to 1-A, but maybe they wanted interesting combinations instead of sequential. Within that room was the small private area that Ash had rented out for a couple of hours. It was big enough for a private party, but completely desolate except for the man sitting in the back with a glass in one hand and a datapad under the manipulation of the other. A bottle of brandy sat on a table to the side, and perhaps of that entire scene the most shocking image would be the illumination cast upon a familiar face.

[member="Luna Vega"]

 

[Luna Vega]

"Oooooh jus tel'em I went to find me self." The words were followed by a cheeky grin. "A day err two shoul'more than enough do it."

Pirate Captain turned Jedi? The notion almost made her scoff. In the months that she had been under the guidance of a Knight, the lass could still not figure out why she even agreed. But, still... pulling the whiskey bottles from afar when one is to wobbly to walk, well, that gave points in her book. Levitating herself? Oh, hells no. That was for the birds. Literally. Vega liked her feet on solid ground and while she fancied a dangerous life, living it really was the point. Never the one to care too much for dying. Breathing, drinking, that was good.

A handful of steps towards the exit of the temple and a faint flicker of fingers skated across her elbow. "You forgot your robe."

Smiling wistfully, the young woman relinquished the garb from the older man's hands. "Ahh... thanks, luv." The gent didn't move though, but instead watched her curiously. He eyed her until she sighed and flung the blasted peace keeper blanket over her shoulders and stuffed her arms down the sleeves that more than swallowed her. Frumpy, she thought and tied the robe securely about her petite waist. The rest of the walk down the massive main corridor proved to be quiet. Not a soul bothered or looked up from their studies to acknowledge her.

A quick tug to the hood cast it over her features, hiding disheveled blue hair upon stepping through the gate. Luna welcomed the fresh air with forlorn and gulps as if she were trying to drink it down like aged whiskey. "Blimey, this is insane!" The pirate argued with herself, conversed too the whole way to the star port. Oh, the life of public transport. This time she did scoff, not once but thrice. Her boots thudded up the ramp and into the shuttle set for Corellia.

I have a real bad feelin' about this.

Sooo, why are you going?

Because I wanna frakkin' drink, Luna replied to her conscious just as she settled into to a vacant seat by a window. And I'm ahh wee bit curious, y'know?!


Some hours later...


Once upon a time this was home away from home more often than not. Which made the visit all the more...ludicrous. As far as she knew, she was still a wanted woman. BUT. Here she was, traipsing through the streets like a lunatic. It wasn't her nickname just because it rhymed. The zoom zoom zoom of speeders curtailed her robes as she walked, modified music player in hand. "Blast it! My pants!" she said suddenly, along with a string of curses. Once the pirate happened into the dictated establishment, she wove in and out of the crowd. "22-C."

Ahh, well, I could be here for a bounty. Vega had just now realized and no amount of public would ensure her safety. Great! Just great! Following the bouncer, her gray gaze shifted back and forth, head only slightly canted down. The walk now seemed more like a sentence and she grew more wary with each step closer. "Here we are," the deep voice of the detail announced and moved to the side all at once.

Something akin to shock etched on her face and she took a step back from [member="Ash Valente"]. From the ghost. Quickly, very quickly, it was replaced with anger. "You... you...you..." rattled the pirate, unable to find the words. Naturally flat gray eyes shone bright as if they were pale gems and her cheeks were alive with fire. "...bastard!"

 

[Ronan Nakasla]

The screen clicked off. The absence of one light gave way to the summoning of new light. While it may not have been openly obvious to the younger Force Sensitive at first, Ash's Force signature was honed back into line with his mind free from the distraction of his projects. Within the mind's eye it was much like gazing at a sun in all its untamed magnificence. Excess energy arced around the man like plasma off a star, wishing to escape but drawn back into line by his near gravitational will on the energy before it dissipated naturally into the flow. Then his eyes followed his senses and they looked upon the angered girl. He gave her a cursory, analytic gaze before he stood on principle of greeting, ignoring her blurb of insult. She had a right to be angered. It was a confusing time for her. She may have even just gotten over poor Rhoujen. Ah, that would require explanation wouldn't it?

