Star Wars Roleplay: Chaos

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These Ladies are Not for Burning (Lady Kay)

Raxis!
Gray, freaking, Raxis!

If Baiko could debase herself enough to spit, she would do so after stamping her elegant foot and storming out of the Mandalorian Embassy on Commenor. Yet, the Lady-turned-Servant was incapable of such an undignified faux pas. Instead, the dainty woman pulled herself together, dressed in the finest clothing she brought with her, and called ahead with a polite and tailored message to as permission for a visit with the [member="Lady Kay"], Queen of Commenor.

Baiko left the Embassy so quietly, she was certain Gray wouldn’t have heard her leave, and if he had, he wouldn’t have known where she’d gone in the first place.

Score one for Baiko no Kaho.

Married. The man considered them married. Well! He could consider all he liked! While he ate, and slept alone. Bah! Married! Not even a proposal, it was a preposterous venture! Flattering, but… but…. BUT…

… UNCOUTH!

So it was that the woman who came to the Commenori Palace to visit with the Queen walked in briskly, a hand fan in her hand waving furiously at reddened cheeks to calm them.

A blush! What was she, a hormonal teenaged girl? Gray-freaking-Raxis. Rrgh!

“Your Majesty, I do thank you so gratefully for the pleasure of calling upon you today, especially on such short notice. Many greetings, and thank you.” Baiko bowed as a servant bowed, deep and prolonged. She had yet to realize her value.
 

Kay-Larr

Sphaera Tea Company Owner
Kay was a bit surprised at the sudden visit, for she too had slipped away unnoticed from the Mandalorian Embassy to her Palace. She had figured that she'd get a chance to unwind and to try to comprehend the dizzying facts that she was given at the auction. But instead a different opportunity arose.

Kay had so many questions and here was [member="Baiko no Kaho"] mere minutes behind her. Hopefully the woman would be able to explain a few things. It wasn't as though [member="Gray Raxis"] had been able to do so himself. The man was only reachable when he had wanted to be. She hadn't heard from him in over a decade and only when he needed credits did he come to visit. Of course they weren't for him personally, yet still, it made her feel slightly used.

Baiko soon was brought to Kay's office. She bowed her head to the Lady in return. "It's quite alright. And we're alone, so there's no need for formalities. I'm not a true blueblood. I was just brought into royalty through bad circumstances. But please, have a seat and I'll make you some tea. If I remember correctly, you're as big of a fan of it as I am. Sapir tea is my favourite. It comes from Bakura. Have you had it before?"
 
What else was a woman to do, when the man who escorted her walked so fervently on her toes? Step out of the prerequisite dance and trot out on her own to handle business of import. The woman got the idea that Gray and Lady Kay had too much unfinished business to clear up, it was high time someone attempted just that. Who better than a glorified former nanny?

“My pardons. My education precludes me from ignoring the formalities of which I was raised… I shall… attempt to be less of a nattering wet blanket.” The woman who came to the Queen chose a chair and sat with her back ramrod straight, hands folded around the closed fan in her lap. “Although, if you are to believe Yasha, I am incapable of, oh how did she… lightening up? She sends her appreciation over the funds raised at the auction, and wishes she could have attended in person to thank you. On Mand’alor’s behalf I wish to offer a hand of friendship to your Systems Alliance… oh look at me. Can’t spend a second in comfort before I switch back ‘on’. I’d apologize again, but I think I’ve done enough apologizing in the last few minutes…”

Baiko smashed her lips together in a brazen attempt to halt an apology for her potential apology from leaving them.

“I have to say it.” Baiko closed her eyes and shook her head with the beginnings of a bright and yet dignified smile on her lips. I have to say it… I’m sorry. There! Couldn’t leave it dangling. Sapir tea is fantastic, thank you. I regret to say I haven’t had it in some years. Do let me know how I can help you, your Maje-y-oh bother. There I go again. [member="Lady Kay"].”

There, wasn’t so hard to be less formal, was it, Baiko?
 

