Family Fortunes (Lynn)

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Lynn Corerunner"]

Location: Orbital Station Over Dac

Mon Calamari were known for their fantastic skills in spaceship design and repair. That was why Jedi Master Valiens Nantaris had come to the planet for repairs.

A recent battle had left his beloved Liberator nursing a few wounds, but now he was back in port he very much hoped to avail himself of the other services of the station.

Saying goodbye to his crew he swiftly headed towards his favourite cantina on the station; the ‘Benthic Reef’.

It was about as disreputable as this planet got. Best of all there were some dancers of varying types, strong drinks and no one made a big fuss of his lightsabre or ragged robes as he moved in and took a table.

 

[Lynn Nantaris]

Location: Orbital Station Over Dac

Lynn was standing outside the cantina itching her side a little. She wasn't use to wearing dresses and this one was making her itch. She was standing off to the side, hoping not to catch anyone's attention as she waited for her Master [member="Sorel Crieff"]. She still wore her lightsabers on their leather straps under her sleeves. She didn't expect she would need them, but one good never be too careful.

As she waited, she decided to take a seat. She pulled out an old, worn datapad that had once belonged to her father. She looked around to make sure nobody was near before powering it up and beginning to read. She was using what loaded information she had on Teräs Käsi or Steel Hands. She wanted to begin learning the martial arts as she had never seen someone use it before and thus she could use it and not risk it being countered.





[member="Valiens Nantaris"]

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Lynn Corerunner"]
Nantaris caught the eye of a green Twi’lek waitress and ordered a drink, and then sat back to wait.

As he did, his eyes caught upon a young lady not sitting too far away. She was diligently reading from an old and battered datapad.
The Rogue Jedi approved of this, reading was good.

When the waitress came over he pointed to the young woman.
"Next drink for her's on me."
"She's a little young even for you, Nanny," the Twi'lek said in amusement.
"I'm not looking to date her, I'm looking to fuel her intellectual development."
“Uh huh,” the waitress said sceptically, but did go over to the table.

“Hey, honey, guy over there wants to reward your literary endeavours with liquor. You want something?” she asked.

 

[Lynn Nantaris]

As Lynn continued her reading, she couldn't help, but giggle when she came across the Charging Wampa. A very effective move, but the name made little sense and also seemed to not be related.

She was finding this fighting style to be more based in take down and combos then in combat itself. A very effective style it would become. She continued her reading until a waitress came up to her offering her a drink from an older man across the way. Lynn blushed heavily and didn't quite see the man through her embaressing, but she knew the meaning of the jester.

"Tell him thank you, but I am fine with my water." She then returned to her reading, using the old data pad to hide her embaressment. She continued her studies, but wasn't able to as the power cell in the old data pad began to falter and make the power cut in and out. "N-no, not now." She lightly smacked it a few times hoping that would help which only made it power off fully. She put the data pad down and hung her head, unwilling to look up and see if anyone had noticed.

[member="Valiens Nantaris"]

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Lynn Corerunner"]
Nantaris was bored, and due to the business of the cantina none of his favourite dancers were available. So, with that in mind, he peered over at the young woman, amused by her technological struggles.

Standing, he headed over to her. “Excuse me, miss, maybe I can assist?” he asked politely.

He looked at the datapad. It was old alright, downright ancient. He’d had one like this once….

Turning it over he saw to his shock that on the back of it was the remains of a very familiar tag.

Prop---f---Val—s---taris

“Miss…how did you get this?” he asked in amazement. What were the chances?

 

[Lynn Nantaris]

The crowd of the cantina was worrisome to the young Jedi. The longer and longer she waited she wondered if her Master [member="Sorel Crieff"] would even show up. She kept trying to power on her datapad and became aware of the cantina looking at her. She knew she dressed to well for this place. It wasn't until [member="Valiens Nantaris"] made his way over that Lynn began to truly worry. What was his intentions? Surely he would not try to force her to do anything here, in public. As the datapad was taken out of her hands, "Give that back you...you monster!" Being that this was the only thing she had that remind her of her.... She looked at him in anger, but her eyes quickly betrayed her taking the form of shock.

He couldn't be, she had watched him be taken and killed by the pirates. She looked at him in shock and hope for what felt like forever. He was older, that made sense, but how could this be him? She backed away slowly, her heart racing and fear filling her veins, she could not believe this was her father, "A-are you a phantom? W-why do you look like him?" She could not deny she had missed her father which made him looking like her father to be even more painful. Tears threatened to escape from her eyes. She needed to get away, she needed to run, but she was trapped by the phantom before her sent to torture her. She needed to remember her training, she could not control herself, but to ask one question, "Who are you?"

