Private Candleflames in the Dark

[William Thule]

“Follow me,” Will said with a nod.

He did not sense a trap this time, but it would not do well to be complacent. Especially as the communication warned of pirates.

They simply might not have arrived yet. But judging by the damage to this ship’s exterior, Will suspected something else. Sometimes pirates would attack a ship, plunder the hold, then leave the survivors floating in the void to die slowly. Marooned.

He expected this crew was marooned. On entering the frigate, he didn’t see the same sort of devastation they’d seen on the imperial warship. The halls were intact. Everything seemed… normal.

“Last time you were not caught off guard,” he said, finally replying to their earlier conversation, “and you did not embarrass yourself. On the contrary, you saved my life. Remember that, Knight Demir.”

A smile touched the corner of his mouth at the use of formalities after so long together on the ship.

Ahead, three people approached all in civilian crew attire.

“Thank the stars, a rescue,” said the short one in the lead who best resembled what William had always imagined an angry Union foreman to resemble.

Andromeda Demir

 

[Andromeda Demir]

​

It had been easy to forget about William's injury. He had bounced back in a big way, with training even more robust than it had been. The reminder was a glacial cage around her chest. She wanted to reach over and squeeze his hand out of sheer appreciation that he was alive. But she was Knight Demir in this particular movement, so she contented herself with an affectionate brush of her mind against his in the Force and a tight, confident smile.

"Right you are, Master Thule," she answered. "And I'll do it again, if I have to. That's not a challenge."

A trio of crewmen approached. Andromeda glanced at William, whose silence she took as a silent invitation for her to interact with them. "Yes," she confirmed. "We're here to help. My name is Andromeda, I'm a Jedi Knight. This is Master Thule." She gestured between them briefly. "Can you tell us what happened? Your distress signal mentioned probable piracy."

"Yes-yes," the angry Union foreman-looking fellow said, nodding urgently. "They were here. The ship took some damage in the fighting, so they just took all the valuables they could carry." He gulped, dabbed his sweaty brow with his sleeve.

"Was anyone injured?" Andromeda asked. "Are there others on board?"

"Oh yes-yes, Knight Andromeda," he answered, nodding again -- or perhaps he hadn't stopped nodding from the first time, Andromeda couldn't decide. "A few more crewmen, unaccounted for. A dozen or so civilians. A few injuries. We weren't sure -- we still don't know -- "

"The pirates are gone?" Andromeda asked, reaching into the Force to see what she could feel. In the immediate vicinity, she sensed only frightened, scattered minds, not the dangerous duplicity of a trap. She glanced at William, quirked a brow in an unspoken question. Did he sense the same?

"Mm, yes-yes." The crewman dabbed again. "Far as we know. But our systems are damaged. We're still trying to get the main power onboard. Auxiliary power is only good for the emergency lights and life support. Long-range sensors are down."

Andy nodded and turned to regard William. "I could possibly help with the power systems. I did a bit of that during my work with the Service Corps. I also dabbled in first aid. What do you think? Divide and conquer?"

William Thule​

 

[William Thule]

"Yes," Thule nodded, "Good."

He turned his eyes on the man who so far had done all the speaking. "What is your name?"

"U'non, Master Jedi Sir."

"Very well, U'non, lead me to the wounded and have one of the others show Knight Demir the power systems."

William knew nothing of such systems and would be more of a hinderance than a help. Basic healing was something any Jedi master should be able to manage. So long as they were not lightsaber wounds through the stomach. William's eyes met Andromeda's dark orbs and he smiled tightly, then gave her a slow nod.

Divide and conquer.

"Sure, sure. Jethro, show Miss Knight the power systems. Master Jedi, I'll lead you to the wounded. We've enough power in the medbay to stabilize them, but not enough to run any surgeries."

"Perhaps I'll be able to stabilize them further until we can get the main systems back online. Then your autodoc can attend to any surgeries."

"Ay, that was our thinking as well. Come on then, this way."

Moments later, Thule stood in the medbay, examining a blaster wound in the thigh of an injured crewmember. Thule did not think he could close it up entirely, or reknit the skin. But he could sense the bleeding. They'd done a lot to stop it, including pinching the arterial so it didn't spray. But Thule could do a bit more. He closed his eyes and reached into the Force.

Andromeda Demir

 

[Andromeda Demir]

​

The Knight's dark eyes met the Master's, and she pulsed confidence into their shared bond in the absence of a verbal assurance that she was confident that all would turn out well. She could make no promises -- neither of them could -- but they had trained and drilled and prepared. It was all they could do. A tight nod and she turned to follow Jethro.

Andromeda tried to keep a sense of where she was, trying to remember her steps, her orientation, her position relative to the airlock in case she needed to return. She felt a little bit uneasy about leaving William -- not because she was doubtful of his ability. He had more than acquitted himself as far as demonstrating his recovery from his injury, to the auto-doc's satisfaction and to her own. But if something did go wrong, and they were separate, there was only so much she could do to find him in an unfamiliar ship, following only the directional beacon that was his presence in the Force.

