Private Where Is He

[Alina Tremiru]

It'd been too long since she last spoke to Arcturus Dinn . In the Sith, allies were hard to come by. Friends, more so. Did Alina truly consider him a friend though? It was hard for her to answer that. But he had been there for her when she needed to end the life of her own mother. Had he not, it was unlikely she would of survived. With the constant war of the Empire she hadn't had the time to check in on him afterwards.

And when she came by to find him, she only learned he had gone. Not just gone, disappeared without a trace. Was he in trouble? Did he just want time on his own? She had no answers, and that alone was frustrating. It'd been a while since she was last in the Korriban academy. Her more recent knighting and her own troubles kept her from the place of learning. Being back there now, with her head held high and the strength she commanded, well. It was drastically different from the unsettling feeling she had wandering through the halls. Mix that with the sense of purpose behind her gate, and few stood in her way.

Even fewer stayed in her path once they met her eyes.

There was one she was looking for. If rumors were to believed, she too was searching for him. The sliding door to the classroom was kicked inward. Yes, the sliding door was forever bent as if it had hinges and was a more traditional kind. All eyes snapped to her as she approached one of the desks. Yellow eyes stayed focused on the one individual she was here for. Ishani Dinn . Her face betrayed no emotion, yet as she spoke it was clear there was no room for dismissal.

"You have answers I need. Come with me."

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Sitting at a work table, Ishani was holding a beaker between tongs, carefully pouring the liquid inside into a container. The door behind her was suddenly kicked open. Ishani jumped. The liquid sloshed out onto the table, where it began to smoke. Her eyes widening, she backed away, looking around frantically for the cleanup droid. The floating sphere bobbed over to spray a foaming substance onto the fake wooden surface, neutralizing the chemical spill.

It was only then that Ishani turned her gaze to the newcomer which everyone else in class had been staring at, only to find herself locking eyes with a vampiress.

"You have answers I need. Come with me."

Slack-jawed, Ishani could only squeak out, “Me?”

She sort of recognized the woman, just enough that she remembered her first name was Alina. Nothing else was known—as far back as Ishani could remember, they had never interacted with each other, never been partnered for an assignment, never sparred in the training rooms, never allied together or come to blows. This request—no, this demand—that she accompany Alina had come completely out of the blue.

“What is the meaning of this?” the teacher, a male Zabrak, demanded. “You cannot barge into this classroom and take students out on a whim.”

But when the woman trained her predatory gaze upon him, he couldn't stand it and looked away, defeated. This was an alchemy class, not combat training. The teacher was not some great warrior who could stand up to any threat. Like everyone else in the room, he was just a nerd with magic powers.

Ishani blanched as even the teacher backed down, too afraid to stand up to Alina. She glanced at the tongs in her hand, still clutching the half-empty beaker, and carefully set them down. Apparently she had no choice in this matter.

“Uh… okay,” she replied, stepping forward to follow Alina out of the room. She wiped her sweating palms on her black tights, not sure where she was being taken. All she could do was hope she wasn’t in danger.

Alina Tremiru​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Alina gave only a nod once Ishani Dinn agreed to come along. What they needed to discuss was important, but to do so in front of strangers wasn't something the Knight was willing to do. She lead the way through the halls, glancing about the various class rooms until she found one that was empty. And far enough from the acolytes original class.

Once inside the Sangnir seemed to soften. She let out a sigh as she leaned against one of the desks, glancing back to Ishani. "I'm looking for Thesh. Couldn't find him, but I learned you and him were close. Or something. Enough for me to think you might know where he is. And I'm not a foe. Just.. Concerned." Like that'd be believable after her entrance. Really, she wanted to show strength before weakness. And this, in the eyes of many, would be considered just that.

"At least tell me if he's okay?"

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Ishani walked with a slouch, her hunched shoulders making her appear even smaller as she followed Alina out of the room. The vampiress led her to another, empty classroom, not bothering to turn on the lights as she passed through the doorway. Creature of the night and all that. Ishani reached over to flick the switch so they wouldn’t be standing around in the dark.

Alina was quick to make her intentions known. Ishani blinked in surprise. Thesh… this was all about Thesh? Alina knew Thesh? Were they friends? Closer than Thesh and Ishani? A pang of jealousy shot through her, already coveting whatever established relationship there might be between the two of them. Alina was stronger than Ishani, no doubt. Better at fighting. More independent, unlikely to be a burden to her friends…

“I don’t know where exactly he is,” she replied, speaking just a little too softly. She cleared her throat and raised the volume of her voice as much as she could, but it was still meek and timid. A little voice for a little girl. “I heard… rumors that he was at some kind of Sith university, but I went to all the big schools I could find, and he wasn’t at any of them…”

This was only partially true. She had gone to one or two academies in person, and scanned a list of known centers of learning, but none had jumped out at her—none said Thesh is here, come and get him—so she had given up the chase, hopeless. It was hard searching for someone when you were all alone in the endeavor.

