Private Wildfire

[Karrigan'Xalda]

Maeve Linahan

Xalda's expression softened at Maeve's words, having apparently been mollified. "I can show you the motor pool and the Yazgid stables," she said earnestly. "It should give you a better view of what we have."
"Best have tribute for Mirza, she gets cranky otherwise," the quartermaster joked dryly. "Appreciate the help if you can get more sky weapons. Can talk more 'bout that later. Off you go," he gave the Jedi a simple nod of acknowledgement.

Xalda guided Maeve out of the armoury, and then down a long tunnel. The pair would have to head further underground, passing numerous rebels going about their business, as well as security checkpoints. The motor pool itself lay in a fairly standard garage that would not have looked too out of place in a GADF base, except that fielded more advanced vehicles.

Inside the garage, Maeve would mainly find speeders, technicals, and armoured personnel carriers. A couple mechanics were carrying out repairs. Xalda stopped before a battered looking Iron Ghoush Infantry Fighting Vehicle. "We took several Firemane vehicles with us when we raided Fort Kerrigan, but many were destroyed at Suqua, and we must ration fuel. My people had vehicles of metal before the sky people came, but they were powered by steam and their weapons were too weak against the sky tanks. So we've had to adapt."

She pointed Maeve to a massive vehicle that looked like a tank someone had mounted a massive grinder and a laser drill on. "That was invented by the Kar'zun. The Crusher of White Towers is what they name it. They can burrow beneath the earth like a Centirax. We used this one to tunnel beneath Fort Kerrigan, and raze the command centre," at that a small smile played on her lips. A fond memory of just retribution. But it was fleeting. "It lives up to its name, but we cannot build many."

 

[Maeve Linahan]

Yagzid? Is that a kind of horse?

Maeve felt foolish to bother asking, but as she followed Xalda into the motor pool, the question evaporated from her lips the moment she laid eyes on the vehicles stored inside—a fleet of speeders and armored transports, including a menacingly large tunneler with the body of a tank. For a resistance focused solely underground, she hadn't expected a pool so vast.

She'd seen bigger, of course, but this gave her hope.

"Incredible." Maeve approached the tunneler and skimmed her fingers across its hull, feeling the armor plating, the alloyed metal. Even with her lightsaber, she'd face some difficulty cutting this monster open. "You could use this to travel across the continent with ease. Drill right under the holding camps. Expand your network. Is there a reason why you can't build more? Is it simply because of cost? Size? A lack of resources?"

Maybe it was all of the above. A vehicle this large was surely to guzzle up fuel like a starving Hutt at a Canto Bight buffet, and the manpower and maintenance to hold it was surely too steep a price. Still, it was useful. Enough to give her an idea or two.

"Hopefully Firemane hasn't made any contingencies against the Crusher if you've already used it in a previous attack," Maeve added. "As for these Yazgid… where are they, exactly? Do you just use them to travel the tunnels underground?"

Elpsis Kerrigan​

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[Karrigan'Xalda]

Maeve Linahan

"All you have said," Xalda replied earnestly. "Fuel is rare, the Crusher is hard to maintain, and vulnerable because it is slow. Firemane can bomb it easily if we are not careful. We can make attack drones easily, but only small ones."

She smiled slightly. "I show you the Yaz now. Come. In the olden days, Qadiri knights in armour on the back of a Yaz were a terror upon the battlefield. Even more so if they were blessed by the spirits. It is a bad idea to charge soldiers with sky weapons though...so we use Yaz to scout, raid, run down fleeing foes, cross difficult terrain. Your sky vehicles are powerful, but they make much noise and their lights give them away. Yaz are a lot quieter, can travel over rough ground, move in and out trees and boulders easily. Even at night."

It was another detour through the tunnels, this one taking them to an underground cave. Eventually, as time passed, their destination would be heralded by the tell-tale smells associated with animal stables. Except, Maeve would not come across fairly tranquil herbivores. Instead, when she looked upon the stalls that were set with wires, she would see large, lizard creatures that walked on two legs. Longer than they were tall, each had a mouth full of sharp teeth and a crushing jaw. Their frontal 'arms' were small, but each beast looked tough. Some hissed or growled when they saw her, others regarded her curiously, predatory eyes tracing her moves.

Xalda led Maeve confidently past the stalls until they reached an unusually big and old Yaz. Her skin was marked by numerous scars, but she stood tall and proud above the rest of the pack. "Mirza. The matriarch," Xalda said quietly. The 'Mirza' was presently being attended to by a grizzled, one-armed Qadiri woman who seemed to be roughly middle aged. The lady warrior petted the giant lizard.

