Private Checking In

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

It had been a few days since he and Aris had pulled Pari from that Imperial shuttle and ferried her here, to Odessen. Since then, Ace had given her space. She needed time to breathe, to learn what it meant to live like this. In the cracks of the galaxy, surrounded by rebels and exiles who refused to bow. He remembered how disorienting it felt the first time someone called a place like this "home."​

​

The outpost itself didn't look like much at first glance. Half-buried hangars mottled with moss, their durasteel ribs sagging under years of rain and rot. Ships rested on worn landing pads, camouflaged by the canopy overhead. Lantern-light strung between trees and huts made the whole place glow faintly against the jungle dark, like fireflies refusing to die out. It wasn't safe, nowhere really was, but it was hidden. That was enough.​

​

Ace leaned against the edge of a rusting bulkhead, eyes scanning the movement around camp. Mechanics arguing over parts, pilots ducking into their ships, a handful of Path members carrying crates into the jungle trails. But his gaze kept drifting back to Pari.​

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She hadn't blended in, not yet. Even here, with a meal in her stomach and a roof over her head, she moved like someone expecting the floor to give way. He knew the feeling. Knew what it was to live with your guard welded in place.​

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Pushing off the wall, he crossed the decking toward where she stood near one of the lookouts. The jungle stretched below, endless green broken by mist and waterfalls. He kept his voice even when he called out.​

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"Hey." he paused, letting the word settle before tilting his head slightly "Been settling in alright?"​

​

He didn't press further. If she wanted to talk, she'd talk. If not, he'd stay a while, let the silence stretch between them. Sometimes that was all you could offer.​

​

Pari Sylune​

 

[Pari Sylune]

Life as a nomad was never predictable. Pari had grown used to wandering, to temporary shelters and shifting horizons, but she had never come to a place quite like this, nor under such circumstances. The leaders here had turned their backs on the Galactic Alliance and the New Jedi Order when both had needed them most. Now the air hung heavy with a sense of abandonment and quiet despair. Still, scattered among the disillusioned were good people, men and women who worked tirelessly to ease suffering, their intentions pure. Unfortunately, those in charge seemed more interested in authority than in service, and the friction between the two groups wore heavily on the young girl.

To keep busy, Pari volunteered in the medical tents, putting her Chalactan healing training to use. A part of her longed to continue her Jedi path, but with the Grandmaster gone and the Order fractured, she didn't even know if such a future was possible. Rumors whispered of surviving enclaves, and she clung to them with quiet hope. Until then, she balanced her days as both healer and lookout, earning her keep however she could.

It was during one such watch that she sensed Acier's approach. His presence, so distinct amid the crowded camp, always drew her notice though she could never quite explain why.

She offered him a small smile and a nod.

"I'm grateful to be here."

For a time they stood together in silence, the murmur of the camp drifting between them, until Pari broke the stillness with a quiet question:

"How did you end up here?"

Acier Moonbound

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Pari's answer wasn't what he expected. Well, he didn't know what to expect actually. She was honest at least, "grateful" wasn't necessarily the word he'd come to expect when talking about this place. Maybe that's why her answer had taken him aback slightly. However, he acknowledged it with a small nod.

When she returned a question of her own, Ace blinked in surprise. He'd never been used to broad questions - especially so early on in conversation, or with someone who was practically a stranger. Although, strangely, she didn't feel like one. Yeah, he'd need to get to the bottom of that.

He let the silence hang for a moment, not because he didn't want to answer... but because he had to decide how much truth to give.

"How I ended up here?" Ace crossed his arms, eyes fixed on the jungle mist. "Empire came back."

He shrugged, it was simple as that. Ace's fingers brushed the hilt of his lightsaber at his side, casual but deliberate.

"I don't buy into councils or banners. But I trust Valery. And I know what it's like to live under people like the Empire."

Then he paused, smirking faintly. Ace lingered beside her in silence for a few more moments. Clearly he wasn't good at this... making conversation, checking in. For him, the quiet between words wasn't uncomfortable. Sometimes it said more than talking ever could, but he was all too aware most didn't feel the same way he did.

"You're already pulling more weight here than most. Guess that makes you one of the overachievers." he chuckled, filling the silence once more.