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Lynn Corerunner"]
The reaction was utterly surprising. Nantaris looked at her, the datapad half extended towards her.

“What are you talking about? I think you have mistaken me for someone else, Miss. I’m Valiens Nantaris, Jedi,” he added.

There was something vaguely familiar about the girl, though a quick and hurried search of his memory did not turn up anything. Perhaps she was mistaking him for someone else?

 

[Lynn Nantaris]

Now things were getting weird and spiraling down faster than an Australian dunny. Her emotions were going everywhere, not how a Jedi should be acting. She needed to calm herself, but this man wasn't having it. He had her father's datapad, he looked vaguely like her father, but her father was a noble man she remembered. He would never be in a bar like this. Now, now he was using her father's name?! She knew how he knew her father's name, a nerf herder like this was smart enough to know she wasn't [member="Valiens Nantaris"], but the datapad had his name and so pretending to be her father was a low and disgusting choice. Out from the sleeve of her right hand shot an old lightsaber once belonging to Mace Windu. She ignited the blade and swiftly pointed it at the man's throat. "How dare you? How dare you bring up his name, why couldn't you leave me alone?! I have done nothing and now you have the gull to mention my father's name?! He is dead and if you don't leave this place I will send you with him!" Her voice was filled with pain and some anger. The lightsaber looked steady, but a joined swordsman could see the shake, the tells of this girl trying to be strong, but facing everything she had feared everything that tortured her every night.

She looked at the man in hate, deep into his eyes. The eyes were green like an emerald, but with grey coming over them, but those eyes. Lynn's mind flashed back as she remembered those eyes.

It was him.

Her lightsaber's violet blade retracted back into her hilt and she lowered it, but did not move. Her anger melted away, but the pain remained. She lost the ability to speak. 13 years she had been alone, haunted with the memory she had killed her father. Not directly, but she hadn't listened, she had distracted him and let him be beaten by those pirates. He had never come for her in her slavery so she could only assume he was dead, but he was here. She had no idea what this meant now and nothing made sense to her. She just kept focused on his eyes, silent and still like a statue.

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Lynn Corerunner"]
Nantaris rapidly stepped back and his yellow blade hummed into life as a defence against the threat. However, he soon deactivated it.

Her words fell upon him like an avalanche.

Father.

Memories of so long ago, painful memories sealed away and the key discarded now broke out. Shock, sorrow and hope all fought.

He managed to croak out a word he had not said for nigh on 13 years.

“Lynn?”

It was impossible. She was dead, and he had dealt with that, but now the old scars were breaking open. His daughter…could it be true?

 

[Lynn Nantaris]

Lynn's face became a bright shade of red and her heart was threatening to jump out of her chest. Hearing her name flashed her back to a child. She rarely saw her father as a child, but the times she could were precious and left an impression.

This was still something she never expected and not prepared for. Did she hug him? Did she run away? What was someone even suppose to do when their dead father turned up in a bar alive? The slavers nor the Jedi prepared her for such things.

She nodded to her name, "Yes..." She paused for a bit, unsure of her next word, but if she didn't say it she felt like it would consume her, "Father." For a moment more she felt like she was five again and without realizing it she rushed into him to hug him. She wanted this not to be a dream, she wanted this to be real and him to really be there. As she rushed in her heart raced with the idea this was him and not a ghost.

[member="Valiens Nantaris"]

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Lynn Corerunner"]
Nantaris’ shock and delight was mixed with a small amount of alarm. He hadn’t expected any of this, nor the sudden hug. It was just as well the girl had deactivated her lightsabre too.

For a moment the older man just hugged her to his chest, gently stroking her hair.
“Lynn…it’s been so long,” he whispered. “I thought you were gone forever. I searched…I never forgot you.”

He looked around. They’d become quite the show.
Gently disentangling himself from her, he led her back to the booth where they could be more private.

“So…you’re a Jedi?” he asked, nodding at her lightsabre. If he had the sums right she would be about eighteen. A Padawan, but where was her Master? Was she an ‘official’ Jedi, or a Rogue one like him?

He took a swig of his drink. He felt he needed it right about now.