"Unfortunately, Miss Vega," he stated plainly, "I'm not the man you think I am." he finished that sentence, gave a slight pause for her to comprehend but not long enough for her to develop a coherent sentence, and continued.

"You see, those reports that circumnavigated the galaxy did not lie. Atretes Rhoujen is quite... almost dead." he sat back down and gestured for her to take the seat across from him, where an array of drinks had been perched and waited to be consumed. Regardless of whether she took the offer or not, he continued.

"Due to the nature of his, my, our being, we were a kind of duality within this body. He had the reins, I had the power. He was pleasant, but on Naboo his kindness was his undoing. Norongachi salvaged the body, but his spirit was broken... crippled. He let me have control and stayed behind. Until recently." Ash took a sip of his drink, and carried on, "I am Sigma. I've taken the name Ash Valente. I'm essentially what powered Atretes through his trials, yet even so he experienced more than I did. I watched while he acted. So I sought his aid. Found him in the Force. We are now more united, yet he still remains little more than memories and emotions that influence my choices." he took another drink and watched her over the rim of the glass.

"And that is why you're here," he said after he'd finished his drink, "Because little Rhoujen urged that I seek you out. I haven't the faintest idea why, but I get migraines when I don't listen." he finished.

He understood that it was quite a great deal of information to take in at once. He didn't expect her to stay, in fact he wondered if his bluntness was in spite of Rhoujen and his love affair. Regardless, what was done was done and what was said had been said. Now was merely the time to await [member="Luna Vega"]'s response.

 

[Luna Vega]

"Bloody Force users," she spat, quite irritated. It was plain as day, as bright as the light described previous. These fools were every bit of delusional, free-roaming illusionists. Sharing minds, bodies? What the bloody karkin' hell? Alcohol just highlighted emotions and slowed down your motor skills. These bastards were on drugs. They had to be! A daily regimen that spurred the imagination beyond anything tangible, and obviously beyond repair. A parasitic drug? "Seven hells."

Shifting to her left, she eyed [member="Ash Valente"] from the shadows the hood provided. "Donna ya go talkin' about Rho-" she cleared her throat, shook her head even.

"Yer daft. One hop, three skips, anna dive inta ah straig'jacket, mate." All the while her arm reached from within the confines of the billowy sleeve to procure a bottle and draw it back to her person. A twist and a toss later let the contents flow from the container and past her lips. "Ya go' sum nerve tellin' tall tales. How convienent tha' yer no him. Thar'd be noo reason'ta bash yer head inta that table then, would thar? So ya expect me ta believe thar arr two of ya in thar? Always has been? Tha' ya coullda no came ta me noo sooner?" Luna half-laughed between pulls of sanity-replacement in the liquid form.

Dead arse serious. Finally, her jaded gray gaze befell his and she held it for silent moments."Tha' is a wha' normal folk call a multi-personal-IT-y disorder," a blue brow lofted. "Means yer a loon, poppet."

 

[Ronan Nakasla]

Well. That went differently than anticipated. He expected her to either understand or storm off, yet accusing him of mental disorders while chugging alcohol and speaking in some odd dialect was somewhere in that list on unknowns that one simply couldn't quite account for on a specific level. Honestly, the notion was rather amusing for someone who knew what went on in the body and soul. Those kinds of people, to Ash's knowledge, were himself and Norongachi. He sighed and stayed quiet for a moment, contemplating how much to tell her. Rhoujen thought highly of this girl... well, obviously, or he wouldn't be here. He gave her another cursory glance and clicked his teeth in a decision.

"Alright," he said as he straightened in his seat, "If you have the patience for it, I can explain to you how exactly it worked out." he offered.

The story in itself would be rather interesting, if only as a story, but its believability would rely on [member="Luna Vega"]. After all, he couldn't force her to believe anything. Not yet, anyway. He never learnt the subtle sciences of altering another's mind. His teacher never bothered, if he even knew... that was something he should work on. Later.