Private Seeking Shadows

[Kyric]

Pantora
The Outer Rim Territories
Capris Halcyon

A chilling breeze swept across rolling hills of tall, brown grass. Tiny critters scurried among the underbrush, hidden away from aerial hunters who prowled the field for the day's final meal. Kyric could scarcely make out the beginning of one hill from the end of another any more. It felt like he'd been walking for hours. Mostly because he had been. His latest quarry was of a much more dangerous variety than the birds overhead, or the quadruped beasts stalking the brush. It took to the fields, much like the rodents, to avoid being tracked by air.

It made sense what remained of the Pantoran government would seek aid in dealing with this creature. The New Sith Order's growth placed Pantora directly in the shadow of conquest. A creature like a Sithspawn, employed by only the most heinous of Sith, was living proof this planet would soon know a very real danger.

Just another problem for Kyric to deal with.

He sighed to himself and made a mental note to contact Auteme once he found the creature in question. His mother would provide what aid to the Pantorans she could, Kyric was confident of that. All she would need is something tangible. Proof that this danger would not go away.

At least he assumed.

By the time the sun finally set on the Pantoran fields, Kyric's whimsical fantasies had devolved into silent curses. The temperature would only continue to drop as the night went on. His clothes would keep him alive, sure, but they would do nothing to make an evening out in the frigid air manageable. He resolved to find a shelter of some kind, a cave, or maybe a hollowed-out tree and put together a fire. The creature's trail would not disappear by morning. Not to him, anyway.

The Force was his staunchest ally.

Unfortunately for the kiffar, it appeared someone else had a similar idea.

When he finally found a cave to call his own, the crackling of a small fire alerted him to another's presence. Kyric considered scoping the place out all quiet-like. It was the smarter thing to do after all. But in the words of his plethora of siblings: Kyric was the dumbest genius they knew. So, he cleared his throat loudly to announce his presence.

"Hello!" Kyric called into the mouth of the cave. "I'm not a serial killer or anything. Just a freezin' cold dude who could use a bit o' shelter from the elements." He paused, facepalming for what had to be one of the more awkward greetings he offered.

 

[Capris Halcyon]

Maybe it was just the desert-dweller in her, but Capris had a distinct, unshakeable hate for the cold, and having only one arm to wrap around herself certainly wasn’t helping things.

She was beginning to think no amount of money was worth the hassle this Sith Spawn was proving to be. Usually she didn’t struggle this much. After a couple rounds of monster wrangling Capris had admittedly gotten into a pretty good routine. Throw around a couple of hastily drawn runes, subdue the thing, and ship it back to the highest bidder. Bang, boom, profit.

But now she was two days deep into a stake out and her resolve had all but evaporated. So instead she hunkered down, gathered some twigs, and took to brooding in front of an open flame. She could’ve used a rune to start the fire- that would have been the easier, smarter way to go about things- but something about doing it manually felt weirdly empowering.

It was then she felt the force stir, alerting her of someone closing in.

Dammit.

With her hand snaking its way down to her blaster holster, the girl stood up, careful as she made her way to the lip of the cave. To her infinite surprise, there was only a polite looking kid around her age staring back.

His introduction, while maybe a little miscalculated, was certainly disarming. No one with an opener like that could remotely qualify as a threat. When he said he was just some dude, despite her better judgment, she believed him. The girl regarded the stranger with a curved eyebrow. He looked familiar, like a weird, uncanny amount. His presence in the force however was wholly unique and quickly stifled any musings they might have met before.

“Do what you want.” She ultimately gambled, slowly and cautiously as if she was talking to a child or a live bomb. “I don’t have a monopoly on firewood.” The majority of her social interaction as of late was strictly confined to confrontational jabs and hostile looks. It was a simple side effect of working alongside some of the galaxy’s most unsavory individuals. She wasn’t used to politeness, so the guy before her was something of an enigma.

“Since you're not a serial killer, can I ask why you also happen to need to take refuge in the middle of nowhere?”

Kyric

 

[Kyric]

Kyric inched closer into the cave.

