Within The Dark

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

Val let out a listless sigh.

His mind was stuck on family. Aerith and himself had never had children, not genetic ones anyway. They’d fostered several kids over the course of their marriage, younglings who had either lost their own parents or who had simply wandered away from their farm. Each one had eventually left of course, either to another family or world, but...well he couldn’t help but wonder.

Were any of them still alive?

What about his own family? His father? His mother had died during his birth, but...well he had no idea whether his longevity was due to her or his father. As a boy he had first pined for, and then resented the idea of his father. Now though, now that he was alone, he couldn’t help but wonder if the man was still out there.

Or if like everyone else he was dead.

He frowned, then heard Ryssa appraoching.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

It was odd. Unknown to either both were very much along in the Galaxy. While Ryssa hadn't lived the long life that Val had, she was ultimately alone. No surviving family and her acquaintances were little more than that; contacts for jobs and references for their skill set. That came about through no fault of their own as much as Ryssa's aloofness. While she could be rather sassy and blunt, she didn't easily let people in.

It was just better not to.

Crossing the threshold caught Val sitting on his freshly made bed. It struck her that he appeared rather glum. Shoulders had sunk a bit and he was in deep thought. Feeling awkward again, Ryssa slowed her step. She'd gathered one of her extra pillows - she had a total of two- and had brought it over. She held it out first.

"Sorry, all I have." She began, followed by the extension of the bright magenta band shirt.

"Same with that too. "

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

”It’ll do.” Val said as he took the pillow and put it beside himself, taking the shirt as well. He looked at it for a moment, staring at the picture on the front and perking an eyebrow at her for a few moments before stretching it just slightly.


The shirt was large, but still a little too small for him.


As he pulled it over his torso it stretched slightly, fitting tightly around his collar before he shifted the cloth for a moment. Buying clothes was difficult for him, usually he had to have them tailored specifically for someone of his size, that or they wouldn’t properly fit in some way. It was obnoxious, and most of the time expensive.


”I appreciate it.” He did. ”I’ll find something else when we land.”


Perhaps a coat. The shirt wasn’t doing much for him in the warmth department.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

Ryssa figured it would be a snug fit; she just didn't realize how snug. It practically hugged every muscle like a second skin. It also didn't help that it was bright pink with massive aurabesh letters written over his chest,'Jodi and the blowfish.' To make matters worse - or better- the small artsy Blowfish was right over his right pec. A wild hilarious thought care to mind that if he flexed it would make it seem as if the blowfish was swimming.

That prompted a snort giggle that escaped. One that she tried to hide with a cough.

"Umm yeah--"a gesture back to the crates" if you want more blankets or sheets, you'll find then there."

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

Val didn’t say anything. He realized that the shirt probably looked ridiculous on him and there was no point in trying to maintain his dignity at this point, besides, Pink wasn’t that awful of a color anyway.

He shifted on the bed.

”So where are we headed?” The question might have come a bit suddenly, but he needed a way to get the conversation moving again, and off the topic of this tiny shirt he was wearing. Perhaps the seriousness would return to her, or maybe in her more amused state Ryssa would reveal more about where they were going.

Either way it benefitted him.
Just by the fact that she’d given him a bed he guessed their trip would take at least a day, that mean they were headed somewhere far.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

Ah, reality check. Right. Random Gauntlet, cultists out to kill them, and annoying nobleman who better have some 'splaining to do.

"Tion." Ryssa replied simply, moving to secure the rest of the crates before trying to put the area back in some level of chaotic organization. "Should take about two days or so." her ship was fast, but it wasn't that fast. Not to mention it would require several hyperjumps once they reached Tion proper. Then checking into Lianna before hunting down the man who hired her.

"Galley is down the hall, past the lounge and to the left. Feel free to grab what you want to eat." a pause then a small grimace.

"No fresh meat though. But there are protein bars in the cupboards."

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

Protein bars would unfortunately have to do for now.


Fresh meat was hard to come by in space, unless you happened upon an Exogorth or something of thought sort, though they were difficult to kill. He frowned for a moment and then followed after Ryssa so that he could keep speaking to her.


He’d never heard of Tion before, or rather...well no he’d never heard of it before. The Corporate Sector was familiar to him, but only because of old holo-docs that he’d seen. Tion was a bit too detailed for him to actually know what she was talking about. He tried not to show his ignorance as he questioned her. ”Where is Tion?”


The question was said with a serious expression.


It was clear that he wasn’t trying to trick her or be humorous, but that he genuinely had no idea where it was that they were going.