If it was time-sensitive, it would be a problem.

So, she thought to herself wryly. Simply don't allow a problem.

Andromeda had spent some time on top of the world over the last few wekes, but even she could not believe that was within her power.

Left at the dead end from the main room. Right at the next junction. Right again at a central corridor. She glanced up to see running lights and signs indicating that Jethro was taking her to the engine room. "What's the nature of the damage?" Andromeda asked, trying to remember her training from the Service Corps

"Overload, we think," Jethro said, peering at her from under a knit beanie that was either very dirty or very black. "But our engine tech is one of the missing. I'm only going by what I remember from school which was, uh, some time ago."

Andromeda winced. That could be troubling. They traversed a long corridor, taking a slight left and then a right into the reactor control center. Sparks were periodically flying from the large collection of panels on the front of the engine. "I need a light," she said. "Have you got a utility torch?" Jethro pulled an emergency light off the wall and it flared to a brilliant light automatically. He brandished it over her shoulder. "Thanks."

The light was not as helpful as she would have hoped, because none of the doors were labeled. Haven't you people ever heard of cable management? Light above, she mused to herself as she began to pull the panels open. What she saw did not make her a happy Jedi. Half the panels were indeed overloaded, by the looks of it, with an acrid smell of burned something greeting her. She frowned and looked around, eyes alighting upon a toolbox bolted to the bulkhead. She opened it, beckoned Jethro over so she could use the light. She found a current tester and a handful of emergency bypasses.

"Is there a manual somewhere?" she asked Jethro. "A guide? A post-it note? It would help if we knew which of these panels was which. If I have to go by trial and error it's going to take forever and there's a chance we disable the life support on accident."

"He had a binder, I think," Jethro answered, wiping his cheek with his sleeve, managing only to smear some of the grease on his cheek around, brandishing the light in the other hand, scanning around the room. "There, that one maybe." Andy crouched next to the set of lockers he had the light aimed at and pulled the battered binder open, setting it down on the deck.

"Light, please, Jethro," Andromeda said with as much patience as she could. If she had had a moment, she might have wondered why she was feeling impatient. But she wouldn't be comfortable, wouldn't want to stop moving, until they helped the people in distress and they were back on board the Pegasus. Jethro beamed the light over the pages and Andromeda began to rifle through the pages, fingers and eyes scanning along the filmsiplast until she came across a diagram, annotated in an unfamiliar hand. "All right. Priority is medical bay equipment -- that's... 3 Besh? yes -- and engines, um, 8 Aurek -- navicomputer, 2 Xesh -- and, umm, hyperdrive, hyperdrive -- 7 Krill -- primary sensors and alert system, 5 Dorn. Should do us. Light over there, now, please," she said, pointing at the the reactor.

Andy pulled a pair of insulated gloves on and set to work. First, the medical bay equipment. William would notice a faint click and whirr as power surged back into their circuits, and the autodoc booted up into safe mode, internally chittering to itself. Next, she installed a bypass to the engines, then the navicomputer. She had to rifle through the toolbox again for more shunts and bypasses before returning to work, so that the upshot was, it was twenty minutes before she slid the final shunt into place at Dorn 5 and the primary sensors rebooted, interfaced with the crew alert system --

-- and immediately began to signal hostile contacts with a deafening alarm sounding. "Damn," Andromeda said, trying not to let Jethro know that her blood suddenly felt cold. She drew her lightsaber. Just in case. "We'd better see what that is."

William Thule​

 

[William Thule]

The Force flowed through him and around him like a river. He could feel the eddies of its energy. Ephemeral. As insubstantial as a beam of light. And yet, it was everywhere at once. Seeing with not his own human eyes but the Force itself, he could see the artery in the leg of the injured crew member, could feel the life hanging by a thread, in danger of slipping away should the artery become unpinched. William could see the two severed pieces of tissue. They yearned to be one again. Cells crying out to cells. So he helped them. Poured the power of the Force into them. Directed them to rejoin and heal once more.

And they did.

Second by second, the crew member's leg knit back together. William knew the sensation. The unbearable itchiness as muscles grew and expanded and reconnected, reducing what might take months to mere seconds or minutes. Free to bend the whole of his concentration to it, William healed the crew member.

The woman stared at her healed leg, where once there'd only been the superheated raw flesh left after a blaster wound there was now reknit muscle and a shiny layer of pink skin that would scar, but it would be whole.

"Th-thank you," she gaped.

William inclined his head in a slight bow, then turned back to U'non. "Are there others?"

Indeed, there were.

He moved from one to the next, healing. And by the time he was finished sweat beaded his forehead and he felt a wave of exhaustion ready to roll over him and knock him flat. Suddenly, alarms blared throughout the ship.

U'non scowled. "They're back."

William grit his teeth and reached out to Andromeda, sending her reassurance in the Force and resolve. Whatever they were to face now, they would face it together. Thule followed U'non out and they headed toward the bridge of the ship. Hopefully, Andromeda would join them shortly.

