Private A Question of Conviction

[Leea Pandac]

"And I was having such a nice day..." Leea rasped under her breath.

Seated comfortably in the lounge of the Crimson Wolf, she had been idly scanning galactic news on her datapad while Monari fiddled with the disassembled remains of what might have once been a comlink on a nearby work station. The little clicks and soft snaps were somewhat soothing to the Mirialan; although Monari tried to explain what she was doing, or at least attempting, Leea had found herself overwhelmed by the technical information. Try as she might, Leea had no hope of keeping up with the torrent of data presented in the feeds, indeed it took an effort to sift out things that could be of interest.

However, one title had sprung out, as if the words had been written in contrasting colours: Duke Konray Moving to Felucia as Tensions Rise

That was a name Leea had nearly forgotten, a name that woke bitter spite within her heart. She had hoped the guy had died some time ago, but apparently he was still kicking around the galaxy. Clicking the article, her eyes darted across the screen, skimming through the text faster than the auto-scrolling feature moved. "Yeah, sounds like the same one. Poor Felucians, they have no idea who they've hired."

Pandac dropped the datapad onto the couch as she finished reading, gaze settling into the middle distance. As calmly as she could manage, the near-human stalked out of the hold and to the tight bridge. Leea prodded coordinates into the nav-computer as she slipped into the pilot's seat. The determination within her faltered for a moment and the viridescent hand that had stretched out to grasp the controls halted centimetres away. She spoke to herself, quietly goading her mind into action, "Someone's got to stop this. Before it gets out of hand. You didn't do enough last time, and look what it got the others."

The silent riposte reverberated in her mind, a question of endangering her family here. What purpose would there be in fighting him now; now that war was long gone? What could she do this time anyways?

The response was painful and gave her a feeling of needing to scream out her frustration. Leea knew these worries, these concerns. Far from new, she remembered them from many times in the past. They threatened to melt her resolve and send her back to the couch, where her guilt-ridden conscious would try to block out the memories for days to come. Could she handle that? Would she allow it? The answer came swiftly, "No, I won't stand by." However, a thought occurred to her and she rose from the chair. Giving a sideways glance at the nav-computer, silently awaiting confirmation for the input coordinates, she sighed before walking out of the bridge.

For a few minutes, it might have appeared that the Mirialan wandered the halls of the cruiser, and perhaps there was some truth to it. The mental barriers to action putting up a final resistance to the impetus that drove her headlong into the fray. Nonetheless, Leea soon found herself beside Talohn, her senses focused less on the environment and more on the person as she forced herself to remain grounded, despite the heady emotions coursing through her being. She prepared to speak, and yet as her mouth opened, she found herself lost as to what to say. How could she convey the history and rage that this one person, in a galaxy full of fell beings, had awoken within her? Leea suddenly found her mind seemingly recalcitrant to the idea of formulating a sentence of such hate. Instead, the emotions just festered, their acidic twinge reminding her of just how long they had sat dormant within the deep recesses of her memory. Anger roiled within her as she recalled the battlefield so distant in her past.

This bled not a small amount into her speech as she spoke rapidly to her friend. Words seemed to flow without ration at first, inarticulate and incomprehensible, syllables strung along to form words without overarching structure. "Duke war, flame guards. Felucia ubese, enemy..."

A few moments of this continued, until at last Leea sensed enough of the emotion had been diluted enough for her to coalesce comprehensible sentences. The words came slower, more deliberately, but the frustration was still all too evident, "Some Felucian villagers have hired Duke Konray to assist in concluding a conflict between tribes. I- fought against him awhile ago, he'll burn and butcher everything to ensure he gets paid. He killed most of my friends from Makeb." For a moment her breath caught, as the pressure of her emotions began to build, but she forced herself to continue with only the slightest of coughs, "I can't let him do it again. I'm going to go stop him, whatever it takes. I just need a drop off near his camp, and a pickup when I'm done."

