Twin Exiles

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
The Vashyada picked herself up, eyeing the droid and faced Kaida.
“Tryana, I’m an outlaw,” she said, almost proudly.
“Is that a good thing?” Phylis said, hanging her lightsabre from her belt.
“I questioned the elders. I wanted to leave and see the stars. Whenever I asked about the people who came here I was told you were spirits and demons. They do not let see you, talk to you. How are we talking now?” she asked, suddenly confusing.
“Magic,” Phylis said with an almost Kaida-like Laconic reply. “Do you really want to see the stars? It might be more than you can handle. Do you have any skills?”
“I can call on the spirits to heal and strike my enemies. I am an expert with a bow and sword.” She looked a little downcast. “I have nowhere to go back to.”
Phylis looked to Kaida. “Did you want to take her? I don’t mind ferrying her, if only to give her a taste of things.” She looked back. “But if you come with us you will not be able to return here for many years.”
“I understand.”

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


Part of Kaida wondered what the elders would do when real 'demons' showed up. To her, it was a question of when not if. The forests would offer no sanctuary from those who possessed the means and the ruthlessness to burn it down. She lowered her gun, though she kept an eye on the self-declared 'outlaw'.

"You can come," she said finally. "But you must obey my orders. And learn how to use modern weapons. A bow will be no use outside of Tygara." Maybe Kaida had not heard of Graphite bows. "And you will have to receive vaccination. Otherwise you will get sick and die."

"I am huntress. I will more than earn my keep," the young elf declared, the furrowed her brow in confusion. "Vacci-nation? What is that?"

Kaida sighed. "It keeps diseases from killing you." Truly an illuminating explanation.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
Tryana nodded eagerly. “I will follow your orders, Lady,” she said.
“There you go, Kaida, you’ve already got yourself the makings of a new Great Company,” Phylis said with chuckle. She knew the frosty elf would not laugh, but the Jedi needed a bit of a release from the tension and stress.

A presence behind her made her turn. Tylania was floating slightly above the ground whilst Eyrecae tramped along beside, looking thoughtful.
“Ah, Tryana, leaving I see?” the demi-goddess asked.
Flustered probably by meeting her deity for the first time, she looked at the ground unable to reply.
“You may go, why do you think I allowed you to be here when I sent everyone else away? Your destiny, like Eyrecae’s, lies far away.”
There was a pause and she looked at Kaida.
“Your thoughts are known to me, High Captain, and I have been making moves for some time. Now it is time to accelerate them. We shall meet again soon. I will be paying a visit to Firemane and seeking their assistance with the intent of causing significant change. The details will doubtless not interest you, so I’ll leave it at that.”

Eyrecae gave her sister a hug, then turned to her companions. “Right, let’s get going.” It would be weird for them for her speech patterns to revert once away from the telepathic link.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


Kaida bristled at being called 'Lady'. She was no lady, she worked for a living, instead of lazing around on a couch while pliable slave girls fed her grapes and kissed her feet. However, before she could correct the overeager wood elf, Tylania showed up on the spot. As before, she hovered slightly above ground. It struck Kaida as the sort of melodramatic gesture Siobhan would pull off if she could.


"Look her in the eye. You want to be a woman, not a lamb scared of 'divine judgement," Kaida ordered Tryana gruffly when the Vashyada averted her eyes from her deity and looked to the leaves on the ground. For her part, she kept her eyes on the Paragon while she spoke. She raised an eyebrow slightly when Tylania spoke of ushering in significant changes. Perhaps in surprise.


The false goddess - Kaida's point of view - got a curt nod from her. "Don't make the same mistakes as our rulers. The Vashyada must grow up - even if it means outgrowing their deity," she said as parting words of sorts, then turned away, heading back towards the ship. Tryana followed in tow, though not before giving her deity a grateful look and a short bow. Good thing Kaida was not looking.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
“Look at me, Tryana,” Tylania said softly, gently. “Kaida will aid you, but you must learn to protect yourself. She will help you, but she will not be there forever.”

