Taking Stock (Dust meets Lady Kay)

[Aster Jen'allé]

*It felt like a knife was stabbed into his stomach. Emptiness filled the void where his heart was supposed to be, but just for a moment he could feel his heart again: only long enough to make the wound feel fresh. A single tear, sharing sadness and isolation in kind with Dust, rolled down his cheek. It would be barely visible from across the table.*

Dust: "There is, or, there was."

*Sometimes you wake up and just for a moment you know someone you love is near, but it's only a dream. You don't know whether to curse the pain it caused or relish knowing the feeling of your loved one lying next to you for another single moment. Long enough to run your fingers through their hair one last time before they leave once again with the whisper, "I love you" caught on the wind of a relieved sigh a moment before the sobbing begins again. Jareth had woken up for that moment before entering his coma once more, leaving Dust to feel the pain left behind.*

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

And she did it again. Somehow she'd manage to find just the right words to hurt the young man. "I'm sorry. I've lost my soulmate too. But after a while I vowed not to let his sacrifice go in vein. He deserves much better than that. So I try to make things better for everyone and for the Galaxy. Working for ArmaTech gives me the funds and contacts to help with that goal."

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

*Dust composed himself and returned to the conversation at hand.*

Dust: "My goals are similar. I try to use the force to affect the change I want in the universe."

*This woman was kind, but out of sheer bad luck seemed to always say what bothered him the most.*

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

"And what changes are that? How is it that you would like the universe to be?" Of course Kay would want it to be peaceful, but there would always be conflict. Always.

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

Dust: "I have one goal for this galaxy. That the good will get to see their day of peace. So long as... She is dead... I will never have my day in the sun, but that's my dream, that every man and woman gets to see the dream they've worked so hard to achieve come to fruition."

*And he was willing to do anything he had to to make sure that kind of galaxy would someday be possible. Sometimes even the most noble of goals are corrupted by impossibility meaning they are impossible to accomplish so seeking them means one becomes willing to do wrong in a vain attempt to accomplish their greater good.*

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

Kay raised a brow. He had a great goal in mind, but she had no idea who he was talking about when he referenced that someone should be dead in order for that peace to be achieved. "Who is this she, that you are talking about?"

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

*Dust realized he may not have been very clear.*

Dust: "My... Fiancee. As long as she is dead I will never have my own happiness, so all i can do is hope for the happiness of others."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

"Oh, I'm sorry. But I know what that's like. I suppose that it's why I do what I do, for I want others to have a life better than mine. I even rescued slaves from a Hutt...Once." Of course what she neglected to mention is that afterwards the family members of the rescued slaves were slaughtered in front of her. Sempra was notoriously evil.

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

*Dust and this woman had much in common with each other despite the age differential, and yet they handled it all so differently. Whereas Dust would do anything necessary to bring forward his vision of a perfect world, lady Kay would only do what she was capable of in her current position. One hungered to be greater and the other was satisfied to some degree with doing what she could right now.*

Dust: "that's very noble of you."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

"Thanks. I would've saved more, but it was a small operation and needed to be kept that way. I didn't want to start a war. That might be good for the company, but not for the countless innocent lives that could be lost. There are other ways to save them that don't require people dying or the firing of weapons." That's where negotiations came in. And it was always good to know one's enemies or potential enemies.

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

Dust: "Many battles can be won without firing a single weapon. Unfortunately that is not always the case, though I wish it was."

*Dust had no interest in killing, he would do it if needed, but it brought him no joy. It didn't really bring him any emotion.*

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

"That would be nice, Dust. But if it was, well we'd be out of work, wouldn't we? I just don't know what the military types would do with no battles to fight."

Of course that was no excuse to have a war either. But what would they do? Become farmers? Teachers? Maybe hunters? That could be more of their line of work.

"I hope that my son grows to be as wise as you are. I'd hate for him to be just a victim of his own rage."

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

Dust: "Honestly, to have rage would be better than to feel empty. Wisdom and an empty heart lead to more suffering than rage ever did, but I digress. I wish well for him, but I wouldn't wish him to be like me."

*There was a bit of shame almost in his statement. He did feel empty, and that truly isn't something he would envy anyone of.*

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

Kay leaned back in her chair. "You feel empty, do you? Is it because of the loss of your love? I have been through it myself. I wandered the Galaxy for years, alone and with no direction." She reached out to take his hand and give it a gentle squeeze. "The emptiness doesn't last. You have a goal already and that helps. Take steps to achieve it. It will help fulfil you. Go on an adventure with with some friends. That helps too."

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

*Dust found some comfort in what she was saying, and more resolve in what he had to do to work toward his goal. Very helpful indeed.*

Dust: "Thank you for your words. You are a very kind woman I must say. That really begs the question, and pardon me for asking this, why did your son decide to run away exactly?"

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

She let go of his hand and leaned back in the chair as she thought of the easiest way to go about the story.

"Brad...Brad was getting trained by his father in the Darkside. He was learning to fight and channel his emotions. He idolized his father. But when his father sacrificed himself to save our family...Brad just couldn't handle the grief. He couldn't go near me without getting angry. So one day,....he just left. I don't blame him though. I understand his reasoning...."

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

*Dust never took her for someone to marry into the dark side, so that part at least took him by surprise.*

Dust: "What was his reasoning? I am sorry if this is prying too far into your personal life."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

She shook her head. "No, it's alright. There are plenty that knew the tale. Brad blamed me for his father's death. In fighting our enemy, a bunch of us got beaten up pretty badly. And then in his final moments, my husband made a deal, exchanging his own life for mine and our children. Our enemy wanted me to turn, so he took the deal, knowing that my heart would be broken. And it was. A part of me died that day and I may never gain that back."

 

[Aster Jen'allé]

Dust: "Your enemy? Who was your enemy?"

*Dust was intrigued if not a little saddened by the story. He resonated when she said a part of her died as he felt the same. There was even a bit of a literal side to that feeling for him as the real him, Jareth, would likely remain dead leaving Dust to this world.*

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Jareth Johnathon Holst"]

Kay almost didn't want to say his name. It was as if doing so might bring him forth. But that was just silly. There had been no whispers of him anywhere.

"His name is Lord Masquerader. He's a powerful Sith Lord, but one that never had any need for followers."