Private The Outcast and the Survivor

[Tiber]

SILENT OUTCAST
TAG : Elina Cadirri
LOCATION : Crystal Caves, Ilum
THEME : Theme
- - - - -

Ilum. Home of the Gathering, a millennia old tradition undertaken by Jedi Younglings; a snow-covered world with a proud history, reduced to a hollowed husk of its former self. Caves which had, once, been brimming with crystals large and small now reduced to caverns with nothing but scraps. Not but a week ago, the planet had been home to a fierce battle between the Empire and the Galactic Alliance. All that was left of the conflict were bodies, trenches and the husks of ships.

The trenches were almost filled, and soon the bodies would be buried, by the near-constant snowstorms that rolled over the planet. The ships would, gradually, be broken apart by harsh winds and, themselves, buried under snow and ice. It would not be five years before Ilum was, once again, a peaceful planet. It was a shame Tiber could not wait with the planet, a shame his past could not be buried by the snow.

A shame that, no matter how far he ran, he would never escape. Two and a half decades of indoctrination did not fade so easily. A fact he was reminded of all too soon; he had been on Ilum a year. A year of isolation. A means to escape the incessant itch of the Jedi Code. Still though, he could not escape. The Force itself damned and denied him. His own camp was no longer his own, made to fit another. He could not put a name to her, nor an allegiance. For all he knew, she was the second coming of the Galactic Emperor; doubtful as the prospects were. Tiber had been content to ignore the conflict, ignore the fighting, ignore the war and simply wait for it to pass.

As it turns out, it's damned hard to ignore a frigate burrowing itself into your metaphorical front yard.

Tiber hardly thought of himself as a hero, but there were scarcely many other words to describe the act of rushing into the still-burning, still-crumbling wreck of a ship in search of survivors. Admittedly, he had only managed to save the one who now resided in his bedroll. In his tent. And had done so for the past week. He didn't complain, though. He was too selfless for that. Too compassionate.

Where others would have left her fate to whatever celestial powers they believed in, Tiber took her fate into his hands. He was no healer, it had taken him days to accomplish what others might have done in hours, and what he accomplished was hardly perfection. He had healed a majority of her injuries, atleast, all of the mortal ones. The aches and pains associated with crashing into a planet, for example, were out of his control.

It had cost him, though. Tiber spent most of his time meditating, kneeled infront of the campfire. He slept like that, too. He didn't even move to fuel the fire, spurring it on with pyrokinesis. Whenever the sleeping not-beauty decided to wake up from her week-long 'nap', that's where she'd find him. Across the fire from her, head bowed and eyes closed, still as a statue.

All things considered though, he wasn't the most intriguing part of her surrounding; the cavern was hardly something to scoff at. It seemed to be something of a hidden chamber, devoid of harrowing breeze and small enough to be warmed by the humble fire. Along the outskirts, there were small clusters of crystal formations. Were she to look more to her immediate vicinity, she'd also find her belongings laid out on an animal's hide.

Of all the ways to survive crashing into a planet, you couldn't get much better than this.​

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[Elina Cadirri]

STARDUST
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Tiber

LIGHT OF THE MOON​

Ilum had been a nightmare.

They had been working overtime with wounded getting extracted to the frigate as the battle had raged to stabilise before they got transferred to transports taking them to Coruscant or Bastion depending on affiliation.

That was until the superlaser had clipped the frigate's stabilisers in passing as it decimated most ships locked in battle in space.

She and the medical personnel had jettisoned most most patients into space with escape pods before the frigate entered the atmosphere of the planet. After that she couldn't remember much aside from crashing to the ground and fires raging throughout the ship.

After that there was only blackness.

Finally coming to her senses, she slowly raised a hand to run through her flame-red hair, confusion running through her of where she was.

Then it all came flooding back.

She jolted upright, moss-green eyes wide, looking around in alarm. There was no sound of battle anymore and she realised she was covered in warm furs in a tent while firelight danced on the canvas. Confusion set in again as she noticed her meager belongings closeby. Was she dead?