Talohn Atar

 

[Talohn Atar]

Despite Talohn's occupation, the daily ongoings of the ship were much more like that of a household one would have in their childhood, in comparison to the usual regiments and militaristic style of crews that typically flew this sort of vessel. Leea would have found a long time ago that she would have plenty of time to pursue her interests, as piloting the ship was only a half time job. Talohn himself handled ship repairs, perhaps occasionally asking Leea for help, though he seemed to prefer having overwatch of how his precious corvette was cared for no matter the case. Security wasn't a concern whether they were on world or off world, since either Zlova or Madlad were present if Talohn was gone. Both of them were more than capable of handling any threat that arose. The only issue was cleaning up the mess afterwards.

Madlad had been idly tampering with one of the holographic game computers when Leea suddenly spoke up. That single lensed gaze turns about to look at her, the droid's head tilting to the side slightly in curiosity. "Felucians? As in the fungi people?" It's lens flashes blue for a moment, signaling that a holonet search is being done. "Correction. Reptile people. Doesn't change that they look like mushrooms though." It's then that Leea wandered off, muttering to herself. The droid simply shrugs before going back to calibrating the dice system. Madlad knew that if it was important, it would find out.

Talohn had been in his room when Leea arrived. His room was a more open affair than one would expect. Having grown up in a tent with multiple people, he wasn't too obsessed with privacy. He typically left his bedroom door open unless he was changing, or if Zlova wanted the door shut, since it was her room as well at this point. The room was a cozy place, with the bed positioned by the sea of stars that was just outside the window. Talohn liked to watched the stars till he fell asleep. He remembered it as one of the few things that calmed him when he first left home to experience the wider galaxy.

The shelf on the wall was lined with various souvenirs and trinkets from his adventures. A few knives, some exotic plants, though prized the most amongst them on the top shelf seems to be a quite well cared for golden coin. The coin itself was of Zygerrian make judging by the language carved into it, though no culture had used coins for a long time. It made one wonder how old the coin really was. There was also a fair collection of books. It was odd, no one used books anymore. Save for Talohn it seemed. The books were all in catharese, and seemed to be tattered with age. Perhaos stories of his home planet? Signs of Zlova's occupancy existed in the room as well. Heels over by the closet, a red holocron sitting on the coffee table that was in the middle of the room by the small sofa, and hints of various other objects of hers littering amongst Talohn's stuff throughout the room. Overall, the room hinted towards a happy and healthy relationship, despite the fact that one would expect otherwise from a sith.

The cathar was dressed in his usual attire when Leea arrived. Simple sweatpants and a white shirt. He seemed to be tinkering with that blue lightsaber he got all that time ago in his encounter with the Amalgam. Talohn looks over, his attention taken from his work as Leea arrives and suddenly starts rambling. He gives her a reassuring smile, placing the lightsaber aside to make sure Leea knows he's listening. "Calm down. One thing at a time."

His smile fades as she explains the situation, raising a brow in that way a parent or sibling does when they a bad choice is being made. "Just you? Leea, you're always so fast to assume that people aren't here to help. So eager to go it alone." He shakes his head. "So let me correct you." Talohn states as he stands up to his feet, patting her shoulder as he walks past her. "We will need a drop off near his camp, and a pick up when we're done." He states simply. "I'm going to get armored up." He adds as he exits the room. Talohn was never as emotional or soft with Leea as he was with Monari. It just didn't seem like a familial tie he should try to force upon Leea. Sure, he saw her like a little sister, but he believed it best to give her space. If a time ever came that she needed a hug or anything like that, he knew she would come to him. Until then, it was pats on the shoulder, reassuring statements, being there to help whenever he was needed.

Leea Pandac

 

[Leea Pandac]

Talohn's room held a certain mystique to it, perhaps it was the oddity of the domicile's owner that permeated it, although it was equally possible that Zlova's growing presence in the room had altered some fundamental aspect. Whatever the cause, the effect was subtle. Under other circumstances, Leea might have been unnerved, her emotional momentum slowed by the mysterious aura. Yet, this particular situation stood as an outlier, the sheer weight of her thoughts so preoccupied her that any reservations about entering the room evaporated like wisps of mist under Tatooine's suns. Even as she spewed her inarticulate nonsense and the following more sensical statements, whatever sway the room may have exerted remained utterly repressed.

