The Grind

[Zaiden Dean]

Zaiden laughed. It was a genuinely comical laugh. No hidden nature. This was a man that had learned from the greatest telepathic mind to ever live. Here she was trying to push him out. She would have better chances moving a mountain. But he acquiesced, pushing from her thoughts. His had only ever been a tiny touch, nothing more.

“I magically, as you said, came because the Force deemed it necessary. I came because I was supposed to be here. I came because,” He paused, “Because you needed me.” At that he said nothing more, allowing her observing his person. There was no offence taken for the act. As a fact, while she took him in, he looked her over as best he was able.

Suddenly a ping appeared in the peripheral of his mind, he murmured, looking at the lad nearby, “He has placed a tracker upon your body..” He didnt know how he knew, but he did. Sometimes the Force just told one things. It would appear this was one of those times.

 

[Aren D'Shade]

Aren suddenly felt like a child again. The manner in which Zaiden responded and the words he used caused her lower her eyebrows slightly and her chin lifted up in a sense of defiance. The expression faltered a little when he finished though. Still giving a bit of that defiant look, some certainty left it.

"Why do you think the Force said I needed you?"

If she stopped to think about it, the answer already there. Between her, him and that paper, it made her search that much easier. It was pretty much completed in one fell swoop.

One of her hands, moved to check around in her pockets and along her body to find the tracker. Turning her head to look at Lan-Dai, she gave him a very dirty look yet she didn't pull away from him. Since it had been in bag all this time, the thought didn't cross her mind to even look in there. Hidden amongst her tools for so long, the little coin looking item had never caught her attention.

[member="Zaiden Dean"] [member="Lan-Dai Navras"]

 

[Lan-Dai Navras]

When Aren offered her hand, Lan-Dai didn't think twice to take it. He had found his friend at last, and that meant too much to him right now. As he heard what was transpiring between them, and the bond forming by way of the Force, it was becoming apparent that there may be a blood connection at hand. Who was this man? Thus far nothing dangerous was perceived, either to Aren or to himself. If anything, he was almost instantly protective of her, something Lan-Dai himself could relate to.

This man said that the Force had told him to be here, and that Aren needed him. While it would generally seem farfetched, Lan-Dai did not refute or argue, for he understood at this stage all too well for the Force can operate within someone. This only served to cement his suspicions that this man was blood kin to Aren, but who exactly, that still eluded him.

Suddenly this same possible kin of Aren exclaimed that there was a tracker on her, thus in a way ratting him out. This was the same tracker that he had placed in her bag on Ragoon VI, yet did very little in terms of helping him find her somehow. While the dirty look was expected, Lan-Dai turned to her relative and raised an eyebrow. It was clear by now that Lan-Dai stood in the presence of someone well versed in the Force, for there was no other way he could have known about the tracker after having only just met. The Emerallian's look did not denote annoyance or anger, but rather a slight disbelief that he would still think that the tracker was placed to hurt her in any way.

Turning back to Aren, he only gave a reassuring look to let her know that he did what he did in case she needed him to get her out of trouble, yet said nothing for the moment.

 

[Zaiden Dean]

"Thats between you and the Force. I cannot possibly know why the Force wanted me here." Zaiden said, but then sighed and shrugged, "Who knows, maybe due to the search. It could have been trying to aid you in that endeavor." He turned his gaze down to the girl, noticing his own similarities looking back. He offered a small smile, "If it makes you feel better, this wasnt in my plans for the day. I didnt expect to find I had a fully grown daughter."

Glancing at a watch upon his wrist, he groaned a low sound in his throat. The watch was one built that could receive messages from coms and such, which it had done and alerted him to a riot that had broken out near his Estate. Having just found out he had a daughter, the man was obviously not going to bail, especially considering he had no way to know how long he would be away. Some riots could take weeks to quell.

"If you like, I can send you thoughts, which can be conveyed much the way I speak, but in your mind they would ring false, if lies, much the same way you can tell when you are thinking lies yourself."

[member="Aren D'Shade"]

 

[Aren D'Shade]

Not finding anything on her body or in pockets...or anywhere else near her, Aren gave up on her search. Holding onto Lan-Dai, she shook her head and gave his hand a squeeze.

