Chapter 2: Forges of Ithyari

[Drake 53]

"Agreed," said Tak. He grabbed a can of cola from one of the cooler containers and took a drink before addressing the rest of the group. "Cap'n said he'll give us our briefing in a few minutes."

[Mara 29]

"Yes, I"m sure it will," he said, hoping with all his being that it would.

When Szen and later Lt. Riamor came up, he quieted, listening to their conversation and glad that, for now, Captain Fae had taken him into confidence. Kaden didn't need anyone else knowing about his weakness and sometimes even chided himself for saying anything to the Intel captain.

[Vergere 1]

Once the LT left to go talk to Aeric again to ask about the briefings, Brier raised an eyebrow at Szen, attempting to look stern but instead her amusement shows. "Well, he showed you." She continued to try as hard as possible not to laugh.

[Ayingel 24]

The Captain's failed attempt at seriousness caused Szen to genuinely smile. "So, am I free to ask about your friend from earlier?"

Edited October 2, 2007 by Ayingel

[Mara 29]

Kaden glanced over at the Intel captain, wondering about what Szen was mentioning. He figured it must be something about the mission from earlier in the day but kept his face neutral and instead put his attention on cleaning grass and mud out of Artie's wheels.

[Vergere 1]

She raised an eyebrow, but said nothing. Although she still had an amused look on her features, something about her seemed to close up. "Who, Kier Taylor? The smuggler?"

Edited October 2, 2007 by Vergere

[Ayingel 24]

"Yes, that one."

[Vergere 1]

She shrugged. "You can ask anything you want. Doesn't mean that I"ll respond with the truth." SHe smiled wickedly.

[Ayingel 24]

Szen carefully thought of her first question. "So, how did you meet him?"

[Vergere 1]

She leaned back, arms supporting her as she reclined in the grass some, and looked up at the sky for a moment, debating how to answer. "Gambling."

[Ayingel 24]

Trying to piece things together, she thought a little before her next question. "Did you win or lose?"

[Vergere 1]

Casually, "You heard the conversation. I won his house out from under him, along with his favorite speeder."

Edited October 2, 2007 by Vergere

[Mara 29]

Kaden still focused most of his attention on Artie, though his curiosity is piqued with the new line of conversation. It was ironic to him because of what he and Captain Fae had been talking about earlier. He felt it had been a breakthrough, probably something that had been waiting on the outskirts of his mind for a while until the right person came around and snapped him out of it.

Everything had to change now. Yes, he would still miss her, but he would no longer dwell on the tragedy and instead remember the good times. He had to keep fighting to stop the Empire. It was what she was fighting for. And his parents. Kaden knew he had to let her memory strengthen him now where before it was almost weakening him to the point of hurting his abilities.

He focused his hearing back on the conversation, wondering how much a part of her life this man was to the captain.

Edited October 2, 2007 by Mara

[Ayingel 24]

Szen started to piece things together, but she was still very confused. It was getting very hard to swallow the fact that an officer she had gotten close to had at one time associated herself with smugglers and gamblers. "Why would you have been on Nar Shadda in the first place?"

[Vergere 1]

She grinned widely, a wicked, dancing look in her eyes, and looked at the sky again, as if looking for the moon. "Wonderful resort planet. You know, just the kind of place a girl needs to go for vacation." The grin betraying that she was playing around with Szen some, perhaps making some wild story to see how long it'd be followed.

[Ayingel 24]

Szen's eyes became very wide. She was speechless for a moment, but regaining herself and her composure, she shook it off and thought back to her childhood. The pilots use to go there on their leaves...

"You...you must have been very good at gambling then, I'm assuming. Otherwise you wouldn't be here...Or did you lose so much you needed a new start?"

[Vergere 1]

Brier just grinned, and watched Szen for a few long moments, debating what to say or not to say. Finally, "I'm... decent enough to get by. I beat a Corellian, didn't I?" She watches the girl with intense ice-blue eyes, trying to gauge her as she spoke. She shrugged and idly brushed a lock of hair out of her face and behind her ear, revealing it's pointed nature unintentionally.

[Ayingel 24]

"But he must have been more than just another Corellian to you, otherwise you wouldn't have kissed him." Szen was fighting to keep her frustration limited.

[Mara 29]

His interest heightened when Nar Shaddaa was mentioned: in all his various travels, it was one planet he had never been to.

[Vergere 1]

"Not necessarily. I've been well trained by New Republic Intelligence, I can take any personality I want to on a whim. If I couldn't, I wouldn't have made it to Captain, now would I, Ms. Brǽnen?" She grinned. "I told you... neither of us had the money to pay him for his services. Now, if you'd have preferred me to let you kiss him instead to shut him up, by all means, let me know and the honor's all yours." Her eyes continued to dance with amusement.

Edited October 3, 2007 by Vergere

[Ayingel 24]

Szen opened her mouth with an attempted retort, but quickly shut it. Would she had rather kissed him? He had been attractive, she definitely didn't not notice that. Her mind flew with questions and more frustration, but suddenly she began wondering what would have happened...

[Vergere 1]

Brier just grinned an eerily Corellian, lopsided grin at Szen's silence, and shook her head, laughing softly as she looked back up at the stars.

[Mara 29]

Kaden saw the look in Szen's eyes and now really wondered what had gone on just a few hours earlier between the two women.

He looked back over at Captain Fae. "So you traveled a lot when you were younger?

Edited October 3, 2007 by Mara

[Vergere 1]

Brier looked over in suprise, not having expected the interrogation to continue from another source. Losing her composure for a brief second, she just as quickly regained it, and shrugged. After a long moment of thought, "I had to." She smiled faintly, but something odd was in her expression, and her voice had a more serious note in it. "I'm not human. If I didn't keep moving, I'd be dead." Just by the something in her eyes, it was obvious she'd seen much that she never would or could forget, it was just too horrible, that she'd led a hard life before Intel. However, looking away from Szen to look at Kaden, it's possible the other girl didn't notice the maked pain.

[Mara 29]

He nodded with understanding, knowing that his earlier life was a lot similar. "Me too, uh..." he smiled wryly. "For different reasons, of course."