The Sound of Silence

[Srina Talon]

The trio of misfits had taken notice.

Regardless her suppressed Force Signature… It was to be expected. Her fellow Exarch, [member="Adron Malvern"], appeared as he was. There was no guise. No attempt to hide who he was, what he was, or what he was capable of. He was like their Master. A hammer, in a vast universe, where everything was a nail. Srina was the opposite. Precise, cold, and meticulous.

The vision in white took in a myriad of emotions clotting the ash-filled air. Anxiousness, fear, apprehension, and even a vein of distrustful anger. A sword was drawn, bright in the dark, and primrose lips curved into an amused smile. It was a very human response. Reacting to the unknown, to the mysterious, to the endless primordial dark. Some, would always overcorrect.

The dust that rose from scorched earth, that became the raven, was a familiar presence. A beloved mentor. A friend. Family. She reached up to touch sleek, corporeal black feathers, before her head turned to affectionately release a melodic chirruping whistle. It was approval. Gracious, acceptance. The last time [member="Darth Metus"] had taken this form had been long ago. He hadn’t wanted her to venture into a world full of Fexian Skullborer’s without him. Her Master was protective.

Mostly, the Echani indulged it. They both knew the truth. The Dread Queen needed nothing. She simply required that which was of use.

A finely arched eyebrow rose whilst [member="Allya Vi'Dreya"] sought to play peacemaker. Her fingers moved, twining with Adron’s, but no words would leave her. It was a scene that unfolded, exposing too much, of the little warrior. The progeny of her Master was mature, in so many ways, but still so soft. So youthful. Wishful. The Exarch’s of the Confederacy approached in their own time. They did not hurry. They did not stumble, no matter the terrain, especially as her sure footing led the way.

The snow-kissed woman stopped neither too far, nor too close, before bringing her finger perpendicular to her lips.

“Shhh…”

The sound she exuded was slight but it held an incredible, almost impossible, weight. It echoed through the terrain and present company would be hard pressed not to notice how even the gurgling flow of the river seemed to obey. Hush. Like a mother quieting a newborn in the dead of night. In the opinion of an Echani that used combat as a perfectly acceptable substitute for language—everyone involved speculated and talked too much.

‘Let the dead sleep. You could shovel this ash, like snow, into hollow graves or you can let fate run its course. We all return to the dust. To the Force.’

Her lips never moved. Telepathy, to be heard clearly, was her current avenue of choice. The pale specter did not burst into the minds of those present unwarranted. She did not seek to impress upon their faculties, to break into the prison of their consciousness, no, she merely wished to be heard. She was not attempting to read their minds and had no desire to.

Mercurial eyes turned to the tall female that had started it all. Srina knew, who had started the blaze. It was irrelevant. She recognized self-sufficiency. Independence. She had also seen the gestures that had been made from afar. The little cat, who was not so little, was quite mute. It didn’t take much to piece that together. Anyone else would have said something whilst being challenged.

Instead, her reaction was physical.

Srina understood that.

Silver eyes seemed to reflect what little light existed as she glanced at Adron, first, before continuing. It would be clear that there was a conversation transpiring that others wouldn’t see. Do we proceed? Almost delicately, she drew Adron’s hand high, twisting it, so that the back of it brushed her cheek—before letting him go.

Her fingers formed words through a short series of gestures that would be clear to the Firrerreon-female. Elegant, in all things, she wove a simple tapestry of four letters. [Safe]

Safe. Truly safe, because the Exarch demanded it. She would not take kindly to anyone that thought otherwise.

Her mental voice would chime in again for all present, sweet, and crystalline as the dawn. It had often led others to confusion. From Masters to minions, many, had often wondered how she could possibly be Sith. ‘What do you seek?’

Who was she talking to?

Whomever answered.

[member="Adron Malvern"]
[member="Shakti Sweet"]
[member="The Wayfarer"]
[member="Vice"]
[member="Darth Metus"]
[member="Allya Vi'Dreya"]

 

[Shakti Sweet]

The cold water from the stream began to soak quickly into the hems of Shakti's robes, dragging up and causing them to stick and tangle in the gentle tug of the water as she continued to back up. She was nearly halfway across the river now, her blades still clutched tightly in her fists despite the chiding she was receiving from the armour clad woman standing back on the shoreline. Perhaps this warrior didn't believe it was time to fight, but there were a number of strangers that had felt comfortable enough to impose themselves upon her, and after she'd done something that any decent person might want her to be held accountable for. Shak may not have been highly educated, but she could read a situation well enough to know this one wasn't designed to see her safely away from here.

It was with that thought that her slowly retreating steps carried her onto the opposite shoreline, her hands quaking gently from the combination of her firm grip against the handles of the blades and a chill that was beginning to creep up her legs and into her muscles. She wasn't going to be able to keep this stance up for much longer, but with the distance between them now perhaps she could run. It was then that the soft though firm sound of Srina's chiding shush came to her ears... And to her mind.

Shakti was accustomed to sound - it was her constant companion in a world where she was silent. When this stranger cautioned silence and the world seemed to listen, Shak's eyes snapped immediately away from the threat that lay closest to her, and settled on the vision in white. She was closer now, and though her pace had been measured and unhurried, she could see her clearly as though she stood a great deal closer. As her eyes locked onto the face of the woman, she heard that voice again, but it wasn't in a way she'd heard any voice before. As Srina spoke directly into her mind she found her hands felt heavy, and her chills seemed to withdrawal - a feeling of odd calm spread through her and it wasn't as frightening as it likely should have been.

Her eyes were a mix of confusion and hurt as she gazed across the water to the approaching couple, her fingers feeling limp as one of her blades slipped free and clattered to the rocks at her feet. The sudden return of sound made her ears ring and she started, her breath catching in her throat as she watched the stranger lift her hands and sign "SAFE".

Safe?... How could she be safe? What was happening? Who were these people, and how could this woman speak into her mind? These questions brought a bit more sense of self to her limbs as she blinked rapidly, her eyes breaking away from the approaching pair and falling to her blade, discarded on the shoreline. She clacked her teeth together hard enough that it made her jaw ache as she crouched down and quickly scooped it back into her fist. She kept both blades at her sides now however, not raising them back up to defend herself, instead opting to shift her weight back onto her heels and observe those on the other shore.

[member="Adron Malvern"] | [member="Srina Talon"] | [member="The Wayfarer"] | [member="Vice"] | [member="Darth Metus"] | [member="Allya Vi'Dreya"]