Visions of Serendipity

[Dovan Grey]

It was never difficult to find passage to Commenor, the planet buzzed with life beyond what was typically found in the Colonies. Silas had found a passenger freighter traveling there from Corellia, where he had spent the past few months. His dark burgundy cloak blended into the large crowd on the ship, rendering him nearly invisible to outside eyes where he could meditate on the trip. It was far more difficult to understand why he was traveling to Commenor. Silas was quite to used to exploring the galaxy, rambling and moving whenever a fancy would strike or adventure present itself. But that wasn't what happened. He had been quite happy on Corellia, making fast friends in the seedier night spots of the city. One night though, in his dreams he had seen a woman. A woman with raven hair, who stood almost twenty-feet taller than him and outstretched her hand to him. He tried to reach her, but the air pushed against him, like he was moving underwater. Right before he touched her, he sprung awake.

"Arrival polices are listed in the foremost data packet, you can access any of the terminals on..." The ship's automated voice rang out through the ship, though no one was listening. They were beginning their landing sequence, so Silas retrieved his small bag beneath the seat. This would be the third time he had visited Commenor. The first time had been while working onboard a cargo freighter dropping off military-grade food ration supplies and industrial farming equipment. He had only stayed in the city for a single night, then they were back off into space. The next time, Silas was able to explore the world more. He had spent some time playing Smashball for a interplanetary league on the fringes of the Core, his team had a series on Commenor and if Silas remembered correctly, they had won. Now his reason for this third trip was still a mystery to him.

The dream repeated itself every few nights. The woman was always there, but Silas could never reach her. The trees of Corellia seemed to be whispering to him each day, some strange secret of the Force which urged him to go. A swelling in his gut, where the felt the great, mystery power drawing him to the Colonies. To Commenor. He felt the ship slow down, resting itself onto the ground. Silas was the first one to rise, the first one to exit, finding himself in opening of a hanger. A few aliens were retrieving supplies from X-wings and Silas saw a group of Rodians tossing crates onto a freighter. Silas took a breath, unsure his destination, but following where the Force would take him.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

{Double post. Ignore}

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay wasn't there at the spaceport when [member="Silas Lastorm"] had arrived. That would've been silly and a real turn of good luck. However there was bound to be times when he would've thought that he'd seen her. Given that Kay was popular among many of her people, there tended to be young ladies that copied her style, both in the manner of her hair and dress. It was almost as though she had little clones of herself running around. But of course that wasn't the case, nor was it ever intended. Truly it wasn't even something that herself nor her staff had even thought of.

Instead she had just left her private Estate, hidden well within the Eldritch mountains. There was no escort for this part of the journey. It was easier and less noticeable if she went alone. Normally she took a speederbike, yet today she walked, wearing her light armour. For the time being, her cloaking device wasn't activated. And given that she wasn't dressed up in gowns, it made her less noticeable to those wanting to hunt her down for malicious reasons.

One would think that she'd be spending all of her time with the twins, but there were moments when she needed a break. And today was one of those days. Or at least this afternoon was.

After an hour of walking, she found herself in the city. It was good to see how things were outside of the Palace, whether or not her people were happy or stressed. With all the fighting taking place elsewhere in the Galaxy, she needed to know what was on their minds, without the interference of her position among them.

Her eyes looked up as she walked on the sidewalk, as an elaborate luxury ship flew overhead. Kay pondered on who it could be. Some business man? A delegation from some other world? Normally they would send notice ahead of time. Yet her secretary Olivia tended to look after such things right now.

Still looking skyward, she accidently bumped shoulders with Silas and that quickly snapped her out of her thoughts. "Whoops! Sorry about that." Without so much of a pause, she continued on her way through the busy sidewalk. There was a particular tea shop that she was interested in visiting.

 

[Dovan Grey]

{I also double-posted. I suppose it's all the trend now.]

 

[Dovan Grey]

He stepped through the streets, taking notice of little but surveying everything. In the past decade, he had become familiar with industrial worlds, but the jungles of Felucia were his home for so long that he still felt out of place. Mother Jungle did not call to him as strongly here, like a great distance separating them. He knew the Force moved through all things, binding all of life into one essence, yet the cities strained him. Commenor wasn't not as taxing as some of the worlds of the Core, there was still green growing things here. Now Silas looked at the other life on the world, the species moving through the cities.

He wasn't sure what to do now that he was here, though it was a familiar situation for Silas. He had travelled to worlds with far less information than this, yet this still felt stranger to him. He took a moment to stop into a collection of street vendors, not purchasing but admiring. He had very few credits with him. He spent time speaking with an older Twi'lek woman, who had handmade intricate necklaces with amaralite resting on it's center, though Silas suspected it was not a real gemstone.