Talohn's calm perhaps irritated the young Mirialan, her own outrage and frustration blinding her to the Cathar's kindness. Calm? She couldn't remain calm! This wasn't something as simple as missing a few crates of rations in a shipment, this was a matter of protecting lives. There was no time for calm, not now. Later, when the fighting was over and the locals were working on actual negotiations, then there would be time for calm.

Despite her perturbed response to Talohn's attempt to assure her, Leea recognized her friend's action of turning and paying full attention to her. He cared, she knew that, but such a thought was not at the forefront of her mind at the moment. Thus as she watched his expression transmute over the course of her explanation. It was clearly evident that he understood the severity of the situation now. Leea felt confidence swell within, completely expecting acceptance of her request. And indeed what followed should have met such an expectation, but the caveat attached to it struck deep.

The way he spoke made it all too clear to Leea. Talohn was coming, whether she wanted it or not. Her hopes of insulating her new family from her past failings dissipated. There was going to be fighting, plenty of it. Leea had planned on it, intended to be the only one in the line of fire. She had a reason to be there, people to protect, a savage to stop. Maybe Leea also felt like this would alleviate her guilt over her failures so long ago. This was not her first time stepping into battle, not by a long shot; but it was the first one associated with so personal a cause. Leea didn't worry about herself, she was confident she could handle it. But for another person to join in, just struck her as wrong, she couldn't ask Talohn to put himself at risk.

As the Cathar left, walking with such a surety of step that Leea felt no small amount of regret even bringing up the subject. Yet the course of action she had taken remained inviolable, the past squarely locked behind that impassable barrier of time's ceaseless march. Leea nonetheless hoped that she might mitigate the changes to her plan. Falling in step with Talohn, the younger pilot spoke dubiously, "Ar-Are you sure about that? I can handle it and I wouldn't want you to put yourself at risk." Her mind began to race as she tried to fabricate some reason for Talohn not to join her.

Surprisingly, it took only a few steps before ideas started forming. Her mind shifting from tactics intended for the upcoming fight to damage control, Leea found excuses easy to make, but as she prepared to speak them each became apparent that they were too flimsy to put a dent in Talohn's determination. Nonetheless, words left her mouth with a rapidity that rivalled her earlier outburst. Vapid justifications spilt forth, but the Cathar struck down every idea as if it were nought but a fly. Eventually, realizing the futility of simple arguments, she walked in silence, thoughts swirling.

As they neared the destination, that place in the ship where both would don their respective armour, one final concept materialized. Grasping it with her mind, Leea spent a few moments trying to refine it with what skill she could. The words would need to be selected with great care and precision, but she was no silver tongue. The rather irritating attempt at cultivating a special statement ended abruptly when she decided to speak plainly. Pulling a strap of her Beskar armour into place, Leea attempted one last reason, the closest to her ace-in-the-hole she could have hoped for. Words came as close to nonchalant as she could manage in her rather hyped state.

"What about Monari and the others? You guys can get another pilot, but they'll be lost without you."

That was probably her best shot, given time and a centred demeanour the near-human might have developed a more eloquent counter. But that wasn't the reality she had. Continuing with the process of attaching the plate metal, her eyes flicked to Talohn trying to read some response, hoping he might pause and that it might land deep enough to puncture the Cathar's calm and alter the current course. In either case, she knew it would only be a matter of minutes before she was prepped and ready, she hoped for Talohn's sake that he wouldn't be.

Talohn Atar

 

[Talohn Atar]

When she asks if he's sure, his response is quick and simple. "Yep." He looks at her out of the corner of his eye, a brow raised as she seems to go through some sort of five stages of grief. Why was she so resilient to him coming along, he wondered. Not that it mattered. He wasn't going to leave Leea alone to combat a war criminal. As they near the door that contains the armory, she says something that makes him stop in his tracks. He slowly turns to look at her, arms crossed as he purses his lips for a moment. "Leea. That would be a fair concern...if me not coming back was a possibility." He reaches out to put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, his brows furrowed slightly, or at least the lines on his face that passed for brows. "Trust me. It'll be just fine." He would explain to her his skills, how this was just a normal afternoon for him, but he knew boasting of his skills wouldn't stop her worries in the slightest. She would have to see him work.