Andromeda Demir

 

[Andromeda Demir]

[THE VIBE]​

Andromeda shut all of the panels carefully and tucked the tools she had borrowed back into the toolbox. In the middle distance, she could feel William's steady presence, muted by distance and exertion, but comforting, like the voice of a loved one you heard before you saw, a signal that told her body and brain that things were fine, and normal, and safe.

His reassurance loosened the cold knot of fear that the klaxons had tangled in her gut -- a little. What the pirates were after, Andromeda did not rightly know. This ship seemed beat to hell and even in its best condition didn't seem like much of a prize. Not worth the hassle, not likely to fetch much for sale. Then why come back?

Her mind went to Pegasus...

Her pulse quickened.

"Jethro," she said sternly, a durasteel spine underlying the youthful softness of her voice. "Take me back to the airlock we came from. And tell me -- is there another on this ship?"

"Another airlock?" Jethro echoed as he turned toward the door. "Oh yes-yes, Knight Andromeda. The dorsal lock."

"That's -- on the top, right?" she asked. "Keep that torch, Jethro, we may need it. And call me Andy."

They set off, retracing their steps, and Jethro confirmed that the other airlock was on the top of the ship. When they reached the common area where she and William had emerged, about ten civilian passengers and half again as many crewmen had gathered there, chattering, dressing minor wounds, loitering. Their anxiety and nervousness radiated from them in the Force like waves. "Has there been any sign of the pirates?" she asked, raising her voice to be heard. There had been none. "They may be after this ship," Andromeda said, gesturing toward the airlock. "It's a better idea if you stay clear of it."

She weaved into the crowd and used the keycard -- a twin to the one William carried -- and secured the airlock. It wouldn't necessarily stop the pirates, but it might just slow them down.

It depended on how many people they were willing to kill.

"Which way to the bridge?" she asked Jethro.

A few minutes later, with William's presence ahead of her, Andromeda and Jethro were heading toward it. But before they could reach it, there was shouting from a four-way intersection ahead, and a trio of passengers ran screaming across the corridor, right to left. A blaster bolt followed, then a second, and then a pair of raggedy men followed, one hoisting a blaster, the other a staff of some kind in one hand, a blaster in the other. Before the man could fire the blaster, Andromeda yanked it from his hand in the Force, and it bounced off the other man's head on its journey toward her. Both turned, agape.

There was no quip, no opening gambit. Andromeda's lightsaber was in her hand, vivid blue-green bathing her features. She reached into the Force, let it steady her -- and immediately felt the presence of the stragglers from downstairs, the civilians, following them up. Andromeda didn't turn away from the threat to tell Jethro: "Stop them. It's not safe here. Yet." Jethro skittered back the way they came. She touched her earpiece. "They're on board."

"A Jeeeeedi," the man with the staff grinned, extending the first syllable. "What fun."

He raised his blaster. Andromeda batted both bolts away easily -- thank you, Master, for your very insistent training, she thought wryly -- and then reached for it. He was prepared for that, and his grip tightened, but Andromeda was prepared for that, and so did hers. The barrel creaked as it bent -- just as he fired. The trapped energy caused the weapon to misfire, and the heat seared at his hand, forcing him to drop it before it erupted with a pnnnf! on the deckplates.

"Stand down," Andromeda called across the space between them, about seven meters. "And no one else has to get hurt."

"You think your laser sword scares me, lady?" the man asked, spreading his heavily tattooed arms, staff swiveling in one hand as he walked leisurely toward her. The second man followed, glancing at staff-man anxiously. Andromeda pieced together the dynamic: the one with the staff was the superior, maybe even the leader of the whole operation.

"I think it should," Andromeda answered coolly. She stood her ground, allowing them to approach. "This will be the last warning either of you get. Don't force me to -- " She let out a gasp as she felt a sharp pain in her arm, almost before the second man's hand moved. The throwing knife had left a superficial but stinging slice through her tunic sleeve and into her upper arm. The hard way it is, Andromeda said, centering herself in the Force. She felt rather than saw the next blade coming, and but she definitely saw it reverse course, lodging in the second man's eye, causing blood to geyser from him. He screamed, staggering, and then collapsed forward and was still.

In the kerfuffle, staff man advanced. He did not finesse. He swung his staff like a shockball stick at her in a sweeping movement. Andromeda was puzzled at why someone would do something so foolhardy against an opponent with a lightsaber, but her question was answered when her blade did not, in fact, slice cleanly through the staff, but instead bounced off it until she pressed with her strength, causing it to sizzle along the edges.

Two stops on this trip. Two lightsaber-resistant weapons. What were the odds?

"Surprised?" leered the man. Even his face was tattooed. He was ugly as sin.