“I don’t know if he’s okay or not,” she admitted. “I’m worried about him. I don’t think he’s… he’s dead, or anything like that, but I haven’t heard any word from him, and nobody seems to know where he is, and I just don’t know what to do...”

Alina Tremiru​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Any other Sith very well might of picked up on Ishani Dinn 's pang of jealousy, but Alina couldn't sense emotions. That just wasn't the type of Sith she was, after all. She crossed her arms over her chest, listening to the shorter woman. Sith university? There were plenty of academies in the Empire, but Thesh wouldn't go there. And Ishani couldn't find him in Eternal space?

The only other place she could think of is Warlord space. Not exactly somewhere she wanted to go. An exhausted sigh escaped the woman as she rubbed at her brow. At least Ishani was worried about him. Half of her expected a cold and uncaring answer customary to the Sith in Eternal space. She was different. Like Thesh. Like herself. She pushed herself off the desk and nodded once.

"Then we'll go find him. Do you know Melydia Gold and where to find her? I imagine she might have her own ideas."

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Ishani didn’t know Melydia Gold personally either, but she could put a name to the face. Bit hard not to, given that she had wings and referred to herself in the plural. Apparently Thesh was friends with her as well. Gee, was the guy cultivating a harem or something?

“I don’t really know her, but I know where she is.”

Ishani led the way to another classroom. She reached out to knock on the door, only to sense Alina gearing up to kick it in. She got out of the way just in time.

Alina Tremiru​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

"That works for me." Alina followed after Ishani Dinn as they made their way to Melydia Gold 's room. Class room. Didn't matter which. Sure enough the unnaturally powerful Sangnir lifted up a boot and kicked the door from it's frame this time. There were two reasons for this. First, stress relief. With all the wars she'd been in and now the unknown of what might of happened to Thesh, it was a welcome way to get out her anger.

The second, stop anyone from getting in her way. A show of strength and likely unnecessary flex. She stepped in, scanning the room for a moment.

"Melydia, we need to go get Thesh. Come on."

 

[Melydia Gold]

Since the bout on Ossus, Melydia had a multitude of subjects for study. She'd missed most of the action back then, caught up in the collection process and friend-making of a new environment. Even now, she'd forgone food and sleep in the interest of pouring over her work as wholistically as she was able her notes shifting from almost-neat to mostly illegible as time went on. The thrill of discovery and commitment to her craft sustained her when others would crash.

Speaking of a crash, she gave a squeak as the door was kicked from its frame. Having been so involved in her work, she'd missed any sort of warning others were coming. Even now, her sudden scramble to defend herself was a chaotic mess of wielding a pen in one hand, a small creature ready to throw in the other. "We need to wha-where is Thesh?" Her brow furrowed, unsure if this was a training exercise or true emergency, as well as what the door had done to deserve its obliteration. Nevertheless, at the mention of going places, she began the process of packing her research up.

Alina Tremiru | Ishani Dinn ​

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Melydia was, as Ishani had already noticed, a little pixie—though she was far from being a fairy. Her features were twisted, bearing the signs of alteration with the Force, and her mothlike wings had a ragged quality. Ishani had yet to see her fly, but it didn’t seem like she could fly very far with them. Despite this, she radiated a darkness that seemed woven into the very fiber of her being, greater and more pervasive than one would expect was possible from such a slight creature.

“Uh,” Ishani began, preparing to answer her question. “Thesh is gone. Missing. We’re looking for him. Do you… know how to find him, by any chance?” Ishani almost hoped she didn’t know, as it would make Ishani look like a fool for not asking around among Thesh’s friends in the first place. But she was far too awkward and shy for that. She never would’ve gotten even this far if Alina hadn’t barged in and forced her.

Alina Tremiru | Melydia Gold​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Ah, right. Perhaps she should of explained it more. For all her commanding attitude brought in at least getting this group of three together, the tact and why was something still lacking. Nobles she could handle. Fellow Sith, well. It was good Ishani Dinn was there to explain the details. Even with it being Melydia Gold they were speaking to, it was unlikely Alina would be able to get anyone else to help them. Well, she probably could get Melydia to at least.

"If you've no idea, we'll have to go to warlord space or find any information on whatever academy he might of gone to. Likely both."

