Private Blowing Off The Past

[Alana Calloway]

Tags: Eira Dyn


The neon haze of Nar Shaddaa stretched out before her, endless towers and tangled skyways rising like a durasteel forest beneath the shrouded sky. Traffic lanes blazed with streaks of repulsorlift light, the air thick with the hum of speeders and the murmur of ten million lives moving at once. It was chaos, but even in this chaos, Alana felt the clarity that before, had been missing.

She stood at the edge of a landing pad, cloak tugged gently by the city’s restless winds, breathing it all in. Every sound, every flicker of light, every heartbeat in the crowd below seemed to thread together into a single current. She didn’t resist it. She let the Force flow through her, anchoring her steps, heightening her senses, filling her chest until she felt almost weightless. The burst of the transport behind her whipped up the back of her cloak, but she continued forth, collecting her bag from collections, and pressed on ahead.

Her time away had brought with it a serenity in her mind she had not known prior. Her voyage had led to her being lost in the stars, but now she had returned with something she hadn’t expected: peace. Now she was letting it carry her forward with certainty. It was a welcome change if nothing else.

Alana’s lips curved into the hint of a smile as she moved into the crowd. She did not look lost here; Nar Shaddaa’s noise, its scope and violence, didn’t press into her either as it had in the past. Rather, she felt the previously painful noise of the planet part, like the noise and weight washed off her. She was no longer hiding, nor trying to remain invisible to the galaxy around her. She just, accepted it as being there, and moved on.

Every face she passed, every soul brushing against her awareness, only reinforced what she already knew: she belonged to the galaxy again. Now it was up to her, to see where she fit in this mess.

So much had changed...and yet so had she.

Where to even begin?

 

[Eira Dyn]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Attire: Club Fun
Equipment: Hidden Lethal Pursuers, blaster pistol
Tag: Alana Calloway

A moment between missions had been granted to Eira, a relief that she could spend in her own ways and Eira was keen on taking full advantage of it. While there were people that she could spend time with, Eira was interested in being alone and she was looking forward to just burning the stresses that toiled her from the hard work that she had been putting herself through. So, she figured that going to some clubs on Nar Shaddaa would be an excellent break away since the moon was the ideal place to have reckless club fun. Seedy enough to keep her interests while also still being a living and breathing cityscape to have functional nightclubs that were not going to be playing outdated music.

The beat of a club was important and Eira knew that some places would have music far too old for her enjoyment. It needed to be fresh, exciting and new for Eira to enjoy the music. Anything she heard before would end up boring the assassin.

Exiting the apartment that she rented for her short stay, Eira was dressed in an outfit she thought would be fun and cute for a night out clubbing, something that showed that she was having her hair let down. Not the stiff assassin that she could be at other times and not the feral animal that she was building a reputation for being. This was Eira who wasn't a Sith right now. A mask that wore like so many other masks she wears when doing things.

"Hmmm..." Something niggled at the Sith. It wasn't danger, nor was it a presence that she needed to be cautious around. It was familiar but new. Different but tugged at her mind as being something, someone, she should remember. It was strange and even in the busy, crowded moon of Nar Shaddaa, Eira couldn't help but figure that she needed to head towards wherever the pull of the Force was determined to lead her. Even if it was taking her away from the clubbing dreams that Eira had planned out for the evening.

Finding her way through the crowds and the streets of Nar Shaddaa, Eira stood in front of a white haired woman. An Echani. A woman that Eira knew. A face that even though others might assume looked like any other Echani, Eira could see the differences. She could feel the difference. The assassin tilted her head and studied the Echani.

"Seems you have changed Alana. Shall we catch up?" Eira called out, her voice just as playful and teasing as it had been the last time they met.

 

[Alana Calloway]

Tags: Eira Dyn

Alana turned at the sound of the voice, her white hair catching the neon light like strands of silver fire. The press of the crowd seemed to recede, muffled, as if the Force itself wanted to clear the space between them.

Eira.

Of course it would be her. The pull she'd felt in the flow all evening had been unmistakable, though she hadn't yet named it. Now, with the assassin standing before her, playful as ever, the current simply…clicked into place. There was alot left unsaid, from their last meeting. That much she could recall.

Alana's smile was subtle, but genuine. "Changed?" She echoed, her voice steady and warm. "I suppose that is a way of saying it, sure."

She stepped closer, weaving easily through the onlookers, her presence calm yet undeniable, like a tide that could not be resisted. There was no tension in her shoulders, no guarded edge. For once, she carried herself without armor.