Kay-Larr

Sphaera Tea Company Owner
Kay busied herself with preparing the tea while [member="Baiko no Kaho"] spoke. Her back was to the woman, which was to her benefit, for the more that Baiko tried to quit her formalities, she just couldn't do it. And that made her want to laugh. But she didn't though, as she didn't want to insult the woman at all.

The Sapir leaves were crumpled into the cups and the hot water poured in. A quick little stir began the steeping process, allowing the leaves to dissolve afrer being saturated in the hot water.

Kay carried the cups over to where Baiko sat, handing her one of them before taking her own seat in one of her comfy chairs. She slipped off her shoes and tucked her feet beneath herself. "Oh don't worry about it. If being so formal comes naturally to you, then be my guest. I'd rather you be comfortable than not." She had a sip of her tea, being careful as it was a tad hot. "You can tell Yasha that the Systems Alliance would be grateful for the friendship. Our matching of the donations don't come with any strings attached. If I believe in a cause, then I will help." But fighting in wars were another matter. The Commenori needed to stay home to defend itself.
 
“After spending the majority of my time on Mandalore attempting to keep a sense of etiquette and good manners, I do regret that foregoing them is quite beyond me most of the time. I refused to go ‘native’, because my Lady, the departed Aditya Mantis, married a Mandalorian and struck us from our Atrisian homeland… although last night Gray may have… tried my implacable patience?” Baiko coughed behind her fan, setting the implement aside with a hefty flick of the wrist. Taking her tea from [member="Lady Kay"], Baiko bowed her head and let a certain amount of relaxation strike her nerves away.

“Thank you. You are most kind. Pregnancy does not agree with Yasha’s stomach, and after where she’s been, I’m not the least surprised the doctors wanted to keep her on Mandalore for observation… your aid comes at a turning point in the Mandalorian Empire. The stench of Ra Vizsla’s extremism is ebbing away, less expediently than Yasha would like, but there are many forces wishing to twist her spine to their benefit. Now that she no longer requires their aide, and the planet has settled, she can act with the Mando’ade in mind. Truth be told, [member="Gray Raxis"] adopting her came at that exact moment when she needed most a moral compass to replace the duty-bound role she played for Ra. It is, above all, a young woman of spectacular resilience who now leads the Mando’ade, and one who realizes that you are, as slim as the connection may be, family. It is that sense of family, or aliit, as they call it, I have come to the most fondness in my time with the warrior clans of Mandalore. Once one considers you family, well, even the bastions of Chaos and Hell are no deterrent to protect what is so dear… so you see, when Alor Raxis petitioned for authority to undergo this venture, Yasha was more than pleased.”
 

Kay-Larr

Sphaera Tea Company Owner
Kay smirked. Oh [member="Gray Raxis"] certainly threw [member="Baiko no Kaho"] for a loop at the auction. She had gone through a similar thing when [member="Veiere Arenais"] had 'proposed' to her at an Enclave. It wasn't so much of a proposal as it was of him just telling her out of the blue that they should get married. It wasn't the most romantic of things, yet they had known eachother for years and cared deeply for one another. Force Bond aside, to keep him in her life was all that she ever wanted. Till death do they part. It was a promise that she had made with him. One that she could never break.

A brow was raised as it was mentioned that Yasha considered her family. She shifted a little in her chair, not entirely certain if she was wholly comfortable with that. It wasn't that she deemed Yasha a bad person, but more so that she was still trying to see the Mandalorians for what they could be, instead of just war mongerers and murderers. Both Crusades ran by Ra did little to help. Indeed the man had threatened to attack her people over nothing. Only time would tell of what this new age of Mandalore would be like.

Kay sipped her tea while she listened, trying to give herself permission to be hopeful. But her actions had always been dismissive of being a part of the Clan. It was almost as though she was rebelling against it by not answering any calls to war, not wearing any type of theor armour, marrying someone that wasn't Mandalorian and keeping her contact with them to a bare minimum. But in the end she was told that such tactics only proved that she was mpre Mandalorian than she thought. [member="Jaster of Clan Awaud"] had told her that she reminded him of an old Mandalorian leader that chose diplomacy over war, allowing her people to prosper. Kay wasn't entirely sure if such a thing was possible. But maybe Yasha would prove her wrong. "Well I really hope that she's able to turn things around. And it's good that she has respectable people like Gray and yourself to watch over her and support her. Knowing what little that I know of the culture, there will be some that will want to challenge her. The want of power over others can be very strong." In Kay's case she couldn't escape it. There were none to take over from her should she step away or at worse, was killed. None of her children were ready, none had had any training in governing over anyone, let alone dozens of worlds. So for now there was no escape for her. But at least it kept her busy.
 