What little bit of a bend that initially obscured his sight of the young woman receded away quickly, revealing Capris beside the fire. His gaze flickered between her and the flames, clearly conflicted on how to further engage the situation. That didn't last long. In all of two seconds, he slipped his jacket off and nestled down a foot away from the flame.

"Oh, yeah. That's the good stuff right there," Kyric grinned. The hint of a rustic twang peaked through at the end of certain words, but he definitely fit the part of a kid right off the streets of Galactic City.

After lounging by the fire a little too long, the kiffar shifted his attention back to Capris. He tipped his head with a grin. "Thanks for sharin' your fire, miss." A bit of civility would go a long way, he hoped. "Name's Kyric. Kyric Karis. I'm here investigating a report of a rogue sithspawn running rampant around this region. Thought I could lend a hand in trackin' it down."

He slipped a single glove from his right hand and slid it into his pack, which now rested at his side. "What about you?"

Kyric studied her a bit more closely as he awaited an answer. While his trust already carried him far in this conversation, he wouldn't allow himself to be swayed by a friendly face. There were many variations of sithspawn out there. No reason one of them couldn't shapeshift into a young woman around his age.

You're paranoid, Kyr.

Maybe. He considered. But we're up to our necks in problems as is. No reason to get caught off guard here. He lifted a thin stick and carefully nudged a thicker branch off of a fledgling spark.

"I don't mean to judge, ma'am, but you don't seem the type to like roughin' it out in the cold like this. Everything alright?"

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

Well, he certainly didn't waste any time getting cozy. The girl stared blankly down at the intruder for a moment, as if the integrity of his character could be unraveled with one single look of scrutiny. To his credit, the kid- Kyric -seemed genuinely pretty harmless. If he meant to sell himself as just some high-spirited Padawan looking to do some good in the world he was doing a phenomenal job.

She couldn't help but stifle a small mental flinch at how devastatingly familiar that sounded.

Still, her senses weren't infallible. Not to mention Capris wasn't the most trusting person to date, Kyric's presence already had her looking like her spine had been replaced with a metal rod. He was here for the same reason she was. That.. complicated things.

He then went asked if everything was alright, a sentiment which had Capris blinking in surprise.

"Yeah, everything's peachy." She deadpanned, "I uh- I just got lost on my way to Ro station. Figured holing up for the night was a better alternative than hypothermia." That sounded believable enough. Hopefully. "Although maybe not, considering what you just said about a Sith spawn."

Having feigned ignorance, the girl quickly tried to pedal away from her lie, pushing the conversation back onto Kyric, "I'm sorry are you like- a Jedi or something? Who do you work for and why do they have you hunting a Sith spawn by yourself?"

Kyric

 

[Kyric]

A bit of laughter escaped Kyric at how flatly she responded to his inquiry. She seemed the strong, silent type. The choppy bangs also expressed some level of unresolved trauma, but that was neither here nor there.

"I'm sorry are you like- a Jedi or something? Who do you work for and why do they have you hunting a Sith spawn by yourself?"

"Not really, no," Kyric said after a moment. "I was supposed to be a Jedi, I think. But I tell ye, I'm the worst with authority. I needed to be somewhere else. Somewhere me, I guess." He shrugged. "Like out there." A lazy flick of the wrist motioned to the exit of the cave. "Trudging through cold fields of neck-high grass well past sunset. Like a dumbass."

Interstingly, Kyric seemed entirely unbothered maintaining eye contact with Capris. At no point since they directly started speaking over the fire did his ember gaze leave hers.

"Can't say I work for anyone, either. I mostly do favors for Auteme when she asks. Occasionally someone in my family will reach out about something like this. Old war buddy or somethin' who heard some tip from some farmer about some strange monster." The kiffar spoke as if the entire thing might have been nothing more than nervous superstition, but something about his demeanor betrayed the fact he believed there was more to this matter.

"I was hoping to get to it before anyone else. I'm sorta the guy in my family who deals with this kinda trouble." He scooped up his jacket from earlier. "I even brought my trouble jacket."

It was a stupid joke. But he seemed like a stupid guy.

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

His answer somehow led to a new slew of increasingly complex questions. She scraped together the vague impression that he was someone important. And also someone who happened to be uncomfortably good at maintaining eye contact.

