Long Have I Hidden [Zarack]

[Matron Malgus]

He had spoken to her, but she found herself unable to respond. She felt his hand grip her shoulder tightly, and amber met topaz as she turned to look at him. There was an underlying wild eyed curiosity swimming in his gaze, buried beneath a fierce confidence at the words that he had said to her; words that she had missed because of her own fears of what was above. She wanted to speak, wanted to acknowledge that she had heard him but her mind would not give in. The battle of mind over body was still going on within her.

Fortunately, [Member=Zarack Arkaos] took it upon himself to push her into the lift with him not far behind her. She continued to look at him, though her fear had already started to fade the moment he forced her into the lift. She did not want to speak, not at the moment, she didn't want to be given the chance to flee back to her home where she had lived for so long. So, she remained silent and continued to meet his gaze evenly - taking note of the glint of amusement and the stirring of a cockiness creeping upon his lips. It brought a sly smile to her own lips and her mind seemed to finally relax and give control over to her once again.

She wanted to tease the boy-man who seemed to have some belief that his actions were mirroring her own only a few moments ago when they were pressed against the wall in a mock intimacy. A dangerous glint flashed in her eyes and she pressed him against the wall once more, her face mere centimeters from his own before she finally spoke.

"You are not forgiven." Three simple words that came from her lips with the softest of breaths as she grazed his cheek with a gentle touch from her lips. He could not see, and hopefully would be too distracted to feel, the intimate amusement at her own actions. She would not lie to herself, Zarack was handsome and perhaps that was why she had spared him down below. It didn't matter to her that he had invaded her territory with the two zabraki that had been hired to kill her. The moment that he had offered her a life beyond what she had below, she knew that she would go with him. Her longing to part from this place has already been growing in her heart long before he came to her. But, she was able to learn more about him from her objections to coming above, which was in equal parts because of her fear and her desire to learn about the man she had spared.

She remained close to Zarack for the remainder of the lift to the upper levels, casually stepping away from him and facing the doors as the lift began to slow. This was it, she was about to be exposed to the upper city, an area that she had not seen for many years. The lift stopped and the doors opened, the light from the city blinding and sending a sharp pain into her eyes. She growled angrily and shielded them until they adjusted, little by little to the light of the upper city. Stepping out of the lift, she was assaulted with an open air fragrance, something in direct contrast of what was down below. She could feel a much stronger breeze blowing through her hair and noted the gazes of the occasional passerby who looked upon her with contempt. She was suddenly aware of what she looked like in relation to the citizens of the upper city and began to edge her way back into the lift.

 

[WolfMortum]

Zarack could not contain the overzealous smirk as [member="Syndri"] countered his confidence once more by pitting him between the wall and herself, her breath warm against his cheek as she told him that he was not to be forgiven, her tone causing him to snicker under his breath as he met her gaze side on, "Good to know where I stand..." He responded skeptically. She'd been referring to herself as a beast a number of times now and though Zarack did not agree, she was certainly a wild one in her lack of restraint that so many above ground might have; he could not help but find that appealing, getting the idea that she did and said as she felt more genuinely than not and would have no trouble at all choosing to fight for whatever cause it was that drove her on. She'd said that others were afraid of her and yet he was not, if anything he was motivated by her savage honesty, perhaps not in word but in how she carried herself. What you saw was what you got and if you challenged her way of living then you'd end up bloodied. With so much hidden potential yet no training behind her that he could really acknowledge, she'd be a terrifying opponent to meet in combat should she learn the ways of the Force and the use of a lightsaber. This wasn't to say that in her, Zarack saw a weapon but he could not deny that in her, he saw her future and that was one of great strength and pride. Admirably so.

Syndri moved to pull away with good timing as the doors to the lift hissed open and the warmth of the air and the light from the sun overhead pooled into the elevator and changed the tone of their scene completely. For a moment, he expected to follow her out into the open yet again that anxiety behind her for all the things she did not know and wasn't accustomed to of the world around her, she'd began to retreat only to step backwards and be stopped by Zarack he placed both hands upon either shoulder this time, standing firm and looking over her shoulder to the visible street. "None of these people know who you are, none of them understand how much strength you can gain by starting at the bottom and fighting your way to the top. Learn to accept their arrogance and use it to fuel your desire to prove to yourself, not to them, just how wrong they are. How wrong you've been about yourself and how much more capable you will become" his words had lost all sarcasm nor playful attitude, he spoke to her quietly yet hoping that she'd hear the confidence he had in feeling she could do more than she gave herself credit.

