Private Wildfire

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Maeve Linahan

To Elpsis' credit, she didn't throw a tantrum. She didn't argue. She accepted. It stung...but such was life. "I-I....I, uh, understand," she said awkwardly. "It's okay, really. Wasn't right of me to spring this on you. Not fair of me. You've got..a lot going on, your duty as a Jedi...which is far from here, and I'm sure as hell not asking you to give that up...to make you someone you're not. And I've got...this. Odds are I'm going to be dead before the year's over and you deserve better." She was rambling, clumsy and awkward as ever.

Foolish little girl, the voice sounded like Siobhan, whether she had actually said that to her or not. Do your damn duty. Unfit for leadership. She suppressed a sigh. "But it's ok, honest. I treasure our friendship too much. You're a great woman and I hope you find someone who's worthy of you...if that's what you want. If you want to talk or anything I'm here...always..." she trailed off, taking a deep breath.

"Emira Bahara Jai Mahtaba?" Elpsis made a face. "Really?"
"I know her well. She can offer you ten thousand soldiers, she has light artillery, she has drones. And she holds a crucial smuggling route in her death grip. Never mind the minerals that can fill our war chest," Zabhara retorted. The former slave-soldier's voice was as iron as the sword in her scabbard.
"Was an enthusiastic slaveowner until it stopped being cool. Found all manners of excuses to hold on to her ex-slaves as 'sharecroppers'."
"You'll be hard-pressed to find a prominent Qadiri who didn't own slaves at one point, Elpsis."
"And has been happy to suck up to Firemane. Why the change of heart, huh?"
"Pride. Believe it or not, most Suquan nobles and chiefs are patriotic. They don't like foreigners tearing up their country. And Firemane offended her sense of honour."
Elpsis snorted. "Honour. Right."
"Honour has preciously little to do with goodness. Her blood's not far removed from that of queens, and Firemane treats her clan like common hirelings. Her nephew was badly injured in a drone raid. Firemane just provides excuses. You're not Qadiri, but you're willing to lose your head in a fight. People here respect that." Zabhara leaned forward, "but you must also get it into your thick head that marriage is going to be a job for you. Not some love story out of a play. Wed the Emira, or don't. I frankly don't care, but bloody marry someone who advances the cause. You have a duty - to win this damn war. And Elpsis Jai Saobana always does her duty, doesn't she?"
Elpsis grit her teeth. "She does."

Her flesh hand rubbed against Maeve's hands, soaking up what warmth the Jedi would give her. Her friendship was a gift, and not one Elpsis would selfishly reject. She snapped back to reality, to duty. "Well...we should get going. Quick stop at the medbay so we don't get chewed out for walking around untreated, some morale boosting for the wounded." So she let go of Maeve's hands, and turned, heading out of the chamber.

 

[Maeve Linahan]

It pained Maeve to see the awkward embarrassment on Elpsis' face.

She hadn't wanted to refuse her, not like this, but had she agreed, there was a chance it would've led only to heartbreak—or catastrophe. She had ever only committed to one thing, and it was the destruction of all things Sith.

There were the others, too. Cale. Alex. Unsorted feelings. Unfulfilled promises.

She gave herself an internal shake, the tips of her ears burning. None of that mattered right now, so she looked back up to Elpsis, offering a weak smile she knew she couldn't see, and nodded. "Thank you for understanding, Elpsis, but know that I'm here for you too, and for whatever else it is you need. Know that will never change. No matter what comes our way."

Another squeeze, but it didn't last. Maeve saw the hardness return to Elpsis' face, the warm hearth blazing back into the Phoenix, and their hands slipped away. Gone went the light and warmth of her touch, and they were back to how it was.

General and Jedi. Fire and ice.

"Of course," Maeve replied, smoothing out her hair before following after Elpsis outside the washroom, into the guttering light of the corridor. "Lead the way, General."

Elpsis Kerrigan​

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[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Maeve Linahan

The medical bay of the Perch was not the sterile, relatively orderly place a comparable installation in a GADF or the Jedi Temple might have been. For one, there were next to no droids or indeed that much in terms of galaxy technology. There was also very little privacy. Groans, and cries of pain were heard. "Shoot me, just shoot me already!" someone cried out, voice laced with agony. Lights flickered above.

