Private What Lurks Beneath

[Arcturus Dinn]

It had taken him quite some time to load up the repulsor sled with the various bits and pieces he'd promised his contact, items previously stowed within the cargo hull, or even the Beholder, from far off lands. Junk in the eyes of most, but he knew better, they knew better, and it was going to help fund their continued use of Leviathan so he couldn't complain. His beloved ship was quite the fuel guzzler, after all. Maybe one day he'd see fit to procure a ship better suited to prolonged travel, but for now he wasn't too concerned.

"I'll be back shortly," he informed Tamiko, who was no doubt pottering around the vessel, "If you leave, put on a respirator... And try not to wander too far. It's easy to get lost here."

Then he returned his own respirator to its place over his nose and mouth, ready to recycle the toxic air of Raxus Prime, and stepped back out into the junk-filled landscape of the world.

Of course Tamiko was welcome to join him, if she wished, he wouldn't stop her from witnessing the exchange. He just knew that it was important that they have time to themselves, too, it was a little suffocating at times to share the same space with another. Especially when they were traveling through a void, incapable of truly stretching their legs. Arcturus didn't mind it, it was better than the years of isolation he'd experienced before, but he wasn't sure how the girl felt. Better safe than sorry, no?

The Rodian was waiting for him at their designated drop off point, just a short while north from the ship itself. "Do you have what we agreed?" he inquired, to which the reptilian responded in his own tongue. "And the sand?" Affirmative. "Good." Arcturus pulled back the large piece of oil cloth which covered the scrap, and stepped aside so that the Rodian could inspect his wares. Further affirmation.

"I'm going to need the sled back" he stated, crossing his arms at his chest. "I'll know where you are if you don't return it." The Rodian handed him two sacks, one significantly heavier than the other, and after inspecting the contents Arcturus nodded his head. "Good. I'll meet you here again at sunrise. Don't be late."

Sunrise. That gave them just shy of a full rotation to explore the world and stretch their legs. Arcturus began the slow trek back to Leviathan, wondering what treasures might await them among all of the trash.

Tamiko Sabo​

 

[Tamiko Sabo]

​

Arcturus Dinn

Raxus Prime

The first stop in their planet hopping expedition, and it was quite literally a horizon line of smoking garbage. Couldn’t have been more fascinating of a choice.

Tamiko had made good use of her time spent airborne, breaking in the new equipment she’d been generously granted. The protocol droid, to his infinite misfortune remained nameless for a time. Seemingly indifferent to being indecisively referred to as “droid” as she trudged through the list of assignments Arcturus had given her. Leaving the bot to casually flip through the pages, as she tinkered and mulled over the information in her free time. The mind harp proved more challenging of a project. Nonetheless she tried her hand at it, admittedly without much sign of progress. The instrument was seemingly unreceptive to forming a bond, hardly managing more than a few soft notes at a time. She never claimed to be musically inclined after all. But through all her frustration, her ability to atleast search for a connection gradually sharpened.

Having been loosely explained the reason for their business there, Arcturus summarized it as a pit stop, an exchange of goods Tamiko was welcomed to tag along for. It would be a lie to say the garbage pit of a planet didn’t have a complete hold on her attention. After all she knew the inherent usefulness dormant in whatever junk lined the landscape.

Fiddling with the respirator she secured it over her face, “Like I’m going to stay behind.” Amused, she turned towards Arcturus as they readied themselves to leave, "Interested to see what funds your lifestyle.”

When they arrived at their destination, to her satisfaction Tamiko could immediately sense the presence awaiting them. Or more so awaiting Arcturus and whatever goods he had on hand. As Arcturus initiated the conversion she peered over at the Rodian then towards the sled. The Rodian responded, some bit of dialogue lost to Tamiko as Arcturus easily interpreted it as confirmation. Quiet inspections were made by both parties and seemingly satisfied the exchange drew to an end. Brief and straightforward.

The two headed back in the direction of the ship. Her eyes dropped to the bag as they traversed the path bordered by stacks of discarded items.

“Did I hear you say sand?”