She caught sight of a figure beside the fire through the opening of the tent. Beyond it, she could see ice walls. She was still on Ilum - the ice caverns most likely. Struggling to her feet from under the furs, realising how sore her body still was, but it seemed that worse injuries had been healed.

Stumbling out of the tent, she finally straightened up to look down at what she could now see was a man who seemed to be meditating. He definitely had the Force - she could sense it.
"Are you a Jedi? Who are you? What happened?" she asked hoarsely, rattling off the questions. She needed answers. Were any of her crew or patients still alive?

She dared not think of the alternative.

 

[Tiber]

SILENT OUTCAST
TAG : Elina Cadirri
LOCATION : Crystal Caves, Ilum
THEME : Theme
- - - - -

A Jedi.

Was his past that obvious?

Tiber let out a long breath, raising his head as his lungs started working again, bringing some life back to his still body. He'd done his best to find a new look, but the monk-like style of the Jedi seemed to stick worse than a tree. He'd have to see about that when he returned to the wider galaxy, replace his robes with something more ordinary. Finally, he opened his eyes. A rich blue, more akin to the ocean than the ice around them, they had a certain... peaceful warmth to them.

"Once," he spoke, pushing himself up onto one knee all the while, "I was a Jedi, once." His voice had something of a charm to it, a calming tone moreso than a romantic one. He spoke without regret, making it clear he did not resent the Jedi; he had left on good terms, unlike many of the countless others who became disillusioned.

His calm was almost murderous, if only because of its contrast to her franticness. "The Jedi called me Tiber, so it should be a good enough name for your purposes." With a small movement of his hand, the hilt of his saber lifted itself up and over, laying down somewhere near her feet. Some small gesture of trust.

"You'd know better than me how your ship was shot from the sky. Though, I take it you're more interested in what happened after." Shifting his hand once again, a small box slid along the floor to her feet, the lid opening to a small quantity of wrapped, roasted meat and a canteen of distilled water. "Your ship hit a few klicks out from here, you were the first I got out. Barely, I might add. I was just going back for more when the thing exploded, knocked me off my feet and a good ten metres back."

Finally, moving around the fire to her, he'd reach out to put a hand on her shoulder. It had been hard to make out an expression, hiding behind the fire as he had been, but the grave look only confirmed what his words had implied. "I know it won't mean much, but I am sorry. You were unconscious and half dead when I found you, I can't imagine your crew were in any better shape. I didn't see any of them on the way in or out, so it's possible... but... it's been a week, I doubt they'd have survived in the wilderness that long."

Offering a conciliatory nod, he pulled his hand back and sat down by the fire. Force Sense had never been his strength, but even he could feel it from this distance. Tiber hardly had reason to acknowledge it before now, though he had thought he felt something, on the walk back to his cave. Taking a moment of silence to allow the survivor to... process, he spoke up again.

"What is your name? I'm sure you probably have some ID in with your belongings, but I didn't want to invade your privacy." If, by some chance, it wasn't already clear, Tiber was the sort to speak his mind.​

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[Elina Cadirri]

STARDUST
ICE CAVERNS | ILUM
TAG: Tiber

LIGHT OF THE MOON​

"I was a Jedi, once."

When he finally spoke, she was quite surprised to hear the calming voice emanating from him. It put her slightly more at ease.
"The Jedi called me Tiber, so it should be a good enough name for your purposes."
He rested the hilt of his saber at her feet with the Force.
She looked at him then, slowly calming down before bowing in the manner of the Jedi.

He pulled a crate filled with food and water towards her. It was only then that she realised how hungry she was. She took a piece of meat to nibble on while he spoke.
"Thank you." she said as he fell silent again. "For helping me. For trying to help my crew. I...really appreciate it." she added after swallowing a bite.

