Private Lightsaber Lessons

[Ameli Trahir]

Life had never been this good for Ameli. A while back she'd scammed some poor fool out of a load of Force-imbued artefacts. She claimed then they belonged to some very high profile individuals, all the way back to the Clone Wars. Ameli doubted that, but regardless, it had made it easy to bump up the price. Stealing them had been free, only taking a bit of wit. Selling them? Well, she'd been set for life with the amount of credits she'd earned. That is to say if she was a normal person. Ameli was anything but, and had at this point nearly burned through all of her reserves. No matter, she twirled the amber contents of her small glass a few times over. I can make more.

The latest and greatest expense she had ever taken was the very apartment she found herself in at the moment. And on Nar Shaddaa no less. Hardly the place she had imagined she'd invest in, but why not? It was an easy place where she could blend in, and her contacts with the Hutts promised greatr wealth coming her way soon.

Vaylin had been an unexpected call. They didn't know each other well, but they did know each other. Ameli was almost, almost starting to take this whole 'living up to her potential' business seriously. She felt more powerful than ever before, with more weapons in her arsenal. She felt dangerous, and she liked it. Though even with an inflated ego and spoiled attitude such as Ameli, she was able to recognise that she had one glaring weakness. She hoped contacting Vaylin might be the first step in rectifying that.

Soon enough the Zabrak would be arriving. Her very first guest actually. Quite exciting. "I should invest in a landing pad up top. Didn't think of that" she said out loud to no one in particular but herself. Still, the building was accessible enough if you had the cooridinates, and the elavator would take her all the way up to Ameli's floor. She left the door open. Knowing they'd probably get straight to work, Ameli was dressed for a workout. She wore a pair of flattering black leggings, and a pink tight-fitting cropped top with a zipper going down the middle. Ameli had a lightsaber hilt clipped to her hip. It had been her weapon a long time, but to be honest, she was growing bored of it. It was time for a change, but she needed to earn that change.

 

[Vaylin]

Ameli Trahir.

Now that was a name Vaylin hadn’t heard in a very long time.

There had been the sparse paths crossed over the years, but the main encounter dated way back when the Zabrak was but a mere Apprentice still. She had travelled back home, back to Iridonia to face one of the last few tests set before her as a Sith.

Confronting and ultimately killing her mother, and her elder siblings who had forever remained brainwashed to her side. It had been a long while since Vaylin had last thought back on that memory, of how she had crossed paths with Ameli and Lassiter for the first time.

The duo had helped her in that, although she was sure the simple idea of being able to kill someone was what appealed to Lassiter specifically. But the time had been enlightening to the Zabrak, learning of the duo's faith in the Ember of Vahl. Which while Vaylin never subscribed to that religion in the end, she had wound up with fire powers.

Ameli’s message had come out of the blue, and immediately intrigued her. The Zabrak had been mainly training her apprentice, Safina . But it was always good to have a change of sparring partner. And if Ameli was anything like she was years ago, this would prove to be entertaining.

Ensuring her duties were attended to beforehand, Vaylin set off to Nar Shaddaa. It was a planet she hadn’t been on in recent memory, hell she hadn’t interacted with the Criminal Underworld in forever. Jedi and traitorous Imperials were an ever eternal focus. Today would provide a nice change of pace for that too.

Following the coordinates, the Zabrak landed and made her way to Ameli’s apartment. It was in a district that had found itself a rise in popularity and wealth recently. After a bit of navigation, Vaylin stepped onto the elevator that took her straight up to Ameli’s floor. It dinged open and the Zabrak stepped out, walking the length of the brief hallway before the apartment itself.

“Ameli Trahir, it’s been an awfully long time.” Vaylin walked in, closing the door behind her. The Zabrak’s appearance didn’t quite scream ‘workout’, covered in a matching combo of a jacket and trousers, but she did have a bag hoisted over her shoulder.

Ameli Trahir​

 

[Ameli Trahir]

" Vaylin " Ameli said with a grin. "My how you have risen since we last met" there was no jealousy in the girl's voice, and she sounded genuinly pleased. "I am glad you could make it. Drink?" the blonde approached her, two glasses in hand. Ameli was already well ahead working on the one in her left.

"Do you need anything else?" Ameli asked casually as she led the other woman into the large living room. They'd be passing a set of black couches, and opposite that again a bar. She wasn't entirely sure if they'd be getting straight to business or not. "Sith life treating you well?"

