Private Roots in the Rebellion

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Blaster fire cracked through the humid Odessen air, red bolts zigzagging toward Acier like angry wasps. He pivoted on his heel, left arm swinging as his lightsaber snapped a bolt into a nearby tree trunk, then another into the dirt at his feet. Sweat clung to his brow and soaked the black sleeve of his training top, the jacket discarded somewhere off to the side. His blue trousers were dust-streaked from near-misses and tumbles, but he wasn't slowing down. If anything, he was pushing harder.​

​

It hadn't been long since the official formation of the Hidden Path, or since the white-haired rebel had agreed to join. He was still adapting. To working with others, having a structured routine, and living a sedentary lifestyle. But ultimately, he was happy to be here, happy to have purpose.​

​

Ace still struggled with socializing, establishing bonds and such. He'd gravitated to a few already, people like Jane and Michael Angellus but duty pulled them all to different parts of the galaxy most of the time. There was barely any time to sit down and... talk. So, on his off days, Ace normally found himself alone in the forest. Just training, training and... more training. It made sense to him, he'd likely be seeing combat more often, his technique needed to be better. But in reality, he was just avoiding the need to try and make friends.​

​

Another volley shot toward him, three bolts in quick succession. Ace narrowed his eyes and stepped into the rhythm. His lightsaber moved like a conductor's baton, precise and deliberate. One bolt ricocheted skyward, another pinged off a nearby boulder. The third grazed his thigh, singing the fabric and drawing a quiet hiss from between his teeth.​

​

It wouldn't be enough to deter him, however. The pain grounded him. The repetition focused him. The silence, broken only by the hum of his lightsaber and the chirp of the remotes, shielded him from the awkward weight of small talk and introductions. It was easier to spar with machines. They didn't expect conversation.​

​

Everest Vale​

 

[Everest Vale]

Outfit: Robes
Equipment: Lightsaber, Bracelet, Earrings, Seer Stone, Wayfinder's Flare, Engagement Ring
Companion: Isari
Tag: Acier Moonbound

The forest was still, serene in spite of everything going on on the planet. Eve walked its paths in silence, her boots brushing through the soft moss and fallen leaves. Odessen’s air was clean here, untouched by city lights or the hum of starship engines, and it carried with it the kind of peace she had been craving since the galaxy had fallen into chaos. Isari padded at her side, the silver-eyed fox’s ears pricked forward, every movement sharp and alert.

Then came the sound. Blaster fire, sharp and rhythmic, carried through the trees. Eve stopped. Hand resting lightly against the bark of a nearby tree, she tilted her head toward the source. It wasn’t hostile; the energy in the Force wasn’t panic or fear, but focus. Determined, disciplined… familiar.

She followed it.

At the tree line, she found him. Acier Moonbound, his lightsaber carved through the air with precise, deliberate strokes, each deflection a clean answer to the remotes circling him. Sweat clung to his brow, his movements driven not just by form but by persistence, almost stubborn in its intensity.

Eve stayed where she was for a moment, watching. Isari sat neatly by her boots, tail curling against the ground, as though she too understood the quiet reverence of the scene. When Ace finally slowed and let the remotes rest, Eve stepped forward.

"You have good form," she said softly, her voice carrying just enough to reach him without disturbing the stillness between them. There was a small, approving smile on her lips. "Your guard’s steady, and your recovery is clean. But..." she tilted her head slightly, silver gaze calm but thoughtful. "If you shift your rear foot just half a step wider, you’ll open your stance. You’ll see more of the field, and it’ll be harder for anything to catch you blind."

Isari trotted ahead a few paces, tail giving a single curious flick as she looked up at him. Eve followed after, quiet and unhurried, then took a gentle bow.

"I hope you don’t mind the intrusion," she added gently. "I thought it would be nice to finally say hello. Properly this time."

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Even before she spoke, he felt her. Subtle. Calming. Like still water, a quiet resilience and patient strength. She carried a warmth that didn't demand attention but invited it, the kind of presence you only noticed once the world had gone quiet enough to feel it.

There was no tension in her aura either. Just gentle awareness… and something deeper, too. A quiet ache wrapped in kindness. The kind of light that came from choosing to hope, even when the galaxy didn't give you much reason to. It was beautiful in a way.