He approached her from beyond the fire to rest a hand on her shoulder. Normally she would have recoiled, but she felt oddly at ease with this man - with his calming influence.
"I know it won't mean much, but I am sorry. You were unconscious and half dead when I found you, I can't imagine your crew were in any better shape. I didn't see any of them on the way in or out, so it's possible... but... it's been a week, I doubt they'd have survived in the wilderness that long."
His words were both a shock and a consolation at the same time.
"A...week?" she ran a resigned hand through her tangled red hair before letting out a sigh. "Thank you for doing all you could...Tiber. It at least eases the gravity of it all in a way." she said with half a smile as she looked him in the eye.

He drew away to sit down again. Slowly, she sat down as well, her fingers entangled with one another in her lap. The fate of what had happened weighed on her quite a bit. The few patients that had still been on the frigate, her personnel - all gone. She just hoped that those she had stabilised and had sent away had arrived without any issue.

"What is your name? I'm sure you probably have some ID in with your belongings, but I didn't want to invade your privacy."
Her green eyes turned to him then. At least he was sincere enough to not rummage through her stuff - not that they were much.
"I'm Elina Cadirri. Independent Healer in the Galactic War." she finally said. "We had been treating the wounded from the battle here on Ilum when we were shot down. We had gotten most of them out before the ship went down, but not all. I....I have no idea what had happened to those we had sent out with escape pods." she said, her voice growing hoarse at the end. "You wouldn't happen to know? I have no idea what had happened after we entered the atmosphere." she asked.

If those people had survived, she would be at ease.

 

[Tiber]

SILENT OUTCAST
TAG : Elina Cadirri
LOCATION : Crystal Caves, Ilum
THEME : Theme
- - - - -

Tiber offered a genteel incline of his head as the lady bowed. She meant well, and he could appreciate it; even if he couldn't offer more reassuring news.

"Thank you. ... For helping me. For trying to help my crew. I...really appreciate it." He, for all the years spent ridding himself of emotion, couldn't help but feel a tad touched. He had seen much in his years travelling, both with the Order and without, though he had never, not once, found someone so mindful as to thank him for caring. "Had the Force intended for you to die, I imagine it would have landed your ship farther from my modest camp."

It was the truth, to a degree. It may not have been the Force, but it took an especial amount of effort to crash a ship into a planet and not die. Just the same as it took an especial effort to go to war and not die. He didn't much fancy the odds of anybody who had to go through both.

"Thank you for doing all you could...Tiber. It at least eases the gravity of it all in a way." Tiber, for all his virtues, could never miss a joke. He had barely sat himself down before he cast a wry smile of his own, unusually mindful to allow the survivor, Elina, to speak. "You wouldn't happen to know? I have no idea what had happened after we entered the atmosphere."

"More's the pity that I couldn't ease gravity sooner." Delivered with as much a grim tone as it was delayed- A terrible joke, even by his standards, but one he'd grow to be proud of... Force permitting, he'd never suffer to grow old at all. At the very least, it gave him a moment to think of his response.

Tiber drew a breath. This, of course, was not his first time delivering grave news. It was simply the first time he delivered it without a code to guide him. Undertaking was not a task to be relished or enjoyed, with or without a code. He realised, however, that he could lie; ease Elina's burden, if just a bit. The thought did occur and, to the rogue's shame, lingered a while longer than it should have.

By the time he had conceived a sufficiently believable lie, he was all too aware of how anything but the truth would be as obvious as a brick to the head. All the same, he commenced, "While I can't say for certain what became of your escape pods... it may warm you to know that I hadn't seen any near the crash site, or on their way down."

The truth, unburdened by a code. He could not have every answer, contrary to the Jedi Code. He would not arbitrate facts bluntly, when there was room for softer interpretation. As hopeful as what he had said seemed, there was a conviction to his voice that seemed to ward off any notion but that it was the truth.

He pulled the supply-crate closer to him, taking a flask of water. "All the same, it is rare fortune to make your acquaintance, Miss Cadirri, even in such misfortunate circumstances." Popping the lid off the flask, he tilted his head back and took a swig; even melted, he could taste the cold of the ice. Tiber wiped the top off with a piece of fabric, and offered the flask to his newfound companion. "I only hope you didn't leave your resolve on the ship."