​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

Though she remained quiet during their exchange, Tamiko had indeed chosen to accompany him. That made the trek back toward their ship all the more promising, as he wasn't left to his own devices for very long before questions drifted up from the girl. Without missing a step he turned his gaze toward her and nodded.

"Aye, sand," he replied, lifting the heavier of the two bags and realizing how little of his own projects he'd actually bothered to reveal to her thus far. "It's useful for my projects. Think pocket sand, but... With varying properties." He shrugged, and lowered the bag again. For all that he'd been creating with it, there were only a handful of people privy to his work. It didn't make sense to keep her in the dark where such was concerned, though.

"Get it in your eyes, or your bloodstream, and it might blind you for a time--" he realized how stupid a notion that was to bring up with the girl, but he'd already said the words so he sort of grimaced apologetically, "or make you sleepy. I'm working on a few new variants, though, and for that I need more sand. This stuff's from Tython, from a place called the Silent Desert."

It was a fascinating place, or so he'd been told, where noise could not travel. He hoped it might assist him in forming pocket sand that caused a similarly deafening effect, but right now that was all just speculative. Still, the illusionary sands from the Nether had done the trick so why not this?

"I may not be your traditional tinkerer" he mused aloud, as he slowed to a halt and surveyed their surroundings. Plenty of good scrap in the vicinity, if one knew how to search for it. "But I do enjoy thinking outside of the box. Say, we have more or less a day before we're due to meet with Skurl again... Do you maybe want to see about restocking the project room?"

There was so much junk to sift through, though. It could take them a hundred thousand years to find something of worth, not to mention the fact that all the good surface level stuff was likely to have been picked through already. Arcturus frowned, then he turned back to face Tamiko.

"How's your telekinetic practice coming along, Apprentice?"

Tamiko Sabo​

 

[Tamiko Sabo]

​

Arcturus Dinn

Keeping stride she looked over speculatively as he lifted the bag in demonstration, the grains shifting in response. "So you’ve been playing with weaponized sand? Good to know I’m at least half immune.” A slight tease playing in her voice she continued, evidently fascinated by his description, "Rather niche passion project no?” Course that was to be expected at this point, well within character. Interesting how tinkering could manifest itself. While definitely more inclined to strictly mechanical projects herself, she felt confident she had the leverage to branch out anytime.

At the mention of traditional tinkering and his apparent exclusion from it, a grin pulled at her lips, “Sounds about right.”

Sensing Arcturus slow to a halt, she followed suit, briefly scanning the surrounding landscape. Shame she couldn’t see the possibility it was brimming with. Turning to examine the heaps of scrap as Arcturus spoke she found herself nodding, “Seems as good a place as any.”

He then went on to ask how her telekinetic abilities were shaping up. Understanding what Arcturus was insinuating her attention turned towards the mass of trash encircling them. The answer to his question was undoubtedly slow. She’d taken to levitating different targets as exercise whenever she could really. Holding her Caf still in the air as she searched for additives to stir in, balancing a book here and there, learning to turn the lights on and off from wherever she was seated. But her endurance proved to be minimal, and so did the durability of most of the mugs she unintentionally sent shattering against the floor.

Nonetheless, the challenge sparked interest in her. She’d take the chance to practice where she found it.

Staring up at the dump she adopted a contemplative look, “Take it we’d risk being buried under a heap of scrap if we shoveled through this regularly.” After a moment of deliberation she directly responded to the question he posed, “I could probably fish something out.” A hand reached to scratch the back of her neck, ”More or less successfully.”

Dropping to a crouch she tapped against a warped piece of metal sticking out from one of the piles. “How do I know if it’s useful though?”

​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

"I'll have you know," he retorted, with something of a glimmer of amusement in his eyes, "That pocket sand is a gentleman's weapon of choice. I've simply... Elevated it." Elevated, that was one word for it wasn't it? He could blind his foes, or he could put them to sleep, or make them view wild illusions, or even give them a glimpse of their future... Deafening them was simply the natural next step.