That was enough training for today, may as well see who's been watching. Extingushing his lightsaber, the remotes ceased in unison and hovered in the air. Then she spoke, it was a voice he recognized. Everest Vale.

Ace turned to meet her gaze as she continued to speak - offering constructive critisicm on his style and form. When she'd made the comment about shifting his rear foot, his eyes lowered to his boots, making a mental note of the advice. Then he glanced back at her again, offering her a faint smirk as if to say 'thanks'.

His messy locs slicked back as Ace ran a hand through them. He'd only now just spotted Eve's little fox companion as it trotted ahead of her and toward him. A dry but amused chuckle escaped him as he crouched down and offered the creature his hand, allowing her to come to him if she wished.

"No, I don't mind." his response was short, but it carried a welcoming warmth.

Like the others he'd met during the Forge incident, he hadn't really spoken to any since. Even the ones who found themselves on Odessen, with the Path. Wasn't much to say really, he'd only met them once (twice with Aadihr) and was still a stranger to all of them.

"Yeah. Makes sense. We're all allies now." Ace rose to his feet "Guess you wanna figure out what makes me tick?"

He lowered his head to glance at Isari again, smiling with a little more life behind his eyes now

"Cute thing you've got here. What's it's name?" he paused, eyes meeting Eve's again. Curiosity etched on his freckled features "What is it actually?"

Everest Vale ​

 

[Everest Vale]

Outfit: Robes
Equipment: Lightsaber, Bracelet, Earrings, Seer Stone, Wayfinder's Flare, Engagement Ring
Companion: Isari
Tag: Acier Moonbound

Eve smiled as he crouched down to meet Isari, and the fox, curious and unafraid, gave a few sniffs before lightly pressing her head into his offered hand. Her silver eyes blinked slowly, then half-lidded with approval.

"She likes you," Eve said quietly, the smile lingering. "That's a good sign. She's picky."

She stepped in closer, letting the moment settle. Ace had that same air he always seemed to carry. Steady, sharp-edged, but not cold. If anything, she thought, it felt like standing near a cliffside: strong and weather-worn, shaped by storms but still standing tall.

At his question, she glanced down at Isari again, reaching to gently stroke the fox's sleek back.

"Her name is Isari. She's a Miralune fox, from Eshan, like me. She followed me when I visited home once, and bonded with me. At first, I thought she was just a curious animal, but she's more than that. We have stories about them on Eshan. Most people think they're myth." She paused, glancing back up at him with a humble smile. "But she's real. And… special." Her gaze softened further.

"It's a strange thing, isn't it? How quickly people get thrown together."

She turned her head slightly, thoughtfully watching the way the light filtered through the canopy above them. After a moment, she nodded toward the training field behind him, then back to Acier.

"Don't let me disturb your training. Maybe you could show me what you're working on?"

Isari gave a small yip in response, as if amused.

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Ace chuckled again as Isari pressed into his palm, her fur was warm and soft. His wrist softly moved left and right, giving the small fox a tender rub. It was... nice and strangely calming. For a moment, his eyes shut gently and a quiet, peaceful sigh left his lips.​

​

Ace always loved animals, their innocence. Animals, usually, never acted out of malice or bothered with the complex inner workings of society. They just... were. It was something he almost envied about them. Hearing Everest say Isari liked him filled him with a sense of pride and joy unlike any other.​

​

Now on his feet, he listened to Everest's answer - about what exactly Isari was. He'd never heard of a Miralune fox... to be frank, he didn't know much about Echani culture or Eshan lore either. But that curiosity he carried with him all his life still hadn't gone away, he enjoyed learning new things. Learning more about the wider galaxy. As she spoke, his dark brown eyes lingered on Everest's singular silver eye - his full attention zeroed in on every word.​

​

Ace didn't immediately respond to Everest's reflection. On how random encounters, leading to something grander was a peculiar phenomenon. Maybe a year ago he'd have agreed, but now? He believed he was certain on what it was.​

​

"I don't think it is... not anymore, at least. Repeat experiences have taught me its the Force wanting to throw people together." he paused, crossing his arms and lowering his gaze contemplatively "We find out why later."​

​

Ace blinked slowly, eyes flicking from the fox back to her handler. There was something calming about Eve's energy... like a stillness you could lean on without realizing it. Her suggestion wasn't pushy, just… there. Ace brushed some dirt off of his pants with a lazy wipe.​

