Private Survival || Briana Sal-Soren

[Hisashi]

MORNING - TEMPLE GROUNDS

What was the measure of success?

Naboo had come under assault - as had the whole of the Southern Systems. The government which was thought unkillable was laid low. Not by man, but by demons. As for the shinobi, his focus was not upon the lieges of the blighted territory. But rather, upon a single woman and her family. For years now, she had welcomed him into her home. She restored the shattered honor of the ronin and gave him purpose: to protect her family. Could Hisashi truly say that he was successful in this goal?

Prior to the attack, one of her children had gone missing. He had been tasked with bringing the young lord back into the fold - back to where he belonged.

He failed.

And though the object of Lady Sal-Soren's affection was not an official charge given to Hisashi, the man was laid low in recent history. Presumed deceased. Could the shinobi not have averted this crisis? What good was he as a guardian if he could not accomplish this? It was...fortunate that Teyla did not share in Hisashi's outlook. He was harsh upon himself, where she was merciful. She saw his efforts during Naboo's cataclysm as honorable. She thanked him for his attempt to keep them all safe.

She did not banish him, but rather embraced him. Hisashi had never been more confused.

But despite this, his task remained. Protect her family. So it was that the Demon stepped into the realm of Jedi. For his entire life, Hisashi had no quarrel with the servants of Light. His talents, however, were anathema to their kind. He was born in warfare. Molded into a killer. Made to wield the Darkness to smite the foes of his various lieges. But today, he used every blade and every skill to protect a single lineage. One such who was now a Jedi herself.

And now, he had come to ensure that she was safe. HoloNet calls were one thing, laying eyes on Briana Sal-Soren was another.

Thus, his vessel descended and out stepped the shinobi. He, of course, cooperated with the occupants of the Temple every step of the way. His goal was not to make new adversaries. Nor did he want to make Briana's path more difficult than it already was. So, he was made to wait before the entrance - under close watch - until the Padawan could verify his identity and intentions.​

Briana Sal-Soren | Valery Noble​

 

[Briana Sal-Soren]

To be a Jedi meant not to grieve, but to find peace, show acceptance, and rejoice in the idea of the deceased rejoining the Force. It was what she was being taught, it was what she would be expected to follow, but the path hadn't been an easy one. How could she celebrate the death of her loved ones, forced to choose between duty and family, with one of those options far outweighing the other. How could she ever accept the passing of the man she'd loved above all others? The one who had taught her everything she ever knew and loved her without judgment despite her many flaws?

How could Briana Sal-Soren not grieve the loss of her father, who in her mind, was sentenced to death by her own hand? Perhaps she had not been the direct cause, but as far as she was concerned? She was just as much to blame.

Indeed, Jedi or not, she had grieved. She'd tried not to, had tried to throw herself into her Jedi studies, into training, into helping Alora Ee'everwest with restoration efforts, anything that would keep her from having to face her new reality.

Then the news of Brandyn came, and Briana broke.

Despite all of her growth since first coming to the Jedi when she'd only just turned sixteen, Briana was not ready to embrace all of the new responsibility and expectations thrust on her, she was not ready to face a galaxy bereft of the one person she could always count on.

She just wanted to be Briana and grieve for her family, for the loss of the life she'd known. Not Briana the Jedi, not Briana Sal-Soren, or even Ee'everwest. Just Briana. The girl who had loved, and consequently lost.

So, she had run. From both her family and her friends, like a Wampa running from fire, she turned her back on them all and kept herself hidden away on Coruscant with Iris Arani , doing the bare minimum from the shadows as head of the Sal-Soren and Ee'everwest family to ensure her families affairs were kept in order.

It'd been months of no contact, and she'd only recently returned to Ossus, the place where she felt she was meant to be - although, she seemed a different person altogether. Not the same boisterous young woman with an opinion about everything. Grief did funny things to people.

Before anyone had come to retrieve Briana, she'd felt him. She'd not expected her past to catch up to her so quickly and gingerly placed down the power coupler in her hands, dusting off the grime on her work apron.

Eyes moved to the Knight that came, but she was already gathering herself up.

