The Rolling Tides [Open To Galactic Alliance Members]

[Kaiden Rohn]

(Apologies- Japan is hectic.)

He was surprised when the bum put two and two together. He was however, still tempted to shoot him. Right in the face. Right in the god damn- he sighed and looked at the Queen. A healthy banquet, but nothing compared to the extravagance that he was getting used to. He was truthfully, adept at living off rations and wild animals. Kaiden was just a hard man like that. The Queen was a Jedi, sure, but Kaiden was a different level of tough. His strength was from within, not relied on the force- and he, personally, saw the force and those who used it as somewhat of a crutch.

But that was for another time.

He sat down at the table, staring at [member="Hemmrie the Bum"]- then turned over to [member="Jamie Pyne"], who had begun to enter the dining area. As he recalled, she didn't like him to pull her chair out for her. He wasn't going to argue with her. The security team was eyeing Kaiden, as if to ask for permission to clobber the bum. He wanted to nod so bad- but resisted the temptation, for now. He folded his hands on the table, looking between the Queen and...a bum.

"So- Hemmrie- where do you come from?"He hoped the question wouldn't return to him. Bringing up the past was never easy for Kaiden.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie flashed Hemmrie a small smile, trying to hold back the burst of laughter that begged to be released by his recognition of her being the newly elected Queen of Naboo. She withheld for two reasons really, the first because the exact reaction to her title that Hemmrie gave to her was exactly the kind she was disinterested in receiving. To her, the role simply meant that she served her people, not the other way around. There was no need for any of that on the knees worshiping sort of business to take place. She was not above them in any way, merely bestowed a set of rights to help make the right decisions for the masses.

"It's quite---"

It was too late, the man was already up and rushing off towards the dining room, leaving Jamie to finish her sentence towards Kaiden instead. "Alright."

A small shake of her head, smile still present preceded a small roll of her shoulders before she gestured for Kaiden to follow along. He sure was a strange one. That was for sure. If nothing else it was a bit of excitement from the mundane. She could appreciate that from time to time. If one of her first acts as Queen was to share a meal with a silly vagabond of a man then it was hardly ill spent she figured. As both Jamie and Kaiden made their way into the dining room and took up seats, each opposite Hemmrie, Jamie listened to Kaiden's question and shifted her attention to the man on her right for his answer as just if on cue, the wine and bread was being brought out shortly before the braised nerf.

[member="Kaiden Rohn"] [member="Hemmrie the Bum"]

 

[Hemmrie the Bum]

Hemmrie sat before a gorgeous banquet table that was currently being set with food that he never thought he would get to experience in his life. The smells of exotic and freshly cooked food, the royal atmosphere and the air of importance that surrounded the table was beyond Hemmrie's imagination. It was incredible.

Soon, the table was being set with food and drink that the bum would never have expected to have even looked at in all of his wildest imaginations. He took a loaf of bread in his hand and began to chew it deliciously. It was amazing; sweet and full of flavour, all by itself. He sipped his win- no, he drank the whole chalice of wine, in almost a heartbeat, and continued to taste the full flavoured bread of the Naboo Royals.

When he saw the Braised Nerf, though, nothing else in the Galaxy meant anything to him. Just his chances of tasting that incredibly tasty looking beef.

He heard words, and he turned to face [member="Kaiden Rohn"], as he raised an eyebrow in answer.

"Huh? Ah, where I came from? Dunno." He began to imagine what that beef would taste like.. The incandescent flavours, rolling off of his tongue like the nectar of the gods.

He looked to [member="Jamie Pyne"] and smiled. "I, uh... I stowed away'n a ship. Don't know whose don't know where fr'm. Hell, most'a my life's a blur t'me now..." He shrugged and gave a hearty chuckle. "I've b'n to many planets'n back. But I barely remember any'f 'em. It's a..." The realization hit him as he spoke. "... It's an adventurous, but a lonely life, it's."

His tone seemed to slip from pure bliss to that of a melancholic epiphany. It showed who he really was; just a human.