​

"What I'm working on?" he repeated, a dry smirk tugging at one corner of his mouth. "Nothing fancy. Just trying not to get lit up."​

​

He gave a subtle nod toward the remotes still hovering in standby behind him, then glanced back at Eve.​

​

"Mostly deflection. Timing. Reading angles. I'm skilled with a lightsaber... but at the end of the day, I've only got around six months of training." ​

​

Turning his back slightly, he reached for the small controller clipped to his belt and dialed in a new setting. The remotes beeped in response, reorienting to a looser, more chaotic firing pattern - less rhythm and more randomness. He re-ignited his lightsaber, the soft snap-hiss followed by the steady, focused hum.​

​

"You're welcome to stay." he said, voice quieter now, a little more sincere.​

​

He rolled his neck once, settled into his stance… then glanced back at her again with a faint grin.​

​

"I'm open to some feedback. It'll probably stop me from dying, so..."​

​

Everest Vale ​

 

[Everest Vale]

Outfit: Robes
Equipment: Lightsaber, Bracelet, Earrings, Seer Stone, Wayfinder's Flare, Engagement Ring
Companion: Isari
Tag: Acier Moonbound

Eve smiled faintly at his words and stepped forward, close enough to observe the remotes but not interfere.

"I'll stay a while," she said softly.

Her gaze shifted to his stance, movements and posture. Silent study, born not just of Jedi discipline, but a lifetime of Echani instinct. She could feel the rhythm of him: the restraint in his limbs, the alert tension in his shoulders, the precision that came from a necessity to survive. He moved like someone who hadn't been taught, but had needed to learn. That carried its own kind of grace.

"Training time doesn't mean everything," she murmured, eyes still watching the line of his form. "It helps, of course, locking the theory into the muscles, so it flows without thought. But what really changes the body is how willing you are to let go. To trust the moment. Not chase it. Not control it. Just…"

She raised a hand gently, as if sketching the air.

"Be in it."

Her silver eye met his again, calm and steady.

"You're holding your shoulders too tight. Like you're trying to win the exercise." A small smile touched her lips. "Don't. There's no success or failure here. Just breath. Motion. Stillness."

The forest answered them with a hush. Wind in leaves, a rustle of wings. After a pause, relishing the quiet between them, she finished.

"If you'd like," she said quietly, a hand resting on the wooden hilt of her saber. "I could demonstrate."

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Acier concluded another round with the training remotes, slightly better this time. He heeded Everest's earlier advice - shifting his rear foot slightly wider - and, surprisingly, it was effective.

His lightsaber hissed shut and the remotes returned to their stationary setting. The ashen haired rebel's eyes flicked over to Everest, listening attenetively to the Padawan's feedback. He hadn't expected her words to land the way they did.

"You're trying to win the exercise"

Well, yes. Of course he was. It surprised him how she'd seen it so clearly. His entire way of life had been forged under pressure: run fast, hit first, don't die. Every motion was a reaction. There was no room for stillness when the galaxy was always coming for your throat.

But now? Now he was here. In a forest that didn't want to kill him. With people who weren't trying to use him. And a Jedi - calm, sharp-eyed, quietly kind - telling him it was okay to let go.

He didn't know how to yet, but... he wanted to try. Ace's body loosened and he exhaled lightly, dark eyes lingering on her.

"Alright." He said, voice quieter "Show me."

Ace stepped away from the hovering training remotes, leaving the space open for the Echani Jedi. He stopped close enough to see, but still a fair distance away.

When she moved into position, his voice came again, softer.

"You talk like someone who's spent a long time thinking about this." His eyes lingered, just for a moment, on her eyepatch. "That connection between the body and the moment."

His arms crossed loosely as he studied her form, the sharpness in his expression softened by something closer to curiosity.

"Was it always like that for you?" He asked. "Or did that come after things went sideways?"

Everest Vale ​

 

[Everest Vale]

Outfit: Robes
Equipment: Lightsaber, Bracelet, Earrings, Seer Stone, Wayfinder's Flare, Engagement Ring
Companion: Isari
Tag: Acier Moonbound

When Ace asked his question, Eve's head tilted slightly, the silver glint of her eye catching the soft forest light. For a moment, she didn't answer, not to withhold at all, but only to consider for a moment longer.

