Terror on Terax

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Vereen"]


"You know her?" Elpsis repeated needlessly. "She's, like, real amazing, isn't she? And that arse. All three of us should totally do stuff together." Taryc, get back here. Elpsis is talking like a fangirlish Valley girl because of you. She noted Laira making a comment about hunting down a Primeval cell, knowing about Taryc's former history with the depraved cult. Part of her wondered whether Laira and Taryc had knocked boots. Not that Elpsis minded. She was very free love. She would have liked to join in.


Anyhow, before Elpsis could keep fantasising about Taryc's booty, which by now had reached memetic levels, Laira pushed the plot forward by demonstrating her earth shaping skills. "Nice. You know what would be fun? Create a furrow and drop fire on the bastard who drops into it. Or dose them with fire and trap them with stone. Probably taxing, but would've made Mustafar less annoying. Ren kept running away. Somehow managed to run away from lava. Wel, the last one I duelled actually fought," she amended after some thought.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"I do!" Small world. "She's sweet, and yeah. She wouldn't tell me her routine though, otherwise I'd be doing it everyday!" Laira laughed raising her eye brows while making a grabbing motion with her hands held below her hips and biting her lip. "We should! We could do all sorts of stuff!" The redhead responded rather innocently. She had not knocked boots with Taryc, but they had been pretty touchy with one another at first, until Laira backed the raven haired woman off a little. Just a little.

"A furrow, yeah I could do that. Drop the ground beneath them a few feet. My favorite thing to do is encase part of me in stone." There wasn't any stones directly in her arms reach, so the redhead simply sunk her hands into the sand beneath her and focused on contorting the sand into a simple sedimentary rock around her hands. "It takes some effort but," She trailed off and made her fingers flutter around, the rock that encased them mimicking their movements like a glove. "Adds a ton of power to a punch or a kick." Which was great for breaking jaws and wrists or beating the pulp out of a stormtrooper with just unarmed strikes.

Some of the Cathar had moved on, starting to lose interest in the girls and returning to chores and such while the sun began to sink. "Show me something you can do now." Laira asked cutely, trying to use her charms to get her way.

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Vereen"]


"I help her a little with the workout. I'm good cardio," Elpsis said innocently. Well, she'd worn out [member="Tempest"] a few times. Anyhow, Laira demonstrated a very cool application of terramancy by manifesting a stone hand. That was fun - and practical. A stormtrooper's armour was better than its portrayal in holofilms might suggest, but a helmet could not blot out overwhelming concussive force.


Even when the stormtrooper insisted it was too early in the day to suffer damage. "Nice - and practical. You wanna see what I can do, huh?" Teasingly, Elpsis used her telekinesis to squeeze Laira's butt. "I could give you very sweet dreams you wouldn't wanna wake up from, but I'm 'fraid we're on a clock."


Then there was fire. Twin streams of flame rushed across Elpsis' arms. Her hands looked like they were burning, while her long red hair was ablaze, becoming a literal firemane. She seemed wreathed in flame, for a wall surrounded her, though it did not seem to cause harm or spread. Anyone who came close would probably be ignited though. Then suddenly the flames morphed, merging into an enormous, beautiful phoenix that shot up into the air, flying above Laira and the nomads. It flew upward for a bit, spreading its huge wings before it eventually dissipated.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Oh?" Laira hadn't put the connection together exactly right, her mind on more traditional exercise like the good girl she was and was more expecting to be told a routine. When it did click she blushed a deep shade of red through her cheeks, "Oh." She felt stupid, but otherwise alright. So Elpsis and Taryc had a thing, which wasn't so bad she supposed. Perhaps it was a bit awkward if [member="Taryc Ap'Irae"] ever returned to them.

When Elpsis squeezed her buttocks with a slight show of telekinesis Laira let out a suddenly surprised yelp with a wide grin. "Hey there, invisible hands to yourself!" She said playfully, wondering how to repay Elpsis for her transgression in a similar fashion. An idea sprung to mind, but would have to wait a little bit. "Maybe later I'll take you up on the sweet dreams."

The flames burst forth from Elpsis, a burning brazier in the little oasis causing shrieks to emit from the Cathar and have some of them scramble to get further away from the firemaned woman, while others looked on in awe. It was quite the impressive showing, Laira found herself watching it with a glimmer of awe in her own eyes. Certainly her companion was far more powerful, and far more controlled than she. It did the young Princess good to be reminded that there were always more powerful beings in the universe, however that was not what she was noticing.

"That was amazing." Laira said softly, still a little enthralled by the display. "But, I uh, think you scared the locals." She said with a slight laugh. "That might be enough practice for now. Wouldn't want to scare them away."