She was starting to wonder, based on current patterns, if he had a single self-conscious bone in his body.

"I'm sorry did you say Auteme? As in Chancellor Auteme?" The girl frowned, a good deal of mental lag finally catching up to her. Damn, who's nepo baby was she talking to right now?

With that revelation aside, Kyric revealed the tip that had brought him here.

"Oh." She regarded the jacket unceremoniously dumped on the floor, unsure whether or not she should go through the effort of faking a laugh.

"Right, wardrobe is everything. I'm glad you understand that."

Capris could almost feel a bubble of hysteria forming in her chest. What the hell was she saying? Something about this guy and his total nonchalance felt unreal. She couldn't decide whether she wanted to brush him off or entertain his antics and see where it got her.

Hopefully with an unconscious Sith spawn in tow and credits in her hand.

"Not that you don't seem entirely capable of handling this yourself, but I've hunted big game before."

She had to physically stop herself from cringing. Big game? What was she, some illegal poacher?

"Point being, If you want the help, I could be some."

Kyric

 

[Kyric]

"I'm sorry did you say Auteme? As in Chancellor Auteme?"

Kyric nodded. "Yep!" There was a sense of pride about him at the mention of her title. "We're not exactly uh-" He paused, his gaze momentarily drifting away from Capris to rest on the fire. "I don't know. I sorta owe her, I guess. That and she's willing to put up with me. As I'm sure you're startin' to realize, I'm not exactly the easiest company."

Something about the kiffar changed at that.

Sitting there with his eyes cast to the cave's ceiling, he suddenly looked tired.

He fell silent and listened to her offer, considering it for several long seconds until he finally nodded. "That's fine by me. I trust you if you're sayin' you can handle yourself. And since we're now in this together," he slowly climbed back up to his feet. "I better start doin' my part." Dust fell away as he lazily patted himself off, then he collected his pack and jacket, before turning back to Capris. "I'll take care of the watch. Make sure nothin' particularly nasty sneaks up on us while we've got our backs to the wall."

Now that he was standing and his bag was out of the way, she would likely note the holstered blaster pistol and sheathed vibro-knife Kyric was carrying. The knife rested at his left hip, while the blaster sat snug just above his right knee. The familiar sight of a lightsaber sat snug at the base of his lower back, clipped to the whole holster ensemble in a way that kept it parallel to the ground.

"I don't blame you if you don't trust me, but you should get some rest. I won't let anything hurt you out here." Kyric smiled. "I promise."

Then he stepped out of the cave and into the frigid night.

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

Uh oh. He was self-aware.

The girl looked on awkwardly as the Kiffar seemed to deflate at his own self-jab. Her first impulse was to agree, but A that was definitely an arsehole move and B that probably had more to do with her own liability to handle the company in the first place.

No he wasn't easy company for her, but no one was when you had the emotional range of a blunt object.

Ultimately she said nothing, just watched as Kyric straightened and offered to take first watch. Her immediate reflex was to trace whatever weapons he had on him. Her eyes scanned the arrangement; blaster, knife, lightsaber with clinical distrust. Capris didn't particularly care to hide her intentions. Kyric was probably taking the same mental notes, just under a friendlier guise that, in all honesty, she didn't have the energy to mimic.

As if reading her thoughts, Kyric encouraged her to get some rest, promising not to let anything hurt her.

Who was he to promise that?

Usually Capris would've gotten defensive. There'd been more than enough times her abilities had been dismissed or undercut just because of how underwhelming she looked. In a world of 6 foot something ubermen, it was hard not to look like some lost kid in comparison. She was short, young, and missing an arm. Most people assumed very little of her.

But nothing about Kyric's tone seemed patronizing. And besides he'd agreed to let her tag along on his little Sith spawn hunt, so really who was she to complain?

"Knock yourself out." were the parting words she decided on.

Her eyes never left his outline all while she situated herself on the cave floor, back to the wall and knees tucked to her chest. After a lapse of silence, she let out a loaded sigh she didn't realize she was holding in.

When was the last time she'd agreed to let someone watch her back?