"One day maybe you'll want to dabble with adding the Force to your constructions too, and when that day comes I'll be more than happy to help guide you. I do warn you, though, it's a slightly addictive habit." Arcturus' most recent project lay upon his belt, a pouch of... stones? Well that's all it would seem like to anyone else. He was excited to put them to good use, though.

Still they'd come to a halt amidst the junk, and Tamiko expressed an interest in scavenging as he'd hoped she might.

"We could do it the regular way," he offered with a shrug, "but I fear we'd be here all year. The Force can make quick work of mundane tasks, and though there are some out there who might argue that doing so is somehow unbefitting, that it's wrong to use the Force in such a way, I'd argue the opposite. Why have access to such abilities if we don't make good use of them?"

If there was a more efficient way to do something, Arcturus would seek it out. Time was precious, he only had so many years in his life and there was much to be learned and experimented with. This was why he kept constructs around, his golems and the like, but they were back on the ship. And besides, they wouldn't have much luck here either. No. The Force would be their ally this day.

"You won't know if it's useful until you unearth it at this stage. Perhaps you might get a good feel for its shape and size, and deduce from there, and in time as you become more familiar with the presence of items in the Force you'll have an easier time separating them. For now though... Consider this more of an exercise than anything else. A journey, not the destination."

There'd be something buried beneath, of that he felt certain.

"Besides, I'll work with you this time."

Tamiko Sabo

 

[Tamiko Sabo]

​

Arcturus Dinn

“I’ll take you up on that.” Tampering with forces she only had a loose grasp on was an invitation she’d readily accept. After all there was only so much you could do with machines.

As Arcturus went on to express his opinion on the force and its proper application she loosely nodded, though her attention was more taken by the surrounding scrap,“Don’t have much taste for ritualism either.” Experimentally she kicked a discarded droid part before drawing it up with the force, with notably more ease than any prior attempts. A hint of satisfaction bloomed, but she didn’t dwell on it, turning around the droid part absentmindedly as if trying to deduce its construction.

He called it an exercise, spun it into a teaching moment with ease, “So this is why you wanted a student, have them sift through scrap for you.” With humor in her eyes she set down the droid, turning towards Arcturus with light enthusiasm.

“Where should we start?”

​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

"Good."

Truly, he hoped she did. Another imbuer would always be a good thing in his books, someone new and innovative to shake things up and put a fresh spin on things. Sithspawn was the typical go to, or alchemized blades, but there was so much more that could be done. With any luck, Tamiko wouldn't simply fall into the typical roles most did with it.

So too did she express an agreement to his view on utilizing the Force. Rituals were all well and good when they served a purpose, in his opinion, but to hold the Force to weird standards was a little... bizarre? Then again he'd never fed into the notion that it was some sort of deity or the like. All he knew was that he could draw upon it, and so he did.

It had freed him from more than his fair share of binds over the years.

Arcturus turned and watched as she drew upon the Force and lifted up a droid head from among the scrapheap. Her pride blossomed, readily felt by him in that moment, and he smiled encouragingly. It had almost been an instinctual act, he noticed, there wasn't much in the way of hesitation.

That was good. She was learning, growing.

Her question had him laughing. "You got me, that's precisely why I wanted to take on a student." Nevermind the fact that this hadn't been planned, he'd never given thought to taking a student before, barring the promises made to Ishani what felt like an eternity ago. But life had a way of throwing curveballs, and he'd long since learned to roll with them.

So far? Yeah, this had been a good decision. Arcturus was glad his speeder had broken down where it did.

Her final question had him glancing around, scanning the nearby vicinity. "Somewhere with a lot of little pieces of junk, I reckon. Unless you're feeling especially bold. We could try moving that durasteel sheet over there." He nodded to the distance, and sure enough what looked to be a panel from a ships outer hull lay covering yet more scrap that couldn't be seen beneath the surface. Arcturus crossed his arms, and peered at her.

"You know, the size of the object doesn't matter. Not really. Most would have you start with pebbles and the like, because it's easier to visualize lifting them. But pebble or sheet of metal? It doesn't really matter. What does is your strength of will. So... What'll it be, Apprentice?"

A lot of little things, or one hulking behemoth of a roadblock?