 

[Lynn Nantaris]

He looked different, but hugging him felt the same and now his signature was showing he was the same. Her father was alive, what did this mean for Lynn now since she devoted her life to continuing his legacy. When he separated her from him, Lynn lifted her arm to wipe some tears away. She began returning to a more stable mind and realized the whole cantina was staring at them. It wasn't everyday a cantina fight broke out that ended with a hug instead of a death. She nodded as he led her to his table, she took the datapad as she walked and placed it back in her bag, then again maybe she was suppose to return it.

When the questions was posed she nodded her head, "Yes, I am a Jedi Shadow for the Silver Sanctum, though I am not the sneaky sort. Really I am still, with the help of my Master, trying to sort out who I am. All I know so far is I have Farsight and can flow walk sometimes in my dreams." She had replaced her lightsaber back up her sleeve, but now was rubbing the side of her arm, something she did with she was nervous. She wasn't feeling the rush of emotions anymore, just more confusion as she was not sure what she should be doing at the moment. It was at this point she also wondered why her Master, [member="Sorel Crieff"] still hadn't shown up yet.


[member="Valiens Nantaris"]

 

[Sorel Crieff]

The Mon Calamari Shipyards were known throughout the galaxy – especially to someone like Sorel. Renowned for their elegant, streamlined ship designs, characterised by bespoke production, unique engineering, and a sculpted, organic hullform, the Jedi often wondered what it would be like to pilot a ship that looked as good as it performed. For her own vessel may have been state of the art under the skin, but to look at it was a very old medium freighter. It suited the Jedi Master – travelling without drawing undue attention.

She wondered if she might pick up some parts whilst she was here but as she exited her ship, her focus was instantly diverted to the real reason she was here. To meet her Padawan. So she headed to the cantina that had been mentioned to her – the ‘Benthic Reef’.

As she approached it, she realised that it was distinctly for the off-world clientele. Dressed in her usual robes, she merely pulled her cloak closer, to ensure her sabers were not visible, and she sauntered into the bar.

She sensed Lynn before she saw her and headed through the crowded bar towards her.

[member="Lynn Corerunner"] [member="Valiens Nantaris"]

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Sorel Crieff"] [member="Lynn Corerunner"]

Nantaris nodded. “You’re starting on the path I did, Lynn. Though admittedly times have changed a lot, I was never suited for a life in a proper Jedi Order.”
He smiled slightly. “As evidenced by you coming along. I had the choice of your mother or following the rules and being a good little Jedi. You know my choice, and though it ended badly, I’d not make a different choice now if I could. Even more so that I know you’re alive.”

Since it was time for the reunion, he leaned back slightly. “I’m an independent Jedi…what some call a Rogue. I work outside the Orders and governments to deliver justice, to help free slaves and overthrow Sith and other evils. You should come tour my ship sometime!” he added enthusiastically.

He sensed a stronger presence in the Force and turned, seeing a woman older than Lynn approach. “Your Master I assume?” he asked.

 

[Lynn Nantaris]

Lynn listened, her heart still racing and she spoke, her voice more calm and not so filled with emotion, "I...don't understand. What did me being born do to change things? My grandmasters are married and have children, we're you with the Republic? I admit, I didn't understand mUchiha back then and the slav..." She shuttered a little. Being here in his presence made her time in slavery all the more real and in the moment. She was only with them a few months, but the things they did to her...

She came back, forgetting where she left off. "I would love to see your ship. I always wanted a ship, but I am not so good at the whole ship building or repair." She smiled and turned to the side as she sensed her Master's presences. Admittedly, it took Lynn longer to Force Bond then it took her Master, but she was getting better at it. Upon arriving she stood to greet her Master. She had mentioned her father's death to her Master early on so this may be a smoke for her too. "Master Crieff, meet....my father." The world's still felt foreign to Lynn, but she still loved the sound of it."I just found out he is not as dead as I thought."


[member="Sorel Crieff"]
[member="Valiens Nantaris"]

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel weaved her way through the crowd. From a bystander’s perspective she probably looked as though she walked straight through the assembled throng. In truth it was a blend of the two. As she progressed, people tended to part for a Jedi, even if they weren’t entirely sure why. So a slight moving of the hips here or a turn of the shoulder there – but her pace never faltered.

And long before she reached Lynn, she sensed another. The aura was powerful and definitely not dark – so there was no worry in her demeanour by the time she reached the two individuals.