 

[Matron Malgus]

Strong, familiar, hands gripped her shoulders again and her amber eyes met confident topaz in utter vulnerability. She had not been to the upper levels in two decades, she was a creature of the dark and she did not belong. Yet, she felt a pull to heed her companions words and to take what he said and let it fuel her courage. He meant what he said, she could feel it in the confidence that permeated every syllable that left his lips, and every tremor in the Force. Desire rose within her, carefully shielded by the anxiety that wracked her very core, with every motion of his lips as he spoke, so too did her desire rise. But, her desire wasn't the only thing rising; her courage swelled as she took in his words and stopped attempting to move back to the lift.

"Your confidence in me is alluring, [member=Zarack Arkaos]. You should be careful not to tempt me." her voice had taken on a significantly softer tone, one fueled by a range of emotion that she did not know how to control; twenty decades of isolation did that. She tore her gaze from his and stepped swiftly away from him before the fire could rise any further within her. Stepping away from him had placed her in the thick of the crowd, immersing herself in the unknown. Her anxiety returned, but her desire would not be beaten away, her amber gaze found his topaz eyes and a myriad of emotion swirled within her eyes.

He is going to be bad for me, she though ruefully as she gazed across the sea of people towards him. Every instinct told her to flee, but her heart told her to follow him; he could give her more than the planet ever could. He could offer her a new life. Her mind was chaos and her emotions were rapidly altering, constricting her mind and causing tremors of power to radiate around her. A new voice rose in her head, a seductive and promising voice, one that she hadn't heard in nearly a decade; the whispers of the dark. They were telling her to let the power loose, forming an image in her mind of what to do. She only had to release her dwindling control and the sea of beings would split, thrown against their surroundings with untamed telekinetic - emotion fueled - power.

She could not harm him, she promised herself she would not. He was very key out of her current life. There would be no more running, no more hiding. Her battles would be on her terms, not anyone elses. He promised her that much. He told her she deserved that much. Her emotions began to calm and settle into their usual impassive nature, she would release her frustration elsewhere. She could not do so here, not so publicly.

Open air was sucked into her lungs in a solid and deep breath. Her amber gaze flicked to her companion once more in expectance. Was he still going to allow her to come with him, or had he changed his mind?

 

[WolfMortum]

As [member="Syndri"] moved several paces into the crowd, Zarack watched her react to the many comings and goings of people consistently moving in every direction about her; it was plain as day to see her discomfort and distrust for these people, her life had been the only possession of any real significance down below and now up here any one of these people could suddenly lash out within arms reach and try to harm her for all that she knew of society on Nar Shadaa, and Zarack had to be honest, even he kept his eyes about him everywhere he stepped on the higher levels just as much as the lower, less fortunate ones.

Her gaze found his again and through the movements of the insignificant peoples, he found her nod to him, soon causing himself to chuckle a little and think in a very quiet mutter to himself, "Time to go then...". It was here he left the entrance to the lift and the doors shut finally able to move back to retrieve whoever else might be needing its service whilst he approached her making no effort to stop for those trying to get passed him; his shoulder connected with another younger male than he who turned around and yelled something unintelligible yet Zarack paid it no mind as he continued to meet Syndri's gaze with an amused and encouraging smirk in full form across his face. "Welcome to the Galaxy's biggest haven for Criminals, offenders of all kinds, smugglers and gamblers; albeit successful or otherwise" he turned to look about the crowds that seems to swarm in their daily activities, "There are of course many other like-minded people out in the galaxy but here you know to expect it...-It's only uphill from here on out" he soon returned that nod she'd given him, firmly back to her. "C'mon, let's outta here..." he added smugly before moving ahead of her and taking the lead, not expecting but rather having a feeling she'd be comfortable following with a view of his back and the rest of the world passing them by; unless of course she found the courage to keep up at his side.

They passed the Cantina where Zarack had overheard the rumors about her and he pointed it out to Syndri explaining as much though choosing best not to stop, as time moved, so did they and by the time they reached the Hangar where the Baccara was stationed, it might have been a solid thirty minutes or so since they left the lift. Heading under the archway which held the control center for the many different docking zones, Zarack slowed his pace finally as the modified YT-1300 came into view, the light freighter looking relatively tidy considering the age of its make, with a host of armaments many would tell weren't standard for that kind of vessel. "Originally she was used for freight...-But at the time, I had friends in high places who probably thought my skills were worth paying for. As it turns out, I probably wasn't as reliable as they'd hoped..." He bobbed his head to either side before adding, "Comes with the territory of having a Mentor who kills and eats people I suppose, a little hard to get along with someone like that...".