With that said, he makes his way through the door into the armory. Various weapons and gadgets needed for any operation were in metal holsters along the walls. Both he and Leea's beskars were on mechanical armor stands at the end of the room. There were also small changing rooms off to the side that one could step into should they need to change the attire that would go under the armor. This was the case for Talohn. The mechanical door shuts behind him as he steps into the dressing room. He soon emerges in an undersuit. Similar to a wetsuit, however it was specially meant to be worn under heavy armors. Next comes the actual beskar. He starts with the chestplate and begins putting on the armor around it due to all the attaching pieces. While more lightweight than some mandalorian armors out there, it was still plenty heavy enough to give him all the protection he needed. After it was all on, Talohn spent a few minutes messing around with all the various systems installed into the Leonine armor, making sure things such as the knee rockets and the flamethrower were primed for combat. He activates the essential internal systems with a few taps on the screen of his wristpad, and takes his helmet under his arm. He of course, had also equipped himself with all his preffered weaponry. As always, that prized handcannon of his was in a holster on his thigh.

Once Leea is ready, he speaks once again. "We'll be taking the Barloz. Probably best that we don't fly the crimson wolf over their heads. Too threatening at first glance. You want to pilot, or should I?" He had no doubts of Leea's piloting abilities, but one shouldn't fly a ship when under so much internal distress. It always led to bad things. He knew she might be displeased with his suggestion, but safety came first. No matter her answer, he'll begin his way down the hall towards the hangar. "It'll be just you and me. I'd take Madlad but...much like with the crimson wolf, I don't want to scare the locals." He chuckles wryly.

Leea Pandac

 

[Leea Pandac]

Leea might have found a little comfort in the fact that Talohn had focused his attention on preparing for the operation, he probably did not catch the crestfallen look that passed over her face as his words sank in. She did not find this a particularly comforting fact, for her little gambit had collapsed as assuredly as the setting of suns across the galaxy. Her hopes had soared for a moment when her Cathar friend had stopped, yet they were crushed mere moments later.

Separating for but a moment to put on their respective underarmour, Leea nonetheless found herself alone with her thoughts as she stepped out of the changing room and donned her armour. The process, though out in the open and at times collaborative out of necessity, particularly for plates located on the back, there was a solitary nature to the process. Few words passed between them, even as Talohn helped tighten and double-check some of the straps and plates. He was ever tinkering with the armour, looking to ensure a correct and safe fit. This was a quirk that bemused Leea on most occasions, but today it was merely another moment. Mechanical movements and a focus that often shifted into the middle-distance; these were the obvious signs to any but the most untrained eye that Leea's mind was not in the present but lost somewhere deep in thought.

The breast plate cinched home with an audible click followed by the quiet whir of internal system diagnostics. The datapad integrated into her vambrace glowed as information scrolled across its miniature screen. Occasionally, Leea's gaze would flick to the display, idly checking the progress of the calibration. The preparation was secondary in her mind's eye though, as she turned over the current problem in her head. Pulling a weighted glove on to her hand Leea considered her position. She now had to keep in mind that she was not going to be alone on this mission. Talohn would be helpful, the more tactical part of her mind believed this quite strongly. He might be needlessly endangering himself, but, she reminded herself, he was reducing the risk for her.

The young pilot didn't want to admit it, but this was perhaps a better situation. The greater flexibility of two operatives, particularly in this style of operation, lent itself to a positive outcome. Leea tried to push away the negative emotions, knowing that they were nothing but a distraction on the battlefield. As the helmet finally slid home, her hair pinched slightly as it settled into the unusual space. She found herself momentarily blinded as the dazzling display of her HUD came to brilliant life. The exhaustive report on the condition of her armour and its various accoutrements filled the entirety of her vision, a veritable wall of green text. Here and there, a system reported as sub-optimal, but overall the suit showed itself to be within the acceptable range of functionality. Even if it had't been, Leea couldn't have allowed that to slow her. With a simple eye twitch, the display cleared and fell into its usual chaos of overstimulus. The visual cacophony bothered her little, after so much time adapting to it, yet it was nonetheless a welcome distraction at the moment.