The line came dry, almost offhand, but then his voice settled into something more serious. He turned his head just enough to catch her expression.

"So, what do you want out of all this? Said you wanted to 'help others' but that can't just be it, can it?"

Pari Sylune ​

 

[Pari Sylune]

"I don't buy into councils or banners. But I trust Valery. And I know what it's like to live under people like the Empire."

Pari mulled this statement over, trying to decide how she felt about it. She had met Valery Noble on Coruscant, at the old Jedi archives when Pari went there to research lightsaber construction. The woman had seemed larger than life to the small little girl, even if their encounter had been brief. The issue Pari now had was it seemed like a lot of these Jedi had abandoned The Galactic Alliance, who was still out there fighting the empire. She wasn't certain why the New Jedi Order had split itself, or why they couldn't simply work together to achieve the goal of eradicating the Empire from the core worlds. Perhaps there was something on the inside she was missing. Maybe Valery didn't trust the Council any longer or the leadership at the Alliance? The girl wondered.

His crack about overachieving made her chuckle. The Adepts would be proud to know she was serving the best she could.

"So, what do you want out of all this? Said you wanted to 'help others' but that can't just be it, can it?"

That question was also a thinker, though it was easier for her to mull over than his previous statement.

"Well I wanted to be a Jedi ever since I found out I was Force sensitive. The Chalactan Adepts took me to Naboo and introduced me to The Jedi Order there. I trained some but then I ended up on Coruscant and the Empire happened. Now I'm not even sure. I think I'd still like to be a Jedi... they seemed like honorable protectors of the galaxy in all the stories we heard growing up."


Acier Moonbound

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Ace listened, arms still crossed, eyes narrowing just slightly. Wanting to be a Jedi. Stories of protectors and heroes. He remembered being her age, hearing about Jedi in passing, half-believing they were just myths. Back then there was no chance to dream about orders or titles, and when he did, it was of his parents. Part of him envied that she could still hold onto that hope, even now.

He shifted his weight, letting out a breath that wasn't quite a laugh.

"Stories'll do that. Make it sound cleaner than it is." his tone was even, but there was a dry weight to it. "Thing is… they aren't perfect."

For a moment, he let the thought hang there. His fingers brushed the scuffed hilt at his side before he went on, softer this time.

"You don't need an Order. Not really. Jedi, warrior, protector... whatever word you want to use. It's just the choices you make that matter, not your title."

Then he stopped, brow furrowing slightly. It sounded like something out of a holodrama. It felt like advice he didn't feel qualified to give. Ace exhaled, throwing his hands up a little.

"Alright, forget it, that came out way more cliché than I meant. I'm not here to tell you what to be." his gaze found hers again, steadier now "End of the day, it's your choice. Just… don't put pressure on yourself to become some storybook version of a Jedi. Stories leave out the part where people are fallible."

He gave a small shrug, then gently bit his lip, shifting awkwardly. One hand found his hip while the other rubbed the back of his neck. Internally, he winced. He'd talked too much, far more than he ever liked to. But he left it there.

Pari Sylune​

 

[Pari Sylune]

Pari could tell he was uncomfortable giving advice, but she felt touched that he had done it anyway. He did genuinely seem to want to help her, and finding people like that in the galaxy was rare.

“I am glad I met you Ace.”

It was a simple reply to his awkwardness, but she said it sincerely. For a moment silence pressed between them, both lost in thought or simply staring at the jungle surrounding them. Pari was lost in thought about the flaws of the Jedi when her wooden toned eyes traveled to the hilt he wore.

“Aren’t you a Jedi? You carry a lightsaber.”

Acier Moonbound

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

The kid, Pari, she said she was glad to meet him. Even now, positive affirmations like that were still a shock to the system, and he still didn't know how to react. Ace blinked, then averted his gaze, after a moment his eyes returned to her and he smiled faintly. As he always did. But he appreciated her kind words.

"Yeah, me too."

His eyes lowered to his lightsaber, then to her again. Ace took a moment to answer, tracing his fingers along the skeletal hilt of his lightsaber. A light chuckle escaped him as he unclipped it from his belt and handed it to her to study, to let her feel the weight of a real one in her hand. Ace was all too aware of Pari's desire to build a lightsaber, this was probably the best thing he could provide.