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Vereen"]


"Would you rather feel my real hands on your arse?" Elpsis asked sweetly, batting her eyelashes at the Alderaanian Ranger. However, it seemed the burning brazier had had quite an effect on the natives. Initially, Elpsis enjoyed the awe, before realising that she'd gone a bit over the top. For all her good qualities, she could be a bit oblivious sometimes.


She looked deeply embarrassed. She could already hear Auntie Sio lecturing her. "Oh. Uh...sorry, guys. It's harmless. I...didn't wanna scare anyone," her cheeks had acquired a scarlet hue that matched her firemane. She totally rocked the lobster look. Fortunately, she'd shown enough control not to set anything on fire. "Yeah, I guess that's enough for today."

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Well kinda!" Laira retorted quickly, followed by a reddening of her face. It was too late to take back, but quickly said. Maybe it wouldn't be awkward.

"Why don't we get dressed and talk to the natives about where we will be going." Laira said, setting up her plot to get Elpsis back for her wandering telekinesis. The princess had a plan but it did kind of rely on some timing on her part.

To that end, she strode out of the water and quickly pulled up her synskin around her waist, tying the arms around her hips and letting it ride a little low on her, focusing on speed of having all of her clothes on her and being booted rather than worried about being completely clothed. The redhead couldn't help but grin as she started concentrating on Elpsis's top with her mind, focusing on it and trying to map its energy for something mischeivous she had planned.

Hopefully, when Elpsis reached for it she would be able to use her Aing-Tii practices to fold space the object into her hands.

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Vereen"]


Elpsis nodded. "Yeah, sounds good." Fortunately, she was completely oblivious to Laira's evil scheme. Anyhow, she strode out of the water. As she stepped out, she ran into what seemed to be a Cathar matron. She appeared to be something like a shaman for the tribe. Her gaze was very stern. "Uh, hi," Elpsis said lamely.

"You wield such great power, but use it like a toy. The flames in the sky frightened my people and our beasts. You could have easily caused great harm," the woman chastisted her sternly. Instantly, Elpsis felt like a schoolboy being called before the principal. Past her would have argued the point or brushed the woman's accusations off with a snarky comment.

"Uh, yeah...I am...sorry about that. Didn't wanna hurt anyone. We were training."

"There is a difference between training, as you put it, and showing off. I can tell there is no malice in your heart, but heed my words. The spirits have granted you great strength, but with it comes great responsibility. The wise do need frivolous displays to prove themselves."

"I shall try to keep this mind...and not set the sky on fire while others are around who could get hurt..." in this moment, she tried to reach for her shirt, and naughty Laira presumably snatched it away.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Laira was holding back tears and laughter from where she stood, one hand over her mouth the other clutching Elpsis's shirt as it had simply vanished and appeared in her hands. Her head was throbbing a little bit and she knew that a headache would form before long, but not a terrible one.

"Oooh, you're in trouble." Laira said with a big grin on her face as she was chastised by the elder Cathar woman. It was rather funny even if the Cathar wasn't amused by Laira's tone at all, cutting her a terribly angry glance. Had the cathar been a sith, the look would have likely killed her. "I mean yeah, you should be more responsible. Jeez Elpsis." Laira said, still fighting back laughter the occasional muffled giggle escaping her lips. "You're already too hot to handle, you can't go around getting hotter. It scares people, not me, but people."

When the cathar woman turned and left the two women alone again, Laira held the shirt up dangling it in front of her in a strong grip. "It's right here, babe." She said with a giggle. "I suppose I could let you go without it, or you could trade me something for it." A cute little smile appeared on her face, eyes flashing over as she bit her lip modestly. "I mean, either way I win, right?"

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Vereen"]


"Hey!" Elpsis called out. She was not shy about...showing off her body and it was quite hot, but it was still naughty of Laira to steal her shirt. She was left with a sports bra.

"Offworlders. You can travel at the speed of sound and command the elements, but you are still children," the Cathar woman chided them.

"Y'know, babe, if you wanted to see my knockers, all you had to do was ask nicely," Elpsis placed her hands on her hips, then smirked. Via a telekinetic tug, she sought to similarly liberate Laira of her upper garments. After all, it was only fair.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Laira grinned as the Cathar woman chided them. She was right though, they were children. Both of the girls were less than twenty years old and both of them had been introduced to the Force at a young age, struggle and strife not long after. Laira had spent her youth being trained under harsh conditions and attending difficult academic institutions to sculpt her into a ruler and a warrior, were she had little time for friends and relaxation. Her path had been laid out for her since birth and her childhood had reflected much of that, not that she missed any of it. Without such an upbringing she would not have been so successful on her own.