No surprise given that he’d told her he was a farmer from the outer rim.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

Queue disbelieving look. When Ryssa caught Val's blank expression she gave a blink. Right. So she could either take that as face value or as truth. Humoring him would do no harm in either situation so the Changling added this over her shoulder, " The Tion Hegemony. It is near Ossus." all sapients knew about Ossus right? Considering how many attacks it had in comparison to Coruscant and Naboo, everyone had to know about the Jedi Order World.

"Lots of named titles and family lineages with deep pockets." that last bit had been added with a wry note in her voice. The petite woman led the bulging muscles in a pink shirt down the length of the Skygazer. She wasn't kidding about the lounge, although it had a circular acceleration couch and a few lamps here and there. Nothing fancy again. It appeared that Ryssa herself was caught in between a utilitarian design and organized chaos in others. She likely didn't take the time to relax much here but spent it in her room.

"Here it is." she added, coming to a halt beside an open door. Yup, the galley. "Snacks are up there. " another finger gestured to the machine at the far end.

"But you can use the food processor to create a steak of sorts." fabricated by nutritionally balanced food materials of course. Not sure if there was a gluten free option though.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

Val vaguely knew where Ossus was. There had been enough stories even on his world about Jedi massacres and Sith Slaughters. Of course that didn’t really help him much since beyond the Outer Rim most worlds seemed...kind of just blend together. He had no idea where anything really was, just vagaries.

”I see.” He said quietly as he peered around the galley, frowning for a few moments as he tried to logic out exactly where they were going.

It was pretty far past the core, and entirely far away from the Outer Rim itself. Their trip...he frowned again as he suddenly realized that he would be going further from home than he had ever gone before. For some reason that put an odd sort of pit in his stomach.

The feeling was a bit silly, but...well it was a first for him

”I suppose It’s the place for something like this.” Rich people did love their trinkets, that was true everywhere. ”Are you from there?”

He ignored her comments on the galley for now, choosing to dig instead.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

Annnnnd here we are at it again.

Yup, Ryssa knew exactly at where he was getting at. She gave him a hard look and gave a sigh.

"Just where the most recent job came from." she told him. It was the truth and but it also said she wasn't going to delve into that conversation again. Her history was her own. She was fine with answering basic questions. But when it came to her personal life -- no bueno.

She pushed herself off the bulk head and turned as if to go back to the cock pit.

"If you need anything else, guess you can just poke me. But otherwise than that...." she let her fingers fly through the air as if in thought.

"Don't go wandering into the cargohold."

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

He followed after her like a bored puppy.


”Why?” He supposed that was likely where she kept the things she robbed from graves and tombs.


It made sense really, where else was she going to put it? She clearly lived on this ship, and he highly doubted that she had some sort of home base somewhere, if only because she avoided the questions of her homeworld like...well like water avoided oil. He frowned slightly, trying to right himself with the idea that she likely would never share where she had come from.


At least she wasn’t one of the cultists.


That much he knew for sure by now.


He still wondered what had happened back in that village, how all those folks had very suddenly, and very harshly turned on them at the drop of a hat. He didn’t really understand the force, but at a certain point...one had to admit that things were getting particularly...well mysterious. What other explanation was there for things like that?

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

Was he really going to do this?

When she felt his lumbering girth follow behind her, Ryssa resigned herself to the fact that he was. Great.

"Because I doubt you'd find anything interesting in there." Well, maybe not quite true but it was better off that he not go wandering in the cargohold.

"With the crazy day we've both had itviscbest if you... I don't know, rest a little?" A hot puff of air blew blue strands away from her flushed face. It was so weird to have anyone on her ship.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

”I spent most of my day resting.” He reminded her.

The pool of course had healed his back almost completely, and by now the scabs had likely half become scars already. The shrapnel was still stuck deep in his skin, but for now there was nothing he could do about it, not anything pleasant anyway. Yet he had still spent the greater part of the day either lying around in pain or sitting in a pool of water.

”I have plenty of energy.” He told her. ”Could probably run a marathon or two.”

That might have been a bit of an exaggeration.

Even he needed to rest sometimes, and even though right now he felt great, he knew that in a few hours hunger would start to consume him like nothing else. The protein bars would hold him over, but they would hardly be effective in...well keeping him sated for long.

After two days he’d likely run to the nearest market, or try to use that contraption she’d pointed out to him earlier.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

At that Ryssa came to a halt, spinning on the balls of her feet to give him a hard look. Granted she did so a bit abruptly so Val might not have caught how quick she came to a stop in the tiny corridor. Her head tipped back as if to say something to him, but depending on if he managed to stop or crash into her, he'd hear the following;

"I seriously doubt that you are in any condition to run in anything."

