Private Stretching Honor and Duty

[Cassian Abrantes]

Sibylla Abrantes

It happened quicker than he realized, but once the gravity of things was upon him. His bearing returned quicker than normal. He elbowed an Agent who was reaching for him, to escort him as well. Pushing him away, he didn't need their protection. But event was over and the side were now drawn. They were evacuated and everything seemed, somewhat okay for the time being. It was then, what he saw that drove whatever honor was in the General.....

It was driven into oblivion. He saw red, everything up until that point was moot and disregarded. Who in the hells...did he think he was. The self declared future King, princess, flamboyant, damn fool. If it wasn't for his wounds that were already upon him, he would have had more wounds sustained to his body. Worse that was the Sith Princess had done to him.

The action that was taken and he then moved forward speaking her name and whisking her away to talk to her in private. He pushed passed the security personnel as they entered the room.

"Medic!" Cassian declared, his voice reaching low depths that he hadn't heard before. Whatever it was, it reached those that were there. Right now he didn't care for anyone else, just her. "Help her....now." The General turned away as they did their work and assisted her as best as they could. Pain stims, cooling pads, it was done. He turned, cause he didn't want her to see the tear that had rolled down his cheek. He had never done that, not in front of her before. He had had been injured in more ways than anyone could have thought possible. And even then he didn't shed a tear....

They left, and now it was just them two.

But this, and it wasn't what Aurelian did it was what almost happened to her. He gave himself a moment to be steady, return to his original stature and posture. Yet when he turned back to her, she would be able to see it in his eyes. There was pain, love, and their was anger.

A fire was spinning around the General, as things were now in motion that could not be undone.

"Are you-." He let out a small sigh as he moved closer to her, kneeling in front of her. His hands reaching for hers, holding them. "Are you okay?" He asked, as he was searching her eyes, for an answer, hoping it was just a simple yes.

"You don't know how lucky you are!" He spoke with fierce compassion, he trembled slightly. "I don't ever, ever want to see you do that again. Promise me Sibylla....."

"Promise me, right now!" Cassian let her hands go, but he remained where he was. "Do you know what would happen if we lost you?! If I lost you....." Cassian stood up, his anger returning once more. "And for him of all people?! Aurelian can get dragged through the dirt all the way to the netherworld for all I care. But you will not go with him. He will not pull you....."

Cassian let out an exhausted chuckle, like he had just been through two wars and everything else imaginable......

"If I ever see him grab you, like that again. I don't care what the reason is......." He didn't need to say it, even though he wanted to so badly. He had already vowed it to Aurelian himself.

He crossed his arms as he took a seat next to her. Just silent, not saying another word.

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

​

Cassian Abrantes

The world was still ringing in Sibylla's ears when Cassian's hand closed around her arm. She barely had time to catch her breath, her gaze still locked on Aurelian through the crush of CorSec agents, before her brother pulled her away. The sharp scent of smoke clung to her hair and dress, grief still curling in the back of her throat, and every step seemed to land on the twisted, bloody remnants of dead Mynocks.

Her protests died the moment she caught the look on his face. There was nothing gentle in it. No, her brother cut through the chaos like a man possessed, brushing past medics and security until the press of the crowd fell away and it was only the two of them.

She didn't need to hear her name barked to know the order was meant for her, although one eardrum was still painfully muted to sound, she could still hear him with the other. Pain stims and cooling pads were pressed into her skin before she could think to resist. Her collarbone ached, the sting of burned silk still biting through her nerves, but the fire in Cassian's voice hurt far more.

Before she could even ask about Dominique and the others, Cassian knelt in front of her, taking her hands in his, and she saw it then, she saw it in his red rimmed eyes -- the fear, the fury, and something far more fragile than either. His voice trembled with it.

"You don't know how lucky you are!" He spoke with fierce compassion, he trembled slightly. "I don't ever, ever want to see you do that again. Promise me Sibylla....."

She opened her mouth, but nothing came out. The space between them felt heavy, full of things she could not name.

"Promise me, right now!"

The words hit like a vibroblade slipping between armor.

She looked away then, because meeting his gaze meant admitting just how close it had been. How much she hadn't thought at all, only moved. And how much she knew she would do it again if it meant Aurelian Veruna lived. But she didn't say that. Not when her brother's voice cracked on the words, If I lost you.

She felt him sit beside her in silence, arms crossed, and the weight of his presence more than enough to keep her still.

And for once, Sibylla didn't argue.

