Technically Speaking...I'm a Terrible Pilot

[Anara Valnor]

"Gods be damned!"

The petite redhead glared out her viewport at the murky landscape, more than a little upset that her vantage point was at an odd angle. Still after so many years and reaching the rank of Master Anara still couldn't comprehend how she was such a bad pilot. It was as though ships specifically sought to be her undoing.

Still working to recall who she had been Anara at least knew that her and a hyperdrive computer were never going to be friends. It wasn't the most exciting revelation, but at least it was progress and hopefully would aide in alleviating her continued night terrors.

Sighing she shifted in her seat and attempted to get her ship free of the low, twisted trees she'd crashed into. Unfortunately the engines were down, either clogged with foliage or otherwise damaged. Great. Grumbling to herself she slipped from the pilots chair and began the awkward trek to the hatch; at least the damn loading ramp was still working. Somewhat. It groaned in protest, snapping more than a few tree limbs, before finally settling into place. Carefully Anara exited her ship, climbing across it like some sort of tree dwelling mammal as she sought to assess the damage.

She hadn't bothered to see where her hyperdrive had dumped her, though she knew it wasn't her desired location, but if the landscape around her was an indication of where she was Anara could take a few guesses; chief among them that she was far from help. Shaking her head at her sheer lack of good luck with piloting she lay down upon the damp metal and peered down at the ground. The drop was one she could survive with no problem, but the likelyhood of her ship escaping the drop without further damage seemed slim; thanks to her incredible luck.

Frowning she sighed again and rolled onto her back to stare up at the gray, soupy sky, as she went over her options.

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TmaRDjPTPZo


Vengeance was out on his morning run. He had turned to the more physical aspects of training after such and extended period of time. The route was one of his favorites and also the longest of the four options. He ran just in pants and boots having gotten used to the climate of Dagobah. His saber was clicked to his waist and a Knife in a sheath strapped to his leg. His complexion had gone slightly pale and his eyes took on a semi-permanent yellow color. It took focus to get them to go back to their normal color. Lost in his thoughts he didn't notice anything out of the ordinary until the ship came screaming directly over him.

"What the Feth?"

He shook his head wondering what idiot was flying it...................or more like Kamikaze plowing it into the trees. Even at that distance it echo'd through the trees. Vengeance took a breath closing his eyes he tapped into the force running fast enough it seemed like he was flying through the trees towards the sound. At the last little bit he leaped up and onto a branch level with the ship a few feet away.

"Not very subtle or graceful for an assassin." "I knew they would track me down eventually." "Minus points of the execution though." "Would have been better to send somebody I know to get close to me instead of a complete stranger." "Or at the very least a Blonde."

His tone was playfully sarcastic as he spoke crouched on the tree branch. He looked thoughtful at her cocking his head to the side.

"Unless you are the distraction..............."

He looked around.

"I wonder who it could be.................Ferus was always the best at popping out of thin air........................" ".......no no Ferus would never bother himself over an insignificant Knight." "So maybe an Apprentice then."


[member="Anara Valnor"]

 

[Anara Valnor]

The humidity was nothing short of nightmarish and before long Anara's lounging upon the top of her ship came to an end. Standing she ran her fingers through her thick mane of hair, pulling it up off of her pale neck and shoulders as she tied it back in a lame effort to alleviate the damp that was settling into her very bones. Deciding to take a look at her engines she again began the tedious task of climbing across her ship.

One engine was clear and appeared as though it should be functioning fine, but the other was an entirely different matter. Anara suspected she could fix it, but not with any sort of real speed or the precision of a true mechanic; her repairs would hold until she could reach a space port hopefully. Dripping wet and more than a little irritated with her luck she again took a seat on her precariously snagged ship, the constant buzzing of thousands of voices inside her mind doing little to improve her mood.

Frowning severely she stood minutes later with the intent to again try to get her ship free of the massive trees, but as she moved to her the edge of her ship once more she very nearly came face to face with a man she'd never seen before. All at once her irritation skyrocketed, but her anger was directed inward. She should have sensed him instead of nearly jumping out of her skin (although she didn't jump, thank the Gods for small miracles).