"That's... a long and complicated story." he answered, pausing as he deliberated on how much to elaborate on.

After a moment, Ace inhaled deeply and exhaled. For humor's sake, he pondered telling her everything - that his father was a powerful Sith Lord, his mother a Dathomiri witch, his lightsaber belonging to a Jedi Knight, all of it. Ultimately, it wasn't information he liked to reveal... so he'd go for the simpler version.

"Simply? I was trained by one, but I pretty much walk my own way. Wasn't ever officially part of any Temple."

Ace fell quiet again, gaze drifting out toward the jungle mist. For a moment, he let his thoughts slip, tracing that nagging feeling in the back of his mind. There was something about her... not just her words, not just the way she carried herself. A strange familiarity, like he should know her from somewhere, though he couldn't place why.

His jaw tightened, debating whether to say it aloud. Finally, he shifted, glancing her way.

"Can I ask you something?" His voice was even, but there was a thread of curiosity beneath it. "Do I… seem familiar to you at all? Like we've crossed paths before?"

Pari Sylune

 

[Pari Sylune]

"Simply? I was trained by one, but I pretty much walk my own way. Wasn't ever officially part of any Temple."

Pari considered that statement for a long moment, wondering if that was an option for her. She was a member of the Chalactan Adepts, so she was no stranger to a tribe and deep bonds. That might not be an option for a Jedi these days though. In a way it felt sad, almost like the historic reports of Order 66 they had all heard about.

"Can I ask you something?" His voice was even, but there was a thread of curiosity beneath it. "Do I… seem familiar to you at all? Like we've crossed paths before?"

That statement took her by surprise. She was not aware that he could feel it too.

"Yes... it's almost like you are a brother I grew up with, even though I've never met you before. I'm not sure what it means... I've never felt it before."



Acier Moonbound

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Ace blinked, Pari's words caught him harder than he expected. Brother. He'd only ever heard that word with real weight from one other person in his life. Aether Verd . They hadn't grown up together; Ace was seventeen when they finally crossed paths. But even then, the bond had been instant. Strong. Like something carved into his bones long before he'd known it was there.

This though? With Pari, it was different. He couldn't explain it, there no blood, no shared past, but... she wasn't wrong. The feeling was there, strange but certain. She did feel like a sister, though in a way that wasn't tied to lineage or name.

Wordlessly, he reached out and retrieved his lightsaber from her hands, the skeletal hilt cool and familiar against his palm. Clipping it back to his belt gave him a moment to collect himself before he looked back at her.

"Yeah..." he said finally, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his mouth "Feels the same on my end. With my brother, it was different. But you? I don't have an answer. Weird."

For a moment, he let the silence return between them. It wasn't uncomfortable anymore. Just… there. Still, as his gaze drifted back toward the trees beyond the outpost, the thought lingered. What did it mean? Was it something worth chasing down, or just another oddity in a galaxy full of them?

The quiet between them didn't last long. From across the camp came the hurried crunch of boots on wet ground, followed by a Path runner shouting toward the medical tents.

"More wounded incoming! Supply run went bad. Make room!"

Ace's head turned at the noise. In the distance, a pair of mechanics were already clearing a space for a transport, its engines whining low as it came in.

He looked back at Pari, a brow raised "Looks like they'll be needing you."

Pari Sylune​

 

[Pari Sylune]

As he explained how he had felt a brotherly feeling before. She wondered if that was with a true sibling? Pari had no siblings, at least that she was aware of, but she wasn’t sure how else to describe the connection between them. He just felt familiar, and unique, all at the same time.

The silence that passed between them was a comfortable one. She felt perfectly at ease next to Ace, more so than anybody else here. As they gazed out at the jungle her thoughts turned back to The Galactic Alliance. From the reports they had intercepted they knew the war had moved to Arkania and Champala, and yet this group remained here. Were they so confident the Alliance would fall they they were happy to just sit on the side and watch it happen? Was Pari even making a difference here at all?

Her answer came almost immediately. The transport landed and the wounded started to be rushed out. She smiled at Ace and slid off the guard post, retreating back down the ladder and rushing towards the chaos in the medical tent.

Their mysterious connection would have to wait until the wounded were tended to.

Acier Moonbound