"It's part of who I am," she said at last, voice quiet but sure. "As an Echani, we're raised to see motion and form as language. Body as speech. A single stance can say more than a hundred words."

She paused, a slight smile touching her lips.

"But I never felt like I belonged in that. Not when I was younger anyway. Everyone else seemed to… speak that language effortlessly. I felt like I was missing something, like I'd been born with the words but not the fluency. I tried, but I was always a few steps behind. Too soft, too quiet."

Her gaze drifted for a moment, then returned to him.

"Then I started training as a Jedi. And it was like... like something unlocked. As if the Force... translated everything I'd been feeling but couldn't name. I started moving differently. Reading differently. Not just Echani, not just Jedi—just… truth, through motion."

There was a brief fire in her expression now. Not aggressive, not overwhelming, but something bright and alive behind her words.

"It's powerful," she said. "To know someone without speech. To be known through how you stand, how you step, how you carry pain or peace or purpose."

Then, suddenly aware of how intensely she'd been speaking, she looked down with a shy laugh. Isari looked back up at her with her usual quiet stoicism.

"Sorry. I—got a little caught up."

She looked back at him again, brushing a strand of white hair behind her ear.

"I was actually going to ask if you wanted to spar. With me, I mean. Instead of the remotes."

She was quiet for a moment, and then, with a small, earnest smile, she added, "No winners. Just motion. Speech."

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Ace didn't answer at first. It wasn't hesitation, just... reflection. He watched her, really watched her. Not just the words, but how she stood in them. The calm. The certainty. The flicker of that fire behind her voice.

When she mentioned being Echani, not feeling like she belonged, he found himself thinking about his own blood. His own culture, if he could even call it that. The Mandalorian side of him was still new. Raw. Names whispered in the dark, traditions carried in armor he hadn't earned yet. The Mand'alor. The Resol'nare. The weight of legacy pressing down on his shoulders before he even had time to stand beneath it.

He didn't speak that language either. Not yet, at least. But maybe that's what this was about, listening first. Then learning the shape of yourself through others. A small breath left him. Then his lips twitched, just faintly.

"No winners." he repeated, glancing back toward the center of the clearing. "That's a first."

His eyes returned to hers. The corner of his mouth pulled slightly into something close to a smile - not wide, but it was real nonetheless. Ace unhooked his lightsaber again, blue fire erupting from the transmitter. With a smooth flick of his wrist, he spun it once behind his back in a fluid arc before settling into his familiar southpaw stance. Right leg forward, lightsaber angled to his left side.

"Alright." he said. "Let's talk."

Everest Vale ​

 

[Everest Vale]

Outfit: Robes
Equipment: Lightsaber, Bracelet, Earrings, Seer Stone, Wayfinder's Flare, Atrisian Dancer, Engagement Ring
Companion: Isari
Tag: Acier Moonbound

Eve's eye traced his stance, left foot set forward, weight balanced over it, blade angled from the left side. She noted the slight tension in his rear heel, the way his dominant side moved with intention but hadn't fully settled into trust yet. Not of her—of himself. He was still learning his rhythm. Still trying to speak the language without overthinking the syllables.

She stepped forward, Stillness igniting in her hand in training mode with a soft, clean hum. Its white light reflected gently against the ground, more moonlight than flame. Her stance flowed into place, not rigid, not theatrical, but grounded and graceful, like flowing water held in a vessel.

It wasn't any single lightsaber form. You could see the structure of Makashi in her spine, the curved fluidity of Soresu in her wrist, a faint echo of Ataru's spiraling grace in the way she stepped. But none of them defined her. This was her own movement, born from years of watching her mother's form in the fields of Eshan, of practicing katas in silence alone and under the instruction of Valery, of falling and getting back up again and again. It wasn't perfect.

But it was hers.

She moved, not charging, just stepping into the conversation. A feint in her footwork, a twist of her hips, and then a soft slash aimed low toward his outer guard. Testing his flow, not his strength.

The white blade whispered through the air.

Another feint. A pivot. A real strike this time, graceful, sweeping, easy to counter, if he stayed with her rhythm.

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

He stepped into the circle with confidence and a touch of arrogance. But overall, certainty. He'd sparred with his Master, Pisti. Fought and destroyed a MagnaGuard. Tangled with Bounty hunters. He'd taken hits and given more. Combat wasn't theory to him. It was his life. A lifestyle that had burned into every muscle and nerve.