Tamiko Sabo

 

[Tamiko Sabo]

​

Arcturus Dinn

Exhaling a quiet laugh, she shifted, loosely crossing her arms. Casual back and forth had become commonplace between the two. It was hard to understand how innately lucky she'd gotten in that regard. Instead of some stiff-spined authoritarian with no other goal in mind then obedience, she found herself under the direction of someone parallel. Someone who cared about her progress outside the realm of his own legacy.

The divergence from tradition would've been appreciated to its full extent if Tamiko had any perspective on how truly unregulated her apprenticeship was. How Arcturus ensured she'd be free from the burden of heavy formailtes, enabled to forge her own path in whatever direction she desired.

Course she had an inkling of all that, they were using the force to dumpster dive after all.

Attention redirected as Arcturus took survey of the land, she looked over at him expectantly. Mulling over his words she turned in the direction she sensed him to be pointing at, as if making her own determination.

Pebble or sheet of metal?

Tilting her head as she looked back towards Arcturus with a light shrug, "Well we aren't looking for rocks." Whatever confirmation Arcturus gave, they trekked the short distance to the decided destination, coming upon the hulking mass of durasteel.

She could immediately recognize the sense of size it provoked. Some looming roadblock, demanding the entirety of her spatial awareness. She certainly hadn't attempted anything this scale before. But if Arcturus had said anything of use it was the acknowledgement her success today depended on her strength of will.

"Looks promising," Jokingly, a wry grin pulled at her lips. She didn't place much confidence in herself, but nonetheless the urge to try was there, "To be fair you did warn me."

Summoning a shroud of focus she let her senses extend, willed forward by her own determination. Her eyes closed meditatively, outstretching a hand in an attempt to concentrate the flow of the force washing past her. It was a first step, no doubt one Arcturus would have to match her on if they were to make any progress.

​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

"No," he agreed, at the talks of rocks, "We aren't.."

As Tamiko made her choice, Arcturus led her closer to the durasteel sheet and therein paused. He could have moved it himself with relative ease, he'd unearthed temples buried in sand before now this was nothing in comparison, but he didn't. Not right away at least. Instead he turned and watched her, focusing on the way in which she drew upon the Force and tried to lift it of her own accord.

To shoulder too much of the burden at this stage would not be doing her any justice. He had to at least give her the opportunity to do it for herself, to fumble and fail if that was the outcome. It was the best way to learn, after all. To grow. If everything came too easily, artificially inflated by his overarching support, she'd never learn to do things for herself. And it was so rewarding to see her blossom.

"Focus, Tamiko, and don't forget to breathe. The Force flows through all things; you can do this."

But whether it would be her first try or her tenth remained to be seen. He had promised her his help, that she would not do this alone, and he'd make good on that promise... Eventually.

Tamiko Sabo

 

[Tamiko Sabo]

​

Arcturus Dinn

His words of reassurance reached her, even though she gave no indication of listening. Summoning a perception of strength, she reached out, the imprint of the structure seared into her mind. The strain of what she was attempting made itself known immediately, crashing down on her in varying torrents of intensity. With gritted teeth she tried her best to shoulder the exertion, to let it fall around her painlessly. In result, and to her infinite surprise, the structure shifted if only slightly. A whine originating from the weight of the durasteel fluctuating against whatever scrap laid beneath. She exhaled a somewhat incredulous laugh, equally satisfied and taken aback. Bracing herself to further exert her will, the girl's ability wavered precariously under the continuous pressure. This was no easy task, it wasn't made out to be in the first place.

"I've got this" the words landed slightly breathless, some brief reassurance directed inward.

Closing her eyes once more the girl centered her focus. The image of what she sought to achieve replayed over and over in her mind. Wrapping her awareness around the sheet she willed it to succumb to her control, surrendering whatever potential it hid under its surface. Gradually, very gradually the durasteel slid from its place. Responding with the audible grind of metal against metal. She stood there, working the hulking roadblock out from where it stood, reassured by her progress.

Finally when the effort felt too demanding to push past, she relinquished her control. Slipping back into the familiarity of her own mind, the exertion lingering as a faint imprint.

