Private The Rains on Rori

[Vendra Vane]

RORI

Riding over dark clouds, Vendra piloted her starfighter through the moon's stormy atmosphere. The faint glow of Naboo looked more like the moon from here.

This time, she wasn't alone, either. In the co-pilot's seat up front was one Sable Varro , who became something of a frequent companion in little excursions such as this. Hopefully, this one wouldn't end in an all-out firefight like Lok.

"How's the view up there?" Vendra glanced over her display console and pilot's instruments to ask.

She took the starfighter through the clouds, where the sudden shifts in wind and pressure caused the vessel to rock slightly. Mostly, it was just noisy. Particularly as they sliced through the thick rain. Vane had a mind for a better location than ploinking immediately down under the heavy rains. She scanned the horizon and she noticed a little more light, a little less rain. It seemed like the perfect spot from here, so she made for it.

"I like the look of here," she said as they approached the spot. The rain was considerably less heavy, but it did not end. Some ruins visibly populated the ground cover the closer they came to their landing spot. A small clearing on top of a small hill, the perfect spot in case things got a little too wet on short notice.

The starship landed with a thump and the engines turned off. For the first time, the sound of rain dominated their ambiance.

Vendra stretched as she stood up, turned around, and then made her way toward the exit ramp. Her boots pressed down into the wet grass, and she inhaled the moon's distinct swampy jungle musk. "Yeah... About what I expected. Though it could be worse," she looked back over her shoulder at Sable. "The last swamp world I went to smelled like rot. Rancid stuff, honestly."

There was something about Rori that drew her attention, however, and it wasn't just the serenity of being somewhere where the rains didn't burn on contact for once. This was an... old place. She didn't know how else to consider it. Perhaps if she had trained better with her Seer, or weren't cut off from her other perceptions, she might have just noticed what it was. That this was a moon strong in the Force.

Her eyes snapped to the ruins below them; the trek down the hill seemed easy enough. "Shall we?"

 

[Sable Varro]

​

The Rains On Rori

Tags: Vendra Vane

Equipment Loadout:

• Primary Weapon(s): SD-L1 Long Blaster
• Secondary Weapon(s): HG-88 Big Iron, VB-113 "Tidefall" Class Vibroblade,
• Specialized Gear: Wrist Mounted Weapons (Hekler'Kok WMMW-01), DS-102 "Aegis" Personal Energy Shield,
• Armor & Attire: Personal Armor

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Sable sat in the co-pilot's seat, boots braced against the floor as the starfighter cut through the thick clouds. Rain lashed against the hull, drumming a steady rhythm that filled the cabin. The turbulence barely registered to her. She had ridden out worse after all. Instead, her gaze stayed fixed on the faint glow of Naboo, the big marble concealed rather well by the storm the pair were flying through. From here, Rori looked isolated, a forgotten moon swallowed by weather and shadow. Her hands rested by the console, though she looked out at the world from behind her mask.

She had liked her last visit to that world.

“Looks just fine to me.”

She remarks, not letting her thoughts linger on her past mission, taking and applying her focus to the task before her. Her eyes lingered on the sensory map that was being displayed, trying to ensure Venny didn’t put them down into a bog.

She was quite a fan of the woman, but she also had horrifically bad luck.

Sable would have felt better if she was the one operating the ship, but of course, Venny would make a scene over having been the one to pay for the craft.

She wasn’t in the mood to argue with the woman anyhow.

It would be too easy of a win.

As the ship touched down, Sable set her hands in her lap, patiently waiting until she felt the thud of the ship landing. The ambience of the rain against the cockpit served as a soothing sound for the Echani woman, and she took perhaps a bit longer than needed before rising out of her station.

Rain always had that allure over her.

Sable would follow behind her, watching as Venny braved the wet grass, stomping about as if it would somehow be provoked. Sable merely tilted her head, before understanding the woman’s goal.

The filters on her mask kept the scent of the landscape at bay. She contemplated teasing Venny about her misfortune, as Sable’s footfalls sounded off down the ramp of the ship. “Go to Dagobah sometime, then you’ll know what rancid is really all about.”

She didn’t have long to idle, as Venny took note of a nearby structure. A small scowl forming under Sable’s mask, as she had a gut feeling for what the woman would do next.

Venny would be drawn to investigate….

“I suppose, but at this rate I’m going to start changing you for my aid.” She muttered, falling in line behind the woman, as she braved yet another expedition.

 

[Vendra Vane]

"Dagobah?" Ven turned to show a confused look on her face. "You made that up," she snickered. "Dagobah..."