He pressed on, looking at the ships above moving with more purpose than him. Then something hit him. Someone. He looked around and fire suddenly burned through his whole body. A thousands veins of fire encircled his soul. It was the Force, moving through him suddenly. The figure that had collided with him, it was her. The woman he had seen. He was so taken back, he didn't even hear her speak. What could this have possibly meant? What had it been for? The Force brought him. Why?

He was convinced this was important. He would not easily let it go. Silas suddenly started moving to her. What could he possibly say? He knew nothing about this woman and didn't know why he was so drawn to her. He felt power in her, the Force and her own sense of a powerful force inside her. He remembered what the Nature Priestess, his guardian, would say, "You cannot be lost on a path that is straight." He was meant to be here, he just had to know why.

"Have we met before?" He called out to her. She was only a few steps ahead, but she stopped. Silas wasn't sure how she might react to him as a stranger, so he reached out to her spirit with his own. He had to trust in the Force.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Silas Lastorm"] had called out to her. Kay smirked a little to herself as the man recognized her in some way. Perhaps not in the way that he knew her name, which clearly indicated that he wasn't Commenori or from the Systems Alliance in general, but more than likely he just knew her face from quick glances at pictures on the holonet. That was a good thing as she didn't want others to take notice of her too, so she kept walking.

That is until she felt him reaching out to her through the Force. His presence met her own, sending little tiny waves of energy that mingled with hers, not unlike the smoke from two blown out candles that were side by side. Kay stopped in her tracks, almost kicking herself for making such a mistake. Normally she kept her Force signature hidden, yet with her mind full of a multitude of things, as well as the condition known as 'baby brain' caused by lack of sleep, she had forgotten. Right away she focused on her own Force signature, shrinking it down to that of a small tree nut. Perhaps Silas wasn't trained well enough to pinpoint who among the people on the sidewalk were Force Sensitive and who wasn't.

That was her hope anyways.

Kay turned around then. She had the means to get herself out of an uncomfortable position if she needed to. "No, I don't think we have. Perhaps you just saw someone like me in a dream. Dreams are funny that way." Of course she had no idea that what she was saying was actually true in any way, shape or form.

 

[Dovan Grey]

Silas was smiling, letting warmth come across his face. He wasn’t sure why, but he knew this was where he needed to be. He looked at the woman again, staring deep into her eyes.

“I believe that your dreams are your destiny.” He said. His head swiveled around, noticing a few passerbys glancing at the woman. "Anyone important enough to be in your dreams, must be someone you are destined to know." He looked back at her. "And you seem quite important."

Silas considered what mysterious ways the Force might be moving in. Who was this woman and why was Silas here to find her? Perhaps there was something on this planet for Silas to discover, some hidden piece of knowledge awaiting for him. Perhaps this woman held some piece of understanding Silas sought. A teacher? An ally? An enemy? Perhaps the spirit of nature sought them out for some piece of their heart to be exchanged, in love or loss. Silas searched his mind, reaching out to the Force beyond himself, seeking aid. He had often convinced himself that he was never lost, instead he wandered the galaxy seeking out the unknown. Perhaps this was the start of a path and purpose he might need. Maybe it was all meaningless, the Force operating far beyond what Silas could even understand.

"I'm Silas." He supposed the least he could do was introduce himself.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

He was serious. [member="Silas Lastorm"] was actually serious. Her remarks about being in his dreams was just a guess, and not in any way meant to be taken seriously. Yet the look in his eyes told Kay enough. He did see her in a dream, or many dreams. The question was why? Her own dreams, when she could remember them, consisted of various thoughts and scenarios that she had during the day. There was no destiny about them. The dreams that she could recall the most were her nightmares of her abduction and months of torture. That had changed her in ways that was still recovering from, the nightmares being the last of that ordeal to haunt her.

Kay could see that he was focusing, utilizing the Force to try to discover who she was or maybe for something else that he might of seen in his dreams. Given that they were standing while others were walking to whatever destinations they had planned, the two strangers were starting to gain attention. And that was something that she didn't want.

He introduced himself. Wonderful. How was she to respond without turning any more heads? And it wasn't as though she wanted to be rude to the man either. But still she was hesitant in revealing anything to him. "I'm headed to the Chasin Tea Hut. A nice quiet place at this time of day and they serve a variety of the Queen's favourite Sapir tea. Sometimes she goes there to purchase some of their stocks. You might want to try your luck there if you want to talk to anyone of importance."