Immediately the answer came to mind in the form of Kahlil Noble , his mental image nearly causing her to flinch. She'd burnt that bridge, torched it. And now she had to breathe through the ashes and pretend this is what she wanted all along. Clamping her eyes shut, she tried to dispel the thought and focus on the here and now. She needed to watch Kyric's back to make sure he didn't come around and try to stab hers. That was the reality of her life now, constant vigilance and self-imposed isolation.

Wouldn't have it any other way

————

With a jolt, Capris awoke, face flat against the earth. She'd let herself fall asleep. Amateur. Immediately her hand dove to her thigh holster, anxiety only abated when she felt the outline of her blaster.

Awesome, so he hadn't robbed her blind.

With a groan, the girl got to her feet. Her choppy bangs now even more inexplicably chopped. Doing her best to flatten out her hair, she made her way to the mouth of the cave, stifling a yawn in her voice

"You still alive Kyric?"

Kyric

 

[Kyric]

Choosing a spot just a few feet before the cave entrance, Kyric dropped into a meditative position, resting comfortably on his knees. He placed his jacket beside him in the fluff, then rested his hands atop his thighs.

Out in the snow, beset from all sides by the biting gale, Kyric somehow felt more at ease. He could still sense Capris' dagger-like glare burning into his middle back. Maybe only half of what she told him was true if he was being generous, but the more he thought about it the less he cared. She didn't seem any different from the women he was used to training with.

You think Mom would like her?

Kyric considered that line of thought for a long time out in the cold. She reminded him of quite of few of the ladies in his family.

Capris was prickly in all the ways a cactus would be. Nothing about her demeanor struck him as hostile to those who left her be, but to get close? He imagined her sharp personality would make quick work of anyone foolish enough to try and find the truth within her words. The entire ordeal struck him as tedious when he considered his other responsibilities. Between the twins, his training, and whatever organization threatened his half-brother, Kyric knew he was spreading himself thin.

But that was the sorta thing a Karis did best.

By the Force, Kyr. I cannot believe you are this self-aware, yet so freakin' dumb.

Kyric chuckled softly to himself. You know as well as I do Dad wouldn't have left her out in this cave. Whatever she's really doing here was serious enough that the Force led me to her. We'll stick around, do our part, and leave. Just like always.

Silence followed his declaration.

It was an uncomfortable thing.

___________________________________________________________
​

The morning came before Kyric realized it.

He opened his eyes, and for a horrible moment, thought he had gone completely blind during his meditations. Then he shifted in place and a mound of snow that had buried him through the night fell away to unveil his head.

"Yes!" Kyric tried to turn in a way that would maintain this snowy armor at the sound of her voice, but it fell apart all around him. He kept his grin nonetheless and sought out Capris in the back of the cave. "No trouble, ma'am." He managed a mock salute of the GADF's standard, then began the troublesome process of trying to remember where he left his jacket the night before. Strangely, he appeared entirely unfazed by the cold when he first came to, but he would begin to tremble slightly as he dug through the snow.

If not for the sudden appearance of one of the sleeves, Kyric believed he may have missed it entirely due to the numbness within his hands.

"Found it!" He yanked it out and began to shake the snow away. As he did, he turned to Capris. "How'd you sleep?"

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

Kryic was alive, and seemingly impervious to snow.

He also hadn't seen fit to abandon her in the middle of the night. She didn't know why that was a relief, but the bounty hunter was quick to squash the feeling into oblivion. His unapologetic goodness was starting to feel dangerous.

He then asked her how she’d slept.

"Soundly." She cleared the exhausted slur from her voice, her hair still an uncooperative mop. There was an awkward lapse of silence before she decided to tag on, "Thanks for keeping watch by the way.” for good measure. She may have been a cactus, but politeness wasn't beyond her.

Adjusting her shawl, she used her one hand to tame her hair into something resembling a bun,"You need time to dethaw or..?" Capris regarded Kyric skeptically all while he saluted her, having far too much energy on reserve for a man who spent the night blanketed in snow.

Did hypothermia make people hysterical or was that hope misplaced?

Assuming he'd be raring to go, the girl rubbed the sleep from her eyes and accounted for all her belongings. A measly blaster and water canteen as it stood.