At Sable's next remark, her confusion went for bafflement. A feigned look that hid a little bit of actual defensiveness. "You can't blame me for Lok," she retorted. "I was literally just walking across the street when a firefight broke out." Then placed a hand on her hip with that signature grin.

"You know... There was a familiar sound at the start of all of it," she began with a tap on her chin. "And it sounded awfully slimilar to some crack shots the whole fight... Of course, a lot of blasters sound similar. So who really knows?" She said with a shrug.

Then Vendra began to walk down the hill, being quite careful with her every step so as to not stumble, slide, or otherwise hurt and embarrass herself in the process. Thankfully, it was a short and uneventful trip, and at the bottom were beautiful ruins sunken into the soggy soil. The Dark Jedi looked around their surroundings.

"No monsters. No mercs. Just us and whatever that scurrying critter is."

She climbed up onto the head of a sunken statue, barely registering as anything but a rock with so much weathering and overgrowth to wash away the details. The warm rain was actually nice for a change. Vendra looked up at the sunscattered sky and just let it hit her, even in the eyes, which stung a little. There was a certain bliss in her, a calm that she had not felt in a long time. She didn't say it but it reminded her of home, of the few good memories she had left of that place.

Sable Varro

 

[Sable Varro]

​

The Rains On Rori

Tags: Vendra Vane

Equipment Loadout:

• Primary Weapon(s): SD-L1 Long Blaster
• Secondary Weapon(s): HG-88 Big Iron, VB-113 "Tidefall" Class Vibroblade,
• Specialized Gear: Wrist Mounted Weapons (Hekler'Kok WMMW-01), DS-102 "Aegis" Personal Energy Shield,
• Armor & Attire: Personal Armor

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Sable's lips curled at the edge as she approached Venny, boots sinking slightly into the damp ground. "Yeah, I definitely made it up," She said dryly. "A whole world, just a figment of my imagination. Probably some swamp-sucking, cave-sporting, dark-side festering mess, too. Good thing it's not real."

She rolled her eyes, though mildly amused behind her mask. Of course, this just lead to another topic of conversation. Lok. Venny’s comments immediately made Sable ponder if the woman remembered those events at all. “I’m sorry, are you trying to pin Lok on me?” She asked, sounding a mix of incredulous and amused.

She huffed, moving herself over to follow Vendra. “As if you know what my rifle sounds like….” She trails off, rolling her eyes once more, thankful for her mask.

She’d follow after the woman, hoping to catch her stumbling, allow herself more of an opportunity to tease the woman further. Alas, it wasn’t to be. The ruins at the bottom seemed to hold the interest of Venny. To Sable however, she had long since grown tired of ruins.

She gave a pause as Venny stood there, letting the rain strike her, seemingly lost in the moment. Sable set her hands on her hips, taking in the sounds of the rain striking against her mask.

She felt a desire to remove the mask, allow herself to take in the sensations of the world. Yet, she stayed her hand. She took to watching Venny seeming to lose herself in the rain.

“You having a moment?”

 

[Vendra Vane]

"Yeah, I am." She answered without changing her pose one bit.

Her voice was a bit softer, too, soothed by the experience in such a way that she could actually relax for once. Then, for a moment, she allowed herself to close those eyes. To experience the moment more with her skin and her ears than with her gaze.

She continued to address Sable all the while. "You should join me," she began, "no need for masks or battle armor out here."

There was no accusation or demand in the way she said it; more like it was a simple fact. Out here, right now, it was just them, the ruins, and small creatures. There was no opposing force, there were no impending ghosts or monsters. Even Vendra, the Dark Jedi mercenary from the Outer Rim, was entirely at ease.

Sure, Ven was easygoing in a certain way--particularly aboard her ship--but she always carried that subtle intensity. A strong personality one might call it, but others knew it for what it was. The tact pretenses of someone who, at the end of every day, was just another killer-for-hire. She philosophized, had small conversations, private thoughts, laughs, and jabs with her crew, and carried herself with a sense of righteous conviction.

And she killed. She's decided who lived and died. She's sent them out of airlocks, she's struck them down with blaster and blade, ordered bombardments, and even starved out isolated settlements all for peggats and credits alike.

Her hand inched its way down her side until her fingers wrapped around the hilt of her lightsaber. Then, she tossed it into the mud, where it landed with more weight than such a small weapon should have. Like a heavy rock that gravity just pulled straight down. Something weighed it down, and it was unlikely that it hadn't been weighing on her as well.

Sable Varro