Her gaze lingered on Eira, studying her with the same open curiosity the Echani used for any duel. "If I'm being honest, I'm surprised you remember me," Alana said softly, but without judgment. She tilted her head, white hair spilling against the dark of her cloak. "If you think I'm going back to the Order though, you can forget it. I'll fight you if I have to."

That much was true, she had zero intention on...going back to that hell hole.

A spark of humor flickered across her face, quick and light, before fading back into the quiet certainty of her presence. "So…what...exactly are you hoping to get out of this?"

 

[Eira Dyn]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Attire: Club Fun
Equipment: Hidden Lethal Pursuers, blaster pistol
Tag: Alana Calloway

Eira shrugged her shoulders, "what can I say, I like to remember those that I deemed intriguing or useful. And you were both." There was no denying that, Alana held skills that were useful to Eira and she also found the Echani intriguing, different to other Echani she knew and Eira wanted to learn more about that. Wanted to understand more around that. Hearing that Alana had no intentions of returning to the Sith Order, Eira smirked, "oh... I, hm..." Eira thought over the fact that Alana did not want to return to the Sith Order. "No. I am not here to drag you to the Sith Order."

Placing her hands on her hips, tilting her head, "don't really think I am dressed for that style of mission, I would have thought you assume I would be more appropriately dressed for a mission like that." Eira laughed softly, "it is a shame that you are avoiding the Order but that choice is yours." While Eira hated disloyalty and those who turned their backs on the place that trained them, gave them a home and ensured they could prosper. There was something with Alana that Eira wished to learn more on, her intrigue on what happened outweighed the disappointment she felt.

"Do I need to have a reason?" Eira asked jokingly and raised a hand to stop Alana from attempting to answer the rhetorical, "I felt drawn here and reconnecting with someone who I was once close with sounded like a fun time." Eira wasn't going to push for that reconnection if Alana was not interested. "I was here to check out some clubs, relax and burn off some energy. Want to join me?" Eira took another step closer to Alana, a relaxed smile on her lips.

 

[Alana Calloway]

Tags: Eira Dyn

They had a relationship at one point, but the nature of what the 'ship' was, Alana never quite understood it.

Alana let out a soft, almost melodic laugh, the words that Eira spoke felt haunting familiar to her. "Useful and intriguing," She echoed, letting the words hang between them, tasting them. "Last person to say that to me, took a few years off my life." Her gaze softened briefly, tracing Eira's stance and the way she moved with easy confidence.

"Relaxing, burning off energy…that can be alot of things," Alana said, her smile widening. She shifted her weight, feeling the pulse of Nar Shaddaa through the Force beneath her feet, letting it flow through her, guiding her steps even in this crowded chaos. "And no, you don't need a reason. Fun is reason enough. You always seemed to be looking for it from what I can recall."

Eira had never done her wrong, yes she was an assassin. They had beaten the tar out of one another, sure. But, Eira had never been the one to hurt her. Try and use her....if anything, she was the closest thing to a friend she had made in the Order.

She tilted her head, letting her hair catch the neon glow, and gestured lightly with one hand. "Lead the way, then. We can catch up." Her voice held warmth, calm assurance, and the subtle thrill of someone fully in their element; no past orders or masks to weigh her down.

Alana allow Eira to close in, taking her up on her offer it seemed.

Hopefully, she wouldn't come to regret this.

 

[Eira Dyn]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Attire: Club Fun
Equipment: Hidden Lethal Pursuers, blaster pistol
Tag: Alana Calloway

"Always comparing me to those that came before. I like to think myself a little more out there, paving my own path that you know I am not like others." Eira pointed out, from the day they met, Eira could tell that Alana carried with her baggage. Baggage from someone else. Baggage that came from actions of another that meant that she always felt Alana tarred Eira with the similar brush. Whoever it was and whatever they did, it was infuriating and meant that Eira had to demonstrate more blatantly how unlike whoever it was, she was.

Winking to Alana, Eira did move in the way a predator stalked it's prey, it was the confidence, the purpose behind each step. Everything was measured, whether it was to allure, distract or position herself to strike... that was something only Eira would know and understand. "It can be, and I was hoping to do a lot of them... Perhaps more now that I have found you here." Her voice a delicate whisper that even in the busy streets of Nar Shaddaa was strong enough to carry into the ears of Alana in the typical seductive fashion of the assassin.

Taking the hand that Alana used to gesture forward, "Can't afford to lose you to the crowd. Not so soon after you return to me." Eira smirked, a knowing glint in her eyes as she remembered how important gestures like this was to Alana. The assassin led the way, holding a relaxed grip, still firm but not forceful in holding Alana to her. If the other woman should wish to pull out of the handholding then it would be possible. However, Eira continued forward, a small sway to her hips as she led the way to the club.