And there was the fact he was a Verd, a descendant of warriors. Fighting was in his blood, whether he asked for it or not.

So when Eve moved, he didn't hesitate. He read the first step, the feint and knew what was coming after. Ace moved fast, lightsaber cutting a sharp arc to intercept. But he wasn't fast enough. Everest's blade slipped through low, quiet as breath, and tapped his thigh before he could finish his swing.

Ace didn't flinch. But he wasn't used to being touched, at least not like that. Not when he'd seen it coming. The rebel didn't reset with calm or clarity. He just registered and adjusted, body tilting forward, lightsaber pulling back like a slingshot ready to fire again.

She moved with purpose. He moved with drive. He didn't have a style. Not really. There were pieces of Shii-Cho in the way his blade swung wide, moments of Djem So when he threw his weight behind a strike, but mostly? He fought the way he always had: Fast. Forward. Unrelenting.

Ace stepped into her space again, no breath between them now, and brought his lightsaber up in a rising diagonal slash aimed at her left shoulder: aggressive, forceful, no half-measures.

He didn't speak. He just pressed.

Everest Vale​

 

[Everest Vale]

Outfit: Personal Armour
Equipment: Lightsaber, Bracelet, Earrings, Seer Stone, Wayfinder's Flare, Atrisian Dancer, Engagement Ring
Companion: Isari
Tag: Acier Moonbound

Eve moved like wind around stone. She saw the strike coming before it finished forming — the sharp diagonal slash, shoulder to hip, driven by force rather than rhythm. He was fast, stronger than her in raw physicality, no doubt. But his momentum was still louder than his intention, and she could feel the strain behind the motion.

No breath between them now. She met the blade cleanly — Stillness rang with the contact, white light crashing against blue in a flash that split the air. The clash was brief, but intentional.

Instead of disengaging, she stepped closer. One foot slid behind his, and with a shift of her weight and a twist of her blade, she broke the lock and pushed.

It wasn't a brutal shove, but measured and precise. A redirection of his own drive, carried by her understanding of where it would lead, forcing Ace to stumble back and onto the ground. She didn't follow with another strike. Instead, she stepped forward and lowered her blade just enough so the tip hovered above his chest. Then, gently, she spoke.

"Don't try so hard."

Her voice was calm. It wasn't condescending, it never was, but rather compassionate.

"You fight like the outcome is already chasing you." Her saber hummed low as she held his gaze. "But your emotions don't have to be armour. They can be movement. Let them speak, but without forcing them."

She held the moment a breath longer, then deactivated her blade with a soft hiss. Reaching down with her free hand, she offered it to him.

Pulling him to his feet with surprising steadiness for someone her size, she then stepped back, igniting Stillness once more. Her stance now was low, open—more clearly defensive and measured.

A small smile tugged at the corner of her lips.

"Again."

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

It all happened so fast. Ace hit the ground hard enough to feel it. It wasn't painful, but more like a full-body exhale he didn't mean to take. One second, forward. The next, flat on his back, staring up through the trees with a lightsaber at his chest and his own momentum unraveling beneath him.

Ace blinked, surprise washing over his features. She didn't press on, she was just... standing there. Calm and steady. Her silvery gaze was locked on his, voice stady as usual. As if she hadn't just been swinging around her lightsaber.

Everest told him not to try so hard. It wasn't a reprimand, nor pity. Just a quiet truth, one that landed deeper than any strike she'd given him. His dark eyes lingered on her, breathing through his nose as his chest still rose. Maybe she wasn't wrong.

He wanted to snap back, deflect - not her blade, but her insight. Ace wanted to tell her, reflexively, that she was wrong, didn't know what she was talking about. He was compelled to argue that he needed to fight like that. That every step, every swing, every second wasted was the difference between life and death where he came from.

But silence continued to stretch between them, filled in only by the hum of the Padawan's lightsaber. He didn't say anything.

Everest was already offering her hand and for a moment he just stared. His brow furrowed at her hand, like it was some sort of puzzle. But, finally, he accepted it and took her hand. Allowing her to help him back to his feet.

He didn't meet her eyes, at least not at first. Ace rolled his shoulders, and adjusted himself. When his gaze finally flicked to Everest, she had lowered her stance. Defensive now. Both measured and inviting.