When she saw the newcomers and picked up on Maeve's scent, 'Mirza' licked her lips. The lady warrior attending to her gave the two a one-over. "Is she food or friend?" she wryly asked Xalda in Zandri.
The Xioquo warrior responded in kind, then translated for Maeve with a smirk. "This is Amkara Jai Namzal. She asks if you're food. I've told her Alpsis would be upset and that you're very brave. She's going to tell Mirza not to eat you."

 

[Maeve Linahan]

"That can change," Maeve said in regards to the Crusher. A lack of fuel and mobility made sense, and its size certainly made it an easy target, but in large scale operations, it could just be what the rebels needed to sink Firemane—permanently.

She trailed beside Xalda from the depot, through spiraling tunnels and passages, and nodded at her story about the Yaz. Normally, she would've chalked the tale up as an exaggeration, but the woman was no less blunt than Elpsis. Whatever the creatures were, she had to admit she was a little curious about what they were like.

"These animals sound quite useful," Maeve said, wrinkling her nose at the strange smell of the stables ahead. "But compared to speeders, I'm not sure how they'd fare in a—" She paused, the words dying on her lips the moment she saw them: reptiles, bipedal and twice the size of an ordinary man, with knives for hands and teeth. More beast than animal.

Maeve blinked. "Well, you continue to surprise me, Karrigan'Xalda."

Despite her better judgment, she let herself be led towards perhaps the largest of the Yaz, its hide revealing a map of scars, eyes with a hunger for meat. Maeve's, probably. She resisted the urge to feel for her lightsaber again.

"Thank you?" Maeve replied, glancing uneasily at Mirza and her handler. "I'm afraid I wouldn't make much of a meal. I've been told I'm hard to stomach." She gave a weak smile, trying—and failing—to appear friendly in the face of such a beast. Unlike other Jedi, she never worked well with most creatures. Sentients included.

If only to find out who was stupid enough to try, Maeve asked, "Does she have a rider?"

Karrigan'Xalda​

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[Karrigan'Xalda]

Maeve Linahan

"Captain Nizana Jai Ashal rode her for many years," Xalda spoke. "She was fierce, and strong. Many enemies fell to them. She would summon a duststorm to mask her approach, then strike with great fury. The bond between rider and mount was strong enough for Mirza to find her to her foes. But Jai Ashal fell in battle in a raid a few months back. Mirza tore her killer apart and devoured him. Alpsis rides her now. We joked Mirza would eat her unless she stopped wearing her perfume, but she does not seem to mislike it."

Amkara pointed out another Yazgid. This was one was less big than Mirza, but still very strong and tough. "Hazani Jai Bysara's Yaz. We call her Yildrim because she's fast as lightning," she smiled conspiratorially as if letting Maeve in on some sort of private joke. "She and Mirza are...competitive, so each is good for the rider!" Xalda loyally translated her words from Zandri into Basic.

Yildrim let out a little growl, and raked her claw on the ground. "She's bored, needs to fight soon, or she gets cranky," Amkara commented with a chuckle. As if in response, Mirza raised herself to her full height and growled back even louder, no doubt to assert dominance over her packmate. "We have to keep them apart outside of hunting or they'll fight over who's in charge. Yaz females are communal, but always needs an alpha female to show the others who's queen."

The Qadiri looked at Xalda. "They're hungry for a snack. You go feed Yildrim?"
Xalda nodded without hesitation. "She likes me. Come, Mahave," she said to Maeve. The Xioquo and the Qadiri walked off to collect meat. Maeve would see Xalda pick up a small bag that contained what looked awfully like human fingers. "Firemane thugs," Xalda said by way of explanation. While Amkara fed Mirza some bloody meat, Xalda walked up to Yildrim, who was still grunting and looking annoyed.

Reaching into the bag, Xalda removed a bunch of fingers and held them out towards the beast's large mouth. Immediately, Yildrim bent her large head, her jaw closed in around the offering in Xalda's hand and she swallowed the fingers wholesale. Seemingly unafraid that the large beast could have easily devoured her hand, Xalda withdrew her hand petted the Yaz, who made appreciative noises.

 

[Maeve Linahan]

"Elpsis," Maeve repeated, studying Mirza. Of course Kerrigan would be the one to ride such a beast—only she had the stubborn guts to try. "I'm not surprised. She suits her."