"So tell me, what has been going on with you? Seems you travel a new path now..."

 

[Alana Calloway]

Tags: Eira Dyn

Alana let herself be drawn forward, the warmth of Eira's hand steady against her own. Once, she might have pulled away-resentful of the gesture, suspicious of intent-but now she only let the current of the moment guide her.

The press of Nar Shaddaa's crowd, the pulse of neon and bass from the nearby clubs, it all blurred into a rhythm she felt moving through her as naturally as taking a breath.

Her red eyes shifted toward Eira, catching the predator's prowl in her stride, the deliberate sway of her hips, the purpose in her step. Alana didn't flinch from it. If anything, her smile curved just a little more, subtle but genuine. It was almost like old times, she wasn't sure how to feel about that.

"You're right," She said softly, her voice carrying even against the noise. "I used to see others in you. Ghosts of the past…my own baggage. That's not who I am anymore." She squeezed Eira's hand lightly; an affirmation. "It's different now."

Her gaze lingered, open, unguarded, before she tilted her head toward the sprawling streets ahead. "As for me…" She exhaled, a faint laugh slipping past her lips, light but edged with something deeper.

If the monks taught her anything, it was a new outlook on life.

"The Unknown Regions stripped me down to nothing, then, I rebuilt myself. I learned to stop fighting the flow, and instead…move with it. I'm walking a new path, yes; but it's not one carved for me by anyone else. Not the Jedi. Not the Sith. Mine."

Alana's smile warmed again, her tone easing into something teasing. "So if you plan to keep up, you'd best be ready, because I'm not going to be detoured anymore."

 

[Eira Dyn]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Attire: Club Fun
Equipment: Hidden Lethal Pursuers, blaster pistol
Tag: Alana Calloway

Her eyes glanced back towards Alana, "is it now?" An eyebrow raised as if she was daring Alana to demonstrate how it was different to before. Eira had worked hard to demonstrate that she was not merely another person seeking to use Alana, effort that some might consider wasted when Alana disappeared on her. However, it was a lesson in how to approach things, a demonstration of how she assessed others and a lesson that sometimes she did not always achieve the desired outcomes that she wanted.

Feeling the squeeze, Eira gave a squeeze in return as she found a dark, electro punk style club. Guiding Alana inside, "no Jedi. They are bad news and following them... it risks placing you on the side against me and I wouldn't want that for us." Eira stated, her eyes locked with Alana, there was concern and strictness. Eira was never going to accept someone working alongside Jedi, they were the one group of people that Eira hated with such fury that she could never forgive a partner being sided with.

"I think that we could get detoured sometimes, off the beaten track is sometimes the best with a companion." Eira teased as she whispered this into Alana's ear. Guiding her to the dancefloor, feeling the beat of the music piercing into the young assassin, guiding her movements more as she swayed in time with the beat and placed her hands on Alana's hips.

Holding the Echani close to her, inhaling Alana's scent as she held close to her.

 

[Alana Calloway]

Tags: Eira Dyn

Alana let herself be guided into the crush of the club, the pulse of the electro punk beat syncing effortlessly with her heartbeat. Neon carved Eira's face into sharp lines of shadow and glow, predator's confidence in every movement.

When Eira's hands settled at her hips, Alana didn't resist; she leaned into the closeness, her own body shifting to match the rhythm, fluid and sure. The current of the Force carried her, every sway and turn more natural than breath.

Her pale eyes caught Eira's in the strobe light, steady and unflinching. "It's like I told you," She murmured, her lips close enough to brush against the assassin's ear, "I'm not who I was before. I walk my own path now. And if you think I'll ever let someone else choose it for me again… just know it won't end well. We can still be friendly though."

The words weren't sharp, but they carried a certainty, an edge of fire under calm waters. Alana's hands rose, resting lightly against Eira's arms; not pushing her away, but grounding the closeness between them.

A small smile curved at her lips as she leaned in closer, her voice slipping softer, threaded with warmth beneath the bassline's thunder. "Detours on the other hand?" She teased. "I've learned to enjoy those… especially with the right company."

She swayed in perfect time with Eira, the two of them moving together as if the chaos of Nar Shaddaa and the shadows of their pasts couldn't touch this moment.