One thing became clear as Baiko watched [member="Lady Kay"]’s reactions to her words. The Mandalorians had one heck of an image problem.

“I do as well.” Baiko sipped her tea and let the words sit in the pregnant air. “If you asked me four months prior if I thought it could be done, I would have taken Yasha as far as I could to rid her of Ra’s influence. Ultimately, she is a child raised by war, whose only companions were Mand’alor the Undying, a broken widower father, and her Atrisian servant. What turned her from being Ra’s Ward to the leader she is today was a particularly harrowing experience learning from Ember Rekali. Everyone expected her to carry on Ra’s work… yet through some magic of the Force, she returned from Dathomir an adult with a new perspective… one only heightened by [member="Gray Raxis"].”

Baiko smirked, losing some of her formalities as she looked to the space beside Lady Kay, her face softening. “I’d gone to ask for help to alleviate Mandalore’s food shortage. I mentioned Yasha returned from Dathomir with some moral confusion, and despite the laws preventing Gray from Mandalore, he left immediately to help her. He set in motion the change you see in Mandalore, today… if I may speak as one who observes the Mando’ade without being formally one of them…”

Sipping her tea, Baiko held the cup, and sighed. “The Civil War ended but a few months ago… for us. For Yasha, Kaden and their companion Shia Kryze, the Civil War took place eight years ago. In her mind, she has rectified the sins of that horrible time, and made her peace with the cataclysm. Now, it is that modicum of healing she offers to the Mandalorian People. While they are a people of battle and honour, they are as much a people of mercy with their families. Mand’alor the Hell Wolf’s first change was to banish the anti-Force laws of Ra Vizsla’s Death Watch. Instead, she has created a system of tolerance to help guide the Mando’ade from their anger and grief in stages, which will relieve the pressure on their trigger fingers… yet she must do so with the Sith breathing down the back of her neck. So you see, this is not Ra’s Empire. It is Mandalore as it should be, and a place worthy of rebuilding. New life already springs where there was once no hope. I hope this alleviates Commenor’s position geographically. You have naught to fear from them.”
 

Kay-Larr

Sphaera Tea Company Owner
Kay furrowed her brows a little as [member="Baiko no Kaho"] explained Yasha's experience, spouting out names of people that she didn't know. Her knowledge of Mandalorians was minimal at best, but the same could be said about others in the major governments in the Galaxy. Commenor was in it's own little bubble of the Galaxy. Her interactions with others usually only dealt with trade or business. They had other things to do, bigger things to worry about and that was fine. It was better to be forgotten when someone had an itchy trigger finger, than to become a target.

Kay blinked. A time anomaly. She had experienced that with [member="Marina DeVoe"] in Juniper Canyon. They were exploring an old temple of sorts andwhat had seemed like just a few short hours to them ended up being two days to everyone else. Could it be that they were a part of the same phenomenon? She sipped her tea, not really hearing Baiko say anything else while her mind was on the mystery that she had been trying to solve with some of her scientists. Most importantly in finding out what the amber-like substance was that seemed to have entombed people as though they were in carbonite. So far tests had proved inconclusive.

"How is it that what was months to everyone else was eight years for her? How is such a thing possible?"
 
“A Dathomiri Nightfather returned from the dead and sent her into the Netherworld, to toil for seven years, before allowing her an education at his castle. He was gifted of the Force in a tradition known to the Aing-Tii, among others. It was Ember Rekali who sent her back to us... a man I have spoken to on Mandalore. A being above all, of drastic balance.” Baiko continued cupping her cup of tea in her hand, watching with care the face of the Commenori Queen.