 

[Matron Malgus]

She was easily able to keep pace with [member="Zarack Arkaos"], though careful to stay close enough behind him that she managed to evade a majority of the upper people's gazes. She listened intently to his words, analyzing his own emotions as she did so. It wasn't out of mistrust that she watched him, but rather curiosity. She was curious about the boy, though she didn't doubt his intentions to see her off-world, but afterwards she didn't know. He hadn't mentioned his intentions and so far she hadn't been able to glean any information out of his actions or his words. She idly wondered if it was intentional that he had been vague, but she shook her head as if to clear the paranoia from her mind. She turned her amber gaze, and attentions, back to the boy as he spoke and they walked.

Her eyes glanced over the cantina that Zarack said he had heard of her from, and a sly smile played at the corner of her lips. So, her reputation had reached even the highest corners of Nar Shaddaa; Good. She wanted them to remember her, to remember what these people had caused her to become. She was a child once, a young and innocent child, and though she was easily resilient to the whispers of the dark, she willingly listened on occasion. She believed in the good of people, but she also believed no one was nice without wanting something in return. The Smugglers Moon had driven her to become what she was, and it was only fitting that they remember her. Of course, they would soon realize that she was gone from the moon and her home would be claimed by those that had long sought to kill her.

"Such is the nature of things in this dark galaxy now. They lead the once good to turn down the darker paths and the dark are allowed the thrive." her words were frank, making her displeasure of the truly evil clear. She was violent and dark, but she was a necessary evil borne from a world that thrived in it. There were times when she thought of what her life would have been like had her parents not abandoned her to the moon she was left on. She never thought long about it, having learned long ago that one needed to accept their fate and deal with the hands they were dealt. But, the boy in front of her and had her thinking about what she could become, what she had the potential to become.

He caused her to think. Her nostrils flared and an ironic smile played across her lips and her gaze turned towards the ship they had stopped in front of. She vaguely heard him talking about the ship, but it was like gibberish to her. She couldn't tell the difference between this ship to the next. But, she smiled softly and nodded in acknowledgement.

" A man that eats those that he murders. she trailed off slowly with a thoughtful expression on her face before she continued, "...sounds like an interesting sort." that sly smile playing on her lips again as she turned her gaze to him.

 

[WolfMortum]

"A woman actually..." Zarack turned and looked back to [member="Syndri"] who appeared almost impressed by the thought; Come to think of it they might have gotten along. The thought caused him to chuckle quietly to himself before explaining "The Order of the Black Rose, she introduced me to the Force and the lightsaber...-I found it easy to hate her for the way she treated others around her but in hind sight, she could have killed me and instead, she chose to take me in and offered me something others could not...", to think of her Shinju Ayasha in a positive light was something difficult to do but he had to admit now that he was clear of it all and not being mislead by his distaste for having his freedom detained, she had done him a service really. While he was a nobody in the way of the Galaxy and had no real future in sight ahead of him, perhaps one day someone might say she showed him the path at the start of it all; "She was not a good person, though there have been many worse..." he concluded aloud before turning and continuing on towards the Baccara.

Reaching out with his left hand, knowing the Freighter intimately, he triggered the loading ramp to lower with a clutter of mechanics and eventually a graceful descent to which he began to walk up, beckoning Syndri to follow. The Interior of the vessel would seem much larger on the inside than it had looked from afar, the walls were decorated with the wiring's and open compartments used for regular maintenance, something Zarack was finding himself quietly getting better at; the good space they did have however was organized much more delicately where he'd cleaned up the vessel as best he could. Since it's modification, the open lounging area and the offset quarters for himself and guests were really nothing as much as the marvel that was the cockpit, integrating systems that lead to the ship far larger than a simple Starfighter to be piloted by one lone person of experience.

"I ventured into your home and you welcomed me as was typical for you..." Zarack spoke as he lead her into the open living area that was the center of the ship and the largest open space within, contemporary seating lined the outside with compartments and shelving that held the scattered supplies that was a sign of almost desperate living though the reserved supplies such as food and water, things that life demanded were stocked further back in the cargo bay, refrigerated and otherwise. "It's not what you might call paradise but it is mine and mine alone. A home that can carry us anywhere in the Galaxy we wish to go..." If Zarack seemed cocky and proud in the moment, it was the truth. This Ship was his one marvel and true joy, the only thing of any true significance that he owned and without the Baccara his life would have no meaning, he'd be stuck back on a world as likely as Eriadu with no ability to run from those that sought the price on his head. "Welcome to The Baccara...-My home".