"You're not special," Andromeda answered, and kicked him as hard as she could in the shin. He grunted and staggered back, then recovered and lunged. Andromeda feinted back, then aimed a jabbing thrust at his side, burning a hole through his jacket. He howled his rage, a nice little garnish for the hateful emotions pouring into the Force. She noticed his recovery too late to avoid it, but with enough time to turn and take the painful blow to the back of her leg instead of the front, already bending her knees so that she used the momentum to throw herself over a turned-over utility cart, coming up almost-smoothly on the other side, grip tightening on her lightsaber. "This is already over," she told him. "The question now is whether you live to change your ways. It's entirely up to you."

He lurched toward her, and she harnessed the Force to hurl the cart at him, the cleaning solvents going hither and yon. She was in the intersection now. The civilians the pirates had been chasing were hunkered behind an overturned table, peeking over. "Stay down," Andromeda barked, bringing her lightsaber up defensively.

William Thule​

 

[William Thule]

At the other end of the corridor William Thule came into view with his lightsaber already in his hand and lit. His dark eyes took in the scene before him, the grunting, dazed pirates and Andromeda standing triumphant. He gave her a nod, slowly deactivating his lightsaber.

Reaching out in the Force, he tried to sense the other pirates, but could already feel them running back to their ship. He could pursue, but it would likely be too late.

"They came in on a small freighter," William said, frowning down at the corpse with the knife in its eye. "I feel them running. Looks like you gave them too much trouble all on your own. They probably heard it through their communications line."

Thule pursed his lips for a moment.

"I think they just detached from the ship. It's over."

And he did not even have to land a single blow. Andromeda had done this all on her own. Then he glanced at her arm, saw blood. Immediately, he moved to her side, reaching for her arm.

"Are you injured?"

Andromeda Demir

 

[Andromeda Demir]

​

Andromeda hadn't expected the cart trick to finish the fight, but the impact of the cart apparently knocked the pirate leader unconscious. She didn't realize until she felt William's presence flare in the Force and not the malevolent one of the pirate leader. Andromeda's head-half-turned to see William, his lightsaber lit already. She felt something there, some surge of comfort and something else in her gut: gratitude and affection. That he was there, one of the deadliest weapons in the arsenal of man, prepared to help.

The adrenaline didn't know what to do with itself as it coursed through her for a few moments more, before it receded, seeming to claw at her as it did. William spoke and the thundering in her ears took it for the first moment. "It's -- over?" she echoed, as if trying a sentence in a tongue she didn't speak. Her dark eyes went to William's, then flickered past him to where the second pirate lay. She could see the hilt of the knife sticking out of one ruined eye. Andromeda's stomach turned at the sight, jarred at the recollection. She hadn't intended it, hadn't meant it to kill him or even maim him.

She had simply done it.

A flick of the Force, a casual rebuke because she had had other things occupying her -- the other pirate -- and now there was a dead man. Her eyes lingered, her mind too, until William's warm hand circled her arm, gently pulled her close enough to inspect the cut at her upper arm. She nearly flinched out of his grasp, out of his vision, reluctant to be seen, let alone worried over. She felt sullied, somehow, damaged not by what she had done but by how easily it had come to her, how even now she couldn't muster remorse. The last thing she wanted was for William's hands to be dirtied by it, too. But there were other things, now. William's concern. The civilians aboard the ship. The now, the next, the after. "It's -- fine -- superficial," Andromeda said distractedly, finally tearing her eyes from the body. "I think. I didn't look."

The Knight allowed William to handle her gently and she half-turned her arm to look at the slice in her sleeve, the thin cut beneath. When William was apparently satisfied that she would survive the encounter and released her, she whispered a quiet murmur of thanks, squeezed his forearm in a gentle measure of gratitude and affection, and then they both turned and set to work. First, she bound the only remaining living pirate, and confiscated his club. She handed it over to Jethro. "Better find somewhere to put him," she advised him quietly. "Have you got a brig? A room that locks from the outside?"

It was another hour by the time things had been settled. Although William and Andromeda had no authority, that was hard to explain to the crew and civilians aboard the ship. They wanted direction. All the Jedi felt they could offer was guidance: take the pirate and the security recordings and the ship's sensor readouts to the nearest High Republic world and turn them in. The pirate could stand trial for his crimes, and the High Republic fleet could be on the lookout for the survivors in their ship.

A few days later and the Jedi had apparently settled into their routine again. Training, meditating, eating, going to bed, sleeping. Andromeda took none of it for granted, grateful for every new part of William that he opened to her. A few days later, while they were settling in for dinner in the small galley, Andromeda was preparing to ask him about the pirate encounter. Since it happened, she had been debating whether to mention it at all. She still remembered the way he had looked at her back on Zakuul when she mentioned her regret at not ending the Shadow threat. The thought brought a hot flush of shame to her even now.

And yet the two situations seemed -- different, somehow. The Dark Sider on the frigate seemed different from the Shadow, too, but with his injury and all that had come after it, Andromeda had never found the right time to bring it up. She had placed down the last dish in front of William -- not that she was going all domestic on him, it was simply her turn -- and was gearing up to raise the subject when the Ship announced in its dry, almost clinical way: "Master Thule, you have a priority message incoming from Druckenwell."