“I never wanted to be their deity, which is why I never ruled them. Now though it is time for me to take charge. I will talk with Firemane and organise for a large scale renovation and change. My people became trapped in the boughs of Yarkul, that ends. Go in peace, Kaida.”

They headed back to the ship and were soon taking off, heading to the sky.

Tryana stared out the window in awe and not a little fright as her home, her world became a smaller and smaller dot, and the blackness of space overtook it all.
She started to hyperventilate a little, but Eyrecae came to sit beside her.

“Fear not, daughter, for into the void we travel, though protected we remain. Of life, it shall be that you will learn there is more in heaven and earth that could be dreamt of in your philosophy,” she said, mainly because this writer liked that line.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


Tryana gave Eyrecae a look, calming down a bit. "I will not be afraid. I wanted to see the universe. I will," she spoke, regaining some confidence, though she held on her to seat tightly. To watch her world disappear from her sight was both an awe-inspiring and terrifying experience. "How...does this metal ship work?" she asked, trying to take her mind off things. Then came hyperspace. There was a bright flash, then the ship seemed to move through a blue tunnel. "What is this?"

"The void. Distances are shorter here, so a starship move very quickly," Kaida deigned to explain. It was all wrong and she knew it, but it was the best way to communicate something utterly incomprehensible to someone who'd just time-jumped several centuries into the future. "You can unbuckle the seatbelt. Don't stare into the stars of the void. You'll get a migraine otherwise," she advised. Her tone was not unkind, just gruff. By her standards, she was being nice and helpful.

Unbuckling her seat belt, Tryana got up to look around. The stars had blurred into lines which shot past them. She stared at them, but then thought better when she felt ill. "It is so cold here. Metal is everyhwere," she muttered, then a thought came to her. "Do spirits dwell in the void?"

"No."

"I could say a prayer to bless our venture and ward us from danger." Presumably if they were ever ran into the Charon, Tryana would find her viewpoint confirmed.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
Eyrecae clapped her on the back, almost knocking the poor Vashyada sprawling.
“Of faith, I am pleased you retain. Say your prayer, for though I fear there are indeed no spirits, no deity, ‘tis better to be safe than sorry, yes?” She gave Kaida a smirk. Sadly this Eyrecae lacked fangs. Considering the state of vampires in this galaxy though, it was likely for the best.

Phylis returned to the main room. “Well, we’re under way. Should be 12 hours until we reach Mon Cal. I’ve managed to isolate the necessary vaccinations for Tryana. Hmm, I think we should administer them soon so they have time to act.”

And so Tryana, after having a wash and being leant a set of underrobes by Phylis, was taken into the medical bay. She looked a little nervous at the needles.
“Will it hurt?”
“Hmm? No, a little prick is all.”
“Verily, ‘tis what she stated,” Eyrecae said, laughing.
“Hmmph,” was the only reply.
Tryana looked confused, but when the pair of needles entered her arm she gritted her teeth, but then relaxed.
“Hmm, well, you may feel a little blocked and have a headache for a few days, but after that you should be fine. I’ll give Kaida some medication for you to take, it’ll boost your immune system.”
“I am grateful you have taken me on this journey, though it is very strange.” This writer has taken the opportunity to change her text colour to ease confusion.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


It was probably for the best that Eyrecae was no vampire. Kaida regarded them as disgusting, repulsive creatures. Or, to put it in crass terms, walking STDs, whose main purpose was to spread their condition to others. One imagined that she'd also feel murderous towards vampire layers. Regardless, Tryana got her cootie shots and suddenly had differently coloured text. "I will teach you how to use this," Kaida stated, fetching a small pistol from her holster.

Feeling a bit put out from the needle, Tryana took it into her hands. She examined the weapon carefully. "I have seen weapons like this. Star people descended from the sky and marched on our village. They were arrogant and carried many guns. We heard their coming from miles away and emptied the village. I tracked them throughout their march. Time and again, we harried them, before retreating into the deep forest. It angered them greatly and some wandered off, falling into our traps. The remainder we ambushed when they reached the deserted village," her voice grew rather animated as she relayed the tale, before she grew solemn.