If Sorel had inwardly reacted to Lynn’s words, nothing showed externally. Her lips formed the soft smile they were prone to do when she met someone and she bowed to both. “Your father?” she said to Lynn, her tone only slightly inquisitive. “And no, I’d deduce not dead.”

She then turned to the man. “Pleased to meet you, I am Sorel Crieff. Please call me Sorel.”

[member="Lynn Corerunner"] [member="Valiens Nantaris"]

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Lynn Corerunner"] [member="Sorel Crieff"]

“Valiens Nantaris at your service, Sorel, but please call me Nantaris,” he said, giving a respectful nod to the Jedi Master.

“Pull up a chair, order a drink, the round’s on me,” he declared generously.

“To answer your question, Lynn, yes, back when I was a young and impressionable Padawan, even before the Clockwork Rebellion, and the formation of the Republic, the Jedi were a good deal more strict. They were coming out of a dark age and they clung to whatever light from the past they could find. I imagine it’s all changed now in the Silver Jedi and so on.”

Turning back to the Master. “Lynn is my long-lost daughter. When I was younger, less grey haired and a good deal less cynical I lost her, I thought to death. But, by chance or the Force we’re here again. I hope she’s not being difficult?” he asked, in the embarrassing way all parents acted.

When a pretty purple Twi’lek sacheyed over to the table and draped a lekku on his shoulder, he was forced to cough, and gently disentangle himself.
“A bit later on, Angel,” he told her, shooing her away.

Turning back to his daughter and her Master he coughed again. “Anyway….”

 

[Sorel Crieff]

Sorel smiled in response to the greeting from Lynn’s father. “Nantaris it is then, and I’ll have an ale please.” She’d recently discovered the drink and had already taken a shine to it.

Sitting at the table, she listened to the exchange between Lynn and her father. There was no melancholy in Sorel’s mind about the parents she left all those years ago, nor a desire to meet them now. Did that make her odd? Possibly, but recent conversations had made her wonder about the whole subject of love and its compatibility to the life of a Jedi.

And Sorel shook her head politely when asked if Lynn was being difficult. “In my experience, Nantaris, it is the Master that is invariably the challenging one.”

[member="Valiens Nantaris"] [member="Lynn Corerunner"]

 

[Lynn Nantaris]

She just smiled as drinks were offered, "Water is fine please." She had no taste in drinking, it dulled the senses and she was gifted in that area so to weaken the gifts the Force blessed her with seemed a crime. Though this all coming from the mind of a teenager who only understood drinking to excess. She listened to her father talk about his younger years and keyed into the Clockwork Rebellion. She had never heard of this and took that as a reason to research it later on.

As her Father addressed her Master about whether or not she had been trouble this far, Lynn merely blushed out of a slight embarrassment, but exhaled when it was said she was not a hassle. She always tried to be on her best behavior, but she was also a rarity or so she was told. Normally when someone spent time in slavery and was tortured they came out guarded, broken, and rebellious to authority. On some level it was true she had come out different. Had she never been kidnapped and tossed into slavery she probably never would have became a fighter, but one thing was certain she was still kind, considerate, and maybe humble, she wasn't sure on that one.

As a fourth person approached Lynn looked at the scene before her with a bit confusion. She could not understand the meaning of a twi'lek putting their lekku on another person's shoulder. She assumed it must have been a greeting for Twi'leks, maybe an old friend. This was when Lynn's naive understanding on adult things came in handy as it would be very troubling to see your once dead father now alive speak to someone about sexual relations. For a daughter that would be embarrassing on many circumstances. After that the attention was back at the table so Lynn spoke, but she spoke softly, "So what now? What do we do now?"

[member="Sorel Crieff"][member="Valiens Nantaris"]

 

[Valiens Nantaris]

[member="Sorel Crieff"] [member="Lynn Corerunner"]

Eager to move the discussion away from the…encounter…with the Twi’lek, he smiled brightly.
“You know, Sorel, I find the exact same thing! Doesn’t give our young padawans much of a good example though, does it?”

“What now? Well, this has been a big shock for us both. I’d love to show you both my ship and crew, and what we’ve been doing. I don’t wish to step on your Master’s toes, but I would love to get to know you a bit better, catch up on all those years we’ve been apart. I dare say I know a few things which you might find useful too…Force things.”
He added the last hurriedly just in case Sorel got the wrong impression that he might lead her student astray.

“The other thing I’d love is to help out with any of your projects too if possible. Though not especially well connected I like to think I have some means.”