 

[Kaiden Rohn]

(oh, it's my turn haha)


Lonely life. That much him and the bum had in common. But that may have been it. But then again, he could've been a lying assassin waiting for the right moment to strike. Which is why Kaiden flicked his eyes to a guard, then to the bum. The commando moved silently to stand directly behind the bum in the dining room. Any sudden movement, and the bum would have a garrote around his neck, and Kaiden could stab him as many times as he wanted. The bum was right- life had become a blur. It seemed like yesterday he was stopping a gunshot wound over the only woman he could've loved- and the next, he was watching Coruscant fall to the Sith empire- firsthand. He looked over at [member="Jamie Pyne"], folding his tattooed hands on the table. He didn't touch his food yet- the man barely had an appetite. His stomach was a fickle beast, having spent years on rations and whatever food he could find.

He ran a hand over his hair, brushing past the scars on his face. He looked pained for a moment, then turned back to the situation- the man, at hand.

"No family- no friends?"

Speak for yourself, you washed out wannabe.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"It sounds as if you've lived quite the adventurous life, Hemmrie." For a moment Jamie lingered, observing the man. He had all the tell-tale signs of homelessness. The ravenous, yet harmless appetite for things seemingly beyond his reach. The inability to recall events due to the intoxicated haze he lived in. There was also the gratitude expressed, perhaps a bit over ambitiously, but it was genuine. Jamie relaxed in her seat as the food was set and served to all three at the table.

Kaiden on the other hand seemed much more on edge about the bum than Jamie. Perhaps he had more reason to be weary of the man than she, though it seemed as if Hemmrie paid the aggressive nature of the soldier little heed. In fact Jamie surmised it was likely standard procedure for the man to be shuffled about by guards, given his lifestyle. "Have you any talents or trades? The palace here is always looking for capable staff, or I am certain there could be work accommodating to your skills among the city."

It was simply her nature to help those less fortunate. She had been doing it since she was a kid herself.

[member="Kaiden Rohn"] | [member="Hemmrie the Bum"]

 

[Hemmrie the Bum]

Hemmrie took a leg of the Nerf roast and began to chow down on it lovingly with his bare hands, for he was not accustomed to the use of cutlery, especially after years of living off of any food he got his hands on. He looked to the others as they spoke, enjoying the delicious food of the local royals, before answering Kaiden in response.

"Nah, no family. None that I know'f, anyway. I have'a lotta friends, bu' none on this planet. Hell, I've been from one end'o the galaxy to the other'n I've got a lotta friends wherever I've gone. But many've disappeared, some'a died, n' others, well... They left me f'r dead." He sighed, before chowing down on another mouthful of the luscious roast. "What'm I good at? Erh..." He thought for a second as he scratched his beard, "... I honestly couldn't tell ya. I've drunk plenty'n my time, more then enough't know that I ain't good at anythin' but drinkin'."

| [member="Jamie Pyne"] | [member="Kaiden Rohn"] |

 

[Kaiden Rohn]

No friends. No family. Really good at drinking. Maybe you're more like each other than you think, old man.


Kaiden looked over at [member="Jamie Pyne"]. It wasn't an expression of disgust, but of pity- and ultimately, a pain of sadness. The sensation of guilt and regret washed over Kaiden, and due to Jamie's force based connections, she could probably feel it. Even as guarded as Kaiden was."Sad to hear that. You seem like a nice guy."That Kaiden wanted to punch in the face, but still. Kaiden was a guilt-ridden man who had done a lot and didn't like to talk about it. [member="Hemmrie the Bum"] was a free-spirited happy-go-lucky type of guy. Even as disgusting and ill-mannered as he was.

Kaiden tapped his fork and knife on the table, to gather his attention. He gestured his eyes between them. The bum would be wise to heed the Commando's...suggestion. Table manners were important to him. Kaiden locked eyes with the bum. He shared a common ground.

"Most of my friends are dead too, pal."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

A solemn expression fell over the Queen, pausing for a moment to shift her gaze between Kaiden and Hemmrie. Losing herself in thought she considered their pasts, starkly different in just about every way, but their similarities to one another were somewhat haunting. She hadn't quite lived that type of life. In fact, hers was by all accounts lavish and free of turmoil, save for what she brought on herself in her youth.

As an adult she had learned more of sorrow and pain than she cared to experience. But through that experience she gained insight and understanding to the plights of others in a more tangible way. The children she had cared for in her youth group as a volunteer had hard lives as well, lives she worked to make better any way she could.

