Four of a Kind

[Anya Venari]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

Tylania picked up on the disdain. She couldn’t ignore or miss it. Rather than get into it she merely shrugged.
“I spend time with everyone who wishes it, Elpsis. I have seen many people come and go, and it is so rare to find truly interesting sorts. A pleasure to meet you, Tempest. You are spoken of very highly as a warrior.”
“Thanks,” Tempest replied flatly.
“Well, don’t let me keep you, but if you wish I might be able to help you, Elpsis. I am not the galaxy’s greatest duellist, but I noticed that your moves were still informed by the hand you no longer have.” She noticed Tempest stiffen. “Peace, dear, I say it as a fact. I believe I can help you, Elpsis. You are strong in the spirits…Force. I can show you how to combine that to make your stance and skill even stronger.”

Livia was sitting down to read her book whilst Adril was waving around a deactivated training blade enthusiastically, as if emulating her big sister.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


Elpsis looked a bit sceptical. "What would that involve? I'd like to get my strength back through my own efforts, instead of someone snapping their finger to solve my problems. No offence," she added, after realising that her response might have been more curt than she had intended. She did not know the wood elf, but did not want to upset her.


"Tempest has been a big help. She's a good teacher," she continued. Doubtless she sensed that her girlfriend was not in a good mood.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
“And indeed you shall, dear. What I am offering is not a magical solution, but something which will strengthen you.”
Tylania held out her hand and a training lightsabre flew from the rack to it. She did not ignite it though.
“Currently you still stand straight on as though you use both arms. Consider instead a different posture.”
She instead turned to the side, tucking one hand behind her back, the other out parallel.
“It provides a smaller target and allows for greater reach and precision. But what about strength? Use the Force, it is all you need. Use it as the extra hand to hold your blade straight, to give power to your blows. I had once a skilled warrior come to me who lost her hand to a spider and was ashamed that she would never fight fully again. However, this method allowed her to maintain as much strength and skill as ever before. It will be hard for you as it requires concentration, but the strength it will give you will be well worth it. Try it, if you will. Use the Force to make a gauntlet around your hand, increase your strength.”

She smiled at Tempest, who just grunted.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


Elpsis considered the Vashyada's words. Perhaps it helped that the empath was less prideful than Siobhan! "When I lost my eyesight, the Force granted me a different set of eyes. So maybe it's the same with my hand...till I get a new one." Even Elpsis was not that stubborn to insist that she could fight one-handed all the time. Tenel Ka she was not.


"Sounds sensible, right, Tempest?" Her girlfriend had been very stoic and seemed to be in a poor mood. Regardless of the Dahomian's response, she pulled at the web of power that was the Force, trying to imagine a gauntlet of durasteel encasing her hand. Physical enhancement was not a skill Elpsis excelled in and what ability she possessed had atrophied from lack of use, but she persisted.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
Tempest was reaching Kaida-levels of stoic and laconic. She nodded. “Yeah, fine,” she said. She didn't sound fine.

Tylania must have picked up on this because she smiled. “Well, once again sorry to interrupt. Everyone’s been so helpful and kind so far.”

“Elpsis, show her that thing you do with the fire!” Adril said eagerly, bouncing up and down slightly and waving the unignited training sabre around.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


Elpsis loved her girlfriend, but was getting annoyed. "You got a problem, Tempest?" she demanded, sounding vexed. Her vacant eyes turned to Tylania and she gave her an apologetic look. "No, it's fine. Thanks for helping." Exuberant Adril was bouncing around and waving a training sabre around. Elpsis suppressed a sigh. "Alright, but just this once." She put the training lightsabre. A small fireball formed inside the open palm of her hand. It grew in size, morphing into the shape of a firebird.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
Tempest shook her head, realised that Elpsis wouldn’t see it, and so put a hand on her shoulder.
“I’m fine…let’s discuss it later.”

Adril meanwhile was overjoyed by the firebird, and even Livia was impressed, putting down her book to stare.

Tylania applauded as well. “Very nice! Your control over it is very fine,” she said feelingly. “Well, I’ll leave you all be, thank you all for your time, I hope to see all of you more over the next few weeks.”