Looking now to the fire, the rogue stared at it with a certain determination, as if calling on it. When he turned his gaze back to his companion, the reflection of the flame lingered- rolling against the ocean blue of his eyes, like the Sun over the Sea. "You'll need it, if I'm to get you back to the Galaxy."

Spoken with such determination, the very rocks that surrounded them might give way.​

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[Elina Cadirri]

STARDUST
ICE CAVERNS | ILUM
TAG: Tiber

LIGHT OF THE MOON​

"While I can't say for certain what became of your escape pods... it may warm you to know that I hadn't seen any near the crash site, or on their way down."

Her heart sank slightly at the news. But hopefully the majority of the pods had gotten away.
"Thank you for being honest, at least." she said, a small but warm smile spreading on her face.

After taking a swig of water, he offered the flask to her.
"I only hope you didn't leave your resolve on the ship."
She took the flask and took a sip of water.
"I hope not. Why?" she asked him.

She watched the fire dance in his eyes before he looked back at her.
"You'll need it, if I'm to get you back to the Galaxy."
That did take her slightly aback.
"I could not ask that of you, Tiber. You already saved my life once." she said, putting down the flask. "Unless you were headed somewhere? Then I'd gladly take a lift." she said, her smile much more genuine now.

The battle in the skies had been jarring - she wouldn't be surprised if she needed a change of career.

 

[Tiber]

SILENT OUTCAST
TAG : Elina Cadirri
LOCATION : Crystal Caves, Ilum
THEME : Theme
- - - - -

"I could not ask that of you, Tiber. You already saved my life once. Unless you were headed somewhere? Then I'd gladly take a lift."

He offered a short chortle; a warm sound rife with contagious humour, burdened by abundant humility, which filled the cave and temporarily drowned out the soft crackle of the fire. He didn't seem the type to laugh at another's expense, especially not in a moment of such true sincerity, so it should've been no surprise that it was followed by a moment of wistful, if well-meaning, quasi-philosophy.

"I did not save your life, Miss Elina, I've merely begun the process. Getting you off this frozen rock is just the next step." said he, somehow speaking with all the self-righteous surety of a Jedi with none of the hopeful dogma. All the same, hopeful dogma was just what they needed to escape. He'd been on Ilum a year; it'd take a miracle to find where he parked under all the snow. Failing that, of course, the Alliance or Empire probably left a spare ship or two somewhere for them to 'borrow'.

Conveniently, the Jedi Code had said nothing about property laws.

"I believe it's long past time we got about that, don't you?" he spoke, voice laden with equal parts eagerness and hesitation. Truthfully, the first sign of unsurety he'd shown in the very short time they'd known each other. With a resigned sigh, Tiber rose from his seat by the fire.

For all his humility and all his selflessness, he would miss his humble abode. For that reason, he did not offer it a second glance. Turning to the only exit, a literal hole-in-the-wall, he paused only to slip his satchel over his shoulder before he strode towards it; his lightsaber whishing from wherever he had last laid it, and to his hand.

Just, however, as he was about to step up and into the passage that lead to freedom... he stopped. Though, only long enough for Elina to gather her belongings and properly arrange herself. A small smirk of amusement at his own thoughtlessness crossing Tiber's face, casting his gaze to the floor with a small shake of his head, "Your pardon, Miss Elina. A year alone doesn't foster consideration."

When she was ready, he'd turn and climb into the pitch-black passage, igniting the lantern-green blade to light their way.​

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[Elina Cadirri]

STARDUST
ICE CAVERNS | ILUM
TAG: Tiber

LIGHT OF THE MOON​

His laughter eased some of the heave burden on the Healer's shoulders, pulling a smile from her as well.

"I did not save your life, Miss Elina, I've merely begun the process. Getting you off this frozen rock is just the next step."
Elina let out a a chuckle of her own. "Be that as it may, I would have blown up had you not pulled me from the wreckage. It shouldn't be brushed off that easy, even though there's a next step." Her moss-green eyes still smiled at him, the worst of the tension eased from her.