 

[Melydia Gold]

Melydia's brow furrowed, head cocking to the side. Thesh was missing? No, that wouldn't do at all. She had been meaning to talk to him regarding tarentatek care. "No, we haven't seen him since - wait..." She cast a glance over the table she was working on, amber eyes scanning over the various notes and crawlies that had accompanied her before...there. A hand drifted toward the table, finger resting in front of a beetle, allowing it to crawl upon her before drawing the hand back in. She'd given a similar beetle to Thesh once, one that'd grown fond of the other acolyte in the small time it'd been exposed to him.

"If he's close, perhaps this one might be able to find their sibling," she explained, eyes flicking from the other two and back toward the beetle on her finger. "We cannot track him from afar, but this one might point us in a direction as we tread closer."

Alina Tremiru | Ishani Dinn ​

 

[Ishani Dinn]

There was a slightly petulant cast to Ishani’s mouth as she pursed her lips. Melydia suggested using a beetle as a tracking device, while Alina’s plans were far grander. Ishani had nothing to offer except what little information she had.

“It’s safe to assume he isn’t here on Korriban,” she said. “I heard that he was at some sort of university. Although… I guess we could check his quarters here and look for clues?”

Her tone rose at the end of the sentence, turning it into a question, and her face went a little pink. Scouring space for Thesh was one thing, but raiding his room was another. If there was a chance that something in there could tell them where he was, of course it would be worth it, but… she didn’t like the idea of breaching his privacy. It would be weird. The beetle most likely would lead them there, however.

Alina Tremiru | Melydia Gold​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Beetles. That wasn't much of a surprise for Alina, when she thought about it. Melydia Gold had plenty of her.. Friends. Right, that's what she called them. Honestly, it'd been too long since she last saw her insectoid friend. After they found Thesh, she'd have to find time to hang out with Melydia again. "So we need to find where he's gone. At least, the general location." That wasn't exactly what she was hoping for, but at least it made actually tracking him down easier.

Her gaze shifted to Ishani Dinn as she spoke. Then.. Blushed? Did she blush? What exactly was her relationship with Thesh that she'd blush at the thought of going to his room? Or maybe it was something that happened in the room? A coy grin formed as she slipped beside the smaller woman. "Oohh? His room huh? We'll find all sorts of things in there, I imagine. If he's unpacked at least." Yep, this was now something she was doing.

 

[Melydia Gold]

With a nod of general agreement, Melydia's curious gaze turned to Ishani as the other acolyte's face reddened, forehead creasing with renewed curiosity. Was she sick? That would explain the sudden flush of color. Yet the thought left her mind on a breeze, just as quickly as it had entered. She instead nodded enthusiastically, still scrambling to stuff some items in her bag and put away others. If they were expecting a trip, it wouldn't do to leave the classroom in such a mess as it had become.

"Even if he isn't, we may still be able to use it, get accustomed to the presence he leaves behind." Scent, too, though she doubted scent would be nearly as useful a tracking device, not for her or her hive of friends at least. With the last of her items properly (or as properly as possible given the rush) stored, she slung her bag over her shoulder. The lightsaber that'd been resting at the end of her workbench drifted to her belt with a vacant thought as she slipped on the jacket that'd hung over her chair. "Let us go, then," she said after one last once-over of the table.

Alina Tremiru | Ishani Dinn ​

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Ishani’s face went from pink to scarlet as both Alina and Melydia took notice. The pixie seemed confused by her reaction, but didn’t much care, whereas the vampiress grinned toothily as though she had just uncovered a juicy secret. Great, just what Ishani needed. More fuel to feed the rumor mill.

But there was no time for her to babble about respecting privacy; they were already on their way out of the classroom. Ishani, who didn’t know where Thesh’s room was despite having suggested they check it out, followed along behind Alina, who evidently knew exactly where to go. How did this vamp know which room was his? Her expression souring, Ishani avoided thinking about it.

Rather than living in a dorm, Thesh had a suite all to himself. Alina took care of the door for them, whether by kicking it down or using some more subtle methods, and the three strode inside. It was nicer than most of the other students’ quarters, though not exactly luxurious—there wasn’t much furniture, for one, and most of it was too neat and didn’t look lived in. The one exception was the desk, which was strewn with pieces of metal, strips of leather, tools and equipment in a rather chaotic manner.

If Alina still thought Ishani had been here before, it was now obvious that she hadn’t. She took in everything with fresh eyes, seeing it all for the first time, though there was a stiff reluctance to her movements that made it clear she felt like she was trespassing. Drawn to his desk, she looked over the scattered remains of an incomplete project that had been abandoned in Thesh’s absence. His disappearance clearly hadn’t been planned.

“Should we… check his comms, or something?” she suggested awkwardly. If they were going to be truly thorough and leave no stone unturned, they would have to sift through any data they could get their hands on. Computer files, search histories, encrypted messages. Presumably Melydia would release the beetle here and see where it led them, and Alina… would stand guard, maybe?

