Duel The Stubborn Debate

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Calruss Shiman


The one thing about having a smaller ship was that it needed to have more frequent stops for fuel. Being close to Eternal Empire space when the tank started to run on empty was risky. But Lori had kept out of the limelight for the most part. She hadn't participated in anything against anybody since she had resigned as the Face of the Eclipse Rebellion. Sure she was still a part of it, sorta, but she wasn't their pretend leader anymore. Not when the other members ridiculed her and voiced their disappointments in her to the leaders of other groups right in front of her. It was difficult to try to operate with anyone under those kinds of terms. So she was far better on her own.

Her mission? Simple. It was back to how things were at the start. If people wanted her help in escaping oppression or fighting against it, then she'd not turn them down.

But everything had gone quiet. Even the Eternal Empire's propaganda had shifted to focus on the other super powers and the interfaction politics contained therein. Neither of those were Lori's strongsuit. She was too naive and impulsive; some even say reckless. But as always she had tried her best, even if that effort led to failure. The rest of Lori's family were very impressive people that had managed to do great things, beating impossible odds and gaining huge influence in the Galaxy. And then there was Lori; the goofball blacksheep that didn't amount to much. It wasn't for a lack of trying, but moreso a lack of everything else.

Yet she knew that what she stood for was right. Imperialism was oppresive, restrictive and even cruel. She had bear witness to the slaughters of innocents, and the military might that they imposed on others for refusing their rule. The stubborness in her couldn't help but stand against that. And she was used to getting her way.

While Lori's ship was being refueled, she decided to pick up some supplies. There was food to get, fuel cells for blasters, first aid supplies, and little odds and ends for her jetpack. Given that she was travelling more, she had decided to do some tinkering with her Ol' Sparky, as well as her recently rebuilt lightsaber. The Dahgee crystel made it's point jagged like a lightening bolt, and she was considering to alter the hilt to be more curved. Or maybe to add a guard to it. Either way, she needed the supplies.

Everything appeared normal on the street as she made her way to the market. Her only hope was that it would stay that way.

 

[Calruss Shiman]

"Proceeding to land..." said Kodo the pilot as he began to make the descent onto the landing pads near the market. Beside him was his co-pilot Mar, both of which had given loyal service to the empire many years. They had just picked up a warden of the shroud from a reconnaissance mission outside of the borders on Abridon, a mountainous planet the empire needed more information on before considering it as a point of interest. Calruss, a younger warrior compared to most was in civilian clothes that he wore from the mission. His age and apparel played a key role in these sorts of missions, not many people would suspect a kid to be serving the empire, let alone be trained to kill.

As the ship rumbled to the surface, Calruss didn't even seem phased while he slept on the backseat. The constant rattling and shaking of the ship finally came to a stop when they touched down on the pad safely, leaving Kodo to shut down the ship as Mar got up to inspect the shuttle outside.
The pilots needed to make a quick refuel before returning to Erados to hand in the results of the mission, hopefully like some of their previous refuels it wouldn't turn into chaos.

"All systems off, refuel is ready to go" Kodo said to his co-pilot who began to pay for the tab of their fuel "Copy, while you're waiting turn on the scanner and check the marketplace for any deviants, you'll never know who you could find" shouted back Mar. Turning back to his control panel Kodo switch on the scanner, a device that scanned the faces of individuals who walked past the ship. Leaning back in his chair he folded his arms and stared at the screen, not really expecting anything to show up in such an obscure place. Although, to his surprise, a ping came from the scanner.

Leaning up with interest he tapped the notification and smirked from what he saw, an individual wanted by the empire was walking before the very ship they were sitting in. Kodo was in the process of turning around to shout Mar when he saw a looming figure standing over him "Damn it, sir, don't sneak up on me like that..." he said with a deep breath as he turned his chair to face the teen "Kodo, we are all equal here. You do not need to call me sir" he said while walking over to the screen and examine the file of the person in question "Our scanners have picked up a wanted individual, Loreena Arenals, sweetheart of the Eclipse rebellion and voice of the lost. I must say, this is a pretty high-value target" he explained before slowly getting to his feet.

"Leave her to me, you've got a ship to look after," the teen said when he put a hand on his shoulder and sat him back down "Copy, keep me updated, we don't want to stay outside of the borders for long" he said with a small nod, allowing Calruss to exit the ship and head in the general direction of the assailant.