"A great many of the villains were slain that day, but several of my people died as well. Some were burnt beyond recognition. It was a horrible sight. Only a few of us wielded boomsticks that could penetrate the villains' armour. I had to use the blade and call upon the spirits after my arrows failed. But we put the invaders to flight. Their leader was so cowardly to abandon his men."

"Those raiders were stupid and got what they deserved," Kaida's loathing of slavers was deeply ingrained. She was the type to toss them out of the airlock. "Your tracking ability and Force skills will be useful. But all arrows will do to half-decent armour is scratch the paint," the frost elf observed bluntly.

Tryana frowned slightly. "An arrow is silent, but does not have the power. Your bullets have power, but are very noisy."

"You can put a silencer on this one. And it fires faster than a bow."

"Have you fought in many battles?" the wood elf asked, addressing her query to Eyrecae and Kaida. Those two looked like warriors to her. Phylis, by contrast, resembled a priestess. Those were the healers among the Vashyada. The law forbid them from taking up arms or harming others.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
Eyrecae nodded, glancing at Kaida. If the Eldorai didn’t know about her conquests, this wood elf certainly wouldn’t.
“Across a dozen worlds and a hundred battlefields, I engaged in the fray. Of names, it is true you would not know of the places I speak, but in every one the enemy were defeated. Of this though, ancient history it is, for whilst I slept the great wars were fought across the galaxy. Now there remains that which remains; not as glorious nor triumphant as the grand campaigns.”
“I have not seen war to be glorious or triumphant,” Phylis said sourly. “It causes death, destruction, misery and it is others who pick up the pieces afterwards.”
Eyrecae waved a hand. “Of philosophy, surely it is of the person which decides this for themselves. Conflict and strife are required; for without them society stagnates and crumbles. Decadence is of great a danger as strife. It is not blindness I turn to the realities, but I am not concerned by the sight of dead and dying. Wastefulness, stupidity, ignorance, these anger me, but not the act nor prosecution of war. All mortals must die, so why not in the heart of the hottest fight?”
Phylis sighed. She wasn’t going to argue. The Jedi and the warrior woman were so far apart it would do no good.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


And suddenly there was a philosophical debate. Tryana looked a bit hesitant before speaking up. "A people must defend what is theirs and fight evil if villains intrude upon their lands. The Vashyada do not relish war, but we all learn from early on to defend ourselves. We would live in peace. Strife between tribes is resolved in duels between champions with little blood shed, but outsiders have menaced us again and again. The priestesses say we should use the gift of the spirits only to defend ourselves, but not to attack. But how can we defend ourselves from harm if we always wait for an attack to happen?" she asked rhetorically.

If she was hoping for words of wisdom, she would not get them from the frost elf. "War is hell. You can't make it better or worse. It's necessary," was all the former High Captain had to say on this matter. War did not excite her, but prosecuting a war to the knife did not bother her either. She got up. All this talking had tired her.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
Phylis sighed. “On that at least, Kaida, I think you’re right. Anyway, get some rest if you want. Hmm, there’s a training room on board. I’ll be in the forge. Try not to break anything, hmmph.”

Eyrecae stretched. “Of now, it is perhaps to your surprise, but I feel the need for again another meal. Friend Tryana, will you not join me? For this, I can show you the galaxy of the future and the mass produced food which is served.”

An annoyed ‘hmmph’ could be heard from Phylis as she started to fire up her forge.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


Part of Kaida wondered whether keeping the primeval Eldorai fed would be worth the effort. "Your combat skills better live up to your bragging," she grunted, then walked away. Phylis was busy firing up her forge. Kaida was not a smith or an alchemist. Regardless, she peered inside. "I require use of your ship's communicator." Was she actually asking for permission? Well, sort of. Occasionally, she could try to be polite. She was not good at it.


Tryana looked a bit perplexed. "Is she...always like this?" she queried, referring to the grumpy, chilly elf who'd just left. "I could use some food, yes. What is it that you eat? You do not hunt for it?" She did not quite understand what mass produced meant.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
Eyrecae laughed. “And you, daughter of ice, best have strength to bolster your laconic words.” Unfairly, Eyrecae seemed very hard to insult or annoy.