And with that she turned and continued down the sidewalk. There was a private room in the tea hut that Kay used at times. Usually it was to sample some of the newer flavours of tea, but sometimes it was to hold meetings as well. Whether or not Silas would follow her, she didn't know. But he seemed curious enough about her to do so.

 

[Dovan Grey]

Silas wouldn't remain still. He felt something moving, like pieces of a purpose shifting his stomach. His feet almost moved out from under him as he followed the woman. If she wanted to speak, he had to know what all of this was for. Maybe she might have the answers. He reached out to her in the Force, but felt nothing. Not even the cool stillness of the air or heat of the sun, only an absence. Silas had heard of these powers in the Force before, but he believed he only felt other's do it when he was younger and not as in-tuned with the Force. Now that he understood it better, the lack of it felt more like a wound in his soul. Something missing that should be there. Interesting. She had some understanding, some knowledge of the powers to do this. Was that what he was here to learn?

"A tea shop?" Silas said, but was quite certain that Lady Kay was out of ear shot. Not where he expected to find the secrets of the universe, but he knew there was a great deal he didn't know. Silas did enjoy tea, perhaps they even would have his favorite yarba tea, like Hawshiichol used to make. He supposed the Force could have brought him to a world of molten lava or find lessons in taming Krayt dragons. A tea shop sounded lovely.

He froze. Something in him stopped, unable to function, unable to move. Frozen still, as his felt his bones freeze to feel like ice. He saw black, his eyes rolling back. If he could think, he would scream in his mind. Unsure what was happening. Overtaken by something far beyond himself. He saw his dream again. This woman, the one he was following now. It was just like his dream. She was standing with hand reaching out to him. Just like it always was. His arms reached for her, aching as they extended. That's when the dream always ended, but this time it didn't stop. Her face twisted. In was in pain. Something was wrong, terribly wrong. And the more he stretched, the further away she felt.

Silas was back on the street. Awake and aware once again.

He breathed, feeling sweat forming on the back of his neck. What had just happened? His right hand shook. What just happened? He noticed how quickly he was breathing. Then he looked out and saw the woman. She was still walking forward, back in reality and hadn't seen what had happened. Something strange was happening to Silas. Something unknown. He hurried up his pace to catch up with the woman.

"We need to hurry." Silas said. "Something bad is happening."

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay did hear [member="Silas Lastorm"] as he spoke about the tea shop. But that was only because her ears were attuned to the word 'tea'. Still she continued on, not in any real hurry, afterall, it wasn't as though she was being chased. This was just a casual day, an ordinary day, no trouble would find her, surely.

Yet there it was. Silas caught up and uttered the words that she didn't want to hear. Something bad was happening. A quick glance around revealed nothing. Kay's brows furrowed as she quickened her pace a little, one hand reaching for the wrist pad on her left arm, ready to activate her personal cloaking device if need be. At least she was wearing light armourweave to protect her from some blaster fire at least.

"What are you talking about? I don't see anything and we're almost there." Kay had wanted to wait until they were in the tea shop before asking him these question, but she did so now in case she didn't get a chance, "Who are you, Silas? Who do you work for?"

Already she could see the sign for the shop. It was just half a block away.

 

[Dovan Grey]

"Something is moving in the Force." He wasn't sure if she really was a Force user, maybe he had imagined everything about her presence in the force shrinking. Maybe it was all a part of those...visions, or whatever the hell that was. It didn't matter. They were in danger. If the Force had brought Silas here, only to reveal this idea, this thought in the Force now - then he was likely in as much danger as her. "You have no reason to, but I hope you can trust me."

"I'm not sure what I can say." Silas was matching the lady's pace, moving quickly but calmly through the streets. "But I don't work for anyone. It's hard to explain, but the Force brought me here." He considered the fact that he was unarmed. He rarely carried a weapon, save for when he was with the few occasional rougher or tougher crowds he had joined. "Those words may not mean anything to you, but I think you are in danger and I genuinely have your best interests in heart."

It may have rung hallow, it may have sounded like nonsense to the woman, but she continued forward all the same. Each one of their steps matching the fast pace of the other's. Eventually, they made it towards the front of the tea shop, though Silas kept his eyes looking all around, trying to keep a keen eye on their surroundings.

"What I saw happened outside, so we should be safe to go in. Is there somewhere in there we can talk?" He knew that she would have a million questions, far more than the many Silas had started the day with. Things were changing fast and he knew that he needed to be fully aware in this moment. Something was changing in the Force. Changing in him.