“Months have passed since the Mandalorians completed their civil war... yet Yasha, Kaden and Shia’s eight year return happened in less than forty three seconds... if it had taken longer, others would have followed her through the portal.. not the most civil method for affecting time, or so I have come to understand, but it did the trick. There are ways of affecting the flow of time for those sensitive to the Force, although such ways are exceedingly rare.”

Baiko watched [member="Lady Kay"] for her reactions, how believable was the story? The complete truth was seldom entirely believable in afterthought. “Tell me, your majesty, why this interests you so? Have you had trouble with time as of late? May I offer what knowledge I have to an ally’s service?”
 

Kay-Larr

Sphaera Tea Company Owner
Kay furrowed her brows as [member="Baiko no Kaho"] spoke of names and places that she hardly knew of. Although that wasn't surprising. Before she had established the CSA, she used to spend her time in Hutt space rescuing slaves and thwarting slave raids. She was never a part of the wars that waged on, never really involving herself with outsiders except for making trade deals and business contracts. In some way, one might call her sheltered.

A portal was used? Kay thought back on what had happened with her and Marina. They went down a stairwell hidden inside a column. Could that of been a portal? Or was it more to do with the amber-like substance found. A thought had dawned on her then. What if those that moved through time were in fact frozen within it and appeared trapped to others that weren't caught in the phenomenon? No...no, that couldn't be it, for Kay and Marina were caught in it in some regard, missing out on two days.

Kay sipped her tea as Baiko questioned her. "I....had an experience on the other side of Commenor. A friend and I were exploring. We went into a...building of sorts. After what felt like only a few hours had gone by, we were shocked to have learned that just over two days had passed. It was very , very strange..."
 
“May I see this location, or is it secret? I ask only because my education gives me a certain amount of… academic skill in interpretation.” Baiko set her teacup down and looked cautiously at [member="Lady Kay"].

“I may be able to help, if help is indeed required.” Baiko knew how cautious she had to be, speaking of such education in physics and potentially the Force itself. While Force Users were no longer condemned to die, they were far from trusted on Mandalore, or within the Empire. The battle for tolerance was a crawl from terror to grace, and one only won by the application of good sense, combined with discretion.

So it was, with this subject, Baiko would say no more.
 

Kay-Larr

Sphaera Tea Company Owner
Kay looked to [member="Baiko no Kaho"] as she had offered to take a look at the location. From the way that she had put her tea down, it had seemed as though she was ready to head out there right now. "It's not a secret location." She chewed the inside of her cheek. [member="Gray Raxis"] trusted her enough. And Kay trusted him. So...

"Alright. It wouldn't hurt to try. The only thing that we have to lose is time. Though if we don't stray for too long, then there's the potential for less time being lost. I do suggest that you contact your family and let them know that you'll be spending more than just an afternoon on Commenor. I wouldn't want them to worry."

Nor would she want any of them to think that the lady was kidnapped or had gone missing. That would be a diplomatic nightmare.
 
Trust came expensive in most of the galaxy. A modicum of trial appeared with this offer, could the two women whom Gray brought together find a friendship and trust? It was possible, and welcomed.

“Thank you, but that will not be necessary. I have no family.” Baiko stood and stopped short. Her eyebrows knit together and she stuck her hands on the fabric of her stomach. “Oh… how curious to think my position has changed. Kaden, and… pardon me, it has been decades since… pardon me.”

Baiko’s face twitched and she turned to give [member="Lady Kay"] her back. Taking in a deep breath, and letting it hiss out of her lips, Baiko sent a comm message to [member="Kaden Mantis"], and [member="Gray Raxis"] for good measure, letting them know Baiko was travelling out to look at something of interest with the Lady Kay.

“Alright, I’ve… how strange to think I am not simply a servant of the House…” Baiko looked to the ground and smiled warmly, “I remember when Kaden took my hand and begged to call me mother, begged me to stay on Mandalore and help with Yasha and the baby. A servant couldn’t love her Masters, and he refused to call me a servant. He always had… I suppose now it is allowable for me to… change my definitions. Thank you, my apologies for getting personal, it was… it was not my intent. Please, do lead the way.”
 