She certainly hadn't uprooted the sheet by any means, only sliding it from its place. But nonetheless in the narrow allowance of space she'd managed to unearth, a generous stretch of scrap laid ready for the taking.

Exhaustion pulling at her limbs she shook her head in slight disbelief. "Damn I wouldn't have wanted to do that without a crutch." Loosely referring to the force in such terms, she pushed past her fatigue looking to make some assessment of whatever she'd dug up.
​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

He hovered close by, watching on with bated breath as she sought to tackle the sheet of durasteel by herself. She didn't even try to get his help, instead bolstering her own strength of will by reminding herself that this was something she was capable if only she tried. Truly tried.

And try she did.

The durasteel whined each time it was minutely shifted in place, creaking against the rest of the trash it was covering. Though it was a grating sound, like that of nails on a chalkboard, in that moment it was music to his ears. It revealed her competency. As small as each shift might have been it was motion all the same. A broad smile formed over his lips.

She didn't give in. Didn't falter or stumble. She drew upon the Force and utilized it to her own gain.

And ultimately it paid off. Not with some great lift, the sheet did not end up skyward, but with a clawing drag. Sheet was moved, and remnants beneath unearthed. Arcturus had never felt more proud.

"Very good, Apprentice... Very good indeed." He stepped over to where she was, fatigued and drained from the exertion, and settled a hand upon her shoulder. "Rather than try and force it up, you shifted it... That was smart. Achieved the goal without taking too much out of yourself. With time it will get easier, I promise you this, but the Force is just like a muscle and it must be trained and strengthened. Look at what you did of your own volition, Tamiko, I did not have to step in for even a second."

Releasing her shoulder, he stepped forward and hoped that she would follow. Over to the scrap previously covered by durasteel. He used the toe of his boot to loosen some of the pieces, then crouched down to inspect.

"Looks as though the rest of that droid is here," he remarked with a dry chuckle. Sure enough, an arm, legs, torso. No head though, wherever she'd kicked that to earlier. There were plenty of other items too, things that Tamiko might find interesting.

But within it all, one thing in particular stood out to him.

"Well I never." He carefully lifted the small cylindrical device out of the scrap, and set it within his palm as though it were some fragile creation. Another glance around did not yield any more parts of the greater device it belonged to, but all the same it was quite the unexpected find. The power cell would come in handy one of these days, whenever they saw fit to take Tamiko's training to the next level and looked into getting her a lightsaber of her own.

Tamiko Sabo

 

[Tamiko Sabo]

​

Arcturus Dinn

In response to Arcturus's encouragement she offered an appreciative look. His acknowledgement undeniably meant something to the girl, however much she tried to conceal it. “You could say I have a knack for problem solving." Feigning arrogance she shot Arcturus a humorous look. Her abilities weren't honed enough to accomplish much more than what she had. That was acceptable for the time being. But dissatisfaction would creep in eventually, already fostering a want to improve.

At his mention of not having to intervene Tamiko exhaled a quiet laugh behind her mask, "This would've been nothing for you, wouldn't it? Glad you let me struggle." Though it was delivered as a joke, his reservation was genuinely appreciated. Allowing her the independence to test herself at whatever extent she sought.

Tamiko didn't dwell on the small sense of triumph that lingered. It was only a first step, one she felt convicted to succeed eventually, welcoming the motivation to set higher expectations.

Shadowing Arcturus she crouched down to inspect the overflow of scrap herself. Though the kid's expression remained obscured by the respirator, Tamiko's eyes gleamed with interest. Similarly to Arcturus she shifted her weight, prodding lose a few items with her boot before taking them into her hand and turning them over in speculation. Fishing out a few promising objects from the batch, she laid them aside. Collecting a small assortment of mechanisms sourced from a range of droids to ships. Certainly something that could lend itself to any upgrades she saw to add to the protocol droid. An easy experiment if she ever found herself in the mood.

A moment elapsed before Arcturus's exclamation drew her out of inspection, causing the girl to look over her shoulder with a quirked eyebrow. "You never what?" From her spot Tamiko straightened, leaving the scrap where she found it.