Andromeda, whose eyes had rolled skyward as they always did when Ship made announcements, as if wanting to show that she was listening to it, allowed her dark eyes to look over the steaming bowl of green and orange vegetables in front of her at William. "If it's more pirates, I'm so busy that day," she said, deadpan, but clearly joking. The cut had been superficial, and was healing nicely. Still, it would be nice to avoid more entanglements of that nature. Still, the life of a Jedi was not always her own, and so she settled in, preparing to hear what all the fuss was about, if indeed William wished to share.

Thus it was that the intrepid Jedi arrived at Druckenwell and Andromeda felt an echo of the previous times they had left the ship together. Unsure whether they were walking into a trap. Anxious. The cam feed from outside the ramp showed what she felt was an odd welcoming committee if the feeling in her gut -- that this was going to be trouble -- was true: a small group of well-dressed men and two women, one red-headed and somewhat squat, with the bearing of a clerk of some kind, and a tall, slim, exceedingly glamorous blonde woman. There seemed to be some chatter going on between them, though Andromeda couldn't hear through the cam feed. None of them appeared to be armed, which was, Andromeda thought, quite encouraging.

Andromeda looked over at William, felt a familiar tug behind her navel when her eyes settled on his face. "Do you want me to hang back? Or -- I'm here for you, William, so whatever you think is best." The Knight didn't want to insert herself in business that was not her own, but she would stand beside -- or behind -- William if he wanted her.

William Thule

​

 

[William Thule]

Druckenwell.

It felt odd to be planetside after so long in space. He almost did not want to return. His ship felt like home. The only one he had left now. News arrived from Coruscant while they were en route. Apparently a band of marauding Sith had sacked the planet and the head of the imperial guard anointed himself the new emperor. William could only think of the suffering of the people. One yoke traded for another. The empire might have been cruel, but at least they had cared about order. He wondered what foul fate awaited the Core at the hands of the roving Sith war fleets.

It seemed Empress Teta would never be spared. Perhaps the High Republic would rouse itself from its internal politics and seek to set things right. But he doubted it.

Had the Force abandoned him?

All these thoughts still swirled within the Jedi's mind as he stood at the ramp with Andromeda.

"I think if you hung back I might feel as though I'd left part of me behind," he said with a soft smile, then he depressed a button.

The ramp lowered, exposing them to true sunlight for the first time in ages.

William squinted and, composing himself, walked with a sure step down the ramp toward the waiting party. His eyes passed over the welcoming committee, pausing only on the woman who stood nearly as tall as he did and whose carriage suggested an importance far outstripping the others.

"Hello," he began stiffly, "I am Jedi Master Thule. This is Knight Demir. We received a transmission, but I will admit I did not quite understand it."

He knew he had distant relatives on the planet. Cousins he didn't ever recall meeting except perhaps once when he was ten. If he recalled they were industrial barons, owning large tracts of the land and factories on planet.

Andromeda Demir

 

[Verity Stuyveris]

The gravity on the landing pad shifted as the ramp lowered. The Thule heir had arrived. Verity, who had been speaking quietly with her father, looked up to see William Thule descending the ramp of his ship. He looked much like the images in dossier she had reviewed -- a touch older, perhaps, hair a little longer. How long had he been traveling? And then there was the girl. No mention had been made of her in any of the dossiers, official or not. She took the pair in impassively, features in an impassive and vaguely pleasant mask.

"He looks nothing like the other one," Eamon muttered to his daughter, his patrician features careful not to betray anything, his voice quiet. "How sure were the lawyers?"

Verity didn't take her eyes from Thule. "Sure," she said. "It's a distant branch. Empress Teta." Eamon made a brief muttering sound, slightly louder, and Verity allowed her cold blue eyes to flicker to him briefly. "Pas devant les domestiques," Verity reminded him. In this instance, les domestiques referred to the others around them, representatives of the nobility and industrial wealth base that had contrived to be present to welcome William Thule to Druckenwell, either as cover to size him up or simply out of bare curiosity.

The Stuyverises were no exception, of course, but she liked to think that they were less transparent about it. This was where her Senate position came in handy. It lent an official sheen to her movements, even if strictly speaking it wasn't the case. Out of the corner, Verity saw Bennett Varnholt separating from his conversation partner, one of the Caldermere twins (it didn't matter which one). Caldermere, not to be outdone, matched steps, such that both looked like they were competing to be the first to reach Thule.

But Verity's eyes met Thule's first, and so when he spoke, it was as though he was addressing her, and Verity stepped forward smoothly, to within comfortable conversation range and, much to her irritation, Eamon moved behind her. "Master Thule," she said, her voice warmer than she looked. Her eyes went once to Andromeda once before shifting back to William. "Knight Demir. You are both very welcome to Druckenwell. My name is Verity Stuyveris, the provisional Senator of Druckenwell to the High Republic." There was a beat. "I'm afraid the message you received was... somewhat truncated. For security purposes. Unfortunately, the previous Baron Thule recently passed, and after a lengthy investigation by the Hall of the Great Register, you were identified as the legal heir to his title, his estates, his business interests, and... the rest." She paused a moment, her eyebrows lifting, softening her face into something sympathetic, but not overly so. From all they knew, the families were not close, so histrionics would likely be seen as condescending.