Still frowning she gave the man a critical look, molten orbs narrowed slightly. "What are you talking about? I don't even know who you are..." Her aggravation was clear from her tone and her frown managed to deepen into a sneer as she glanced around them. "Nor do I care...I'm not someone's hound sent out to track you down. I'm here by accident," she snapped, her eyes darkening as she let a bit of her power radiate outward.

How dare he assume she was an Apprentice! Sure her flying was terrible, but that had nothing to do with her raw power!

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance reveled in the reaction [member="Anara Valnor"] gave to his presence. He found it highly amusing. He stood as she sneered slowly stepping forward a man of no fear. As a matter of fact when he felt the power radiate of her he closed his eyes letting it wash over him like a warm sun.

"Accident...............looks more like a tragedy...............you should really fire your pilot."

He opened his eyes as he stepped out onto the edge of the ship his hands relaxed at his side. His yellow eyes looking directly into hers a smile creeping across his face.

"So you are not here for me then." "I was sure my Apprentice had betrayed me to the One Sith." "Not a very popular these days since I walked away from them." "Figured it was only a matter of time before they sent an assassin to kill me." "Allow me to introduce myself.................my name is Vengeance."

He paused looking her up and down.

"And you are?"

 

[Anara Valnor]

She huffed in annoyance and took a small step back, but not because she was even the slightest bit frightened of the man. Given her petite size she was accustomed to others towering over her, but she hated it regardless nor did she like feeling crowded. Predatory molten orbs flashed in annoyance as she regarded the man, brows raised as he looked her over.

"Anara...Can't say that I've ever heard of you," she quipped, arms folded beneath her chest as she looked him over. Nothing about him was familiar, from his melody to his face. Frowning she met his gaze once more, her eyes narrowed slightly as she looked up at him. "The Sith kill one another now when one won't play with the others? Cute..."

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance chuckled at her discomfort taking another step forward.

"You really are out of touch aren't you." "The Sith are as they have always been." "Scheming and squabbling nerf herders." "Apparently if you are not a Zambrano then it does not matter how many people you kill or how many worlds you burn for the cause." "You will never be anything more than a peasant to be stepped on." "People barely capable of wielding the force or even a saber now calling themselves Lords of the Sith." "All becuase they sucked up to the right person for the right amount of time."

He smiled looking at her.

"A hypocritical bunch they have become." "So I left it all behind, my wife, my Apprentices, everything to come here."

Vengeance began to circle [member="Anara Valnor"] wondering if she would turn to keep him from getting behind her or hold her ground. It was his curse.......he loved to toy with people.

"To embrace the darkness and get back to what it truly meant to be a practitioner of the Dark Side."

He chuckled as he continued to circle her.

"So why are you here?" "Of all the planets to crash onto why this one?" "Do you even know?"

 

[Anara Valnor]

"The antics of others such as the One Sith are of no concern to me...So yes I suppose I am out of touch and beyond their radar," she taunted, not bothering to follow his prowling. Allowing her shields to drop she let her full power be felt by him, her eyes darkening slightly as the voices of those she held within her hissed and snarled in readiness for some sort of action. "How sad for you," she laughed, rolling her eyes as she met his gaze when he passed before her.

"Their cause is a pointless one..." she added, agreeing with him on some level even if she still had no clue as to what he was referring. However, the name Zambrano did hold a certain note of familiarity to it, one that made her nostrils flare lightly. How did she know that name?

"Because I am a terrible pilot, obviously...and perhaps because of some grand design beyond either of us," she waved one petite hand dismissively as she finally turned her head to follow his movements. "I'm sure you have some theory you'd just love to share," she taunted, fully expecting him to continue his prowling as he sought to further irritate her.

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance chuckled at her reactions and her words.

"The One Sith conquer, kill, or subjugate everything in their path." "No one and nothing stays below their radar for long." "Not even the Republic and her Jedi have been able to stop the tide of war."

He paused for a moment closing his eyes again as the shields dropped almost instinctively reaching out to touch her.....as if to reach out and take a hold of the power itself. He held back though.

"No cause is pointless...............misguided maybe...........doomed to fail yes." "With out some purpose why do we exist?"

If she remained still enough he would slip behind her only a inch or two between them. He whispered into her ear.

"Grand designs and theories Anara..................no I prefer instinct..........passion............action............reaction even." "Who or what do you prefer little one?"