Eventually, all too soon for Leea, the armoring was concluded and she found herself now walking with Talohn headed towards the cargo ship Barloz. Normally, she might have taken offense at Talohn's remark. She loved flying, there was a sense of freedom and control that simply could not be compared to anything else in the galaxy. Yet right here, right now, her mind was brooding, as if thunder clouds filled a darkened sky. She didn't even respond to Talohn's amusing, if predictable, attempts at humor. She recognized that although she might have wanted to pilot for this mission, there was a far greater chance for failure or damage in her current state. With a dismissive wave of her hand, she spoke tentatively, "You fly. I need to figure this out." Her mind had begun working hard to recall as much as she could about the Konray, the layout of his camp, particular quirks that might be useful for them. She had only interacted with him once, and it had been a slaughter then. She didn't want a repeat experience.

As they walked, Leea broke the silence with little tidbits that she recalled about the enemy. "He's a noble from some core world, I think he likes to flaunt his title. Keeps a pretty big retinue of mercs and bounty hunters on jobs like this. I think he had a close guard of ubese warriors, the Blooddrinkers? I don't think I ever saw what he looks like, never really got close to him..." And so it continued, following her train of thought as she tried to develop a plan of action. Eventually leading to her activating her wrist datapad and tapping away, trying to save what information she was sure of. A question arose as she mused and clicked away, "Do you have any idea of what we shoudl try? Have you met with people like this before?" The innocent question seemed pertinent to Leea, given that Talohn had far more experience in a broad range of areas compared to her. Perhaps he would think of something she could not.

Talohn Atar

 

[Talohn Atar]

The cathar nods in agreement as she gives him confirmation that he should be the one to fly the ship. He found relief in the fact that her head was still clear enough for her to make correct choices. The cathar then listens as she gives him the profile on the fellow who was causing all the trouble. Haughty noble that surrounds himself with mercenaries and bounty hunters, all paid to protect him? No real friends? Yep. That sounded about right. Then she asks him if he's met people like them before. Talohn can't help but raise a brow in response. "Leea. Look at my occupation. I'm a mercenary. A high end mercenary that takes in bigger paychecks, but a mercenary nonetheless. I had to start somewhere before I got this ship. Before I found Monari. Before I met Zlova. I know the various scum that guy has hired because I used to be amongst them. I was trying to scrape by paycheck to paycheck off of jobs where I was cannon fodder, likely to die. The only difference between me and them is that in the face of possible war crimes, I would try to stop them, not commit them.

Talohn grits his teeth slightly. "I know very well how to deal with them. You do too." He states, taking a moment to pat her shoulder. "The odds may not be in our favor. But we've got something they don't. Conviction. None of them are dedicated to their cause. Just the paycheck. Also we have better hardware, by far." By now, they've reached the dock where the Barloz is over the course of their conversation. He taps something on his wristpad and the walkway up into the ship opens. "Haven't flown this thing in a bit. Should be fine though."

The automatic lights turn on as he makes his way up into the ship. There was a bit of dust here and there, but the ship had been kept mostly clean. He makes his way through to the front and falls back into the cockpit chair with a relaxed sigh. "I forgot how much I missed these seats. I got them installed on Corellia. Some sort of leather with memoryfoam on the inside. I was in the delivery business back then, so it was mostly just sitting on the ship. A lot less action than I have nowadays." Muscle memory kicks in as he flicks all the right switches in an instant, allowing the ship's engine to roar to life. The ship was just as they'd left it. Even down to Madlad's room, which would still give Leea a...sinking stomach feeling as she passed it, especially now since she was aware of her connection to the force. Talohn never seemed to notice it, however he also was regularly around Zlova. However, Zlova was different altogether. The darkness within her was tamed, control. She was in control of herself instead of the dark side controlling her. The energy in that room felt....wild, untamed. Erratic even.

Talohn taps a few times on his wristpad to open the docking bay before laying back in his seat, waiting for Leea to take her spot in the co pilot seat before initiating liftoff and bringing them smoothly out of the docking bay. Talohn was no master pilot, but it was easy to tell how long he had been flying the Barloz with how casual he was about it.

Leea Pandac