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Oh yes, [member="Silas Lastorm"] was a Force User alright. And he was bold about it too, unlike herself. Of course her reasons for it were perfectly reasonable. With the way that he spoke, it reminded her of her husband, [member="Veiere Arenais"] . He too spoke of the Force always guiding him. He meditated frequently and was always so calm. But Silas had such a sense of urgency around him.

Again she looked around them, eyeing the people on the streets, in the windows, the roofs. If Silas believed her to be in danger, then surely it would come from either of those places? He mentioned seeing something happening outside, which led her to fully believe that he had seen some type of vision. There were many times in which she had wished to have that ability. Yet would she really use it if she did? Perhaps not.

They reached the shop. Kay opened the door, looking to Silas with a curt nod as she answered him. "There's a back room. It's private."

The aromas of various tea leaves surrounded them as they walked in. Kay put on a smile to the shopkeeper behind the counter practically beamed. "My Lady, welcome back! And you look so well. Shall I fetch your usual?"

"Oh yes please. Maybe a little extra, if you can spare it. And do you mind if I use the back room?"

The shopkeeper eyed Silas. "Not at all. Everything alright?"

"Oh yes, not to worry." Whether or not the shopkeeper believed her, Kay didn't wait to find out. She headed to the back room and opened the door, gesturing for Silas to walk in before she stepped inside as well, closing the door behind her and locking it. "What is it that you've seen?"

 

[Dovan Grey]

They were safely inside, feeling warmer and safer, but Silas' eye continued to shift. A number of fragrances wafted from the teas, but blended together in a soothing, lavender scent. He followed the woman, she knew this place well. Though she walked with confidence and a hidden power in each step, she seemed more relaxed here. Through, he knew there was an uneasiness in her, as was to be expected in the situation. They made their way into the back room, darker lights gave the room an intimacy, the cushioned seats added comfort.

"Even after I explain, I am not sure it will make much more sense." Silas said. "I doesn't even make sense to me." He took a seat, rubbing the back of his neck. He wasn't sure what he had expected on this world, this strange errand from the Force, but it wasn't this. Things were feeling more dangerous than he had planned for. "A little while ago...I started to have a dream. I saw you." Karkin' Force. He had always been a disciple of the Forces and the mysteries of the universe, but forcing him to do this was uncomfortable. "Just your face, standing in the sun. Simply that. Then, a few nights later the dream came back. It kept happening" She was making the tea, listening intently to each word as he spoke but Silas couldn't make out what she was thinking. There was stoic presence that was intimidating. "I'm not sure how to explain it, but then I was lead here by the Force. It brought me to you." He looked at her for a long moment, words running in his mind. "Then once we meet, I had...something happen. A flash. Or vision. Something. It was the same dream, but then I saw you were hurt. I was trying to reach out to you, but couldn't." He paused once again. "I don't know what it means, or what is happening. I'm sorry, I don't have answers." The teapot whistled, startling him. They poured the tea in silence, letting a moment passed as they reflected.

"This has never happened to me before." He spoke up. "I have always felt my connection to the Force, I was raised by a herd that worshipped it and Mother Jungle. I've never experienced anything like that." Silas rubbed his temples for a moment, a pulsing still trapped in his skull. Then he looked at her for a moment before continuing. “Through the Force, I seem to only be in orbit around your axis. I suppose what’s really important is who you are.”

[member="Lady Kay"]

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay stood and prepared the tea while [member="Silas Lastorm"] spoke. She took out the Sapir tea leaves from one of the assortment of pouches available and crumpled them into the cups. There was no need to measure, she knew the right amount to use by heart. Her mind was on what Silas was saying, revealing a few details of reacurring dreams that he was having.

Dreams about her.

It was more than just some random dream caused by seeing her on some holonet broadcast. There was more to it. Such things don't repeat.

She poured the hot water into the cups and stirred them with a spoon. There was no need for milk or sugar, as Sapir leaves had a sweetness all their own. The leaves had a tendancy to dissolve in the water too. That was part of why she loved it so much.

Kay brought Silas his tea, handing him his cup before sitting herself down on an adjacent chair. It was hard to figure out what to say to him, for neither of them knew what the dreams could have meant. There was only so much that she could reveal. "The Force is...a puzzle to be sure. I know it well enough as I'm married to a former Jedi Grandmaster." She sipped her tea, her eyes studying his own. "I'm Lady Kay Arenais, the Queen of Commenor and High Queen to the Commenor Systems Alliance." She couldn't help but laugh a little, perhaps to ease his tension. "It's a mouthful, I know. Too many titles for one person to have." Another sip of her tea was taken. "Trouble has an uncanny way of finding me. Is that what you are, Silas? Are you trouble?"