The Stowaway

[Tathra Khaeus]

All systems engaged, ready to jump into hyperspace. Jaryn had just dropped off some poor refugees that had been attacked by pirates, of course Jaryn scared them off but he wasn't able to save their ship and being a ex-Jedi he felt the moral obligation to give them a ride home. However, it did take a big chunk out of schedule. As would his stowaway, yes! He was aware there was a stowaway on board. The force was strange and worked in mysterious ways, not that that had anything at all to do with Life Support letting him know there was a second life form on board his vessel and, he assumed it was a stowaway. Unless it was some sort of alien life form that would attach to his face and ki-... Jaryn rested his head in his hand, he'd been watching too many horror holovids as of late, however there was only so much you could do to pass the time. Only so far you could run away from your misdeeds, but unlike most Jaryn had plenty to run from. The Empire, Mercenaries, Pirates, Mandalorians, his guilt. Though, he could never be fast enough to escape the latter.

Though, he wouldn't just deactivate life support in all of the ship except for the cockpit. He was far too curious about his passenger, now was the time to go on a little hunt.

All was quite aboard Jaryn's stolen ship. It was large, simple and flown well. However, all these empty rooms could sometimes feel lonely. All these cold empty corridors could get to you sometimes, you think you hear someone. But, nobody's there.

However, this time someone was and it was about high time they paid up for their share of the fuel for wherever the hell they wanted to go.

[member="Liskarr Drek"]

 

[Liskarr Drek]

Stowing away, a thing she had learned to do at a younger age and at which she excelled, unless the crew had a Force-sensitive with them that could sense her, that is. Boarding vessels that were carrying refugees was an easy task to do, nevertheless she had known from the beginning she was taking a big risk. No, actually she knew how the outcome of boarding a ship piloted by an ex-Jedi Master would be, but now again she did no have any other option and so she had cautiously made up her plan.

She needed to get back to Iridonia to attend to an unfinished task she had left pending when she left at the age of eleven years and that now, five years later, she was seeking to finish. Given the direction of the vessel, anywhere would be closer than the planet she had been in before boarding the ship and so she had nothing to loose, or yes, that was yet to be seen. The Dathomiri knew that the ex-Jedi had started to look for her and only did one thing, get out of the empty room she was in and await for him in the mostly-metallic composed corridor. Of course she would not attack, Liskarr was crazy and naturally violent but not stupid, she knew she couldn't take on a Master all by herself but what she knew that what she could do was survive, specially being in such a place. It was somehow ironic, if asked to pilot a ship she would most probably kill herself, the crew and turn the ship into unusable pieces of metal but she knew her way around a vessel and where it was safe to stay and where not.

Her plan was simple but doable, she would speak the truth but not give any reasons, her affairs weren't anything that he needed to know or that he would want to stop, this was not a dark-guided enterprise she carried but rather a personal obligation. Nevertheless, despite the fact that she had to behave, it was hard not succumbing to the fierce rage and hatred the idea of a Jedi Master caused within her. She hated them so much and with so little reason, there was simply no justification for her to hold such dark and powerful feelings within her except for one: that was the way she was created. Lisarr hadn't "fell" to the Dark-side or turn to it in order to save her life, she simply was a dark creature that was true to itself and lived rejoicing the feeling of freedom the dark supported.

And even with such raging hell exploding within her, her expression was as blank and calm as the most peaceful of things except for those burning yellow eyes that were stricken by a spark of rational-wildness.

[member="Jaryn Rhane"]

 

[Tathra Khaeus]

Jaryn was slowly navigating his ship, he could feel the presence of his stowaway moving throughout his ship. Well, his borrowed ship. But, Jaryn wasn't about to argue the morals of his stolen ship. He got it fair and square, they left the platform unguarded and had more or less left their keys in. But, that was in the past and he had so much to look forward to. Such as crazy evil teenage stowaways. The force worked in wondrous and gruesome ways, and quite often most of the time it goes unnoticed. He wouldn't allow this one to go unnoticed, he would try to help her if he could.

He took his sabers from his belt and left them at the dash beside the nav computer, he shook off his cloak and threw it over his seat and placed his helmet on the seat and headed directly for her.

The outcome of his direct approach was beyond him, he wouldn't think about it. He wouldn't slip into her mind and discover her intentions, he wouldn't be so rude. He would put some form of trust into his stowaway, even though they had never met before. She was part of his crew, for the time being.