"Sorry." Laira said with a smirk, "I would have, but you were busy. So wha-" She said, as the shirt jerked suddenly out of her hand. "Hey, no fair! I can't do that." Her voice still playful and happy. "I was trying to get something out of you for that." Laira was trying her best to sound defeated and cheated despite wearing a broad smile.

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Vereen"]


Elpsis' life had been a bit more chaotic than Laira's. She'd grown up with adoptive middle class parents who never understood her, and had been sent off to the Jedi Temple the moment she began moving things with her mind and hearing voices. That had gone poorly, even before her run-in with her biological father, a sadistic Sith Lord. It had been a downward spiral from then on. She'd run away, ended up on the streets and spent the next couple years trying to make sense of who and what she was while hanging with the dregs and scumbags.


Still, despite the hardship, she'd managed to maintain a degree of innocence. Along with some childish immaturity. Elpsis smirked when Laira's shirt ended up in her grasp. "Hey, now we're even. Actually, you still got a bit of advantage since you get a better look at my knockers than I at yours." What with her being blind and stuff. It was why touch was so important to her.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Laira glared a little, but then reluctantly walked over towards Elpsis. "Yeah, but I wanted to bargain." Her tone was a little more successfully mimicking a defeated tone as she walked through the sand back to her fellow redhead. She had hoped she would be able to convince the other redhead to give her a massage when they got back to the ship, or perhaps hand feed her grapes in exchange for the article of clothing. Laira's own shirt was now clutched in Elpsis' hands and though she didn't need it, she wanted to go ahead and see if she could work out an exchange.

"Alright," Her grin returned as she moved up against Elpsis, "You give me my shirt, I'll give you yours and we seal the deal like," And she planted her lips on Elpsis suddenly and without warning, slipping her a little bit of tongue if able. Laira had her crush on Elpsis that wasn't fully developed, and she knew that while they could be good friends and occasionally more than that, they weren't all that likely to end up together. But she was nineteen, her mother didn't meet Draco until she was twenty eight. "That."

"So, uh, mmhmmm, do we have a deal?"

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Darkhold"]


"What do you...," apparently this one character's being cut off with a lip-lock is a thing now. This one is not complaining. Suddenly, Laira pressed her lips against Elpsis'. The empath's lips parted, enabling the redhead to slip a bit of tongue inside her cavern. Her tongue met Laira's, massaging and stroking it. The moment of them dancing in the warmth of her mouth was over too soon, leaving her yearning for more. There was a silly grin on her face. "We totally have a deal," she said eagerly. Raising her hand, she held out Laira's shirt towards her.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Oh, that was just an example." Laira smirked, swapping shirts back with Elpsis and wrapping her arms back around Elpsis's neck, staring deeply into the blind pyromancer's milky white eyes. Laira had most certainly caught feelings for the pretty blind witch. Their interactions involved fighting, saving one another, spending time just fooling around and being comfortable. She had looked forward to this trip believing it to be anxiousness about figuring herself out, but perhaps it that explanation had just been her trying to convince herself it was just a simple crush.

Once they were swapped back and both had their appropriate garments, Laira whispered sweetly to Elpsis, "Sooooo, do we have an agreement. We have to do it again to make it official and fair, right?" Certainly Elpsis could tell Laira was a little more than physically attracted to the redhead, and had some form of emotional attraction and desire for the blind woman.

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Darkhold"]


Oh...I've been...kinda dense. The realisation seemed to hit Elpsis like a brick wall. Empathy was a good way to read someone...but it was not foolproof. Especially when you were a bit oblivious or willfully blind. Yet now she could not ignore the feelings flowing through Laira.


The redhead felt conflicted. She cared a good deal for the redheaded Ranger. Laira was smart, good in a fight and a ton of fun to be around. What caused a stab of worry inside Elpsis was the concern that the other redhead might desire and feel more than she was able to give. She did not want to hurt her. Or jeopardise their friendship. Elpsis was many things, but not commitment girl.


"Yeeep, we definitely have to," she said after a moment, speaking brightly. Throwing caution to the wind, she pressed her lips against Laira's.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

Laira hid a lot of things very well from a lot of people, but not her affection for Elpsis. She had heard enough and could see enough that Elpsis didn't seem to want to settle into a long term commitment with anyone. There had been others, playful suggestions of adding others. The signs were there, but Laira didn't seem to mind them so much. She was more involved with the moment intertwined with Elpsis once again for more than a couple heartbeats.

"Alright," Laira said with a smile and a sigh of contentment as she pulled away gingerly. "Part of me wants to run back to the ship, but if we do we won't get what we came for. Let's see if the locals are ready to help us find that Krayt dragon." Her smile grew and eyes shone a bright grey with a shimmer in them. She was happy, she was relatively self-aware as best she could be, and moderately informed on the situation she was walking into. And she didn't much care. About the Krayt Dragon or the possibility of heartbreak. One didn't find it without risking it after all.