"So what's our plan? Lay it out for me."

Kyric

 

[Kyric]

"Thanks for keeping watch by the way.”

Kyric offered a thumbs up in answer. At the mention of dethawing, he simply shook his head. "Nah, I'll be fine. I picked up temperature regulation a few years back on Hoth. An old hermit used to live out there, I think. I dunno how strong he was, but he left echoes all over that planet in his travels." He tried to offer a succinct explanation that came off as absolutely nothing to those uneducated in the Force.

Are you baiting her?

Mhm. Kyric confirmed. I was thinkin' about what she said last night, bout bein' lost and all. It's as good an excuse as anyone, but the arm kinda threw me. Only two types of people travel with such an obvious disadvantage, and she doesn't strike me as the foolish type. Only took her eyes off me after she fell asleep.

If that's true, what makes you think she'd slip up?

It's the first thing in the mornin'. S'hard to keep one's guard up when they're still adjustin' to the light. Can't forget we didn't kill, kidnap, or consume her overnight. All good signs to the road-weary.

"So what's our plan? Lay it out for me."

Good question.

"Well, that's a hard one." Kyric slipped his jacket back on after he cleared away the remainder of the evening's snowfall. "There are far too many unknown variables to say for certain what is or is not true about our current quarry." He detached a small holoprojector from his belt and held it aloft, activating it with a swipe of his thumb.

One by one, Kyric clicked through a small collection of fifteen visibly distinct creatures. Each of them boasted strange physical mutations not present under any natural shift in the host bodies' DNA.

"I've heard stories of some Sithspawn that were nothin' more than rage-filled machines of mass destruction. I've personally met some who were capable of speech. Most of em were heavily corrupted by the dark side, makin' them all the more dangerous and capable. If this one hasn't been found yet?" Kyric winced most exaggeratedly and reattached the device to his side. "I'm thinkin' we might be following one of the smarter ones."

"Fortunately, I picked up a faint dark side signature north of us an hour before you woke up. I can't feel it anymore now that I'm not centered but it's a start." He buried his hands in his jacket pockets. "Unless you got any better ideas, I think we head that way for now. Shouldn't be more than thirty minutes at a forced march."

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

Her education in the force was clearly minimal because she didn't even have to fake a look of confusion. Her eyebrow climbed up at his brief anecdote, trying to parse out why he felt the need to share. And then all of the sudden it hit her. Echoes..karking hell, he was psychometric wasn't he?

A brief flash of panic passed like a shadow across her face before she smothered it. She'd never met someone with the same ability before. Certainly not by accident. That changed things..

Suppressing an internal groan, Capris again played naive, taking a distinct note not to leave any of her two items within his reach. "You sound.. well traveled." The girl ventured, "And sorta cryptic but I won't hold that against you."

With tempered curiosity she watched as he dispatched a small holoprojector. Her eyes skimmed the slides, a sponge soaking in whatever it could. They reminded her of the write-ups her and Kahlil would spend hours reviewing before setting out to capture themselves another batch of Sith Spawn. She couldn't help but frown at the memory, seeming to grow a bit distant as Kyric continued his spiel. By all appearances she just seemed deeply affected by the notion of a" rage-filled machine of mass destruction" out rampaging Pantora's unoffending countryside.

. "I'm thinkin' we might be following one of the smarter ones."

"Yeah that doesn't sound great." Her lips thinned in contemplation, "Though I guess beggars can't be choosers."

Heh, maybe that was giving too much of herself away, but she figured the sentiment was vague enough to be safely shrugged off and ignored. After all, who actively sought out Sith Spawn other than vetted evil doers? Sure, she probably could workshop her disguise a bit, but no way Kyric already suspected her actual intentions.

"Unless you got any better ideas, I think we head that way for now. Shouldn't be more than thirty minutes at a forced march."

"Then we should get going." She decided, hardly waiting for Kyric to orient himself. The sooner they caught up to the Sithspawn, the sooner she got the hell out of dodge, and the sooner she'd have payment in hand. With the knowledge of his abilities, she made sure to keep a measured distance. Polite but cautious.