Until she left his ship, she would be under his care. His responsibility, what she did when he approached was her choice. Not his, he wouldn't take that from her. But, he had much more to do than be ended here and therefore the power of the force flowed through his tattered body he felt old even if he was young. He could feel pure lightning energy on his fingertips, his blood literally boiling. He was ready, mentally and physically.

[member="Liskarr Drek"]

 

[Liskarr Drek]

Calm down, there is no need to be...me.

She kept repeating to herself, neither with remorse nor some sick sort of humor. She knew herself pretty well and knew that there was two behaviors to her, opposites like the two sides of a coin but so strongly bonded by the same bridge that they lived in perfect harmony. One of this sides was her mind, her power of will. She was very intelligent, rational and a great strategist. It was strong enough to restrain her emotions and impulses and displayed a serious, cam expression to others such as the one she was displaying now, after the emotions within her had been completely concealed again. The other face, however, was the one that came up whenever she engaged in combat or needed to feed her Dark-powers. This was the violent, wild side of the teenager which she reserved to use in particular situations, unless she lashed out of self-control.

Liskarr could feel that the man's intentions weren't attacking her which was something positive since she was not looking to fight him, as strange as that might have sound coming from her. She simply waited for him to approach her. What she had done was open the typical black cloak the Sith carried in order for him to see her sabers where there and that she carried no other weapon, something that would also favor her intentions. It was then that her yellow eyes met the ones of the Master, after he turned around one of the many corners of the ship. She just took some second to analyze him, trying to get conclusions made. She noted that he wasn't armed and even knowing he didn't intend to fight her this surprised her. She did not speak, she has chosen to stay silent until he talked.

[member="Jaryn Rhane"]

 

[Tathra Khaeus]

Jaryn could feel her eyes fixated on his back, his short cut deep brown hair and his hazel eyes turning to face the woman. He had allowed some stubble to develop as he wasn't keeping himself tidy as of late. That hadn't been a priority in the passing months, however this slipping from his mind as he slowly navigated the corridor towards the awaiting girl. He would not delve into her mind, if she wished to reveal anything to him. She would, such as the sabers she carried at either side of her waist. However Jaryn would need to communicate with her, as he was speech impaired he would not be capable of communicating vocally. Although through the majority of his time as a student under the Jedi Order he had to study telepathic abilities to communicate properly with his peers.

He outstretched his right arm and allowed one of his stowaways sabers to flow to his grasp, he felt its texture on his gloved hands. It didn't feel like anything special, a lightsaber never was. It was simply a tool, the force however was what made something special, how you used such a blade; was what made it special. Regardless, he didn't activate the blade and allowed his grip to loosen. -You won't need to use this- He spoke to her mind, his physical unmoving and expressionless. He allowed her blade to spin slowly just above his palm before his fingers moved to clench before extending outwards, expressing the movements of the force with a gesture. Her blade zoomed across the length of the corridor back to its master.

-I am not looking for conflict, but if you give me reason. I will kill you- That was a promise. He felt rigid, even if he didn't look it he could feel his other hand surging with force energy and only barely resisting the temptation of shaking that energy free on an unsuspecting dark jedi. But, thankfully he had something known as restraint. An alien ideal to people such as the Sith.

[member="Liskarr Drek"]

 

[Liskarr Drek]

Her gaze was as sharp and cold as ice, something that contrasted with the fire-like color of her eyes. She analyzed the man carefully, not only his physical appearance but she tried to read his intentions without using the Force for she knew he was doing the same and as she was not looking for a fight she was being careful not to anger him. He then grabbed and moved one of her lightsabers through the Force, something that unnerved her although she did quite a good job hiding it. She did not like other people touching her things, specially if this said things were her weapons. The ex-Jedi Master seemed to analyze her saber, not amazed by it but she did not make any comments nonetheless.

Once the weapon was being returned to her, her pale hand was lifted and she grabbed its hilt, putting it back in the same place it was occupying before it was removed from her. He had spoken to her, told her she wouldn't be using her lightsabers but for some reason he had done so approaching her through his mind and not actual speaking. Maybe he was mute, she did not know nor did her mind dwell on the matter for too long. His next words made a half-smile appear on her lips as she noticed that he was not your conventional ex-Jedi, "Then you shall not be bothered' She said, the smile not leaving her face. The young teenager was a peculiar being, so wild yet so rational. She did not spoke again, she would if she had to answer the words of the man but unless he spoke to her again she would not say anything more, getting to Iridonia was her objective right now.

