Public The Sparrow That Teaches Flight

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Vagar Praxut. It was the perfect place to practice flying. Not only was it a planet whose population was very small, but it was also remote. And with Lori's spare time now shifting towards secret missions for the Eclipse Rebellion against the Eternal Empire and it's tyrant Emperor Kainan Wolfe ; Vagar Praxut was close enough to it's territory for her to quickly pursue an objective if needed.

Lori had someone on the inside of the Eternal Empire providing her with everything she needed to get things started. Not only had she been able to get codes to piggyback on the Empire's Network and co-ordinate with others interested in the rebellion, but she had been provided with funding too! And from the Empire's own coffers! If they knew that they were financing their own demise...

Today was different however. Today was about teaching Curtis Learchin to fly in a jet pack. Lori built her own when she was training with the Mandalorians; naming it Ol' Sparky. The device was reliable and easy to use. Perfect for a beginner like him.

Arla stood at the doorway of the cargobay, arms folded across her chest while she watched Lori and Curtis suit up for the lesson. The weather was perfect for it. There wasn't even a breeze. "Don't be too long, you two. And don't die."

Lori snickered. "You know me better than that! There's still far too many tyrants for me to annoy. I've got no plans on dying until they all lose their power."

"So that would be...never? New tyrants pop up every month, you know."

"That's a trend that'll end at some point. And you know where I'm starting."

"Yes, the Eternal Empire and the Sith Empire. Couldn't you have started...smaller?"

"Kaine would approve. You know that. I'm sure that he'd even be proud." There was no doubt in her mind that K Kaine Australis would be patting her back and urging her on. He was one of her mentors and had trained her well.

Arla had to admit that Lori was probably right, despite her objections to it. Lori was always under her care and after their close call with Mitth'rae'leios and Vyra Silara , such an escape like the one that they managed to pull wasn't going to be easy.

Lori finished putting on her boots of escaping. Fortunately they fit with her new Rebel Ops armour. "Ready for your first lesson, Curtis?"

 

[Curtis Learchin]

The small, deserted world they landed on confused Curtis. With all the actvity in the galaxy, it was a wonder that it was so desolate, not converted into some monster of engineering. It was also peaceful though, and the perfect place to train. On that, he and Loreena Arenais-Valhoun agreed. He was looking forward to learning how to fly, almost as much as he was looking forward to spending more time with Lori. If he got to bond with her more, he wouldn't complain.

He listened quietly as Lori and Arla talked. He knew some of what Lori was going, but not all of it. She had new armour, and it was a welcome addition to her appearance, not that there was anything to fix...

With a shake of his head, he pulled his mind from the gutter, hearing her address him.

"I am. But I'll warn you, I've been told I'm a quick study" Curtis replied with a smile, strapping himself into the jetpack she'd given him. It was a strange weight, one he would need to get used to. But if he mastered it, he'd be a dangerous foe indeed.

"See you soon Arla, keep out of my stuff ok?" He said jokingly, though a hint of worry was lingering in his mind. The droid might find something he'd want to keep secret, but he'd deal with that if it came to that.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori watched as Curtis Learchin put her jetpack on. She snickered and went in behind him to adjust the straps so that it was fitting on him better. "Being a quick study is good! It means we'll have more fun."

She then gave him the ignition/cut-off switch. "Now there's no need for jumping in the air, let the jetpack lift you. And for steering, just lean into it. Have you got any goggles? Or a helmet?" Lori had her own pair of goggles which she brought out from her pocket and fit over her eyes.

In truth she wasn't that great tat flying with her escape boots, so this was great practice for her too.

 

[Curtis Learchin]

Curtis held the switch in his hand loosely, not wanting to activate the jetpack prematurely. He listen intently, making a mental note not to jump like a fool when trying to use Ol' Sparky.

"I don't have goggles or a helmet, would you say they're needed?" He asked, already knowing the answer. He'd never needed goggles before, nor a helmet, though having one at the Sith Academy on Bastion would've been nice. He might have suffered fewer injuries if he'd been given one.