Treading over to Arcturus and whatever item absorbed his attention Tamiko peered at him expectantly, eyes dropping to the power cell. Course she couldn't see the device for what it was, but the sense of revelation casted out from Arcturus outlined something of importance.

Extending a hand as if asking to examine it herself, the girl's gaze briefly flickered up at Arcturus, "What is it?"​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

Her mock confidence was not something he was wholly unfamiliar with witnessing. It was commonplace for those who felt insecure within their own abilities to try and seem stronger than they were, to act as though they were relatively unfazed by their limits and shortcomings. It was, in a way, peacocking. Eventually it would either consume her personality, or she'd grow out of it once she saw first hand that her powers could develop with enough time and commitment.

Arcturus would certainly have to keep an eye on it. For now, though, it wasn't anything to be concerned about.

Especially not with how quickly she tempered it.

"Not exactly nothing" he offered with a shrug, downplaying it just a little for her sake, despite her joking tone. It was a teachable moment either way. "But I refuse to step in and do something for you before you've even had a chance to try for yourself. I'm not going to coddle you, Tamiko. Nor does it seem like you'd want me to."

Soon enough she turned to the task at hand, as did he. He could hear her pulling items from the pile, though he didn't hover so closely that he could tell what they were exactly. No, let her find her own treasures. Figure out how things felt within the Force.

When he unearthed something which pulled an audible remark from him though it seemed as though Tamiko's attention was also drawn. At first it was just a question, but soon enough she was by his side and asking to feel whatever it was. He offered it out without giving it a second thought, letting it rest within her hand.

"It's a diatium power cell" he explained, shifting slightly where he knelt to better look up at her. He had to shield his eyes against the sun. "One of several crucial components which make up a lightsaber. Go ahead, you can keep this. Force knows at some point we'll have to work toward getting you a saber of your own."

Of course with that came lessons in how to wield one...

But they could cross that bridge when they got to it.

Tamiko Sabo

 

[Tamiko Sabo]

​

Arcturus Dinn

A component to a lightsaber, and a step towards her own. Fascination gleamed in her eyes along with a sense of eagerness, manifesting itself with grin. "Definitely like the sound of that."

Taking a hold of the power cell with all intention of diving into more questions, something stirred deep in the outskirts of her awareness. Tendrils of movement encroaching the very edge of her mind's eye, blurring a grasp on reality. A feeling of disembodiment slithered around her limbs, harmless but nonetheless startling when paired with the involuntary occupation of her senses. The dissociation was gradual but consuming, the force calling out to her in a way she couldn't quite answer.

It was all whispers at first, painfully confusing and indistinct until a fervent mash of action steadily delivered from the haze. A lightsaber, wielded masterfully by some power hungry figure. Drawn in harsh lines of contempt, Its faceless wielder beared down on an opponent, only to be matched by the characteristic screech of blade sliding against blade.

Practically instantaneous, the scene fled her vision, as did the feeling of detachment.

"The hell-" The pair of quiet but intense words slipped her lips reflexively. The device nearly dropping from her hand in recoil. Thankfully the girl managed to keep an instinctive grip on the power cell, releasing it after a moment of surprised deliberation, the white in her knuckles fading.

Brow furrowed in an fruitless attempt to make sense of what she'd just witnessed, the girl quickly recovered, unease replaced with confusion. This wasn't like the time Arcturus had projected an image into her mind. There wasn't the slightest trace of his presence.

Arcturus, undoubtedly unsuspecting of whatever just occurred, was probably concerned to say the least. A realization that only struck her after a moment lost in thought

"I- saw something." Blurting out the words, she straightened."Like actually saw something." Looking over at Arcturus the girl shook her head slightly, struggling to find the words "At least I think. It was more like a vision, but not-" A pause "not like what you showed me." Pushing forward she searched her mind, trying to collect her thoughts, "There was a weapon, lightsaber I think. Whatever sword this belonged to." Turning the device over carefully she peered over Arcturus with skepticism ,"What the hell just happened?"​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

Sadly one component did not a lightsaber make. And if they were hoping to unearth more here they'd probably need several years just to make one hilt. Still it was a step in the right direction, and if nothing else it allowed her some time to adjust to the idea that she would be getting one of her own in time. Maybe he'd have to see if he still had an old training hilt aboard Leviathan. They could repurpose the meditation chamber into a training room of sorts, it wasn't huge but it was definitely enough space for some light sparring.