Tempted as she was to reach for the Yagzid, she resisted, instead following Amkara to another that seemed less inclined to tear Maeve's head off. But only a little less. Despite her somewhat smaller size, Yildrim had no lack for teeth, which she bared at Amkara's comments, clawing a fresh mark in the ground. Could she understand them? Maeve hoped not.

Perhaps unwisely, Maeve took up on Xalda's offer to help feed the Yagzid. She pretended not to care about the sack of fingers she picked up—it was gruesome and in no way something the Order would have condoned—but Maeve was a Jedi Shadow, and she'd committed far worse crimes than mangling the hands of criminals.

Still, it made her hesitant in one particular regard.

"So, they have a taste for humanoid meat. That's not worrisome at all." Maeve glanced over at Amkara. "Have they ever attacked their handlers before? Or mauled past riders?" She didn't doubt they had. The real question should've been how many.

Maeve approached Yildrim anyway, staying close behind Xalda with an even closer hand to her lightsaber. She wasn't afraid, but as she said before, Maeve had nothing but poor experiences with non-sentients, even those of the clay-brained variety. Like children, most animals seemed to possess an inherent dislike towards her.

Which was fine, because she disliked them too.

Elpsis Kerrigan​

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[Karrigan'Xalda]

Maeve Linahan

Hearing Maeve's query Amkara glanced towards Xalda. A few words were exchanged between the two, with the Qadiri briefly asking for clarification on something before she said in Zandri: "We feed them sky people so they eat them instead of us now...though sometimes they get hungry and mistake a human hand for a Qadiri one..." At that she held up her bandaged stump of her right arm. "Many years ago. Was more foolish then."

Xalda loyally translated, and added: "A Yaz is no pet. It never domesticates fully." As Maeve approached Yildrim, the giant lizard sniffed her, and snapped at her, growling. Xalda immediately said some words in Zandri. Maeve would not understand them, but they sounded stern and sharp. Yildrim hissed at her, but the Xioquo simply repeated the words.

Staring intently at the Yaz, and never taking her eyes off it, she slowly reached out with her grey hand. Another hiss from Yildrim, but this on was more subdued. "Brave girl, strong girl," Xalda spoke in Zandri, tone soft. Yildrim lowered her head slightly, and when the Xioquo's hand came close she nuzzled it. When she looked at Maeve, it was with wariness mixed with curiosity. The Yazgid's snack had still been bloody, and there was blood dripping down her chin. "She will let you fed her now, if you wish," Xalda informed the Jedi.

Mirza had been watching the exchange, and stood up further on her hind feet, making her look even more taller and imposing and her long tail was straight out. With her head in the air, she bore her crony crest like a crown, and she hissed at Xalda. "She does not like you commanding her packmate, she's telling you that's her job," Amkara said matter-of-factly, though her gaze never left the Yazgid matriarch. "Lower your head, or stare her down."

Xalda seemed to consider this for a brief moment, then stepped forward, slowly, purposefully. For a long, drawn-out moment, the Yazgid matriarch and the Xioquo stared at each other. Until suddenly Mirza snorted, and walked off, head held high. "She's not backing down, she's bored," Amkara said with a chuckle.
"Indeed," was all Xalda said.
"Tell Elpsis to give her a treat next time she wants to ride her."
Yildrim, meanwhile, huffed, evidently annoyed about her feeding being interrupted.

 

[Maeve Linahan]

"Oh," Maeve said at Amkara's lack of a hand. "That's unfortunate."

It was a little more than unfortunate, and it only made matters worse—an appetite for sky people? Wasn't she sky people? Maeve suddenly regretted taking up Xalda's offer to see the stables, and the moment Yildrim gnashed her teeth at her, it took all her power not to whip out her lightsaber and dice the creature into roasted meat-cubes.

She had a feeling the rest of Qadiri wouldn't have liked that.

Xalda didn't seem bothered though. She faced Yildrim and Mirza without so much as flinching, and by Ashla's Light, Maeve had to admit she was impressed. The Qadiri had more guts than half the Order put together—just further proof why she needn't underestimate the rebels, and all the more reason why Maeve needed to prove herself to them, too.

"I'll feed her," she said before unfurling one hand. She called the bloody fingers to her by the Force, gathering it in her palm, then slowly approached the restless Yaz. Rather than lower her head as she should've, Maeve kept her eyes up like Xalda had, forcing a cold and stony glare, bringing her finger-heavy hand forward.

"Bite me and I will kill you," Maeve muttered under her breath, loud enough for Yildrim to hear, though she'd no idea if the creature could even understand Basic.