"Well, if it's electronic, then I'll find it soon enough."

Letting out a bit of a chuckle, she still wouldn't let go. She still trusted him even if she had run all those years ago. It almost seemed as if the time had just flown by and all they needed to do was catch up on them. Turning to Zaiden, she listened to what he said and chuckled again when he said he hadn't thought to find a daughter.

"How is that possible? What purpose would it serve?

Somethings were falling into place and while she asked her questions, she already knew the answer.

"Look, I have no idea how to talk to somebody else through the Force. Best to just give me some sort of technological way to reach you."


[member="Zaiden Dean"] [member="Lan-Dai Navras"]

 

[Lan-Dai Navras]

For all she may have experienced, Aren was still the same at heart..... This alone gave Lan-Dai hope that no matter what she had done or what path she now found herself on, she was not beyond redemption.

"It was how I eventually found you..... why did it fail or why did the signal fail the times it did still escapes me....." Lan-Dai stated as Aren squeezed his hand.

Looking at the interaction between them, Lan-Dai's eyes widened and he almost flinched as he heard the man refer to Aren as his daughter. Was he in fact standing with Aren's father? It would be revealed in time. Lan-Dai had no intentions of pressing the matter or asking questions until Aren herself opened up to him about it.

"Here...... take this...." Taking out a modified commlink, Lan-Dai presented it to Aren. "With this you will be able to contact me directly. Just patch this into any communications station, and it will send a private and encrypted signal that will be received only by me or R8. This will also allow you to trace me wherever I am in the galaxy......"

He did not tell her that he could likewise trace her so long as she has the commlink on her, though something told him he didn't need to.

 

[Zaiden Dean]

Zaiden reached out with the Force, creating a link between the two. It would be visible, but only if the people around really focused, or were attuned to the Force in any way. The connection between them flowed tiny at first. Little more than a thread, but then suddenly it thrummed to life. Bright green it glowed, getting larger as it formed. It was an affirmitive that she was his child, the Force confirming it.

Nothing was said about the link, not by him anyway. If she could somehow see it, then she might question it, or her friend, though Zaiden figured he might be Force user of his own rank. If that was true he might be able to guess what it meant. She was his child, he could sense it through the link. Only flowing Bonds like that were between the closest of friends, or familial types.

Releasing the hold on the Force, the connection vanished.

Zaiden murmured, "I believe you my daughter. If you touch the Force, you will see it yourself." He said no more, reaching to touch her shoulder in a comforting manner. He could sense an affinity for darkness from her, potentially Sith, so he would not do more and risk her anger. But the touch conveyed that he felt a connection between them.

"If you need me let me know." WIth that said he turned to leave.

[member="Aren D'Shade"] [member="Lan-Dai Navras"]

 

[Aren D'Shade]

Lan-Dai admitted it had been the device she had been searching for had lead him to finding her today. Maybe it was some sort of protection or ward around the building she lived in that prevented him from finding her before. That might be something Aren would look into when she got back to Adrian. Right now, she wasn't going to worry about it.

Looking down at the comlink he held out to her, she took it and put it into her bag. Giving him a nod, she turned back to her father. Not having a strong connection to the Force yet, she did not see the connection between them. She did feel it though and rubbed at her head slightly.

"What do you mean, if I need you? We've only just met. And there is a lot of talking to do. So don't go far."

Not calling him father, dad or any other sort of name a daughter would call a parent, Aren watched as he started to turn away.

"How about we go for drinks. There's got to be place nearby."

[member="Zaiden Dean"] [member="Lan-Dai Navras"]

 

[Zaiden Dean]

Zaiden paused, not turning back, but staying a time. His mind was racing a bit, mulling over his past. Potential leads on other children reaching the thoughts of the fore. But this was the present so he needed to focus on this.

Glancing at the watch on his wrist, which automatically adjusted to time zones of the planet presently on, he nodded, "Sure. Drinks sound nice. I need a coffee. Maybe something harder."

With that he gestured down the road they had been upon, "Ahead is a nice little place we can stop into, cheap drinks, fun air. My treat." Being a God King made things like this fun for him. He could afford to buy the premises if he wished. So drinks were easy.

"Bring your friend." He offered and headed for the destination.

[member="Aren D'Shade"]