Perhaps she could do that again, now. Even if not permanently, or by as great a factor, perhaps this, a simple meal and an offering of kindness could in some small way make the galaxy a better place for not just Hemmrie, but those he encountered in the future.

"I'm sorry to hear that." She said finally, settling in to eat a small portion of the food on her own plate. "That sounds very lonely."

[member="Hemmrie the Bum"] | [member="Kaiden Rohn"]

 

[Hemmrie the Bum]

Hemmrie raised his eyes to [member="Kaiden Rohn"] and smiled slightly. "Eh, no hard feelin's bud, You ain't too bad yaself." He genuiney liked the soldier. He seemed alright when he wasn't giving him the eye that most official's seemed to give him.

He stuck into his food more, easily eating more than any normal person, even one of his stature, would ever be able to eat. He would have been considered a glutton, had he not walked in off the street. He sipped the wine, delicious and smooth to the tongue, and as he sat and listened to the two reply to him, he ate more of the roast. Words couldn't describe how grateful he was for all of this.

"You're a soldier though, bud. You lose friends left, right'n centre. I'm sure you've seen a few battles yaself, too."

He then looked to [member="Jamie Pyne"] with a look that was brighter than it was before, a soft smile on his cheeks as he spoke. "Ya learn a few things when you're surviving in the galaxy by yaself. You learn to trust only yourself. Rarely th' company of others."

 

[Kaiden Rohn]

A few battles, to say the least. Wars both personal and political. Battles fought within and externally. He'd been pulling a trigger since he was 17 years old. He was nearing 35 now. Going on almost 20 years of constant warfare. It took a toll on him, to say the least. Physically and mentally. Moreso mentally, truth be told. He felt exhausted frequently. That was compounded during moments of quiet contemplation and solace. Such as now.

"Too many."


It was a solemn sentence, uttered lower than the words he said previously. He began to pick at his food. He cast a look at [member="Jamie Pyne"], and was quite content at being quiet for a few moments.

[member="Hemmrie the Bum"]

 

[Eugen Aker]

Following a humanitarian mission in the south, Arisa figured she would take some downtime to resume her tour of Alliance space. Last time, it had been Sullust, and this time, she settled for Naboo. With some knowledge of previous predicaments that had befallen the planet as of late, the Watchman had offered the now outgoing administration what remained of her supplies from her medical fleet to help the locals still suffering from the after-effects of multiple terrorist attacks. A gesture of good will from Izrul, still dealing with the mess brought to their doorsteps by the actions of several rogue individuals still on the run from justice.

Outside of supply runs on behalf of the KSU, the Watchman also had her another objective to pursue. She had a number of ongoing investigations concerning new Sith activity in the northern quadrants, and Naboo appeared to have had a scrape with some of this particular bunch recently. She was hoping that the local administration would be willing to share whatever information they had on a mutual threat to their very existence.

Shortly before reversion into the system, Arisa transmitted a message to the office of the incoming administration, congratulating Ms Pyne on her ascent to the throne and also requesting an audience with the Queen upon her arrival. If her request for an audience was denied, then she would go about her original mission handing over her supplies to local authorities before setting off for home.

Jamie Pyne. She wasn't personally familiar with this woman, but the Naboo had garnered the respect of some of her peers within the Silver Order. As a diplomat involved in government administration and statecraft, it was always an interesting thing to see a fellow Jedi assume political office, and show the galaxy that the Jedi could be so much more than temple rats and lightstick twirlers.

((I suppose I can show up to supper with my apprentice when I skip ahead to present time, if that's alright.))

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"A hard life that is to live."

Blue eyes fell from Hemmrie to the table. The woman lingered in silence for a minute, feeling it an appropriate time to break in the conversation and simply enjoy the company of the others. Most of the tension had dissipated in the air, though it was replaced by a solemn mood. Jamie knew very little of what it would be like to live the type of life that [member="Kaiden Rohn"] or [member="Hemmrie the Bum"] had. She had grown up as a wealthy child, free of conflict and war and hunger. Every need she had was catered to. Despite her perceived lack of freedoms in the decisions of her childhood she had a great deal more than most in the galaxy.

She had been quite the fortunate child, and now she was queen of her people.

[member="Arisa Yune"]