"Again." She said.

A smirk found its way on his lips, quirking ever so slightly. His lightsaber returned to life and he circled a step to the side this time. There was still weight in his limbs, power behind every movement, but the fire had narrowed, like a flame pulled into focus. Then he stepped in.

His opening strike wasn't wild - it was controlled, but still bold. A diagonal cut, reversed mid-swing into a quick horizontal strike aimed low toward her flank. He wasn't dancing around her. He was testing her this time, not with brute force, but with intent.

Still raw. Still aggressive. But quieter now. Like maybe, just maybe, he was starting to listen.

Everest Vale​

 

[Everest Vale]

Outfit: Robes
Equipment: Lightsaber, Bracelet, Earrings, Seer Stone, Wayfinder's Flare, Engagement Ring
Companion: Isari
Tag: Acier Moonbound

The strike landed. It came in low and fast, his lightsaber slipping past her guard and catching her along the side. The burn didn't linger, but the pressure behind it knocked her a step back. Her boots shifted in the soil, grounding her again before she had fully straightened. The impact wasn't serious, but it was clean, and well-earned.

A grin curved across her face, sudden and bright, breaking through her usual quiet. It wasn't mocking or surprise, but the expression of a daughter of Eshan finally starting to learn the language of her opponent.

"Impressive," she said, her voice steady. There was a warmth to it, and something quietly pleased. He had adapted. She could see it in the way he held himself now, the way his strikes had narrowed. The aggression was still there, but it had learned to breathe a little better. That mattered more than shear power.

Eve didn't rush her response. She moved slowly, circling around him, her silver eye fixed on his posture. Her gaze tracked every shift of weight, every change in balance, the way his shoulders now carried a different kind of readiness. He wasn't just reacting anymore. He was starting to speak.
Echani were raised to read people this way. Every motion told a story. Every stance was a sentence. Most didn't realise how much they said with their bodies until someone answered.

Without a word, she stepped forward.

Her movement began low, dropping her body almost into a crouch as her lightsaber swept behind her in a fluid line. The hilt remained close to her spine, her free hand stretched slightly for balance. She moved with full-body control, every motion flowing into the next without hesitation or delay. From the crouch, she pivoted sharply on her lead foot. Her hips twisted, and the blade came rising up in a clean, diagonal arc aimed toward his outer guard. It wasn't a wild or aggressive strike, but focused and intentional.

The motion was fast, but never rushed. Her body moved as one, from the grounded step to the arch of her back, to the angle of her wrist as the blade swept forward. Her Echani instincts had taken full command now, and every fibre of her form answered with clarity.

The strike came through clean, white light catching the shadows as it carved upward. She let the moment carry it forward.

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Odessen - Hidden Path Outpost

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Ace felt the hit connect, not with force, but with precision. He saw the way it pushed her back a step. He didn't gloat. Didn't grin. Just watched. His lightsaber stayed raised, chest rising with steady breath. That fire still burned in him, but now it sat lower, tempered.

He'd pressed. He'd landed something clean. But the fight wasn't over, and for the first time he wasn't trying to end it. Not yet.

Eve reset, circling him. She was watching, tracking every shift in his posture. Ace moved with her, keeping her in front of him. The way she moved; the looseness in her limbs, the slow coiling of her stance. It was like she was composing a sentence before speaking. He felt it, not just in his eyes but somewhere deeper, like instinct beginning to translate.

And when she moved, he saw it. The crouch. The sweep behind her spine. The twist of her hips before the blade came. It wasn't showy, but it was fluid. Measured. Fast, but not rushed. He didn't hesitate, meeting her strike before it finished forming, weight shifting, blade swinging to intercept with a sharp crack of blue meeting white.

Ace didn't press forward. He just held her there, blades locked, his breath steady, meeting her eye. His stance was still wide, still ready to lunge but there was something steadier behind it now. A flicker of something unspoken. Recognition. Not just of her form but of the rhythm she'd been trying to teach him all along.

Then, finally, he broke the lock with a push of his weight, enough to make space. He stepped forward again, momentum flowing with him, lightsaber slicing down in a tight diagonal before snapping into a sharp, backhanded sweep angled for her right shoulder. Fast, fluid, and cutting across the beat of her next step. No wild swing. No brute force. Just drive, precision, and the rhythm they were starting to share.

Everest Vale​