Nurses and doctors were hard at work, going to and fro. Many wore the robes of priestesses beneath their blood-stained overalls. Wounded lay here, bloody bandages around their limbs, face sprinkled with shrapnel marks. Children were among them. A Qadiri girl lay on an bed, her right leg a bandaged wreck, for its lower half had been torn apart by artillery fire.

"Without an amputation, the patient perishes," a Qadiri doctor was saying in Zandri, while instructing a novice in an emergency room. "First, expose the surgical site. Now cut down the artery. Take courage, sister. Take hold of the artery," he said as the cut was made by his pupil and blood flowed. "Cut it. Saw."

Deep inside herself, Elpsis felt dejected as she limped. Yet could she show it? No. The people did not need Elpsis. They needed the Commander, they needed the Phoenix. I am Iron, I am Fire. Elpsis' uniform bore no insignia or decorations that would have set her apart from the common soldier, but there were no other redheaded human cyborgs with burning cracks in their face in the army. When she stepped in, there were no cheers. No one called her name...but there was a sudden quiet. For a brief moment, the noise died down, even the groans of pain, the yells seemed to subside. Then the calm was passed, and things returned to normal.

A Xio nurse, wearing overalls stained with blood, approached the pair. She was slight of stature, but looked determined, and Maeve would no doubt sense her Force aura. "Dalninil Alpsis, you have been in the battle, yes? You have all of your pieces? You have not lost any more parts? Show me your injuries and I will do what I can. And this is Yeedai Mahave? Show me as well. Hmm, has Dalninil Alpsis been telling you to run into battle, Yeedai?"

The nurse spoke in Zandri, the native language of the Qadiri. Given Tygara's long isolation, it was rare for natives to speak Basic unless they had extensive dealings with offworlders. 'Dalnil' was the Xio word for sister.

"I do not speak the sky language. You, I trust, can translate, Dalninil?" the nurse glanced at Elpsis.
"I do my best, Dalninil Cazna," Elpsis replied in somewhat stilted Zandri before proceeding to translate the nurse's words for Maeve.

 

[Maeve Linahan]

The people's suffering washed over Maeve like a poisonous fog. She sucked in a sharp breath, hearing the cries and whimpers of the dead and dying, watching as a man clawed at his bandaged eyes and a little girl's leg was sawed away like it was nothing more than a slab of meat. Her eyes lingered on Elpsis, seeing the calm on her face, but sensing the pain.

Pain they now shared.

Maeve came to a stop by the nurse, though said nothing as she and Elpsis traded a few words in a language she didn't quite understand. As much as she studied about Tygara ahead of her mission with Firemane, learning Zandri wasn't quite a priority on her list.

Fortunately, she had Elpsis to rely on. Like always.

"I don't know what you mean," she replied, "but I'm fine. I run into battle of my own free will, and whatever scars you see, I'm glad to bear it if it means we put an end to this nonsense." Maeve nodded. "But thank you, Dalninil." She had a miserable accent, but it was worth a try. "You do important work here."

Pale eyes sweeping over the wounded again, Maeve wandered over to a little boy on a stretcher, clammy and dark hair matted to his face. She hovered a hand over his head. Ashla's Light, he was feverish. Whatever ailment he suffered, it was going to take more than a saw to manage.

She closed her eyes, trying to pour the Force—Life—into him. But she was no Amani Serys. She was no healer. Maeve had trained only to kill, and only a sliver of the Force bled into the boy, giving him some color, but not to the extent she had hoped.

"How are you on medical supplies?" Maeve turned and asked the nurse. "Medicine? Surely you must have something of a stockpile."