"I know, and it's fine... He is family... I'll go and speak with him."

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He was there, on the edge, just beyond the door where he sat and waited for her patiently. Briana felt herself stalling, her eyes staring at the door, hoping it wouldn't open if she approached it, that she might be able to somehow get out of this. She clenched her fist, pain and guilt jabbing through her, propelling her to finally move forward.

She felt like a child. Hisashi was there, he'd helped save her and Valery's life, and for his thanks? She'd just abandoned him, abandoned them all. Her head hung down, avoiding eye contact as she came into the room. "I never meant to leave like I did, without saying anything." her bottom lip quivered until she locked her jaw, a last stand of defiance against her own pain. "But if you've come to take me home... I won't go. I can't face them, Hisashi."

Hisashi ​

 

[Hisashi]

TEMPLE GROUNDS

Briana Sal-Soren had worn many faces over the years.

The shinobi had earned the privilege of watching the young woman grow. He had witnessed tantrums when she was very small. Stubborness when she was older. But in the present, he saw the weight riding upon her shoulders. Though she was certainly old enough to make her decisions, the wisdom of living had not yet taken root. There were some things that are out of one's control - and carrying the blame was a fruitless endeavor. One should only fret about what they can influence; at least, that was Hisashi's thought on the matter.

Patiently, he waited until he heard her footsteps drawing nearer. It mattered not what robes she wore now, he could pick her footfalls out of a thousand. The Demon's lips curved into a light smile behind his mask and he slowly rose. His pace was...a touch exaggerated...mostly so that he did not startle the guardians of the temple. After all, he stuck out like a sore thumb. He reeked of Darkness. And he was fully intent on keeping the visit pleasant.

I never meant to leave like I did... she began.

Her eyes were plastered on the floor. The shinobi crossed his arms. "I am no Jedi, but...from what little I know, fear is not their way."

His words were uttered with the same calm tone as always. The same voice as when he'd catch her hand in the cookie jar. There was never wrath with the shinobi. "You can rest easy. I am not here to take you away. I..." His offhand rose, gingerly rubbing the back of his head. "...was worried about you. I needed to make sure you were safe."

The shinobi stepped forward and draped his dominant arm over her shoulders. He tugged her into a one-armed embrace.

"I can see that you are safe. But you are hurt all the same. Naboo was a hard thing, Briana. There is no shame in licking your wounds."

"Just know...you are loved. Very loved."​

Briana Sal-Soren | Valery Noble​

 

[Valery Noble]

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Location: Ossus​

Valery: Appearance​

Tag: Briana Sal-Soren Hisashi ​

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If only she could have helped Briana more.​

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To an extent, Valery felt as if she had failed her Padawan. While she was there on Naboo to protect and support the young woman during one of the toughest moments in her life, she had been too absent in the aftermath, as various other problems came up that required her attention. But Valery was not a Jedi to leave her Padawans alone for too long and traveled back to Ossus the moment she was able to.​

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Possibly quicker when she heard an unusual visitor had requested to speak with the Padawan. ​

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The Jedi Knight who had contacted Valery spoke of one touched by the Dark Side, and while that normally would have sent all alarm bells to go off, Valery had a feeling it was the same figure they had encountered on Naboo. Or at least, someone related to them. But to ensure her Padawan's safety and to learn more about this man's intentions, she figured it would be best to meet with them herself as quickly as possible.​

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"Where are they?" Valery asked as the Knight greeted her on the Landing Pad.​

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"Right this way, Master Noble." the man said as he guided the woman in the right direction.​

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A few minutes later, she arrived at the door and on the other side, she could sense them. The familiar presence of her Padawan and a dark, yet familiar presence — it was the man from Naboo. They likely had felt her too but as to not intrude more than she already was, Valery decided to knock on the door three times before gently pushing it open.​

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"Briana?" she asked as she stepped inside.​

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[Briana Sal-Soren]

"Well, you know it was always Brandyn who was better at facing down their fears than I was... he was always the brave one out of the three of us."