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


"No problem. Thanks for your guidance. Maybe we can talk later? I haven't met a lot of Vash so I'd be down for talking," Elpsis said. As of now the girl did not know about the upcoming summit, so she wondered why the elf had shown up at the Arx. However, Tylania's words implied that she would be here for a bit.

"See you later, girls."
"Will you show me how to make a firebird, too, Sis?" Adril asked. "Please."
"Playing with fire is a bit...dangerous for you right now. I don't want you to get hurt." Elpsis replied. She could feel Adril being a bit disappointed. So she bent down and took her hand. "But I can teach you some basic telekinesis. Moving stuff with your mind is cool! And once you got that down pat and I've taught you a bit about absorbing heat, we can move to firebirds."
"Promise?"
"Promise."
"You're the best. I've been doing the exercises you showed me!"
That done, Elpsis glanced towards Livia. The girl looked a bit left out. "Fun book?" she asked awkwardly. Livia was carrying something big and heavy, so it was probably a book. Elpsis felt a bit bad about spending less time with, but the little scholar inhabited a world she had trouble reaching or understanding. She tried though.
"Planck's theory of advanced quantum physics. I'm on the chapter about the Hiesenberg Uncertainty Principle."
"Oh, that's...fun," Elpsis' reply sounded lame, even to her. She felt a bit silly. "Quantum physics has to do with that quantum entanglement communication stuff, right?"
"Quantum entanglement allows us to generate faster than light communication. Two entangled photons can interact regardless of how far apart the generation fields are physically," Livia said knowingly. "R&D is working on Stage 3 of the Enlightenment. Can you take me to the lab, sis?"
"She wants to show me TK," Adril interrupted.
"Not everything is...,"
"Girls, sisters," Elpsis held up her hand. "I'll take you to the lab, and I'll show you telekinesis..if you can spend the next couple days without fighting, kay?"
"Okay."
"Alright, but she started it."
"Addy..."
"Ok."

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
“Of course! Aside from my brief hours of rest or meetings with those here I am available any time. Please call on me whenever you desire.”
With that Tylania bowed slightly and departed.

The twins followed her out leaving Tempest and Elpsis alone in the training room.

Tempest let out a slight snort. “Can you believe that one?” she said mockingly. “I’m surprised unicorns didn’t appear and rainbows didn’t fly out of her ass.”
There was clearly something about the Vashyada which Tempest did not like. What, why and how though was unsaid.

She looked back to Elpsis, smiled. “Still, I guess if what she said helps it’s all for the better, huh? Want to do some more training?”

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


"Think rainbows fly out of her arse if she gets hot and frisky with elves in the woods?" Elpsis asked cheekily. She would probably enjoy getting naked with wood elves in the forest and worshipping the mother sun. She might be too grey for some though.


"Seriously, what's wrong? She seemed nice and wanted to help. You don't seem to like her." That said she picked up her lightsabre again, indicating she wanted to continue. Her blade ignited with the trademark snap-hiss that was ubiquitous among lightsabres for some reason, producing an orange blade.

 

[Tempest]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

Tempest frowned slightly, said nothing, playing with a training sabre absently.
“I don’t like her, and I don’t trust her. Something about that airy-fairy twinkle toes self-righteous claptrap really gets to me.” She wasn’t exaggerating either, she was clearly very much irritated.

“Plus, beneath her sunny ‘cookies and sunshine for all’ is the knowledge that she’s probably trying to leverage your recovery to influence your mothers. After all, get in good with the daughter and be her mentor and you’ll get a better deal at the negotiating table. All these space elves want a better deal, she’s just being the nicest about it.”

Tempest took a deep breath, aware she had been ranting a little bit. Little sparks had been pinging off her but now subsided as she relaxed.
“I’m sorry, it’s just I’ve been on edge a lot lately, not sleeping the best. When it seems too good to be true, it usually is. I take a long time to trust.”

She ignited her training blade and brought it to the salute if Elpsis wished to continue.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tempest"]


"You can't tarr a whole species with the same brush. Like saying all humans are bad. 'sides, we all pursue our self-interest, babe. And can you blame her? The natives down there have never seen a starship for millennia, now they've been opened up to the big bad galaxyy and it scares them. They gotta play catch-up fast. Least she's not being dumb like the Eldorai," she shrugged.