He paused but did not move nor would he prevent her form moving as he continued.

"So much power going to waist ignoring or avoiding everything happening around you." "Would you like to know why I came here of all places?"


[member="Anara Valnor"]

 

[Anara Valnor]

Her power coiled around her like a snake, ready to strike out if necessary. She could feel him behind her, hovering, but she didn't move. Once she would have, once she would have shied away from him like he was diseased, but she was no longer that girl even if she was trying to find out who she once was.

"Little one? Cute...I could send you into madness and you would call me Little One..." she smirked slightly, but did nothing against him and instead seemed to relax even with him hovering at her back. She knew the game he was playing and wasn't afraid to dance to the same tune.

"Instinct...passion...it drives us, gives us direction...those are what I prefer and my power serves my own ends; it need not serve the will of others." She closed her own eyes, arms wrapped loosely around herself as she waited for him to make his next move. "Are you not doing something very similar? Hiding on this rock so far from your comrades."

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance smirked his hands slipping out hover by her shoulders and dancing down. He didn't touch her though the only pressure she would feel sliding down her arms would be from the force itself.

"Madness and I are bedfellows little one..........the darkness the blanket that gives us warmth." "I am not afraid and if it was your intent to do so it would have been done already." "The past....the future........mean nothing next to the moment." "The here and now."

He chuckled.

"I am not hiding Anara." "I am not here because I am running from anything." "I am here because this pl;ace is the only place I have ever felt at home." "I have no comrades, no family, and my purpose is death." "The death of those who have done me wrong, the death of those who stand in my way." "I kill in my own name whether for pleasure or prudence is simply a matter of view point."


[member="Anara Valnor"]

 

[Anara Valnor]

She huffed lightly, amused. "We're all mad. One way or another." Able to tell the difference between his touch and that of the Force, Anara turned, head tipped back to stare up at him. "And who has wronged you? Who would you see fall to their knees before you in defeat?"

The planet seemed like a miserable one, but upon a deeper inspection she could tell why Vengeance felt at home upon its humid surface. Life was abundant and the Force even more so. The planet's Song was old and dark; there was a story hidden beneath the layers of muck that she could only guess at in that moment.

Perhaps crashing upon the planet wasn't as tragic as she had first thought.

"What will you do now?"

[member="Vengeance"]

(Posting from my phone. It won't show the text color options and I'm to lazy to write the code by hand. ^_^)

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance smiled his hands gentle touching her arms just above her elbow. His fingers wrapping each arm a smile creeping up on his face. He leaned in almost as if to kiss her but at the last millisecond his lips brush past her cheek to her ear.

"Defeat is only the beginning little one.........."

He let it trail off for just a brief moment before he seemed to disappear from in front of her. If she were skilled enough and paying attention she would have seen him drop his hands and move past her towards the edge of the ship. He turned looking over at his shoulder.

"This very moment I am going home." "Your ship will be there tomorrow.............you coming?" "My little slice of darkness is bound to be better than a ship slowly creeping into a second crash to the ground."

He paused for a moment not necessarily waiting for answer before he just stepped out. He didn't jump he just seemed to disappear into the darkness. As the landed Vengeance turned taking a half leap backwards waiting to see if she followed.


[member="Anara Valnor"]

 

[Anara Valnor]

Her brows lifted at his antics, a smirk curling her lips as she turned to follow his movement away from her. Oh he loved playing with fire it seemed and Anara was willing to bet he loved being burned just as much. Turning away from where he had stepped off her ship Anara instead returned inside, retrieving the only items of any importance to her, before dropping to the ground.

Mere feet from the man Anara motioned for him to lead the way, her saber not clipped to her hip and a guitar of dark wood and equally dark metal slung across her back. "Let's see this little slice of darkness then," she taunted, following behind him only after he'd begun to move away.

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance smirked at [member="Anara Valnor"] looking at the saber not clipped to her hip.

"Are we the cat or the mouse?" "Hmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm I wonder."

Vengeance dashed backwards a force enhanced leap. He didn't bother turning around as he dashed from tree to tree. He knew this path better than he knew himself never needing to actually see where he was going. He had run it every day for weeks now going on months.

After a few minutes he suddenly stopped for a split second before he jumped straight up into a tree. Three jumps later he was looking down a good forty feet off the ground letting out a chuckle.