Kyric

 

[Kyric]

A brief flash of panic passed like a shadow across her face before she smothered it.

There it is. Kyric maintained an even expression as he listened to her, though his mind immediately shifted into fifth gear. Emotions sparked within her hardened gaze. That expression on her face, as brief as it may have been, spoke to him. Fear? The kiffar's gaze shifted from her eyes to her hand. She hadn't reached for her baster yet. That was good.

I don't think so. It's not all fear, at least. She's good at covering up her emotions. If dad were here he might be able to pick through that mess, but I can't. You'll need to ascertain her intentions with the creature.

That was a good play.

Kyric followed after her once she set out, falling in step on the side of her missing arm. "I'm sorry for soundin' cryptic. Is there anything I can expand on for ye'? Wouldn't trouble me at all." Picking up on her preference for space, he stayed a few inches beyond his own reach.

Do you think that will dispel her concern?

Not at all, but Loske would be real mad if I intruded on a lady's space without invitation. He scanned the fields around them as they walked. Nothing noteworthy jumped out at him. Only a few distant trees and a big old boulder for miles all around.

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

Capris kept a few paces ahead, mainly so Kyric couldn't see her face as she worked through her paradoxical feelings over this whole situation. She had no intention of revealing her actual reason for being here, so her one and only goal as of now was to minimize suspicion.

Best she could anyway.

"I'm sorry for soundin' cryptic. Is there anything I can expand on for ye'? Wouldn't trouble me at all."

"I said I wouldn't hold it against you." The girl shrugged, words punctuated with a brief snort of amusement, "Be as cryptic as you want, you really don't owe me an explanation. I chose to follow you at my own risk."

Truth be told she didn't feel all that keen on manufacturing a discussion which was sure to lead to force-centric topics. She honestly didn't know how dumb she could play, and didn't feel like testing her limits.

"Although it would make me feel slightly better if I knew exactly how you planned to go about capturing this thing. I'm assuming dart gun is out of the question?" The girl paused in her tracks a moment, "You have done this before, right?"


Kyric

 

[Kyric]

"Fair 'nough." Kyric didn't press the issue, nor did he try and keep at Capris' side when she sped up enough to stay ahead of him. He watched her instead. Maybe it was a little creepy to just study his companion as they walked, but he had reason to do it. Not dying, for one. Familiarizing himself with the placement of her weaponry only increased his odds of not being taken completely by surprise in the event Capris turned out to be the Sithspawn.

You can admit she's cute, Kyr. No one is going to judge you for it.

The kiffar's eye twitched. For goodness sake, Kyla, she's primed to blow my top off at a moment's notice. Can't say I'm thinkin' too much about it. Not even ten minutes into the day, and Kyric already yearned to suppress his conscious mind and get lost in the force's inexorable pull.

Tragic.

"Although it would make me feel slightly better if I knew exactly how you planned to go about capturing this thing. I'm assuming dart gun is out of the question?" The girl paused in her tracks a moment, "You have done this before, right?"

Kyric stopped a few feet back, still showing a preference for her bad side even while out of arm's reach. "A dart gun?" He furrowed his brow, equal parts confused and amused. "No, ma'am. I'm 'fraid a dart gun won't get the job done. Under normal circumstances, I'd challenge it to a fight, almost die in the process of defeating it, and pat myself on the back for a job well done at the end of a long day."

Scratching at his cheek, he put a bit of serious thought into it for Capris' sake. It was one thing to gamble his life away for a good fight, but was hers worth the price? Whether or not she could handle herself, Bogan's influence would prove most problematic once the two sides clash. The dark side was a fathomless well of unspeakable powers.

"I think it wouldn't hurt to tail the creature if possible. Ascertain its strengths and determine the scope of its power. If we're figurin' it's in our wheelhouse, then we look for a weakness. And if we can't find one, we'll make one."

While it wasn't the most detailed of plans, it had few steps and Kyric believed they were simple enough to follow.

"If we start gettin' tore up real bad, you start haulin' ass and put as much distance between you and the fight as possible." Kyric's gaze turned northward. "My ship is only a day's march south of the cave. If you explain the situation to the Chieftain, I have a feelin' he'll give you a helpin' hand and drop you off somewhere nice."