 

[Vaylin]

“A drink would be lovely,” Vaylin replied with a smile. Walking forwards, accepting the drink, before following the Vahla further into her apartment. She looked around as they entered the living room. Ameli had certainly set herself up well on Nar Shaddaa.

The Zabrak took up a seat on one of the couches, placing her bag down at the foot of it. She sipped on her drink, looking over at Ameli. A little bit of catching up wouldn’t hurt, then they could get down to business.

“It’s been treating me very well. Rose through the ranks to become Lady Moirai, and more recently became Matriarch of the Valkyries in the wake of Kaalia’s retirement.” That in particular was still surreal to Vaylin. But in hindsight, she should’ve probably seen that coming. The Kro Varian had become content and solely focused on her family life, and Vaylin couldn’t be more happier for her.

Suppressed emotions aside, that is.

There were still a couple things Vaylin kept close to her chest. Her role as Hand of the Empress was a concealed fact unless one went digging. And the fact she was ageless now, well that was just a can of worms waiting to be popped open.

“I don’t need anything else, just somewhere to change once we get things underway.” Vaylin took another sip, gaze shifting around the apartment, before landing back on Ameli. “And what about you, Ameli. How have you been?”

Ameli Trahir​

 

[Ameli Trahir]

"Lady Moirai" Ameli repeated in an impressed tone. "And Matriarch of the Valkyries too. You have been keeping busy" Ameli chuckled. The Zabrak lady certainly had.

“Oh, not that much. I’ve spent enough time skirting away from my duties that it’s finally catching up with me.” Her glass had somehow become emptied, and the insatiable blonde made her way over to the bar. Because of course she had a bar. “That’s why I moved here to be honest. It’s time to get a little more serious” she laughed, as if the very thought of her taking something seriously was a joke in itself. She didn’t mention how she had already been hard at working discovering the ins and outs of Sith Alchemy, and had made several Force-imbued rings. She was rapidly improving.

Once more her tumbler glass saw its fill, and Ameli sauntered back towards the couches. “This place didn’t come cheap, but I scammed someone off of a lot of Jedi artefacts a while back. They claimed they belonged to some legendary Jedi and whatnot. I doubt it, but I tricked them out of it easy enough and sold it all for heaps of credits” She smirked. Indeed, this had not been cheap, and in fact had more or less taken away all the money she’s made off those sales. She needed a new income, a big one and fast. Thus her newfound affiliation with the Hutts…

“There’s more money to be made here working with the Hutts. But I tell you, those slimey slugs smell something awful” She washed down the imaginary stench with a fresh sip of hard liquor.

“You’re welcome to change here if you like” Ameli said, her smirk lingering and her eyes wandering. She sat down on the shoulder of one of the couches, and twirled the content of her glass lazily with her wrist. After the pause had stretched on long enough, she said “I also have two guest rooms. You’re free to occupy those. I can show you to it if you like? If not, I can leave you to it and go prepare downstairs.”

Vaylin

 

[Vaylin]

Vaylin chuckled at Ameli’s response. “You ain’t wrong, even after retiring from the frontlines, there’s still plenty to keep me occupied.” But she was still capable of arranging some free time, especially to reunite with old acquaintances.

As the blonde Vahla headed to the bar, the Zabrak watched as she walked. It seemed Ameli was much the same as she was years ago. Approaching situations with a more humorous mindset. But Vaylin knew what lurked beneath the surface, she had seen the fire within that lurched out when the Vahla became serious.

“Sometimes a new locale is required for a fresh start, a change of pace to fuel the fire.” A similar thing had happened when the Sith Valkyries had lost Mygeeto. Their forced move onto the Serran had seen a renewed drive to be more mobile.

Vaylin mused quietly as she listened to Ameli talk, explaining how she came to owning her new abode. And how she had been working with the Hutts to maintain an income. Her note about their smell was an understatement for sure. “You gotta take the opportunities when they present themselves. Plus if the money is worth it, then a foul stench can be easily pushed aside.”

The Zabrak laughed at Ameli’s suggestion, throwing the Vahla a small grin. “Oh, I’m sure you’d like that.” And it wasn’t like Vaylin was opposed to the idea. Shame had been shed long ago, and the Zabrak was proud of the physique she had sculpted over the years. But it was probably more appropriate to set her things down elsewhere.

“I’ll definitely take you up on one of those guest rooms. Depending on how these lessons go, I might be here for a little while.” Vaylin finished her drink, sliding the glass down onto the table, before she stood up. She leaned down, scooping her bag back up into her hand. “Lead the way.”

Ameli Trahir​