Swallowing hard, she drew in a careful breath, only to wince at the pull along her collarbone. The medic's pain stim dulled the edge, but it could not hide the mottled purple bruise or the angry sear marring her skin, now visible where her sleeve had been pushed back. It was a stark reminder of how much worse it might have been had Davik Haize not stepped in front of her to take the brunt of what was meant to end her... wait.

A sharp intake of breath and then Sibylla shot her head up, turning towards Cassian.

"What of the man who stepped in front of me? Surely he must have taken the worst of it from that shot!" The sudden blanching of her face matched the alarm in her voice, her hazel eyes widening with genuine concern. She did not know his name or where he came from, but she knew she'd seen that odd shield barrier in front of her when he had stepped in had been what saved her from taking the brunt of the damage from the Tenloss slug.

"He'll need first aid immediately," She added, and while it was a change in topic, it still mattered to her.

 

[Cassian Abrantes]

"What of the man who stepped in front of me? Surely he must have taken the worst of it from that shot!"

Cassian looked up and over to her in an almost mild shock and he chuckled. "May the light save us....." He stood up and shook his head, as he wasn't sure what he was going to do with her. That's who she was though, yet there wasn't anything he could've done to change it. She was sure to hate him even if he tried. But it wasn't something that he had to sit around and take. He would voice his opinions, just as she would.

"He will get his first aid, I'm talking about you......Sibylla...." Cassian spoke as all reason and logic seemed lost to her. At least the reason and logic that made sense to him at the time.

"Are you going to promise me, and be true to it or not. I want the truth....." Cassian spoke in a rather intense, yet calm manner in delivering his words to her.

Sibylla Abrantes

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

Cassian Abrantes ​

It may have been a small attempt to change the subject, and perhaps Cassian saw straight through it, but the concern in her voice was genuine.

Sibylla's fingers brushed the bandaged bacta patch over her collarbone, the touch pulling a grimace across her face. The adrenaline was ebbing now, leaving behind a fine tremor in her hands and that hollow, shaky ache of aftershock. One ear still rang, but she could feel her brother's frustration radiating from where he stood, running his hand through his hair as though petitioning Shiraya herself for patience.

Here, with only the broken remains of dead mynocks scattered across the Duchess's floor for company, Sibylla's careful veneer began to crack. The moment the ship shuddered into atmosphere, the practiced composure of the Daughter of Abrantes gave way to the small, ragged rhythm of her breath. Her heart lurched painfully, each inhale echoing the desperate mantra in her head.

Breathe. Just breathe.

"He will get his first aid, I'm talking about you......Sibylla...."

"I'm glad. Good. That's good," she murmured, her voice trembling low, the quiver in her chin making her curse herself inwardly for losing the poise drilled into her since childhood.

Velvet and silk court intrigues were one thing. They were games played with words and smiles. What she had just endured was something else entirelly, a terror of fire, smoke, and the sudden weight of death rushing toward her.

And now Cassian was demanding a promise she wasn't sure she could make.

But why? Why were both he and Aurelian so determined to keep me out of harm's way?

She could defend herself. She could defend them. Protect others. It was what she had been raised to do -- what she had wanted to do. At least, she thought she had.

"Why must I make such a promise?" she asked hoarsely, her hazel eyes lifting to meet Cassian's, blinking rapidly to keep the sting from turning into tears. The edge of the teenager she still was showed in her expression, sharp with defiance.

"I was there. I knew exactly what the Shell Spider Silk could protect me from, could protect others from. There was no time to weigh the options, Cassian, I thought Aurelian had..." She paused, then swallowed hard, "he could have been killed!"

 

[Cassian Abrantes]

"Why must I make such a promise?"

"I was there. I knew exactly what the Shell Spider Silk could protect me from, could protect others from. There was no time to weigh the options, Cassian, I thought Aurelian had..."

"he could have been killed!"

It broke him, more than she would ever know. She spoke to him in such a way, and as she was. The General for all the strength, skill and talent that he possessed. He was being brought to heel, by his younger sister. It wasn't just because she was his sister, but because he knew she was right. And for all the love in the world he didn't want to admit it.

Then you let him die.....

The words stuck in his throat, he didn't say them. He couldn't say them, they weren't him, and it wasn't honorable. And that was what he was known for. Honor, duty and chivalry all in one. And for the first time he thought not of just her, but of Dominique as well. While she was becoming a good and fast friend, his thoughts were starting to turn the tide as well.

Why must I make such a promise.....

The question was running rampant through his mind and he looked away from her for a moment. He knew the words to say, especially in moments such as these. Yet he couldn't find the strength to deliver them. If it was simple enough she would promised already, she would have said the words that he wanted to hear.

"The only option, was to not throw yourself needlessly into danger and death."