"I believe it's long past time we got about that, don't you?"
He sounded almost hesitant in the question.
The redhead gave him a reassuring smile. "I'm at your mercy, Sir." she said.

That seemed to settle it, as he got up and didn't grab much before he started toward the hole in the wall in a jiffy.
Well then...she smiled thoughtfully before grabbing together her meager belongings to follow him.
"Your pardon, Miss Elina. A year alone doesn't foster consideration."
She out a calming hand on his shoulder as she reached him.
"No apology necessary. And please, it's just Elina. No need for formalities anymore." she told him.

Following him out into the pitch darkness of the icy passage, she was glad of the green blade he ignited to shed some light as they went.
"I still marvel at how handy those things are. How much good they can do despite being wielded as a weapon." she mused, her voice echoing in the passage as they moved. It was hard to think that not too long ago, a great battle was waged here. Now there was only ice and emptiness.

Hopefully it stayed like that until they reached a ship.

 

[Tiber]

SILENT OUTCAST
TAG : Elina Cadirri
LOCATION : Crystal Caves, Ilum
THEME : Theme
- - - - -

"No apology necessary. And please, it's just Elina. No need for formalities anymore."

Tiber offered a soft chuckle, even as Elina rested her hand on his shoulder. "Of course, I'll bear that in mind- Miss Elina." He added, teasingly, before climbing into the passage.

Passing through it as many times as he had, he scarcely needed the light anymore. Though, truth be told, he never had; no, he could feel his surroundings with the Force, tracing his own footsteps and feeling the changes in the walls. Something like echolocation, if one could really compare it.

"I still marvel at how handy those things are. How much good they can do despite being wielded as a weapon."

He smiled wearily, offering a faint nod of acknowledgement. "The Lightsaber is... many things, all at once. There've been a hundred different interpretations of their purpose, their symbolism-" he paused what seemed to be an extensive lecture as they approached a sharp incline in the terrain, up through a tighter crevice.

Letting go of his lightsaber and allowing it to float in place through the Force, the Jedi Exile stepped into a clearly man-made foothold in the wall, reached up to grab the crevice by its edge; pulling himself up and through it. It was hardly a difficult climb, even in her recovering state. All the same, Tiber laid down at the top and offered his arm to haul her up.

When they were both out of the crevice, he called his lightsaber to him before continuing. "A great master, who lived centuries ago, once said that the Jedi use lightsabers because they symbolise the Jedi themselves. Precise and skilled. Careful and considerate." he lectured, speaking calmly. He clearly held some passion for Jedi Theology, even if he seemed to have little such passion for the Jedi themselves.

"Historically, it was a symbol of the Jedi's authority as peacekeepers; like a badge, in a way." he continued, pressing on through the passage, "Though, it's been symbolic of the Jedi's role as guardians and protectors far longer. It's why the Jedi always wear it on their belt, where it's visible." Tiber finally finished, turning his head to look at his companion.

Not a moment later, they passed through a frozen arch of water and into a large, circular cavern abundant with crystals of every colour. By themselves they offered only a dim light, filling the silence with their gentle shimmering instead; a beautiful sight all the same. As the pair strode further into the room, Tiber doused the green flame of his lightsaber, gently extending it for Elina to take.

He himself stepped forward, into what seemed like the center of the room, and outstretched his arms, palms facing upwards. Tilting his head back and closing his eyes, it was a peaceful sight. No doubt, being in the cavern held some deep cultural meaning for the exile; or so one might think, till he opened his eyes, only for them to be shining gently like the crystals, and a similar light seemed to radiate from his palms.

One by the one, the crystals began to glow, painting the room in their colours. As the crystals came to life, they woke their neighbours, and them theirs, till soon the whole cavern was flooded with their calm light. As bright as they were, you got the impression you could stare for hours without blinding yourself. Theirs was a peaceful light, belonging to no Order or Code; as natural to the Galaxy as the stars in the sky, or the waves in the ocean.

Just like Tiber, who had turned his gaze to Elina and was, at present, grinning like a child on Lifeday.​

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