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

While Kyric offered his rough outline of a plan, Capris was busy formulating one of her own. Anytime she'd managed to take down a sithspawn was with the generous assistance of runes. That took premeditation and focus. A focus which was now entirely occupied by the lightsaber toting golden retriever at her heels. How exactly was she supposed to pull off one of her typical stunts in full view of a Jedi-adjacent?

"I think it wouldn't hurt to tail the creature if possible. Ascertain its strengths and determine the scope of its power. If we're figurin' it's in our wheelhouse, then we look for a weakness. And if we can't find one, we'll make one."

The girl shrugged loosely at the proposition. It's exactly how she would have gone about things. Maybe just with the addition of a few scribbled runes here and there. "Definitely not the most ill-conceived plan I've committed to. We'll keep a low profile, stay down wind if we can. Pray this thing doesn't have sonic hearing." Her gaze swept through the planes with a near clinical analysis, the first time her attention hadn't been split on Kyric.

Then he went and offered her an out.

It was a nice, obligatory aside for a "non combatant" like herself, yet she couldn't help but stifle a grin at the absurdity. Her time as Kahlil Noble's padawan had more than allowed Capris to inherit his.. ego? Total lack of self preservation? Whatever it was, Capris had it, and ergo probably wouldn't be taking Kyric's advice.

"Good to know I'm not just bait." with a small exhale of amusement she tossed a glance over her shoulder. "But if it's any reassurance I don't entirely intend on leaving you to get torn to pieces. I do have manners."

Kyric

 

[Kyric]

Pride? Kyric hadn't expected to pick up a whiff of that coming from her.

Kyric considered her words for a moment, then nodded her way. "Hey, I'm happy to hear it. It's pretty rare to find yourself in a real situation where an extra body hurts more than it helps." Of course, he knew the probability of a scenario such as that only increased with the inclusion of the Sith.

Rather than push the subject, he contemplated the circumstances up until then. Part of him found her not offering any introduction suspicious. And the small details in her story felt... inconsistent? A skilled tracker knowledgeable enough to fill in the details of his plan shouldn't have gotten lost on the way to Ro. The more he thought about it, the harder he looked at the back of her head. He couldn't make out many supplies, nor did she seem to bear any memorabilia resembling the local Pantorans.

She has to be here for a reason. Kyric's gaze shifted to her blaster again. Her willingness to go along with all this had to be it. Is she an agent of the Dead God sent to dispatch a runaway monster? No, that doesn't make sense. His operatives supposedly hold Makem-Te.

That left a few reasonable options.

She was too young to work for SIA, and he was the youngest Marshal to graduate from the Academy in fifteen years. That cut the Alliance from the table. ISB started young enough for her to be a fit. And of course, there was always the potential for a young gun looking to make a name as a bounty hunter.

With all that in mind... did Kyric really care?

This is getting complicated fast.

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

Capris hummed in acknowledgement, clearly not intending to keep a conversation for the remainder of their hike. She figured he'd pull enough weight for the both of them in that regard.

Except he didn't.

Oddly enough the canary fell silent, opting instead to study the back of her head. His mind was probably busy poking holes in her admittedly thin smokescreen. Damn.. she should've given him a name at least, padded out her story. Maybe it wasn't too late to change that? She wasn't about to give him her actual name, but a placeholder couldn't hurt.

Carding through the options, Capris seemed to take a particular interest in the floor as they continued onward. Cora? Nah too posh, and also impersonating Ukatian nobility probably wasn't the safest venture. Valery would just be weird, and Vera? Eh, that would be insulting. Quickly coming to realize the number of women in her life she could rob from was definitely limited, Capris dropped the idea. She was shit at espionage anyway.

And what if he did call her bluff? The girl couldn't help a look over her shoulder, really considering Kyric and all his quirks for the first time. He seemed firmly planted in the light side, but that wasn't necessarily a plus given her current circumstances. It didn't matter how honorable, charismatic, and objectively good-looking he seemed. In the end, Kyric would just be another obstacle in her way.

Capris was about to open her mouth to say something, only to feel an indiscernible whisper of danger take hold in her gut. Immediately her muscles tensed in unison. That was decidedly a very bad thing.