Cassian looked away for a moment as he bit his lower lip slightly before finding his composure once more. He took a deep breath before leaning back against the wall, arms crossed as he looked at her.

His voiced had returned, to the normal calm that it normally way. This would be bound to have repercussions, all across the board. "I will not lose you, I won't bury you. Especially not for........"

Cassian wasn't letting that go. Emotions be damned, there wasn't anyone going to grab his sister like that, ever again. He shook his head lightly, as he wasn't sure what the cause was for it. Not matter the cause, it was unworthy.

He didn't trust him...

Sibylla Abrantes

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

Cassian Abrantes
​

"And would you have done that then, Cassian?" Sibylla shot back, this time rushing to her own feet, emotion lancing through her slim figure as her chin jutted up defiantly, the teenager doing her best to try and grab the oncoming unraveling she knew she was starting to lose control over.

It had been building, churning, gestating inside her. Doubts, concerns, fears, anxieties, and everything the teenager had been struggling to keep behind that fine shell of a porcelien mask that kept spider cracking with every lance and doubt striking her heart.

The ache at her collarbone fed her frustration, fueled the spark in her hazel as that made them flash at her older brother as she began to pace. Beloved, frustrating, and aggravating brother.

A brother, she was so very grateful she had also not lost to the chaos that they had left a bloody trail in.

"Would you have let him die? Would you not have tried to save him? Do not tell me that you would have let him be put down no better than a hunting Kathhound as if it had no more use!"

Because that was not the brother she knew. The brother she loved. The brother she had idolized and had faith in every honorable action, not just as her sibling, but as a General in the Republic Forces, as the Heir to the Abrantes name.

As the only one Sibylla thought she could trust fully, that wouldn't betray her. That would stand by her side.

That wouldn't leave.

 

[Cassian Abrantes]

Her words cut through him, because she knew the answer already. And she was calling him out on it. The General knew what he would do, and what he wouldn't have done. And as much as he despised Aurellian Veruna. If it came down to it, everything he had been through and that he knew about himself. He found himself back against the wall....

Cassian Abrantes would do the right, honorable, and just thing. He would give his life if that was necessary in order to save theirs.

Or anyone's for that matter.

The elder brother watched her pace back and forth, as she spoke her words. Spoke her truth, and that is what it was. Truth, and he couldn't get around that fact. Not without dishonoring himself or even disappointing those that he cared for the most. They were the reason why he woke up each day with a purpose and drive to be the best he could be.

And now, his baby sister had called him out on it.

"That is fair enough...." Cassian said, in an almost defeated tone. "I would not.....have let him die." He pushed himself from the wall just enough as he stood before his still pacing sister.

"You know....in many ways. In a lot of ways, Sibylla....." Cassian took another step forward, his hands in the air slight. "Truce...." He said with the smallest of smiles. Not trying to overwrite the situation, yet just trying to mend it before things progressed any further.

"In a lot of ways, you are the very best of us. You are the best of our father and our mother. The family needs you, I need you." Cassian shook his head as he raised his hand to his chin. "It's not fair to you, that it is like that. For you to shoulder so much responsibility, alone. If I had your charisma, I would be there with you."

On the battlefield and in his arena sure, he shined brightly. Yet she shined best before the people and when addressing them. Their needs, concerns, wants, fears.

He held out hands towards her.

"I just sometimes still see you as my baby sister who I used to carry on my back, who would come to me when she was scared." Cassian shook his head and showed a small somber expression. "For all that I am, as strong, brave as I can be. What you did scared me."

"Can you just, promise me to be more careful."

Sibylla Abrantes

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

Cassian Abrantes ​

She felt more than saw Cassian approach her, forcing Sibylla to come to a pause. But this time, her head was lowered, her eyes hidden, spikey, wet lashes doing their best to hold that dam at bay.

The image of a proud and collected Daughter of Abrantes shuddered, and as she brought her soot and blood encrusted hands up, there was no denying the fine tremble there.

Her jaw quivered, and she had to take a deep breath, a swell of crashing emotions eating her from the inside. Twisting putrid acid and bile in her stomach. Burning her from within. Scoring her as her heart thundered and ached, and just the overwhelming sensation of everything crashing together seemed to tear at her being.

Breathe. Just Breathe. Just Breathe.

That was the mantra she was echoing within her mind. The fine thread she was doing her best to hold her line over that knife's edge.

Swallowing hard, Sibylla took another deep breath, pushing through the ache at the deep brusing and likely cracked collarbone, and took a few seconds to collect herself.

She was better than this. I am better than this.

And in her mind, Cassian only reinforced what had been quoted to her day in and day out -- You are the best of us. The family needs you. Your people need you.