When she was gone she turned to Tryana. She knew how to fix the meals herself now, truly they had given the monkey the key to the banana plantation.

“From what I understand, Kaida is a warrior of great skill and strength, though reserved and dour. Such an aspect can mean either good or ill, for a warrior either uses silence to hide their weaknesses or show their strength. I feel that it is of strength that she needs not boast. I, on the other hand, do like to boast,” she said with a self-deprecating laugh.

“Of food, no, little daughter. With civilisation does come the need and desire to get far away from nature. For now, rather than hunt and grow, they do create a thousand bland facsimiles of food and promise the greatest of boasts. Still, of taste, it is delectable, though I dare say it has never seen the animal from which it is said to come from.”

She pulled a plastic tray from the cooker and put it on the table. The small cubes of food looked unappetising, but Eyrecae gestured to it.
“Eat, little daughter, close your eyes ‘ere you find the sight so offputting.”

Phylis meanwhile was hammering metal with the Force. “Hmm? Oh yes, when we course correct, go ahead. Try not to, hmmph, use it on someone I would regret.”

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


Tryana knitted her brow together. "'Civilisation' seems so disconnected from nature. How many people who travel in great metal ships and live in stone buildings have seen the green? To hunt is to prove yourself worthy of reaping the Mother Forests' bounties. This...seems disrespectful of Her," she remarked.


She poked the unappetising cube of food with a finger. It looked extremely weird to her. Then she sniffed it. Eventually, she got over her revulsion and helped herself to it. It did not taste bad, but strange. Needless to say she did not bother to use knife and fork. The goddess had given her fingers, after all. "Perhaps you and I could go on a hunt some time?" she asked in between bites, wiping her mouth.



xxx


Phylis hammered metal with the Force. The noise was most grating on Kaida's ears. Like every Eldorai, she had extremely sensitive ears. This was a double-edged sword, for it also made her more sensitive to loud noises. The hammering definitely qualified. So she performed a tactical retreat and headed to the communications room.


There she activated the communicator. Out of all the 'Dark Eldorai' groups, the Shadow Knights were the ones she was most familiar with. This was no surprise since many of their members were ex-soldiers, including Angelii who'd been disgraced or gone into exile - like her. Moreover, the Matriarchy and the Shadows had been an allies during the failed campaign to save their brethren on Kaeshana from the fascist oppressors that called themselves the First Order.


In theory, the united front still existed, but in practice it had fallen apart in mutual recriminations. But unofficial lines of communication still existed. Above all, the Shadows were the most organised of all the rebel groups...if a bit too 'democratic' for her tastes. Though she had forsaken her vows, Kaida refused to join a band of brigands or anarchists. She was a soldier and would only join a movement that understood the soldierly spirit. Conveniently, she knew one of their members. An old childhood friend. Even if said friend was....a bit disorderly. So she sent a quick message. It was laconic. I quit. We need to talk. Dac.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
“Of civilisation, it is by definition a refutation of the natural cycles. Into their worlds of metal and stone they pull images and parodies of nature to amuse them. For progress is the expansion of technology and numbers to a point where nature is contained. Is it better? For truth, I know not which is superior, for your kin hide in the corner of a dangerous forest, alone and isolated. Yet of Kaida’s kin, they forget their natural origins so that they might reap the comforts and security of technology – but still with danger. Which is superior? Truly, that is something all must decide themselves.”

She raised an eyebrow at the offer. “To hunt with you? Why certainly, daughter, we shall seek the most dangerous of beasts, the most torrid of quests, and conquer them…together.”

XXX

The reply which Kaida received was just as laconic, but a good deal more jovial.
Knew it. You owe me 20. ’Trap’ Cantina.

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


Tryana did perhaps not quite understand all that Eyrecae said, but smiled slightly. "I would like that," she said, then frowned slightly. "Who - what - are you really? You look like an Eldorai and travel with one of them. But you are different from them. Even down to the way you speak. You do not see yourself as one of them." She also had actual muscles.


xxx


Kaida was too laconic to send a wordy response. So she switched off the communicator and walked out of the room. Glancing into the main room, she saw that Eyrecae was regaling Tryana with tales and, naturally filling herself with food. Kaida decided that the past hour so had exhausted her terribly small capacity for small talk.