[member="Jaryn Rhane"]

 

[Tathra Khaeus]

Jaryn took note of her body language, his eyes dancing across her body. She was small and petite and seemed well kept, however there was a wildness to her. It almost intrigued him, and then he caught her smile that made him half grin. He gingerly took a few steps towards her and folded his arms. -You're headed for Iridonia. That's on my way to where I'm going, but if I can ask. Why are you on M...- Their ship shook violently as it seemed someone was attacking them. Liskarr lost his attention as Jaryn suddenly burst into a roar of force speed towards his control room.

Liskarr had lost his attention and now he was more concerned with his current situation. Who was disturbing him now? A ship was hailing him, likely the ship that was attacking him. Jaryn accepted the hail and a small hologram of a 6'2 Red Skinned and tattooed Zabrak standing in what could be considered worn out combat training gear, heavy durasteel combat training gear perhaps. However, that wouldn't stop Jaryn's saber. The Zabrak spoke;

"Jaryn Rhane! I've tracked you down, finally. You killed my master and put me to shame! I've put together a team of reliable sith who you have scorned and ran from in battle! You will pay for this, I swear." It seemed as if he was finished as he turned to someone Jaryn couldn't see. "Prepare the boarding party!" Jaryn was absolutely caught off guard, who was this guy? And when did Jaryn ever run? He couldn't recall, oh well. Not a priority at this point.

The ex-master proceeded to look out of his cockpit window, they were caught in the tractor beam of a large ship. Jaryn couldn't say he was aware of what class or anything like that, but it was much larger than his own ship and likely had a skeleton crew. However, Jaryn had dealt with much worse.

He used the force to pull his sabers and helmet to him, this wouldn't be a pleasant fight. At least, not for these supposed sith.
However, one thought crossed his mind. Where was [member="Liskarr Drek"]?

 

[Liskarr Drek]

The words the ex-Master had used to describe her were almost perfect: small and petit. Many saw that as a disadvantage but she knew very well how to use her physical construction in her favor and to make it become a lethal weapon. The man approached her mind again and said he knew she was going to Iridonia but was going to make a question. The ship shook violently but the Dathomirian was able to keep her feet flat on the ground, great balance was another of her characteristics. She felt pleasure now that the question as not asked for she did not want to answer.

The man then left her, loosing attention on her, they both knew the ship was under attack but...was that a real disadvantage for her? She followed the man only enough to hear the words of the hologram, which, seeing as how she enhanced her hearing with the force, was not a lot of distance. The attackers where Sith, thing that immediately brought a wide smile to her face. Liskarr only acted on her own benefit, the benefit of her Master or that of the Dark-side so she felt no obligations of aiding the Sith.

It was more than clear that she would not aid the Master either, she would patiently wait and help the opponent that would most benefit her. Could anyone blame her? It was the most rational though in the words, await and act based on the odds. She could not deny that containing the desire of fighting restrained being so near to it but she found the way to do so. She cloaked her Force-signature, although she could not conceal it completely and again looked for a place to wait in, leaving the Master to his whereabouts on the cockpit.

[member="Jaryn Rhane"]

 

[Tathra Khaeus]

Jaryn had collected his weaponry and was awaiting the boarding party in his cargo bay. This would be the boarding party's entry point, however they would not find it so easy to navigate the cargo bay as granted by its name it was full of cargo. Stacks of boxes of all different sizes and shapes. Jaryn had set out his cargo bay intentionally as a place to retreat to, getting people to stumble into a cargo bay was usually the problem. However, his opponents were walking right into it.

Jaryn however was well aware of his surroundings, easily capable of navigating the maze of his own design. However, he had never fought the sithin with his own home. This would be an interesting encounter.

The sith was nervous, sweat dripping from his brow as his boarding party awaited aboard the ship to ship transportation walkway. The airlock was oxidising and soon young knight sith Pravas Khun would have his revenge on Jaryn Rhane, the ex-jedi who had shamed him and his brother. Fighting both in saber combat, cutting down his brother Garrev Khun and slamming Pravas so hard into the ground that one of his legs snapped and the bones in his knee shot through his thigh. Pravas would always remember that day, he felt more shame than he could ever imagine, he had been disowned and tortured endlessly by his master. Months of unending training had brought him to this day, he had brought along some of the best soldiers he had known and his best friend. A sith inquisitor by the name of Alec. This filth, this jedi could run all he liked. But Pravas had him now, it was over. He would have his revenge.