"Are we having fun yet little one...........................I do miss the old games."

 

[Anara Valnor]

Attaching her saber to her hip she was quick to follow after the man, having little trouble in keeping up with him. She was only a few paces behind him and when he finally stopped high up in the trees she smirked up at him and shrugged as though bored. "Perhaps...though I can think of other fun things than simply chasing you about," she taunted, her eyes glowing for just a moment as she met his gaze.

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance smirked at her comment.

"My my aren't you a naughty one but you are still chasing."

He stuck his tongue out at her before he turned and dashed through the tree tops in the same direction they had been heading. If she followed the exact path they would travel for a few hundred yards before Vengeance disappeared down dropping out of the trees to the ground. Vengeance had built a little home for himself surrounded by such thick vegetation the only way to get to it was from above. It was a bit of a long cabin feel to it that while having only the barest of necessities took some time to construct. While it did have a small amount of natural light when the sun was up the house itself was completely surrounded by shaded darkness.

He waited for her to land in the small clearing with his arms crossed a small smile playing on his face.

"Welcome to my little slice of darkness." "Getting to it is half the fun."

[member="Anara Valnor"]

 

[Anara Valnor]

"It's no fun to be a good girl," she smirked, following after him without hesitation. Dropping to the ground a few feet from him, Anara eyed his home with a critical eye before glancing upward. He'd picked a rather strategic location; he really was certain that someone was going to be coming for him. Interesting.

She huffed in mild amusement as she motioned for him to lead once more, her lips still quirked upward. "It's cute," she commented, sticking her tongue out at him simply because he'd already done the same thing to her. It was a childish move, but entirely appropriate. "It's totally you," she continued, meeting his gaze.

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance rolled his eyes with a smirk walking backwards for a few steps before he pushed open the door stepping inside and holding the door for her to step in. The inside was lit mostly with torches spaced out around the room.

In the center was a small table with a single chair, to the left was a bed, and to the right a small chest sitting under a multipurpose clothing and weapons rack. The third wall had a medium sized refresher style set up. The place had a mostly open floor plan with a lot of room for whatever. Once inside Vengeance took a minute to clean up a little bit before sliding a shirt on.

"So where were you headed before you ended up in my backyard?"

He motioned to the only chair at the table for her to sit if she wished.

"Sorry not used to having guests."

[member="Anara Valnor"]

 

[Anara Valnor]

She bowed her head in appreciation, still being a bit childish. It was a nice change to behave freely, to be free of expectations placed upon her from others.

Stepping inside her gaze swept over his dwelling and for a moment a bit of jealousy crept into her being. Simplicity was something to be treasured in life and the simplicity she'd had was long gone. One day maybe she could reclaim it, but for now she needed to continue piecing her past together.

Watching him carefully she took a seat, a light smirk curling her lips. "Onderon...Hyperdrives and I don't get along, never have as far as I can recall," she laughed, shrugging as though it wasn't a big deal that she'd literally crashed upon the planet. "I'd imagine not since you think I was here to kill you..."

[member="Vengeance"]

 

[Kenrath]

Vengeance smiled at [member="Anara Valnor"] knowingly.

"It why I always had a pilot." "Had a really good one there for a while until my apprentice stole my ship and pilot to go joy riding." "To be fair he was a Zambrano..........they seem to believe by the very nature of being a Zambrano everything in the galaxy belongs to them." "A trait they get from their father...though I only met him once it was enough to see where my Apprentice got it."

Vengeance seem to spit on the ground in disgust even saying the name. Even so he quickly changed the subject to the second thing she mentioned taking a seat on his bed still leaving her the chair.

"Yes well people only come here for two reasons." "The crystal caves or to find something or someone that was lost."

He paused with a smirk.

"And considering I walked away from the One Sith and never returned."

He paused pulling up his left pants leg revealing a fairly intricate tattoo.

"The One Sith brand you once you reach Knight and become a full member of the order." "It also from what I have been told is a bit of a tracking device."

He dropped his pants leg before finishing.

"May not be the most important person but I figure eventually they will work their way down the list of traitors to my name."

He smirked.

"Most Crystal hunts are groups and since you seem to at least on the surface to have come alone you can see how one in my position would put you in group two."