Kay-Larr

Sphaera Tea Company Owner
Kay got to her feet, finishing her tea first and then setting the cup down. For a moment she wondered if the two were dressed appropriately. Well, it didn't really matter. More than likely they wouldn't be doing a whole lot outside of walking.

She offered [member="Baiko no Kaho"] a small smile. "You don't need to apologize so much. I'm not judging you. Gray loves you, so that's enough for me. We can spend all of our energy on figuring out the mystery in Juniper Canyon, instead of directing it on ourselves." The Force knows that she could use the distraction.

Kay led the way, as instructed, taking leave of her office and heading down the large hallway. "We'll have to take a transport. It's clear on the other side of Commenor on another continent. Most of the population has spread here. But there are some pockets elsewhere." Uniformed guards followed them, flanking their position as was customary. They weren't intimidating, but just a presence. Afterall they weren't a government at war. They didn't need to be on their toes. However soon [member="Amelia Sorenn-Syrush"] was going to have a special unit tailing Kay wherever she went. That would take some getting used to. Hopefully they weren't jumpy.

They soon entered the hanger. Kay looked to one of the security officers while they continued to walk. "We're heading off to Juniper Canyon for a little exploring. And yes, you can come along. Supplies should be at the ready, though I don't expect that we'll be gone long." The officer bowed his head and quickened his pace as he started to relay his orders. Kay looked over to Baiko. "Are you nervous around closed spaces?" Some people were, especially in the dark.
 
“He loves me?” Baiko’s eyebrows tilted, and she fiddled with the front of her dress. “To date I still have yet to discover why. Feels like I’m a young woman again, and not an Echani widow in her fifties.”

Baiko laughed and shook her head. While she was yet to live another hundred and fifty years, it still felt odd to consider the age gap between herself and [member="Gray Raxis"]. Best not to think about it at all. “To Juniper Canyon the energy goes.”

Following [member="Lady Kay"], Baiko kept a decent pace and trotted along, inspecting the guards and taking a few moments to admire the architecture. Yasha would love this place… perhaps next time bringing the young woman along was a benefit to all?

“Lovely! If Commenor’s other continents are as beautiful as what I’ve seen, this will be quite the jaunt. Oh, I do not get nervous. Not like that… what fun, a mystery.” What an unexpectedly lovely day this was turning out to be!
 

Kay-Larr

Sphaera Tea Company Owner
Kay had to laugh at [member="Baiko no Kaho"] 's spunk. It was pleasant and easy to get along with. "Well this part is a little more dry and hot. Except for in the caves. There's water and vegetation in there. And glowing rocks!" Plus other things. But she'll get to that when they get there.

Soon enough they reached the transport. Kay climbed inside, leaving room for Baiko to sit beside her. "We'll be there in about a half hour. And with what I do show you down there, please keep it to yourself. I don't want to have the wrong people overhear it and then have them ruin the location. Of course if we find the technology that created...well, the mystery...I'd hate for that to get into the wrong hands too." Her gaze fell onto one of the guards as the transport lifted from the floor and exited the hanger. "I could have it under constant guard. But then that could draw attention too...."

It sure was a puzzle to even keep the cavern itself protected. At least that part of Commenor wasn't so heavily populated.
 
"Glowing rocks!? As I live and breathe!" Baiko startled, a bright grin coming to her face. Well, this was turning into some sort of adventure! How bold! There they were, two Ladies of Quality rushing off to explore and discover the deeper parts of a mystery. Oh, [member="Kaden Mantis"] would never believe Baiko if she did say so.

"Oh, I can keep a secret or three." If only [member="Lady Kay"] knew how many secrets fell into Baiko's ears, and rested there unspoken. Watching the world go by as they spoke, Baiko pondered the conundrum of keeping a secret place in its' way without abuse.

"If you'll permit me, anonymity is the best possible protection for the fantastic. Once one is seen as ordinary, it is a frightful nuisance for any to discover the truth. Perhaps a lack of attention will be better than a consistent guard or protection. There are... tasks which can be done, if need be."

Mysteries upon mysteries.
 

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