"If she wants to get a better deal this way, I think she'll be disappointed since Sio doesn't care about me and Tegs'll let Sio take the lead. Blondie will have better luck if she jumps into bed with Mother. Though I figure she's got enough brownie points already by enabling Sio to gloat about her powers again." At least Tempest was not the only with issues.


Regardless, she raised her lightsabre. "Let's back to training. Y'know, I could spend the next couple days at your place. Help you sleep and stuff." Partly because being in the villa made her feel uncomfortable.

 

[Tempest]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
It was clear Tempest was not the only one with issues, though Tempest was able to recognise that her feelings about Tylania were an instinctive, almost automatic reaction. Light and Dark didn’t mix too well it was true, and Tempest didn’t like to be reminded that there was another path, another way to tread which she had not.

“Of course! I’d appreciate the company,” she said, getting into a combat stance. Of course, having Elpsis there would not necessarily guarantee more sleep…but it would mean she’d be awake with a cute redhead beside her!

And so Tempest moved forward to the offensive with the lightsabre. Her blows were aimed in the traditional methods, not too quick or hard. They were there to test Elpsis’ new ability. A treacherous part of Tempest hoped Tylania’s advice was bunk so that the blondie could be proved wrong. However, more so she wanted Elpsis to get back to her full strength.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tempest"]


Tempest would really grow to appreciate her company. A couple days would soon turn into a couple weeks, then months. Until finally Tempest was walking down the aisle with her. Then it would be only a matter of time before, against all logic, reason and plot integrity, Elpsis' taut stomach would turn into a round baby bump. This one feels like throwing up.


Anyhow, Tempest charged her again, launching several blows. Their lightsabres clashed, sizzling as they connected in swirls of humming light. The Force flowed through Elpsis as she drew upon its power to compensate for her infirmity. Physical enhancement was something she was moderately competent in, though not to the point of having acquired expertise.


Energy rushed through her body into her sole hand, guiding her weapon as if by an unseen hand of stone. Her blade arced around her, with a hiss akin to that of a serpent. The first three strikes she parried, causing Tempest's blade to slide off hers and be pushed downward. The fourth she managed to intercept with some difficulty, until she was finally forced to yield ground.

 

[Tempest]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
Tempest nodded approvingly. The redhead provided a smaller target side on, which meant less frontage to defend.

“Good, it seems to be working, though you probably can’t keep it up for too long.” Was that a challenge? Unconsciously or no, Tempest should have realised that this would only cause Elpsis to keep fighting if only to prove Tempest’s prediction wrong.

Regardless she essayed three further strikes, moving low, high and middle to test Elpsis’ resolve further.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tempest"]


"I can keep it up just fine when I'm wearing you out in bed. Or cooking a Sith Lady who's Sio's equal," Elpsis retorted. The empath was not particularly competitive, but very stubborn. She also had a bit of a complex about her accomplishments not being acknowledged enough.


In any case, there was little time for boasting. Once more, Tempest came at her, attacking Elpsis with a flurry of strikes. The Fire Mistress was not a master duellist, but one advantage she had were her precognitive skills.


As Tempest's lightsabre swept low, Elpsis countered with a drop parry. Even with the Force boosting her, she was not exceptionally strong and needed to conserve energy. Parries were less demanding than full-on blocks. Her ethereal eye perceived the strands of power that linked Tempest's will with the motion of her blade.


Tempest's blade swept upward to launch a chop towards her head. She heard the hissing sound and the scent of ozone invaded her nostrils. Quickly, she intercepted it with a horizontal block, deflecting the blade away. Instinct determined her course. It had served her best in many battles, from the Omega War to the Acerbitas.


However, Tempest recovered quickly. While Elpsis was still focusing on the strands of power, the Dahomian was in motion. As the blade slashed towards her torso, Elpsis stepped back quickly - but not quickly enough to feel a stinging burn when the lightsabre gave her stomach a brief kiss. Wincing, the sensation caused her to lose her balance and she stumbled, but regained her footing.

 

[Tempest]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]
Tempest instinctively realised she’d triggered a bit of a reaction in her girlfriend. Still, too late now, as they duelled for a moment longer. When her blade contacted she withdrew and switched off the training blade.