Weaving in and out of the dense crowd he put his sights on Loreena, who was nowhere to be seen within the gathering of civilians. However, in front of him, he saw the sight of a familiar face for a split second. The rebellion page girl was cautiously walking through the marketplace without a care in the world, but presumably looking for trouble as she did with the empire. Calruss adjusted the lightsaber in his pocket and began to approach at a fast pace, sometimes even knocking into civilians as he got within talking distance. Yet, when the time came he instead walks ahead of her out of view.

Dealing with a situation like this in public was always hairy, so he needed a quiet and conventional place just in case things come to shove. An alleyway was perfect for that. Suddenly turning left, he stayed close to the entrance of the alley and placed himself onto a large crate, allowing his feet to dangle as he waited for his target to move past

"How goes things these days, Loreena Arenais-Valhoun ?" He said suddenly when she came into view, a small smirk appearing in the corner of his lips "Are you looking for something, a purpose maybe?"

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

Lori loved open markets like this. Mostly because of the smells of foods for sale. Plus it was fresh open air. After spending most of her time on Jaster's Delight, it was good to get the oppportunities to stretch her legs and get a little sun on her face. And of course there was the aforementioned food...

One of the first things that she did was order some hot cubes of meat on a stick, which she nibbled on as she walked through the crowds. Some people seemed to be in more of a hurry than others, like Calruss Shiman for example, but she didn't pay them no mind. She was eating and enjoying just being outdoors. The voice of her co-pilot and bodyguard Arla nagged her at the back of her mind, telling her to be careful and be quick. Yet they hadn't been bothered for weeks now, which in and of itself was great news.

Nearly finished with her snack, she was about to toss the stick into a trash bin, when a voice in the alley called out her name. Confusion and concern flooded her features as the kid's second sentence revealed that he was at least a citizen of the Empire. He looked far too young to be anything else. But there were people that were bound and determined to serve the Empire from a very young age. So she had to be careful.

"Oh it's going well, thank you, and I do have a purpose and that is to eat more food and finish shopping." That wasn't what he was going for and she knew it. But it was far easier to deflect the truth than anything else. Her eyes scanned the area, looking for a sign of other teens or perhaps some older comrades that could be in the area. Yet at the moment she couldn't see anyone. "So what do you want? An autograph?"

 

[Calruss Shiman]

"An autograph? far from it" he said in reply to her smart comment as he pushed himself off the bin and stood before her. Calmly, he folded his arms and took a quick glance behind the wanted criminal, reassuring himself he didn't have to deal with more than one rebel. For now, it was just him and Loreena, but there was certainly a possibility of him being under someone's scope right now. Even if she did seem harmless he still to be cautious of his surroundings.

On closer inspection, he was beginning to truly recognize the person standing before him. There was a reason she was considered the face of the rebellion, her face was on most propaganda material they've thrown at the empire.

"It's a shame how the rebellion have treated you, all they've done is use you as an object for a useless course," he said with a small shake of his head, his eyes glaring into hers "Although, with a mind like yours, it doesn't surprise you've restlessly supported the campaign" Calruss continued, almost as if he was trying to get a reaction from his target "It almost makes me think, what does your family think of this? do they see you as a fool as much as I do?"

It would have been far too boring to take her in off the bat, especially an individual of high importance. He wanted to make the most of his opportunity and strike doubts into the mind of his target.

 

[Loreena Arenais-Valhoun]

With the confidence in the way that Calruss Shiman moved, Lori knew right away that despite his age, he was clearly an agent for the Empire. The casual swagger of his gave her the impression that he felt in control of their encounter. Yet thankfully, at the very least, she wasn't backed into a corner.

And at the moment that he spoke of the rebellion treating her poorly, the first thought that came to mind was that the Empire somehow gained knowledge of her being ridiculed and put down by newest members of the rebellion in front of the rest of the rebels, and outside government officials as well. But then as Calruss continued on, Lori had realized that that wasn't the case at all.

She clenched her jaw and her left fist as he made his digs at her, narrowing her eyes ever so slightly. "You don't know anything about me or my family. If you did, you wouldn't be asking such stupid questions or making such dumb statements. But what else could I expect from the Empire's stooge?" Her brother supported her, as well as her uncle; each of them joining the rebel movement at times as well. Yet despite all of that, she was still treated like a kid by them and everyone else. It was something that she just couldn't shake, no matter how much older she had gotten. Even her own twin brother did so, despite the two of them being in their late twenties.

"Lunchbreak is over, isn't it? Shouldn't you be running off back to school?"