She tried to smirk, giving a typical Briana response, shooting herself down while complementing what had to be complemented. Reluctantly she raised her eyes, recognizing the same stern stare she occasionally received from him as a child. Briana remembered the many in the estate who cowered from the Shinobi, but Briana being Briana, consulted her own intuition on him, knowing deep down that he would never so much as harm a single little ringlet on her downy head. Even when she was caught in some act of mischief (more than once) and his massive size dwarfed her, she never felt afraid. Staring him down with the defiance of one who stood ten feet tall - the same look she often tried with members of her own family. He'd give her that look, the same one now, but there was an understanding behind his gaze she'd never seen before.

"You can rest easy. I am not here to take you away. I..." His offhand rose, gingerly rubbing the back of his head. "...was worried about you. I needed to make sure you were safe."

"You would be the first," she answered quietly beneath her breath, her bottom lip quivering. Maybe it was selfish, expecting others to come find her when she'd abandoned everyone else, especially knowing the infighting that was happening with her Sal-Soren relatives circling around her fathers wealth like the vultures they were, trying in a last ditch effort to seize upon their families misfortune. They needed her, they all needed her, but what about her needs?

"I can see that you are safe. But you are hurt all the same. Naboo was a hard thing, Briana. There is no shame in licking your wounds."

"Just know...you are loved. Very loved."

His words and the comforting arm wrapped around her shoulder, was the trigger. The water works opened like a flood during a storm. She'd lost all control, no longer able to cope with the grief she'd been mentally holding back for months, the pressure breaking her resolute composure.

"It's not just Naboo," she wailed, turning into Hisashi and balling his shirt in her fist. "It's Brandyn too. I've looked for him for so long, but I can't find him. I can't feel him." her teeth clenched in anguish. "I couldn't save my Dad, and Brandyn is lost. And I know it's my fault. I didn't choose my family, I didn't put them first like I should have. If I'd never run away, if I'd just brought him home... what am I going to tell my mother, what am I going to tell Blaire? How can I face any of them ever again?"

When Valery entered the room, Briana was all but oblivious to any other presence save the Shinobi's. Those who had been around previously had scattered from the room, scared off by the raw emotion exhibited by the young Sal-Soren.

Hisashi | Valery Noble ​

 

[Hisashi]

"It takes bravery to choose one's path. Do not diminish the steps you have taken, Briana."

As the words hissed from his mask, the young woman gave him the look. The shinobi's eyes would crease - denoting that a wide grin was facing her from behind the cloth. He chuckled ever so slightly. Even now, she was still the child who would steal from the cookie jar. And dare anyone to defy her sweet tooth's demands.

When Hisashi mentioned that he worried about her, and said worry was the cause of his journey today, she muttered something that made his eyebrows raise. "I disagree." he said, but he did not push the issue further. The rumors of the Sal-Soren "civil war" were whispers beyond the shinobi's understanding - but turmoil overall was never good. When kin turned upon kin, it left scars. Especially on ones so young.

The shinobi spoke from the heart - and was met with her tears. Her fingers balled his shirt into her first and his arms encircled her form. The embrace was a piece of home.

"Your heart is burdened by so much shame." His voice was just above a whisper. "Shame that is not yours to bear. Not alone. It was not your solemn duty to return Brandyn home, but mine. You could not control the fate of your father. You cannot hold onto the shame for things that are beyond your control."

His offhand rose, gingerly stroking her hair.

"I will bear the shame for us both. I will search the stars for Brandyn, for both our sakes. This, I swear to you sweet child. What you tell your sister and your mother is simple - that you live and that you are okay. They are your family. They will never hate you for things that are beyond your control. They will understand."

He then raised her chin with his hand, setting his burning gaze upon tearful eyes. His words were gentle, yet the meaning grave.

"Do not hold onto your shame...do not embrace or wallow in your pain. That is how you turn into a monster like me."

With thus said, the shinobi became keenly aware that they were no longer alone. He cleared his throat softly and nodded towards the Jedi Master who had joined them. He recalled her face from Naboo - this was the one who aided Briana in the evacuation effort.

"Pardon my intrusion Master Jedi. I just needed to make sure this precious one is safe."

Valery Noble | Briana Sal-Soren​