Still, she murmured over to Xalda, "When was the last time she's been aboveground? Or had a proper meal?" Soon, she'd hoped. She had no intention of being the Yaz's first today.

Karrigan'Xalda​

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[Karrigan'Xalda]

Maeve Linahan

"She was last out a few days ago to scout. If Yaz are out of the sun for too long, they need heat lamps to warm up. We feed them regularly, but they prefer a hunt," Xalda spoke.

Maeve looked stonily at Yildrim. Yildrim looked stonily back at Maeve, snorting.
Xalda looked at Yildrim.

Maeve's hand had so many tasty fingers. The Yazgid sniffed at the human, then seized the bloody fingers with her powerful teeth and swallowed them greedily. Without biting Maeve's hands off. She licked her blood-stained lips.

Xalda gave the giant lizard a slight smile. "She sees you are with me, so she has not attacked. She may do so if you're alone and you do something that unsettles or annoys her because you look like prey, until she gets used to you," the Xioquo explained. Then an idea came to her. "You could ask Alpsis for some of her perfume. The Yaz know her smell."

Meanwhile, Amkara was walking to the stall, a stiff brush in hand. "She needs a rub," the Qadiri said matter-of-factly.
"Should I come with you?" Xalda asked.
"Just keep an eye on her." Amkara approached Yildrim carefully, making no sudden movements and holding the brush up high so she could see it. She softly muttered some words in Zandri. Two stablehands who had been tending to other animals stopped in their tracks, watching carefully as Amkara opened up the stall.

Yildrim turned to Amkara, blood dripping from her maw. For a moment she stared at the 'intruder', then snorted and went back to munching on the bloody meat. Amkara exhaled slowly, then began to use her brush to rub down Yildrim's back around the ribs and spine. The Yaz let let out a low exhale of breath, sounding like a high pitched hiss.

 

[Maeve Linahan]

Maeve didn't like how Yildrim stared her down—teeth bared, nostrils flaring—and her spare hand only inched closer to her lightsaber, ready to carve a second, bloody mouth into the creature's throat. Given another moment, she might have.

Fortunately, Yildrim was not so hungry as she feared.

The Yazgid ate the dismembered fingers delightedly, which was enough for Maeve to back slowly away to join Xalda. She was not prey. She refused to admit that. But after brushing so close to the creature's open mouth, Maeve also didn't bother correcting the Qadiri.

"Perfume?" she said, considering for a moment, remembering what Elpsis had told her all that time ago. Desert Eclipse. Made with Dune Lilies from Tygara. Maeve stifled a smile. "That actually doesn't sound like such a bad idea." It had smelled nice. She just never wore perfume, but perhaps now was time for a change. "Where I might find it, you think?"

Whatever Xalda's answer, Maeve continued to watch Yildrim carefully, feeling the same tension Amkara felt when she approached the Yazgid for a rub. Reason told her to keep her distance, but her curiosity? That was another beast, and always eager to prove herself.

Maeve slid towards Amkara, extending a hand to take the brush. "May I?"

Karrigan'Xalda​

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[Karrigan'Xalda]

Maeve Linahan

"Oh, my lady crafts them for Alpsis and some others. She is very talented, and most kind!" Xalda declared enthusiastically. The Xioquo's red eyes seemed to light up when she spoke of 'her lady'.

Amkara paused when she saw Maeve approach, which caused Yildrim to make an annoyed hiss, baring the many sharp teeth that filled her mouth. No doubt vexed about her pampering being interrupted by some golden-haired, round-eared two-leg who smelt like food but apparently was not for some strange reason.

Amkara knew very little Basic, but the human's gesture was obvious enough for the Qadiri not to need Xalda to act as a translator. "Brush firmly, no sudden movements, stick to predictable patterns," she informed the Jedi firmly. Xalda translated, and Amkara gave Yildrim's back another slow rub so that Maeve could see more closely. Then she handed the brush to Maeve. Yildrim gave the Jedi a beady look when she approached. As Maeve began brushing her, Yildrim would let out a content chirping sound, and as time passed tapped her leg on the ground.

A couple minutes, a somewhat out of breath Qadiri male in tan camouflage uniform entered the stables and approached them. Evidenty he had to walk for a while before finding them. Clearing his throat to get their attention, he spoke in heavily accented Basic. "Sotvan Karrigan'Xalda, Yeedai Warrior Mahave, Lady Commander Jai Saobana summons you for the war council."