Private Reunion in rust-clad

[Tae'l Vizsla]

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Leenic Ellsil

Tayl wiggled herself into a comfortable position now that the odd lump was gone. It turned out to be a plushie, which honestly surprised her. Admittedly she didn't really have toys in a classical sense as a child, but even then, she hadn't met any Mandalorian that owned a plushie of all things.

"Aren't you a little old for stuffed animals?" She chuckled

“This is dragon one to tower, requesting permission to take off.”

<<Tower reads you, Dragon-1. standby...>>

<A-firm, You may take off when ready>>​

A small part of her was hoping that there would be a delay. Not that she didn't want to go, of course, but rather she had some small hope that Aloy might stop them to ask where Tayl was being taken. Maybe she would ask where she's been after the fact at least.

But for the time being, Tayl would simply sit in silence and think things over. As much as she hated the sort of downtime thinking that this usually brought up, the sad truth was that she wouldn't always have a mission to distract her. She couldn't run from her problems forever.
One of those problems being that she didn't really think about other things enough, actually. Save perhaps a tune or two she had learned to play on the flute. Or guitar, the one time mother actually took the time to teach her.

Come to think of it, this made her wonder how much Aloy had changed since the day Tayl left Kamino. Was she always like this? or just maybe, there might be a fine polish they could restore, waiting just beneath the rust.


"Hey Leenic...? I heard you and mother both served Mandalore, a long time ago..."

"What was she like...? back then I mean"

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[Leenic Ellsil]

Tae'l Vizsla

“Never too old for stuffed animals.” Leenic replied matter-of-factly, turning his head to look at Tayl. “They’re really helpful for when you need something to hug on occasion, I’d highly recommend getting one.”

He then turned back to his controls as he was cleared to take off, gradually increasing the engines thrust and sending the U-Wing out of the Hangar and into space. Punching in the coordinates, Leenic glanced at Tayl through his peripherals when he sensed something was off with the younger mandalorian, although he figured that just from how her body language currently was one wouldn’t need the force to tell something was off.

"Hey Leenic...? I heard you and mother both served Mandalore, a long time ago..."

"What was she like...? back then I mean"

Tayl had popped the question just as Leenic was pulling them into hyperspace, giving him an excuse to not answer her for a few moments as he considered his answer.

It had been a very long time since the era Tayl was referencing had passed by, although it certainly felt like yesterday, and Leenic honestly found it hard to even think back that far, much less remember what Aloy’s personality was like.

After a minute of thinking, Leenic finally leaned back in his seat, forearms resting on his thigh playing as the chair swiveled to face Tayl.

“Honestly? We were both young back then, full of piss and vinegar and more than capable of taking on the galaxy by ourselves. I certainly was ready to kill every last bastard in between me and a paycheck…but your mother,” He said, pausing and chewing on his lip for a moment. “Aloy was…different back then. More hotheaded, fully prepared to lead clan Vizsla to victory at all cost. Hell, if she’d had the Darksaber I would have beloved her to be the reincarnation of Pre Vizsla himself. But…the galaxy has worn her down, chewed her up and spit her out…”

He paused, blinking a few times as he glanced down at himself.

“…kinda like me, I guess.”

Leenic then let out a long sigh, looking back up at Tayl and scratching the side of his neck. “It…well it really happens to everyone in this business at some point or the other. Ya get up, get torn up by the universe, and then ya either get out or die with your boots on.” He finally elaborated, looking out the front viewport of the ship. “Your mother…I’m honestly not sure where she is yet. I’m far too gone to get out, I can assure you that, but you….”

“You still got time, Yknow. Still got a whole lifetime to get out of this.” He frowned slightly under his helmet. “Don’t make the same mistakes we did Tayl. It’ll kill you, wether that’s mentally or physically don’t matter.”