"It is a lot to take in, I'm sure," Verity said. Again her eyes flickered to the young woman beside Thule, whose eyebrows had furrowed deeper the more Verity spoke. Odd. "Friends and -- associates -- of the late Baron's family wanted to be here to welcome you. But if you'd like to discuss things more privately, I understand the late Baron's solicitors -- still retained by the estate -- are waiting inside." She gestured toward a path that led to a staircase that led to a manor house in the middle distance.

"I should say, just for the avoidance of doubt," Verity said confidentially, her voice dropping so that only Master Thule, Knight Demir, and Baron Stuyveris could hear it. "This property does belong to you -- unless and until you renounce the inheritance -- so you'd be well within your rights to tell all of us to up sticks now."

William Thule | Andromeda Demir​

 

[William Thule]

The Jedi froze.

Inheritance.

Forbidden amongst the order.

Only... there was no longer an order. A version of it, perhaps, in the High Republic. But William had yet to make contact with them. Could hardly bring himself to begin again after everything.

His lips thinned and a muscle in his jaw twitched.

"Up... sticks..." he repeated, the barest note of amusement in his tone.

The dark eyes of the Jedi swept around, taking in the people and the manor. His now. The manor, not the people.

"I was unaware the late Baron had no other heirs," he said, stalling for time as he collected his thoughts. William put one foot in front of the other, dutiful as ever, following Verity toward the staircase.

"This is all quite sudden, Senator. As you know I am a Jedi. That has... complications."

Thule's eyes slid to Andromeda and back again, almost without thinking, then back to Verity. She seemed composed and something in her posture told him she'd thought of every scenario. Including him telling them to "up sticks" as it were. But could he trust her? He'd only just landed. He knew nearly nothing of this planet, could barely recall his cousin the late Baron.

He supposed, unless he turned it down, this made him the new Baron.

Hmm.

"Knight Demir and I have been preoccupied with the aftermath of the Alliance's fall and more than one pirate raid. I will need time to settle in and make this decision."

Verity Stuyveris

 

[Andromeda Demir]

​

Andromeda's insides turned to something gooey at William's response, and her face became a touch rosy. She was certain he could sense it in her Force signature. She resisted the impulse to squeeze his arm; there would be time enough for that when there weren't people watching. So many people. The Knight followed William, a step to his right and a half-step back. There was something comforting about the way most of the eyes passed over her. To these people -- most of them -- Andromeda Demir was irrelevant. Demir was a name they had probably never heard, and definitely had never hosted in their parlors.

Except for Verity Stuyveris, whose grey-blue eyes seemed to look at and through her at once. Andromeda nearly had to crane her neck to look up at her; she was nearly as tall as William, and she acknowledged her presence with something approaching curiosity, something a little warmer than indifference. Andromeda met her gaze without flinching, and when the Senator looked back to William to explain the correspondence, Andromeda let her gaze wander even as she listened to what unfolded.

It was beautiful here. Nature and open sky, clean air, and a picturesque pathway, beyond which rose a large structure that she learned then was a house. William's house, now, it seemed. Her brows knitted together, and she resisted the impulse to look over at him. Everyone else was taking this in stride; Andromeda hastily smoothed her features. She didn't want to be the only one that appeared to be blindsided, even if she was. Soon, William had fallen into step behind the Senator, and so Andromeda followed.

"Certainly," Verity said smoothly. "It's not urgent, necessarily, now that you've been identified and contacted. As I understand it, things have been kept at a status quo under the supervision of the Registry. You needn't decide today."

"There are pressing matters we need to consult on," Eamon piped up. He had somehow fallen into step beside Andromeda, but he spoke around her to William, his tone brusque. "Certain matters that require a quorum of the voting houses."

"Father," Verity interjected, sounding abashed as she gave William an apologetic look over her shoulder. "We can give the man time to absorb this news, surely."

Andromeda pressed her lips together, moving her arms behind her back, subtly stretching. There as much she wanted to know, much she wanted to discuss with William, but her instinct was to stay quiet and take up as little space as possible. She had no standing on Druckenwell, no stake in this decision. Yet she had a significant interest in William Thule. This had the potential to be... complicated.

"Is there any luggage? The staff will want to collect it before it gets too dark," Verity said airily, glancing again down at Andromeda, as if to include her.

"I -- I can collect my own... luggage," Andromeda replied quietly, quickly, because she felt she had to answer when those glacial blue eyes settled on her. Perhaps it was better for the people there not to know how little Androemda Demir had to her name; she suspected that nobody present would have understood having only enough worldly possessions to fill a knapsack. Verity's gaze moved back up to the path as they approached the rear of the house, where a set of glass double doors stood open as if to welcome them. Andy looked over at William, apologetic for perhaps having spoken out of turn.