“It’s working well,” she said with a nod. “I reckon this might be a good way to go until you get a permanent replacement. It’s certainly giving me a smaller target, and your blocks were solid.”

She went over and put an arm around Elpsis’ shoulders. “You want to do any more or should we go do something else?” she asked with a smile.

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Tempest"]


Elpsis was, all things considered, less high maintenance than say Sio. However, she had a stubborn streak and a chip on her shoulder. Though young in years, she had been bloodied on the fields battle and fought monsters. Rightly or wrongly, she felt that that many still treated her like a child.


When Tempest pulled back, the empath lowered her blade and switched it off. She took a breath, sweat rolling down her face. "Thanks. Hopefully I'll have a new arm soon. It can't take that long do grow, can it?" How long has it already been growing, Elpsis?


She put the training blade down, leaning against the Dahomian's muscular body when Tempest put an arm around her. She would never admit it, but the older woman made her feel safe when she held her. "Think a break might be cool. But we can pick up later. For now let's do something else...or do each other," she grinned, clearly believing that she was being witty. Her corniness knew no bounds.

 

[Anya Venari]

[member="Elpsis Kerrigan-Alcori"]

Time passed, and as Tempest and Elpsis continued to learn and train Tygara turned below them. Calana settled in well after the first few days, but did spend a lot of time in the eco-zones and with the few other Vash on the station.

Tylania meanwhile made herself useful where she was needed. Seemingly with little ego or pride she would help as a surgeon or nurse where needed and also to train those aboard the station in her abilities. She would never try to turn those on a darker path, but would offer advice for any who wished it, and would often stop in to see Siobhan and ensure she was recovering well. She did not spend much time with her sister however, mainly because Chesna was still not fully comfortable with her.

However, it was soon time for the summit. Emissaries had come from the three other groups before their queens had arrived. Finally, as the big day neared the shuttles containing Liavondra, Tirathana and Semiramis all landed. All distant cousins, but divided by time, distance and culture from each other.

Tylania would be there when the guests were greeted. Of the three Semiramis put on the biggest show. She had aides, advisors and associates galore. Liavondra meanwhile came with only a handful of advisors. Anya as well arrived with only a handful of close confidants and guards, dressed in a plain robe and without fuss.

They would not be the only ones though, for another ship came in to land bearing a most unexpected visitor….

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Anya Venari"]


"Lady Lycaeni. Arx Control has cleared us for landing." the Dahomian pilot's voice buzzed over the intercom.

"Thank you, Dexterity," the Eldorai lady replied courteously. Her Basic was flawless, without a trace of Eldarai accent. How long had it been? She had shut herself away from the Eldorai and their politics ever since the Exodus. Ever since their never-ending strife had ripped Salana from her.

Well-manicured fingers touched the diamond she wore on a chain. The stone was made out of Salan's ashes. She was left with this, memories and the pain. The Eldorai sighed slightly. Today was for the present. "Well, then let us not keep the crowned heads and their invented lineages waiting, yes? Bring us in."

"Aye, ma'am."

As the sleek shuttle closed in on its destination, Varisanthra caused a glimpse of the ginormous space station through the cockpit window. "I see it lives up to its reputation as to size. Lady Kerrigan does not disappoint. If I knew her less well, I'd suspect she is compensating for something. But since that is not the case, I suppose she loves strutting around on gargantuan space stations," she said sardonically, though not unkindly. People who had come from nothing tended to gourge themselves if they reached a position of extreme wealth and power. Varisanthra did not share the human's love for pomp and bombast. But she regarded her judgement as solid most of the time.


As the shuttle docked, she looked around for her bodyguard. Penance ought to be close by. Varisanthra had taken a liking to employing Dahomians. They were a tough, loyal lot and tended to be quite sensible.

Aside from her, she had only brought her personal aide and two Myrmidons. She figured that at least one of the queens would have brought a small court composed of bodyguards, counsellors and hangers-on. Between that, Siobhan's enormous ego and the combined weight of the queens' titles, she did not feel the need to contribute much in that department. Rather than don a robe or a fancy gown, she had made a point of wearing an elegant, but modern business suit.