Naboo needs you.

Everyone did. Everyone taking their pound of flesh.

"You are right." she replied, voice low, husky but cut with a cool edge of understanding.

"I will be more careful, Cassian." It was the best she could offer him, genuine in truth. No lie there. Sibylla raised her head once more to level those hazel eyes upon her beloved brother's face.

The unintended, if well-intentioned, reminder of what her place was in the vast design. For House Abrantes. For Naboo.

"I will also make it my every effort to ensure my safety and that of others is protected," A new underlying cut of steel coated her voice.

"This isn't a courtier's game anymore. It goes beyond the Royal Houses." she added, as she seemed to roll her head back and straighten her shoulders.

Right. Her part in the plan with Aurelian Veruna to play.

"I'm sorry, for frightening you. But I promise you, I won't be so helpless again."

 

[Cassian Abrantes]

"This isn't a courtier's game anymore. It goes beyond the Royal Houses."

"No, not anymore. We have so many enemies out there. And now with what repercussions await after this is all over. Things will begin to spiral out of control, and the pieces will move into play completely."

He gave her hands a gentle squeeze as he knew she would do her best. And that meant he would have to give them, his everything as well. If he didn't than he would be at fault should something else happen. The future and security of Naboo, of the Republic was now in jeopardy. The General he was shown to be, he would know how to continue to prove himself to those under his command as well as his family.

"And I promise you, I will be better." He gently pulled her into a small embrace, being careful not to aggravate what wounds she had. He to relinquished and stepped back as he looked at her.

"What can I do to help you?" Cassian said, a truthful and honest declaration. "Anything, and I will do it."

Sibylla Abrantes

 

[Sibylla Abrantes]

Cassian Abrantes ​

There was no denying the shudder that swept through Sibylla's body as Cassian's warm and strong embrace wrapped itself around the teenager. It was a reminder of his strength. The pillar she could trust. Could lean against.

In a universe of masks and courtly intrigue and play pretends, at least... at least here, she knew Cassian truly meant what he said. Even then, a pang in her heart struck at her. That guilty feeling that she couldn't help, in the wretched longing that filled her, made her wish that it was Lysander who held her.

That singular thought prompted the young woman to shut her eyes tight, pushing that ache and guilt away. Yet her mind still couldn't help but wonder. Couldn't help but drift. Wondering where he was. If he was okay. If he even still...

Cassian's question pulled her from her reverie, shifting her indulgence in a wandering mind full of longing into awareness. She tucked those thoughts away, deep in her heart, hidden from view, protected with aching, raw fingers from the sands of distance and time.

Then after a few moments, the ache and shadow that had slipped over her heartshaped face but for a moment turned into one of attempted steady calculation.

She focused on the pain in her body. One the sharpness that the emotion fed into clarity.

What was their next step? For Naboo. For the Republic.

"Let me talk to Aurelian." she began, swallowing hard as she attempted to bring a new focus in her mind.

"He already requested an emergency session. He has every intent to declare war on the Sith, the Black Sun and the Bank of Nar Shaddaa."

Another deep breath and grimace. Another drift of eyes to pan and consider their future.

"War is at our doorsteps, Cassian. And we are not ready. It was evident now and we cannot ignore it any longer." as if needing something to keep her hands busy, Sibylla brought her datpad up.

Now the transmission connected. And in it, as she reviewed the information therein, made her freeze.

One second. Then two. Her face blanched and then her face melted into an attentively blank expression.

After a second, she swiped her finger, closing the message before blinking rapidly and then seemingly swiping her thumb quickly to review what additional news poured in.

"I'll need to confirm a few things." she uttered, but there was a distinct crack in her voice that bore a signature tell.

"For now... let's check on everyone else. Make sure they have what they need. You'll need to draft your afteraction report and so will I."

 

[Cassian Abrantes]

"He already requested an emergency session. He has every intent to declare war on the Sith, the Black Sun and the Bank of Nar Shaddaa."

"That is a good choice, I don't expect anything otherwise." While sure they had their differences, but when it came to Naboo and the Republic. He was sure its safety took paramount over any squabbles they could've had. "War will be here for some time." Cassian thought back to the netherworld events and now with the pressure of the Imperial movements in the core worlds, no doubt they would strike outward. And now with this to contend with, it was going to be a very long campaign for them.

It would be a disastrous one if they were not prepared.

"For now... let's check on everyone else. Make sure they have what they need. You'll need to draft your afteraction report and so will I."

"Agreed, let's get to it." Cassian nodded as he followed his sister out of the room.

It was time to get to work.

Sibylla Abrantes