Whatever happened, he was looking forward to taking flight, and to spend more time with Loreena Arenais-Valhoun . That was all he cared about right now.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori snickered a little. "For the wind, silly. Your eyes will dry out and you'll get tears. That'll mess up with her vision. And you really don't want to get dirt or bugs to fly into them either." At least they weren't far from her ship yet. "Wait here." She hurried inside and ran straight up to her quarters. Lori chewed the inside of her cheek as she pondered on where she put her extra pair of goggles. The trunk, maybe? She opened it and began rummaging through, but to no avail. But then it hit her. The closet! She quickly dug through a couple of boxes and then found them at long last!

Within seconds she appeared back outside with Curtis Learchin and plopped the pair of goggles into his hand. "Here you are! Any other questions before we take off?"

 

[Curtis Learchin]

Curtis pulled the goggles down over his eyes, feeling slightly silly wearing them. He looked over at Loreena Arenais-Valhoun and smiled at her. He could feel the nerves in his hands twitch with anticipation as he held the switch tightly. He was going to try his best not to fall out of the sky like a brick, but then again, he was a complete novice. Maybe his earlier remark about being a quick study had been spoken too soon.

"I don't think so, lets give it a whirl" He replied with a false air of confidence. He then waited for her instruction, taking a brief look at the ship before focusing himself.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori grinned as she pulled her own goggles down. She figured Curtis Learchin would be a bit nervous. Most people were. So many things could go wrong, paired equally with what could go right.

She nodded and activated her escape boots, letting them lift her off the ground. Lori didn't always have a lot of luck flying with them. They were more difficult to control than her jetpack. Yet she wasn't going to be trying a bunch of maneuvers anyways.

After getting fifty feet in the air, she leveled off and began fliying east. The wind whipped her hair and her clothing. There was nothing nearby to get in the way, and so she grinned and let herself relax in the flight.

This was what freedom felt like.

 

[Curtis Learchin]

Curtis watched as Loreena Arenais-Valhoun soared into the sky, and with a smile, activated his own jetpack. The feeling was odd, as he was lifted from his feet. Looking around, he could feel the smile growing wider, a short laugh leaving his lips.

Carefully he climbed into the sky, not as gracefully as his teacher but not terribly either. Managing to level out a few feet below her, he tapped onto his comlink.

"So, where exactly are we heading?" He asked as a gust of wind pushed him to the left a bit. Looking down at the planet below, his heart seemed to beat faster than it had in a while. It was a feeling of true wonder.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori kept an eye out for Curtis Learchin as he took to the air. He wasn't beside her, which was fine. It didn't surorise her to find him at a lower altitude. Not everyone was comfortable with flying outside of a space craft.

She held out her arms to either side, tilted one of her feet to the side and did a barrelroll in the air, laughing as she did so in the best display of being carefree that she could think of.

~We can go wherever we want! Though my boots have less running time than Ol' Sparky. Did you want to practice landing first? Or go for some maneuvers?~

 

[Curtis Learchin]

"I think landing is a good start" Curtis replied with a laugh. As much as he wanted to try some maneuvers, he knew that if he didn't know how to land, this lesson would likely be his last.

With a slight gulp, Curtis pushed Ol' Sparky further up, levelling out next to Loreena Arenais-Valhoun with a smile. It was a weird feeling. Up there, they were alone, just them and the wind. It was a nice feeling, peaceful almost.

He hadn't been at peace for so long. But somehow, high above the ground, he felt more calm than he ever did with his feet on the ground.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori could see that Curtis Learchin was slightly nervous. That was normal though as she was too at the start. And there were more times when she crashed that she'd care to admit.

Yet they were alone and there was nothing in their way but their own anxieties.

"Just ease up on the throttle switch, giving it less fuel. Shift your body so your feet are ready to hot the ground." Lori followed her own instructions, watching Curtis all the while. She didn't drop to the ground yet, for she wanted Curtis to do so first.

 

[Curtis Learchin]

With careful application, Curtis eased the throttle of the jetpack, gliding slowly towards the ground. Once or twice he pressed too hard, approaching the floor quicker than expected, but he managed to correct himself before meeting an untimely end.