William Thule | Verity Stuyveris​

 

[William Thule]

William answered Andromeda's apologetic look with a small smile and a reassuring brush of his mind in the Force. She need not have fear. She was a Jedi Knight and those who heard her would deem she spoke with the sagacity of such.

"There is luggage, yes, but not enough to warrant staff," William said at last, trying to smooth over Andromeda's nervous outburst. Not strictly true given what he had on his star yacht, but he did not want them unloading the entirety of the ship. "Part of the dilemma I am placed in is of course my oaths to the Jedi Order. We try to eschew personal possessions. Knight Demir and I can collect our own individual affects. I expect between us we would hardly fill a suitcase."

William chuckled, knowing they'd left Zakuul with spare robes, their lightsabers, and hardly much else.

The tall blonde woman unsettled his former padawan. He could feel that much for certain. And truth be told, William also felt uneasy. Not in the company of this Verity. She did not seem like she intended harm. But in the politics of it all. It had been so long since he had had to deal with these matters of land ownership and such. And he did not know how he was going to ultimately answer the last will of his relative.

Thule's dark eyes moved away from Andromeda, glancing between Verity and the man who was apparently her father. The Jedi Master continued to follow Verity through the glass double doors. His back was straight as a rod. His pace a glide. Clasping his hands behind his back, William took a moment to simply appreciate this house that would soon be his.

As nice as it looked, he could not help but think of his confiscated estate in Cinnagar on occupied Empress Teta. Now likely ravaged by Sith. What sort of suffering were his people there experiencing? He should not dwell on it. Had he not at least earned a moment of repose after everything?

"As for the quorom concerns, I'm sure we can address them in the morning unless they absolutely need to be resolved this afternoon?" He looked again between the two politicians. "Once I've had time to meditate in the Force, I will have your answer."

Andromeda Demir

 

[Verity Stuyveris]

Eamon made a bubbling noise, which Verity recognized from years of being on the receiving end of his tirades was him gearing up to thunder about something. Probably the quorum issue waiting until the morning. Verity put a hand in the crook of his arm, curling slightly there, squeezing softly. She had seen her mother do it countless times to defuse him before he blew, and it seemed to work once more. Verity smiled tightly. "We've been without a quorum since your cousin passed and, as we all just saw, the sky stayed up," she told William generously. "I think we can wait another day to give you time to consider."

There was a generalized rustling behind Verity, something she recognized as likely to be resentment -- very much a who died and made her queen to be making these decisions -- but she ignored it. William Thule would take as long as he needed to come to a decision, and no good would come from chivvying him along. She suspected he was not a man to be handled. The other would try; Verity would need to use a different tactic.

The dynamic between Thule and the pretty, bronzy young woman intrigued Verity. Was there an angle there? Something Verity might be able to work? she wondered, allowing her blue eyes to settle on Knight Demir for a few long moments. The girl seemed to notice, her dark eyes touching Verity's a moment, dropping, then lifting again and holding this time. She spoke again: "Senator, is there much Jedi presence on Druckenwell? Particularly nearby?"

Verity's eyebrows lifted just a smidge and her lips pursed slightly as she tried to recall. "I believe there is," she murmured. "Some sort of small presence. Not a Jedi Temple, but a place for people to have their children tested, to request mediation. There are a handful of Jedi Order officials there and, at any given time, a few students from Druckenwell's population. I'm afraid I don't know the exact address, but if you ask for a taxi to Regent's Square -- or take the Underground -- you can't miss it."

Andromeda smiled, and something in Verity wanted to smile back, so she did -- more guarded than the Knight, but that was just Verity. "Thank you," Demir said.

"Of course. I'm at your disposal," Verity said, looking over to include William in the remark. "Both of yours. Here -- take my card. If you need anything my office can help, or at least point the way." She produced a card from some subtle pocket and with it a pen, that she used to jot her personal comm frequency on the back before holding it out to him between two fingers. "Anything at all. Now," she half turned, putting her hands together in an almost-clap. "You heard the man. Leave him in peace." Her golden head turned back to William briefly. "You'll let us know when you're ready to meet again?"

When the timing was all settled, Verity ushered the rest of the nobles toward the door. A bit of grumbling occurred, a bit of hesitating as a few tried to stay behind just to introduce myself but Verity stood between William Thule and the vultures like a brick wall until they left. She said breezily, "I'll collect the solicitors on my way out. The only other people are the house staff, and I make it a habit not to order other people's servants. It's very common." A brief smile, as if they had just exchanged some kind of inside joke. "Good day, Master Thule. Knight Demir."

And like that, she turned and was gone, efficient as you like.