She sauntered through the sand away from Elpsis with a sway to her hips in an almost skipping movement, moving across the oasis to the cathar who were once again loading their camels. Only a four or five were bothering to go out tonight and sentries for the caravan had already been set.

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Darkhold"]


"Fun on the ship later, babe. Gotta bag ourselves a draken and get a fancy crystal or two." There was a slight bounce to her step as she walked alongside Laira. It was not lost on her that hunting a Krayt Dragon represented a heavy risk...but the prize. That rule applied both to love and hunting. Or maybe this one just wanted to sneak in a meta reference.


For now, she focused her attention on the nomads...as enticing as the delicate sways of Laira's delightful hips were. "Uh, hiya, guys," she said brightly, waving to get their attention. They gave her strange looks. "So we wanna go the..Pit and look for a dragon. Any of you fine people up for helpin? We can reward you."


"Redmane have mind full of sand. Dragon Demon swallow her," one of the Cathar warrior said in broken Basic.


"Can help take you to Pit. But if Demon devour you, that is on you. What you offer?" another spoke up, this one was a female feline.

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Hey, her mind isn't full of sand!" Laira retorted with a grin, "Neither is mine if you were talking about me." She had no idea which one the Cathar Warrior had been referring to, they were both redheaded and a little on the goofy side right now having just trading kissing for clothes and used their Force powers to show off and play pranks. It could honestly be either of them. "We've fought other kinds of dragons and won. They get distracted by her butt."

The cathar shrugged at the pair of smoking hot redheads. Get it smoking hot pyromancers. "We take you to the pit. Life, death. That is up to you."

"Okay, but when we come back with it's head I want a song written about me and some fawning. Maybe some fans made out of palm leaves. Sound good to you Elpsis?" She said with a smile, more or less joking but weighing Elpsis's reaction on whether or not such an activity would end up in her personal itinerary.

With some laughing and jokes said in their native tongue, the Cathar more or less decided it was time to off load the Redheads before they got anything destroyed or became some horrifying ill omen of destruction in the form of twin beauties. "Ha, maybe little red." One of them responded, winking at Laira. She blushed in response, appreciating the gesture but a little worried about how Elpsis would react. Laira wasn't one to sit back and watch someone flirt with the person she was with, even if she was slowly coming to terms that Elpsis wasn't going to commit to anything long term.

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Laira Darkhold"]


"Get fawning and songs? Hah. I'm down," the empath chuckled. "We can exchange valuable items in return for your help," at that Elpsis showed the Cathar a pair of binoculars. "These help you see very far and spot living beings. And this here is good at putting down wild beasts," she indicated a heavy pistol. "Gotta give quality service if you want that though. If you don't wanna fight the dragon directly, we could use some help setting traps," There were some murmurs among the group of sentient felines.


Meanwhile, it seemed one Cathar had taken an interest in Laira. The other girl's reaction caused Elpsis to giggle. She could not see the blush, but hey she was an empath. "Looks like you got an admirer. Congrats! Don't blame her. Just look at them curves and those muscles," at that she stroked Laira's arm a bit. "Don't forget about me though," she added playfully, though she did not sound jealous. This one is now imagining the awkwardness that might result if Elpsis was in a room with all the girls she was on sweet on. "C'mon, babe. Let's go say hi to a drake."

 

[Laira Darkhold]

"Oh, I uh," Laira stammered a little bit, "I'm more of a one girl at a time person anyway. Besides, who could forget about you." She grinned at her fellow redheaded huntress, content to focus her attentions and affections on Elpsis for the time being and more than happy to have her feelings for the most part returned. Elpsis may not have been one to commit to a single person, but it seemed to Laira she was still more than capable of having feelings for the redheaded princess. She was always reassuring and flirty, without being pushy.

"Yes, I've always wanted to slay a dragon. They have a reputation for killing and claiming Princesses and I've always dreamed about turning the tables on one." She positively beamed. The stories always had a brave knight come and save the Princess from the Dragon in the novels her mother had read to the twins, but her own story had the Dragon saving the Princess from an evil knight. Laira had always wanted to be the Princess and the Knight at the same time, slaying the dragon herself. It was a simple childhood dream that Elpsis was bringing to life.

"Alright, so we sneak up there. We'll use some concussion mines to collapse tunnels it tries to run chase as through, bait bombs to lure it where we want it, and then I guess some incendiary explosives in tunnels we don't want it to go through?" It was simple enough, lure it to them using bait. Then let it follow them to a tunnel to collapse on top of the Krayt Dragon using incendiary ones to keep it from detouring. "And then one of us sweeps the other one off their feet and all that jazz."

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]