He could feel Loreena Arenais-Valhoun ' eyes on him, his watchful guardian. How the tables had turned, for in that moment, he was under her protection, not the other way around.

As his feet connected with the ground, Curtis stumbled slightly. Breathing heavily, he watched as his partner lowered herself.

"That... was very fun" He said with a smile. On Dathomir, he had always thought that being able to fly would be an advantage, and now he knew just how right he was.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori watched as Curtis Learchin followed her instructions, smiling as he almost glided to the ground. She followed suit, shifting her legs so that they were beneath her and decreasing their fuel as she descended to the ground.

When her booted feet touched the ground, Lori bent her knees to absorb the shock. She then lifted off her goggles and grinned. "That was wicked! You're a natural. I nedd my boots to cool off a bit before I can take to the air again. Ol' Sparky can be a bit jumpy at times, but I've fixed most of his issues."

Lori moved to inspect her old jetpack. It hadn't been used for a while and she didn't want him to fly with bad equipment. Satisfied, she walked back around him. "I can help you make your own if you'd like. Or we could just buy one."

 

[Curtis Learchin]

Curtis face went from excitement to worry rather quickly as Loreena Arenais-Valhoun told him of the potential faults in the jetpack. Her reassurance that she'd ironed out most of the issues was comforting, but not overly helpful to his nerves. After she checked the pack however, he relaxed, trusting that she knew what to look for as far as faults went.

"My own jetpack..." He replied, trailing off slightly as he thought of potential designs, "That would be cool, could make it look like part of my armour". A tribal jetpack would be a sight to behold, if only his clan were alive to see it. Looking out across the horizon, Curtis smiled, content for the moment to be back on the ground. But ready to take to the skies once more.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori saw the worry that Curtis Learchin had over Ol' Sparky and she found that to be so cute. Of course she didn't let him know that she saw. Instead she kept that to herself. It was normal and nothing for him to be embarrassed about.

She grinned as she saw that faraway look in his eyes once he disappeared inside his head to go through all the possibilities. No doubt she had the same look on her face on similar occasions.

"I think that'd be wicked! I know of some great places for supplies. Have you ever dipped much into engineering such a device before?"

 

[Curtis Learchin]

"I can't say that I have" Curtis replied with a smile, "Dathomir isn't really the best place for that sort of thing". He laughed slightly as he thought of his adoptive homeworld, and how simple life had been when he lived there.

"How long do your boots take to recharge?" He asked, hoping to get back into the sky. He knew better than to try and rush things along though, last thing he wanted to do was to crash into the floor. Or for Loreena Arenais-Valhoun to crash.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori proudly placed her hands on her hips. "Well I guess that I'll have to teach you that too then." She then grinned and winked. Some might be scared or nervous to learn from her. But Curtis Learchin was quite the opposite. He was brave.

To his question, she responded quickly. "It's not that they need to recharge, but moreso that they need to cool down." She looked down to her boots and tested the ground with them. "I'd say that they are about ready. So shall we try some maneuvers?"

 

[Curtis Learchin]

"I think that would be good fun" Curtis replied with a smile, winking at Loreena Arenais-Valhoun . After a second, he pressed the ignition for O'Sparky, his body lifting a few feet off the ground and hovering in place.

"How long does it take to build one of these?" He yelled down, smiling like an idiot the whole time. It was the most fun he'd had in ages.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori grinned as Curtis Learchin was eager to try out some maneuvers. They were always the funnest part of flying. Especially in ships.

As he lifted off the ground, so too did she ignite her boots and overtook him. Only as she was passing him,did Lori hear his question. So she called down her response. "Depends on how quick you are at engineering. Ol' Sparky took me a few months."

But now wasn't quite the time for that discussion. Now was the time for fun. Lori sent herself skyward, grinning as she went faster and faster the higher she went, feeling a slight pull of the G-force on her body. Then when she was a few thousand feet up, tilted her body to the left and then dropped right down again head first. After a thousand feet, she leaned her body to the right and pulled out of the dive sideways until she was once again parallel with the ground. Then she flipped herself over so that she was flying on her back and looked to watch Curtis.