 

[Andromeda Demir]

​

Andromeda watched the proceedings, her dark eyes drinking it in. She knew there was more at play than what was being said, but she didn't know enough about politics and nobility and whatever Druckenwell's customs were to really understand what it was, but she knew an undertone when she saw it, and this was definitely it. She kept her hands clasped serenely in front of her as the proceedings wrapped up and Verity -- comfortable as if she was lady of the house -- collected the nobles and the solicitors and then left.

She waited until the clicking of Verity Stuyveris' stilettos had disappeared and she heard a door shut far in the distance, and then her eyes went to William. "That was... a lot," she observed, her voice even. She brushed black hair from her eyes, tucked the few errant strands behind an ear.

Andromeda let that sit for a few moments, then closed the distance between them and put a hand over his -- the hand not holding Verity's business card -- fingers gently warming the back of his hand. "Do you want to talk about it?" she asked quietly. Andromeda suspected she didn't have a lot of wisdom to offer on the internal politics of the thing, but she could be an apt sounding board, and there was no pretending now that she was a disinterested third party when it came to William Thule.

William Thule​

 

[William Thule]

He lofted a brow at the sputtering from Verity's father and the uneasy stir behind her at the delay. Perhaps not such a united front behind this woman and her knowing blue eyes. He wondered if that was part of the general anxiety around his succession. Wondering which way the wind will blow if I accept.

William pursed his lips at the mention of the Jedi Order outpost. The proper thing to do would be to make contact and ask the council for direction, but this was not his Order. His were all dead or disbanded. One day, he would attach his name to the rolls of the Republic's Order. But... not today. This needed to be a decision he made.

The Jedi Master placidly accepted the business card from Verity, glancing briefly at the handwritten frequency. Polished script, despite the haste. He gave her a nod and a smile, though that disappeared when she made the joke about servants.

Servants.

Of course he had had them as a child on Cinnagar, but the idea now made him uneasy and he glanced at Andromeda. The smile returned, forced. And said his goodbyes as the entourage filtered out of the mansion back through those glass double doors.

When the last one had gone, Andromeda and he remained alone. His heart thudded faster in his chest as she closed the distance between them and put a hand on his. Her fingers were warm. Gentle.

He should have been apprehensive. Should have cautioned himself about holocameras and servants and bugged rooms. But all that disappeared when he looked down at her, into those kind, umber eyes.

"I have a better idea," he said softly, slipping the card into a pocket at his belt and then leading her by the hands into a room without so much glass. He barely paid mind toward what was in the adjoining room, only that it was empty and had not quite so many windows. A study. A desk.

It didn't matter.

Right now? He...

William bent down and kissed her deeply, closing his eyes and letting the connection between them flood away all else.

Andromeda Demir

 

[Andromeda Demir]

​

Andromeda took William's hands and followed him. Possible that he wished to have a private word, somewhere a servant -- who had servants? -- wouldn't be likely to amble in. But then he leaned down and kissed her -- really kissed her -- like he meant it. She immediately felt herself yield, softening, allowed herself to be pulled against him. Her arms circled his shoulders and she turned her face up to his.

Some secret part of Andromeda whispered triumph to her, a sort of private understanding that said, do you see, even in the midst of all this, it's still you two against the world. She warmed to that feeling -- the warm confidence that was still so new to Andromeda: the feeling of being known, warts and all, and still being wanted, still being chosen. She responded in kind, with an enthusiastic acceptance, acknowledgment, a want in return, a conscious choice, Even outside the confined secrecy of the Pegasus, the feverish, surreal interval when it had been just the two of them and the kaleidoscope of hyperspace to judge them.

Here, the voice crowed in a tiny whisper, equal parts hopeful and triumphant, in this palace. In broad daylight.

Fingers tangled in the fabric on either side of his chest, the lapels of his Jedi robes, and pulled him closer, lifting herself onto her toes. She opened herself to the Force, allowed his presence to wash over hers in that warm, comforting way that had developed between them over their time together. After moments of enjoying just that sensation, she expanded further. There were other presences in the house, but none were nearby. Andromeda reluctantly allowed her lips to part from William's, and her forehead rested softly against his, looking up into his unfathomable gaze.

"Here?" she whispered, a scandalized edge to her voice, though her nervous smile told rather a different story.

William Thule​

 

[William Thule]

William waved a hand and the door shut behind them. He waved it again and the fastenings around the window drapes fell suddenly, leaving them in a dimness.

"Here," he answered, eyes intense as augurs.

Then he grabbed her around the waist and hefted her onto the desk. It was solid and wooden. Wroshyr, it looked and therefore incredibly expensive. This was likely one of the late Baron Thule's private studies. But Thule had little time to dwell on dead cousins at the moment.

He stood between her legs, hands still on her waist as she rested on the top of the desk. William kissed down her cheek to her neck, then closed his eyes and drank in the smell of her.

Strange. How he could have gone so long on the ship in her company and yet never grow tired of her. Even the taste of fresh air on Druckenwell was nothing next to the scent of her skin.

"Anywhere," he whispered, knowing he was safe in her arms.

Andromeda Demir