"Got in touch with a contact. We'll meet her on Dac," she grunted, before turning away and heading towards the ship's training room. Doing exercises was a productive use of her time. Needless to say the room was geared towards the needs of a Jedi, but that would obviously not prevent her from running herself through a rigorous series of crunches, sit-ups, pull-ups and so on and there were a bunch of remote droids to practice blaster deflection with.

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
Eyrecae laughed and put an arm on the girl’s shoulders, giving her an unintentionally hard squeeze.
“My daughter, there is much we both know not. Of this, however, I will explain a simple thread, I am the daughter of Ashira, sister of Tylania, and would once have been the greatest of the Qadiri. Alas, I slept overlong and the galaxy moved on without me. There is much for us to discover…together.”

Kaida’s brief entrance prompted Kaida to give a wave. “Can I hope she is more loquacious than thou?” Eyrecae asked cheekily.

She looked to Tryana. “She is wisely honing her skills though, perhaps you should show me what you know. Whatever path we take, it shall be into danger.”

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]


An expression of shockc rossed Tryana's features. She looked more than a little dumbfounded. The unintentionally hard squeeze made her wince. Then she started laughing. "Are you serious? You jest, surely," she exclaimed. Tryana had faced Qadiri in battle. Eyrecae did not look like them. And it was a bit...difficult for her to believe that the woman before her was Tylania's sister.


She barely noticed that Kaida had peeked into the room and grunted something about meeting a contact. The moment she heard Eyrecae make her cheeky query, the Eldorai had left without a further word. However, she looked eager when Eyrecae suggested she show off her skills. "I would like that. I know there is a great deal I have to learn, but I can show you my skill with knives and tomahawk."

 

[Eyrecae Alzari]

[member="Kaida Taldir"]
Eyrecae grinned. “I jest not, dear daughter. Mayhap you feel I look unlike those Qadiri you battled? Perhaps you feel that of dear Tylania I set not the same queenly aura? Or perchance it is that I float not above the ground as though I were too good to touch it?”

Without any effort at all she lifted Tryana gently into the air and stood her up.
“Though it is that I lack the styles of my sisters I am still one of them. Fear not, I shall perhaps amaze you yet,” she added jovially.

“Show me all your skills, Tryana.”

They headed down into the training room. It was setup for a Jedi, but Eyrecae cleared the training dummies aside. She laid her sword on the table. She wouldn’t use that. Instead, she took a metal blade Phylis had left in the rack. When she picked it up she admired the edge and balance. However, this too she put back, she didn’t want to use a sharp weapon on the girl. Finally she settled on a long metal rod which had held up a dummy, and flourished it dramatically.

“For this, a rod will suffice, for I aim not to hurt you. Show me everything, daughter.”

 

[Kaida Taldir]

[member="Eyrecae Alzari"]

"I mean no offence," Tryana said quickly. "It is merely hard to believe. Whatever your nature may be, you are a friend." She was caught by surprise when the tall, muscular Eldorai suddenly lifted her into the air. Tryana was by no means heavy. Indeed she was fit and trim. But the strange woman did not seem to expend the slightest of effort picking her up. Somehow, the young wood elf felt safe around her.


She obediently followed Eyrecae into what seemed to be the Yedai priestess' training room. Tryana took a while to examine the room, taking in the training dummies and the few weapons that lay around. When Eyrecae invited her, she smiled slightly. After all, she was a warrior and huntress.


After a moment's thought, she retrieved a tomahawk. The weapon was light enough to be wielded in one hand. Holding it in a firm grip, she swung it towards the tall woman. Her feet were firmly planted on the ground, her speed was impressive. Obviously not superhuman, but she was quick on her feet. The attack was also meant to be a feit. While in motion, her left hand would be removed from the axe's handle and instead grab a short sword, with which she performed a stabbing thrust towards the woman's hip.