Jaryn had both saber in hand, red and blue. It was moments like these, that he realised he didn't belong to either side. He stood in the grey, not all the time. But now that he had immersed himself in conflict so much. He felt true purity in violence, not anger or peace. Purity.

The airlock opened and the small group of eight troopers followed by four sith entered the cargo bay. "Stay together! The coward can't hope to defeat us all..." Then, the two unnamed sith took the back of the group and the troopers covered the sides, Pravas and Alec took the front. Sabers active and as they turned a corner, there he stood.

The jedi master had both blades active, red and blue shading his face in contrasting blooms. As expected, he was silent and stagnant. This took Pravas by surprise and it seemed like all those around him were suddenly regretting their choice. Two of Jaryn's fingers twitched and two large cargo boxes slammed into the 8 troopers that stood between the sith. Foolishly strategies, the troops had nowhere to run as the sith stood at either side of them and had no force abilities to speak off to fend off the Masters force attacks. But, within a single movement Jaryn had gained the advantage. Taking out the ranged opponents was his first move, however this was followed by the stunning of his force user opponents which allowed Jaryn to use his superior force abilities to separate them quickly. Throwing back his sabers into their holsters on either side of his belt, he wouldn't need such tools for this job.

Jaryn throughout his left arm in the direction of Pravas and soon a wild and powerful blast of force lightning escaped his fingertips and slammed into the sith's chest and sent him hurdling through the air to the right into a poor unsuspecting pile of cargo boxes. Alec had recovered by this point and the other two sith were charging at him, blades held high. Where as Alec was leaping on top of cargo boxes to get a vantage point, it was clear he relied on his force abilities. However, the ex-jedi's main concern was the two sith rushing his position. Jaryn's right foot slide back and his body blurred as he was engulfed with force energy and his body became a blur of speed, running forward as he reached his attackers. Jaryn dropped down onto all fours and slide in between the sith's legs and pushed himself up on his hands and wrapped his feet around the sith's neck and snapped his bones. Then, seeing the other sith acknowledging this act and swinging his blade through his fallen ally towards Jaryn. However, instead of leaping backwards in retreat. Jaryn decided to throw a small telekinetic push into the ground below him and allowed his body to spin in the air as he slipped past the sith's blade. Landing on his feet right beside the sith whom had just swung his blade, he punched him in the face with a force imbued punch that sent him body limp into a stack of boxes.

Pravas was returning to consciousness at this point as Jaryn leaped up into the air and landed a few yards away from Alec. "I won't be defeated so easily..." Alec commented as he unleashed a speeding blast of force lightning from both of his hands towards Jaryn, whom reactively used the force ability known as tutanamis to absorb the more or less weak lightning attack from Alec. -You picked the wrong ship to board- And that, would be Jaryn's way of saying You have my sympathies. As he couldn't say it to his face, but he was certain Alec would feel that sympathy in a moment. Alec's face crumpled up into a very frustrated expression that led Jaryn to believe he had touched a nerve. However, this was more easily expressed through Alec's now more powerful burst of lightning as he roared for his life. Jaryn pulled his blue saber to his right hand and allowed the lightning to connect with the blade, and in his other hand took his blaster from his hidden back holster and shot Alec in the knee, who consequently fell to one knee and allowed Jaryn the time to put both saber and blaster back in their holsters and clench both of his fists in the air and raise them above his head,

At this point, Alec was slowly getting to his feet and Pravas was now climbing up to this level as he was apparently incapable of force agility in his current state, "W-what are you doing..!?" Alec cried in a growl of malevolence and envy of Jaryn's superior abilities, and with that Jaryn turned to look at Pravas as he brought his telekinetic slam down on Alec and crushed him into a pulp. Pravas' face was full of rage and terror as charged Jaryn.

As if Jaryn had an audience, it was at this point he revealed both of his blades to Pravas and engaged his in saber combat, quickling parrying a downward stroke with his right handed blade, he began to dance around Pravas and toyed with him until he foolishly made a large swinging stroke, which Jaryn spread his legs out into a crouch and slid under Pravas' attack and stabbed his right handed blade right into Pravas' stomach.

Pravas almost looked embarrassed, but his anger and emotion faded as he fell to the ground. Jaryn watched him silently, and proceeded to kick his worthless body off the cargo box and onto the ground. Then, he looked to the doorway into the cargo bay he had entered from. Was someone there?
Had [member="Liskarr Drek"] been watching this whole time?