Elpsis Kerrigan​

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[Elpsis Kerrigan]

Maeve Linahan

In the far corner of the chamber, lay a female Qadiri warrior in the throes of death. "Mother...I'm sorry...I failed," she said with laboured breaths, voice choked with emotions, face heavily scarred, bloodied and her chest torn by shrapnel.
"Sh...sh. Yeganeh...you made me proud, you made your ancestors proud. Now your trials are at an end. We're all waiting for you. It will not hurt much longer," a soothing voice that was Shikoba's, and yet not. Shikoba spoke Zandri, albeit with a heavy accent, but this voice spoke the language as if it were her native tongue, with a distinct local dialect. Her eyes were a startling white with no iris or pupil.
"My husband...my son..."
"He knows. They know. Come with us. We love you..."
"I'm...I'm afraid," the dying Qadir spoke, a note of shame in her tone as she clung to life.
"You have been weighed on the scaled and found just. Kashara will welcome you to her garden. Rest now, my beloved daughter, and the pain will be gone. I love you..." the being that spoke through Shikoba said.
"I love you too..."
The ghost whisperer leaned forward and planted a kiss on the warrior's forehead. Black tendrils spread across her arms, invisible to naked sight, but all too visible through the Force. Tenderly, she took the dying woman's hand. "Come now into Her light with me." The light faded from the Qadiri's eyes. Gently, Shikoba closed them.
The druidess' shoulders slumped, as if a great weight lay upon them. Sweat dripping down her brow, she took a deep breath, closing her eyes. When she opened them once more, they had resumed their normal brown colour. Tired, soulful eyes that had seen too much. But resolute. "Wash and prepare her body in accordance with the Kashari rites," she commanded a nearby novice. This time her accent was unmistakeable.

The poor, maimed Qadiri boy Maeve was treating trembled, nervous and afraid. He muttered some words in his native tongue, delirious. Quickly, the Xio nurse placed a hand on his shoulder. "Safe, Yussuf. Friend," she said soothingly in Zandri. She glanced at Elpsis. "What does she say, Dalninil?" Quickly, Elpsis fired off some words in Zandri. There was a pause as Cazna asked for clarification, before she addressed Maeve once more.

"We have no great stores, Yeedai Mahave. Our means are meagre, the sky-ocean is vast and we are far from the world of Baaktar. The sky-ships that reach us are few and must take heed, lest Firemane and their allies destroy them. We make use of remedies where we can, and natural alternatives," she glanced at the boy, while Elpsis translated.

"Your hands are made for battle, but you have some talent for the healing arts. Would you stay a bit and help with some of the others?" the nurse then looked at Elpsis. "Dalninil, I sense your pain is grave, you need care."
"Heal Maeve first," Elpsis insisted firmly, even though her own injuries were a bit worse. What with having fallen from the sky and all that.

 

[Maeve Linahan]

Maeve eyed Elpsis as she traded a few more words with the nurse. Despite the language barrier, it didn't take a genius to see Elpsis brushing off the nurse's help, no doubt insisting they attend to Maeve instead. She was always so humble. So selfless.

By the Force, it made Maeve want to smack her over the head!

"You better not be refusing care, Elpsis," Maeve warned, cutting into their conversation with one eyebrow raised. "You battled dozens of armed drones in the sky while on fire. A bath isn't nearly enough to remedy that." She gestured at the nurse. "At least take a bacta shot, if she has one. You'll need it."

She had a strong feeling they wouldn't be staying idle in this base for long. After the meeting, they were sure to be sent back outside, sparring Firemane forces.

"I will be fine," Maeve added, in case Elpsis tried to argue. "I brought some bacta myself, and my species can heal twice as fast as an ordinary human." Mostly. A Firrerreo could recover from smaller wounds in minutes, though she suspected hers would take hours.

She looked back to the Qadiri boy. His ailment would take days, if at all.

She wished Amani was here. Or more Jedi. She felt useless in a place like this. Fortunately, the rebels were not completely without the Force, besides with Elpsis. Maeve had sensed a strange aura on the other side of the room, a wave of peace washing over her and the soldiers around her, and it wasn't until she caught the source of it that she understood.

"Excuse me," she said, studying the boy one more time before she rose back up to her feet. She gave Elpsis another look, as if to say, You better get that shot. Then, without thinking, she walked across the room, stopping only until she was in the thick of the strange aura—to Shikoba, the ghost whisperer from Ziost.

"Elpsis knew you'd be here," Maeve said. "How long have you been at this?"

Elpsis Kerrigan​

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