Private To Accept Defeat

[Hisashi]

E S T A T E
Sal-Soren Estate, Hapes

To admit Defeat was to accept Death.

When one is raised to be a weapon, defeat and death are intertwined. Should one of his ilk flee from battle, going "home" was a guaranteed introduction to the sword. Victory meant survival, but failure guaranteed the conclusion to one's life. But House Sal-Soren was...different than what the shinobi knew. When he was permitted to serve as their Guardian, he expected to be treated as the mongrel that he was. Instead, they embraced him. Called him family. Welcomed him into their lineage. And if Hisashi was truly honest with himself, serving this family was the only time he had known happiness.

But that all went up into smoke seven long years ago. When Naboo was lit aflame, the family scattered upon the winds.

Hisashi was tasked with bringing the children home - or at the very least to verify that the survived. For Briana, he did verify that she lived. She had found a place among the Jedi - and though it would have wounded her mother's heart at the time, he would not force the young woman to return with him. Instead, he set his sights upon the brother. Brandyn. Whose whereabouts were a complete mystery to the shinobi. Whenever Hisashi got close to catching up to the young man, he took a dramatic turn and disappeared again.

In fact, when last the shinobi picked up on the boy's trail, he had been sent on a mission by the Jedi. One that he had yet to return from. The family considered Brandyn to be dead after awhile, but the shinobi could not accept failure. He could not admit defeat. And so he traced and retraced the boy's footsteps only to come up empty-handed each time. But instead of doing what he was trained to: return to the master to face the sword, Hisashi fled. Cowardice seeped into his bones and he retreated to the brotherhood he had known for years.

The Knights Obsidian, now Medjai Order, took him in with open arms. And for many years, he served well. He hunted the monsters of this foreign land. He contested the raids and slavers. But his shoulders never felt release from the burden of guilt. Finally, after so long, the guilt got the better of the shinobi. He requested leave - but personally had no intention to return. It took some doing, but he found the whereabouts of his master: Teyla Sal-Soren . Hapes of all places.

And so it was that the woman who gave him a fresh start in life received a rather unusual message from one of her servants. It was early afternoon when the Demon first set foot before her new Estate. And though the literal insignia for the family resided on the back of his clothing, the guards did not admit him inside. The Demon was not having this. And so, there was great commotion. Teyla would find a rather familiar face surrounded by her servants and security detail alike. All while his accented voice growled above their demands.

"I have come too far for your locks and your doors. You will let me see my Master."​

Teyla Sal-Soren​

 

[Teyla Sal-Soren]

Appearance | XoXo
Location | Sal-Soren Esate, Hapes
Tag | Hisashi

“Lady Sal-Soren?”

Teyla blinked, a flash of alertness alighting in her tired eyes as the mental haze began to clear, her afternoon tea having long since cooled to the point of being undrinkable. The finely sculpted face of her bodyguard, a female Hapan named Astara, swam into focus before her. Those glittering sapphire eyes that reminded her so much of her late husbands, squinted at her in concern.

“I’m sorry,” Teyla began, clearing her throat as she absently brushed out the buttery pleats of her pale pink dress. “Did you need something?”

In the light of the open glass doors leading out to the gardens, Astara swept a hand urging Teyla to follow her. “There’s been an incident.” she explained in that crisp, accented tone. “An unauthorized visitor attempted to enter the grounds, demanding an audience with you. He wouldn’t settle down and refused to leave. We currently have him detained in the courtyard,”

Leaning back in her chair, she let out a long and exhausted sigh. It was not the first time that visitors had come to demand an audience with her for this reason or that, not because she was particularly special, but because of the special genetic link she shared with Eline. Hoping against hope that they might gain the ear of the Ducha’s younger sister.

Hope. The word tasted like poison, reminding her that much of her own hopes had died the day Naboo went up in flames. The day everything changed.

In the past there were times when she might have entertained such impassioned ‘guests’, inspired by their convictions and hopes for the future, but the last several years had left her in a less than charitable mood.

Just like her, they would learn what good hope was.

How long had she spent searching, undeterred and full of hope, for Baros? For her son? Scouring the known Galaxy inch by painful inch, yet neither Baros nor Brandyn were anywhere to be found.

Ready to dismiss him entirely, Teyla only paused at the mention of this mystery person’s name.

“He called himself Hisashi.”

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With the instruction to have Hisashi moved into the comforts of the gardens where she intended to meet him, Teyla spent her brisk walk racking her brain for the right words to say when she saw him face to face.

Like many others in her life, when he didn’t come back she’d assumed him to be dead. What else would have kept him away? Surely he hadn’t been searching for Brandyn these past seven years.

A myriad of emotions swirled through her, the logical part of her mind trying to reason away his absence and squash the lingering tendrils of hope that he might have found something.

No. He abandoned us. She asserted firmly in her mind, repeating it over and over until her lips pulled into a line, her jaw tightening.

When at last she found him, that towering, familiar dark male figure, standing in the open light of the gardens… she felt herself go stiff. It took a moment to will enough strength into her legs to move forward and step into his path.

“... What are you doing here?” she asked hoarsley, fighting against the overwhelming swell of emotion that had begun to roil in her belly and crawl its way up her throat. “You’re alive?”

 

[Hisashi]

H A P E S

Finally, progress.

The shinobi had been intent on not snatching any of the lives before him. Yet, they were poking at a bear whose patience was waning by the instant. While surrounded, Hisashi had not yet drawn a proper weapon. He relied on well-placed shoves and barking his demand to get the point across. Yet, as the moments lingered, his dominant hand moved ever closer to the blade resting upon his hip. It was sheer fortune that the shinobi did not have to draw steel. For as his fingertips graced the handle, a feminine voice cried out over the guards.

Lady Sal-Soren would see him. Finally.

Hisashi had never been the type to feel...anxiety before. Any such nerves had been forced out of him by a childhood of combat. Yet in this moment, he felt his palms grow sweaty underneath his gloves. Despite this, he maintained an even face and obediently followed the guards who escorted him. The Estate reminded him so much of the manor on Naboo. The colors. The finery. The vibrant plant life. The...servants were far more on the male side and had a preference for not wearing clothes it seemed.

But beyond that, it reeked of the finery that defined his Master. However, it was not home. There were no youthful cries of the children getting into trouble. No gleeful chatter of the maidstaff gossiping about the Sal-Soren Romance. It was silent. Cold. How things had changed...

Hisashi did not have to wait long upon being escorted to the garden. His patience was rewarded by the sound of brisk footsteps in his direction. And the moment his eyes met hers, descent gripped his form. His movement was so quick that the guards stiffened as a result, but there was nothing to fear. The shinobi knelt upon one knee and lowered his head.

"Master Sal-Soren." he began, resisting the urge to wince at her first question. But the guilt caused his tongue to move. "I...I have failed. I followed the trail of the young Brandyn as long and as far as I could - but I found nothing. Only ghosts and whispers."

He refused to meet her gaze, yet continued.

"I...was a coward. I could not face my failure, I admit. I feared the sting of death and so fled after what remained of the Confederacy. Served in their new home for awhile. But I cannot outrun my failure. I have come to accept your judgment."

It was then that he moved, unsheathing the smallest of the blades upon his hip. The guards moved, but the shinobi placed its edge upon his stomach. Only then did his burning eyes settle upon hers.

"My life is, and always has, been yours Master. On your word, I will accept your judgment and forfeit my last breath to you."​

Teyla Sal-Soren​