Was it possible they would get in trouble for this?

Alina Tremiru | Melydia Gold​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

For once Alina didn't kick in the door. In fact, she seemed to know how to open it without any trouble before offering Ishani Dinn the first step in. As ever, the coy grin remained. It wasn't hard to tell she was jealous of something. The fact that nothing had ever happened between Alina and Thesh made it that much more entertaining for the vampire.

Though her gaze shifted to one of concern once she did enter the room. A mess? Thesh never seemed to be alright with leaving a mess behind. The fact there was one here just meant he had to leave in a hurry. Or was she jumping to conclusions? It's not like she'd been to his room after the first time. She nibbled her inner cheek to stifle down that sense of worry before it'd show.

"Recent calls might give us a clue on who he talked to." Alina didn't do the whole standing guard thing. She lifted up one of Thesh's datapads, idly scanning through it in a hopes to find something. Anything. He was a good kid. Someone who could change the Sith for the better. Just what kind of trouble did you get yourself into?

Melydia Gold

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Glimpsing Alina already flicking through a datapad out of the corner of her eye, Ishani headed for a personal computer sitting on the corner of the desk. When she turned it on, it requested a password. Hesitating, Ishani looked around the room one last time, hoping an obvious clue would materialize and prevent her from having to slice into Thesh’s private data. But there was nothing of note, at least not in the living room.

Bypassing the security was fairly easy, though as an amateur hobbyist slicer, it took her a few minutes of careful trying. Once she was in, the first thing she noticed was the number of unread comms. Even if Thesh had left willingly, he would be able to access this account from any device with Holonet access—so either he was willfully ignoring everyone trying to contact him, or he was somewhere without access to the Holonet. Most of the messages were from the same person, though both the sender’s name and the messages themselves were too heavily encrypted for her to even try to decode.

One message jumped out at her. Minimal scrambling, dated from shortly after the invasion of Ossus. She tried her hand at decrypting it, and felt a rush of triumphant relief when she succeeded.

Thesh,

I have been informed of your conduct during the battle at Ossus. Since I doubt your superiors will, I feel I must commend you for your bravery and compassion. The younglings you escorted to the shuttle have all survived and were successfully spirited away to safety. For one such as you, I imagine a clean conscience is its own reward, but if you find yourself in need of a safe haven at any point in the future, you may contact me at your leisure.

Sincerely,
Professor Errik Nimdok

“What?” Ishani blurted. “Thesh saved younglings… at Ossus?”

On the one hand, she thought of course he would. Saving children on a battlefield sounded like something Thesh would do. On the other hand, she was quick to catch on. He had saved children in Silver Jedi territory, when he was part of the invading forces. Jedi younglings. The difference meant nothing to her—children were children—but she knew there were a few people among the ranks of the Sith for whom it would make all the difference. Such individuals were few and far between, however, so could that really be why he had disappeared?...

Alina Tremiru | Melydia Gold​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

Alina immediately paused once she heard Ishani Dinn blurt that out. Then hissed. She rushed over, looking through the email. Yes, that said where he went. But there was something worse there. Protecting the enemy. ".. Delete this. Get rid of any trace you can. There's too many Sith here that wouldn't take kindly to such truths." There was an urgency to her voice that betrayed just how worried she was about this. Once she was sure the acolyte had deleted the information she straightened, glancing around for Melydia Gold .

"Do you have anything about him contacting this Professor Nimdok?"

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Ishani did as Alina ordered, deleting the message and all traces of its existence from Thesh’s files.

“Uh… it says the message was never read before now,” she replied to the vamp’s question, assuming she had directed it at her.

After a moment, Ishani began typing rapidly, her eyes glued to the computer screen. A quick Holonet search told her who Professor Errik Nimdok was. It was that easy.

“Professor Nimdok… he’s affiliated with the Jedi,” she said. “Er, sort of… it says here he got in trouble for writing an expose of New Jedi Order war crimes…” She was even able to look up pictures of him. Weird that this guy wouldn’t bother with proper encryption; his face was available to the public eye, along with contact information. Either he was naïve, a little dense, or so confident in his own power and safety that he didn’t need to worry about strangers coming after him. Ishani had a faint inkling it was the latter, but you never knew—they say stupid people far outnumber smart people, and being a professor didn’t guarantee you were intelligent.

Alina Tremiru | Melydia Gold​

 

[Alina Tremiru]

A Jedi? Thesh wouldn't leave to join the Jedi, would he? Alina's lips thinned some as she scanned through the articles Ishani Dinn pulled up. Whomever this Nimdok was, after they found Thesh she'd have to have a conversation with this person. First, though. Thesh. "I don't think he'd go to the Jedi, even after helping them. They're not.. Too kind to dark siders."

Melydia Gold