 

[Eira Dyn]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Attire: Club Fun
Equipment: Hidden Lethal Pursuers, blaster pistol
Tag: Alana Calloway

The confidence that Alana carried in herself now was something that Eira did find appealing and attractive it was a good quality in any partner that Eira ended up selecting. However, there was also some caution in this new confidence, Eira not knowing where it came from or the reasoning for it. As well as the fact that Eira was always concerned when people mention new paths, suspicious of other influences that might end up turning Alana against her. It was an issue that Eira felt plagued with her whole life, it was an issue that she was very unlikely to ever felt fade away.

"I want to be more than simply friendly, but there are limitations. Boundaries. Jedi are always a boundary for me. I cannot be with someone who is friendly or allied with them." There was a firmness in Eira's tone, that this was something she saw as a line in the sand. There was no wriggle room for finding a path or walking independent. It was far too personal for Eira to just allow someone torment her in that regard. She didn't care who else Alana interacted with or worked for. There was just one group she hated before all. One group that always came in the way of things for her.

Felt too much like being on Dantooine, with her family. Not seeing the problem as clearly as she did.

"I need a drink." Memories. Feelings. Nerves. They were resurfacing. Problems that Eira figured were far behind her. Fears of her never being enough, being good enough. As she reached the bar, Eira flagged down a bartender quickly, "vodka. Neat." A short order but something that should assist in quietening her thoughts once more. This was new for her, terrifying in a way. Eira hadn't considered she would care for someone who wouldn't be constantly on her side against the Jedi.

Now it felt like a test was being thrown her way that she wasn't quite prepared for. There was a lot conflicting feelings she had around it all. Which made the feelings all the more frustrating. "Second one, and anything my companion wants as well." She commanded the bartender as he slide the vodka her way. Taking a sip, Eira winced as the alcohol burned her throat. The assassin was not particularly much of a drinker or held any real vices like that.

 

[Alana Calloway]

Tags: Eira Dyn

Alana followed her through the crush of the club, the lights strobed across her pale eyes as she leaned against the bar beside her. She didn't order immediately, letting the silence hang just long enough for Eira to take that first sip, for the assassin's walls to settle around her again.

Then, softly, but without hesitation, Alana spoke.

"You don't have to worry about me siding with Jedi," She said, her voice steady, carrying over the thrum of the bass. "I've seen what they are. I mean, I turned them down like three times now...I think." That much was true, after working with the numerous run ins she had with the various jedi.

Her fingers brushed the rim of a glass left behind on the counter, tracing idle circles before her gaze lifted to meet Eira's again. "You talk about it like we're being put into cages," Alana continued, quieter now, closer, "But I don't see them that way. To me, they're just...pavings on the road of life. And if you think I'd choose anyone else over you…" She let the thought hang, then tilted her head with a faint smile, "Maybe, give me a little more credibility than that, yeah? We're friends."

When the bartender returned for her order, Alana didn't hesitate. "Whiskey. Uh, neat?" She took the glass once it was offered, raising it lightly before her. "To detours I guess," She said, a flicker of playfulness breaking through her calm façade, "And to not plowing face first into the first wall we find."

She clinked her glass softly against Eira's, eyes never wavering. Beneath the teasing tone there was a weight of a promise; things were going to be different this time. She was certain of it.

 

[Eira Dyn]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Attire: Club Fun
Equipment: Hidden Lethal Pursuers, blaster pistol
Tag: Alana Calloway

A relaxation shifted in her shoulders as Alana stated firmly that she would not be working with or for the Jedi. There was relief there for Eira, and she had to take Alana at her word since it was what she expected from Alana towards herself. It was tough since Eira was never one to trust others, it was a feat that she always believed kept her alive within the Sith Order since suspicion of attacks always felt necessary. However, she was realising that this attitude was never going to be practical outside the Sith. Outside of the academy.

Looking over to Alana, "not cages, railings on the path to prevent detours being too far off the track." Eira explained her views on it. Her eyes lit with curious glint as she stepped forwards Alana, her hand cupping Alana's face. Leaning in closer, "friends? We are not friends, we have never been friends Alana." Leaning in more and more, millimetres away from Alana's lips. "We are bonded deeper than mere friends... never diminish that, Alana." A teasingly firm tone as she teased a kiss before pulling back.

Eira then turned back to the bartender and nodded her head as Alana stated the order she wanted. Clinking the glass with Alana's as she listened to what Alana toasted towards and saw the differences in Alana's eyes. The expectation that things between them would not go the way that it did before. Eira grinned, "I was never going to let you run face first into a wall, your face is too pretty for me to allow that." Drinking the second vodka, Eira placed the glass down and let her finger teased the rim of the glass.

"What shall we do next?" Eira raised an eyebrow up to Alana.