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

As a big guy, Val usually carried quite a bit of momentum. It was part of weighing so much. Even if that weight was mostly muscle, it was still hard to stop, especially all of a sudden. He shifted slightly and tried to stop himself but instead went bumping into Ryssa.

His hands flailed for half a second.

She nearly went falling to the ground, but before she could drop all the way Val reached out and grabbed her. His hands went sailing to her hips, fingers latching onto her to prevent her from falling onto the ground and bashing her head against the ground.

He was chivalrous like that.

A true hero some might say.

”I can run for miles.” He boasted, though he was unsure whether or not it was actually true or not.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

The verse went on tilt again. Had it not been for Val's quick reflexes, she'd have gone crashing to the ground. Her bruised body was grateful; her need for personal space ... not so much.

"Oomph!" she managed to huff out, yellow eyes growing wide as her hands fell upon the hot pink fabric over his chest. A small flash back to the cave and getting pressed against the wall came to mind. More color rushed to her cheeks and she gave a slight cough.

"Thanks." she managed, trying to push herself away. "Note to self, don't stop suddenly when you are around." came the half mumble. When she got her bearings and her legs again, Ryssa attempted to make herself a little bit taller by standing straight.

"Well, you don't have to do that here. You're the one who still has metal stuck in his back." Ryssa reminded him.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

He noticed her back stiffening slightly, the way she tried to make herself perk up and match his height just a little bit. It was an odd thing, considering the height difference between the two of them was so great that...well she didn’t really have much of a chance even if she put on a pair of Twi’lek hooker boots.


”I know.” He let her back away slightly, but his hands remained on her hips.


It was an an unconscious act really.


He had no idea what Tion would be like, but from what Ryssa had described he imagined a bustling trade hub, perhaps something like...well he didn’t really have a comparison in mind. There were a few busy trade worlds in the outer rim, but he imagined that they were nothing compared to what one could find near the center of the galaxy, especially in a place like that.


”I don’t think we’ll have to do much running anyway.” Val said quietly. ”Unless there’s something I don’t know about Tion.”


It wasn’t a knock at her, just a comment.


He really was ignorant when it came to the rest of the galaxy.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

A small tick could be felt at the corner of her eye. Oh bloody hell was she really going to have to break it down to him how Tion worked? Great. Mild annoyance went dancing across her face. It wasn't his fault really, it was just that Ryssa never had to really go about explaining herself to anyone. This was as awkward for herself as it was for him.

Her hand came up to attempt to brush his hand away from her hip. Space. Definitely needed some breathing space from the manbun. Which wasn't much of one now considering his hair had no ties to hold it back. So now it made him look like a rather rugged lion with a long mane. It had little crinkles on it where it had been tied before.

No, focus.

"Other than people enjoy doing their little noblemen games, no." she added, trying to take a step back to get a breather. A glance at the shirt once again made her lips twitch.

I will never look at a Jodi and the Blowfish shirt the same way ever again.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Ryssa Rourke"]

His hand came free.

”I see.” Val said curiously. Those words perhaps had a different meaning to him than they did to Ryssa. While the rest of the galaxy was mostly...civilized, the outer rim was a somewhat different place.

Though there were various governments that brought order and planetary laws, there were still man worlds that by all accounts were completely out of control. Warlords, Kings, and Even Emperors were common enough, and all of them enjoyed playing a different sort of ‘noble games’, usually at the expense of whomever they ruled over.

”Are they Sith?” The question might have come out of the blue, but as far as Val knew, many Nobles in the regular galaxy were in fact Sith. Lord Vornskr of Panatha being the most famous. ”I know Moridin’s Empire once encapsulated Ossus.”

Though by then it had no longer been his.

He tried to think more deeply about the old holo-docs he had watched, but it had been several decades ago now.

 

[Ryssa Rourke]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

That was a rather strange -- or actually perhaps not so strange - question to ask. It struck the Changling, because she never really considered that.

"I don't know." she said honestly, taking another step back to turn around and head towards the cockpit. However her step had slowed. Honestly she never really considered if the Count who had hired her services was a Sith or not. Or even if he used the Force.

"It has never come up." she added, running her fingers through the length of her cobalt hair. Now her mind was drifting, wondering. "It isn't like Sith like to come out of the woodwork and say they are Sith." well save some of the more ostentatious of them.

There were some that just couldn't stop making a dramatic entrance to highlight themselves as Sith.