Kyric

 

[Kyric]

Kyric!

The kiffar turned on a dime, his demeanor shifting from the humble and happy traveler to a practiced combatant. Yeah, I know. His form blurred.

In an instant, he stood between a glowering creature that had cleared the distance between an overgrown bramble and Capris. Kyric was notably smaller than the creature, but for the moment, he managed to keep it pinned in place with an inexplicable display of strength as both of his hands were locked around the creature's extended wrists. Kyric's boots sunk deeper into the dirt as the horror's overwhelming size made itself known.

Now that he had a closer look at the thing, he couldn't help but notice how little of whatever this creature was remained.

A thick layer of bone-like armor covered every visible inch of its body. What may have once been hair or some external scilla had hardened into spines. They oozed with an acrid and sizzling liquid. Two additional arms snaked out from around the creature's back into a double-fisted hammer fist aimed to bash Kyric's head into goo.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. He couldn't get to his sword. He'd been too preoccupied with unraveling the lies he allowed himself to blunder into.

Kyric's eyes momentarily glazed over. He pulled back with one of his arms, side-stepped the strike by a hairsbreadth, then slammed his fist into the creature's face. Tiny fissures spread out across the facial plating that made up the sithspawn's exoskeleton. When the kiffar pulled his fist away the creature grinned and delivered two concussive strikes. One into the boy's core, the other aimed for the side of his head.

The first one lifted Kyric clean from the floor. His eyes widened on impact, and he gasped out for air. On instinct he managed to raise his arm to block the second blow, only to find himself tossed into the nearby grass from the force-enhanced strength.

Even as his body skipped through the brush, he caught a glimpse of movement overhead. His gloved hand gripped the brush tight, shifting his momentum enough to send him barreling off course. This put him just beyond where the sithspawn impacted the ground. It did not put him out of the creature's reach.

One beefy hand closed around Kyric's ankle and ripped him back. The boy kicked at the creature's chest and head, but it unceremoniously closed its other three hands around his skull and began to squeeze.

Capris Halcyon

 

[Capris Halcyon]

Capris took a reflexive step out of the way all while Kyric beelined into its war path, quite literally welcoming it with open arms. Some part of her plummeted at the sight. Why in Ashla's name did he have to try and be such a sacrificial lamb?

Probably because he thinks he's protecting some defenseless vagrant stupid enough to get lost in a bunch of open fields. That's why.

Capris's mouth firmed into a hard line, pulling her sleeved arm back with gritted teeth while a swell of energy crested around her. On her exposed palm laid a mark. A focus rune. One of the first that Khalil had taught her.

God fething dammit, she had to stop him from dying didn't she? The thought did cross her mind not to. This thing was massive, and well armored. When she hunted sithspawn it was always patiently and always after putting some considerable thought into a trap. She was outmatched here. If there was a time to leave, it was now.

But then Kyric's ragdoll body got squeezed between three different limbs and she immediately panicked.

The girl took a step back, scratching out a series of dim blue runes with rapid-fire accuracy. It was something she'd only mastered after leaving the Order, and part of her wished Kahlil could've been here to see it. With near immediacy, shards of ice coalesced from thin air, and upon meeting the acid varnish around the beast, melted, rehardened and mushroomed between the fissures Kyric had managed to create. The beast loosened some sort of guttural noise as its exoskeleton was forced apart, rearing its head back to relieve the pressure. Thankfully it became a lot less interested in squashing Kyric's dome, letting him drop like a chew toy.

Her hand fell to her abdomen, the immediate dip in her energy nearly causing her to buckle under her own weight. It was too much all at once. A stupid over extension of her abilities. And for what?

Her eyes fell to Kyric, scanning for any fatal damage. She decided then she wasn't quite done.

"Kyric-" With undeserved authority the girl barked an order, "Get the feth away from that thing, and toss me your lightsaber."

Maybe it wasn't the most sensible request to make of him at the moment, but she did try to pack as much sincerity behind the words as she could. She had a plan.

Whether or not she'd hit the limit of his trust was a gamble she'd have to take.

Kyric