His thoughts were shattered with the sound of her confusion, and he blinked and glanced over at her moments later.

"Everything alright, Tamiko?" he asked, unable to keep the concern from his tone. Arcturus stepped over to where she was crouched, only to find her straightening up soon after. The accompanying words were nothing short of a marvel for him, and he cocked his head slightly to the left as he listened and regarded her in something of a new light.

This was an interesting development, after all. Most interesting...

"Well, I'll be." He placed his hands on his hips and shook his head, something of a still-slightly-concerned chuckle emanating from within him. "Psychometry. A rare talent indeed, my Apprentice. It allows one to glean snippets of an items past, through the Force. For the inexperienced it's largely uncontrollable, but with time? Well, with time you'll at least adjust to it."

Arcturus nodded his head appreciatively as he pondered on it all the more.

"An unexpected development, to be sure, but an exciting one I'd argue. Are you okay, though? I understand if it was perplexing, scary even."

Tamiko Sabo

 

[Tamiko Sabo]

​

Arcturus Dinn

Psychometry

Did every hidden facet of the force happen to have a name? Certainly she wouldn’t know, no matter how relentlessly she poured over the texts Arcturus had given her. The extent of what was possible remained a perpetual mystery. One she felt compelled to unravel.

Wordlessly she examined her hand, turning it from back to palm.

“Yeah-” she let her hand drop back to her side, evidently wrapped up in thought, “Fine.”

Inexperienced was a well deserved moniker. This being her first brush with anything of the sort. Her escapades as of late likely had something to do with that. Meddling with the force as constantly as she had the past few weeks likely stirred something dormant. A revelation she mulled over, clear by the expression she wore. The potential latent in this newfound power wasn’t lost on her.

Exhaling a dry chuckle through her nose she crossed her arms, “Slightly offended you think I'd scare that easily.” The comment was a bit deflective, despite the inflect of humor. Course she’d been caught off guard, but she didn’t want that to come across as weakness. Not to Arcturus. Feeling the constant need to prove she had enough grit to stand on her own. “Promise I can handle a little jumpscare from the force.”

She turned over the power cell once more.

“Think it's obvious that wasn’t intentional on my part.” Cocking her head slightly she peered up towards Arcturus, “You said I could ‘adjust to it’, does that mean learn control or?” She trailed off somewhat aimlessly. “Eventually could I deliberately tap into an object's past? Would that be something you could teach me?” A genuinely open statement she didn’t know the answer for.
​

 

[Arcturus Dinn]

"The Force can be intimidating at times" he informed her, cutting through some of that bravado she insisted on wearing like armour, "Unexpected uses of it particularly. It makes us feel out of control, and that... That is scary. There's nothing wrong with that, Tamiko."

Arcturus lingered close by in the aftermath, there was plenty of junk around which might trigger a similar reaction from her especially now that she was awakened to the fact that it was possible. He watched as she fussed with the power cell in her hand, and listened to her questions. An idea came to mind then, but he shelved it for now.

"Yes, with enough time and practice it is something you can do intentionally. I cannot say with any certainty whether it would completely stop the involuntary visions here and there though, were you to come upon an item with a real story to tell. Simply put, I've barely any experience with Psychometry. While it can be learned, it's most often found in those with an innate talent for it. A talent I do not possess."

He scratched at his chin, feeling a slight grit where his typically shaved stubble was trying to grow in.

"I do know of someone who might be able to help you with it, though. When next we're in the Core. It would require a visit to Coruscant, though, and I do have business in the Tingel Arm before we can head back that way. Do you think you can last that long without pursuing it further? I can give you the information I have on it, show you what I know, but I fear it may be pitiful in comparison to a true master of the art."

Would she even want to return to Coruscant? He pondered that as he awaited her response.

Tamiko Sabo