Public Winter Gala - Lifeday Event

[Lossa Darcuhl]

Objective: Make it through the Party
Equipment: Dress, Heels
Accessories: Bracelet, Echo Stone
Tags: Gatz Derrevar

Made him believe too. Isn't that what you're good at though? We'll see how long it lasts.

She didn't pull away from the hug. Letting him hold her as she tried to keep from crying against the hiccup breaths she was struggling with. But his words made it hard as he laid more at her feet to combat the notion she'd kept in her head through the years.

She didn't need to do this alone.

But how did she ask for help? She'd been ignored for so long when she did ask. When it did matter. Watched those other kids struggle when she tried. Old memories that fogged her mind as Gatz tried to pull her from that hug.

Holding tightly onto him to keep him from seeing her face just yet as he continued.

It wasn't vanity. At least that wasn't what she told herself. She hadn't cried in so long that she wasn't sure she'd stop before he was done speaking. Wasn't sure she'd stop before the night was over if she let herself.

"I couldn't help when it mattered. I couldn't help them." She squeezed him tight, unable to stop the stinging in her eyes as tears formed and broke the dam they'd been kept behind.

Leaning into him, relying on him to keep her upright with a final choked breath before she began to cry in earnest.

 

[Atin Tracinya]

Objective 1: A Night to Remember
Anna Carden​

"Everyone's waiting for you."
They were words that rang with a hollow timbre. Even though Carden had been the one to goad Atin into coming back to the Enclave, had tried to get him used to life among others, his own people, what progress had he made? Greeting the armorer when he needed gear. A passing nod to another on the way to the space port. A pittance to the 'family' that Mandalorians were none for, that Atin knew in his youth.

Even if it were true, that anyone was waiting for him felt like a lie. Except Carden. She was here, after all.

Carden turned around and her heels quietly clicked away from him for a pace or two. Atin could hear Carden mutter something under her breath, before what she said next was actually audible. "Sithspit. Even if I wanted to, you know I'd be tossed out of the Enclave for violating the Catechisms."

"A Mandalorian's word is their bond. To honor that bond is to honor our people."

Carden's voice rose in response. Higher, higher, enough that Atin began to shush her again in earnest. "Didn't you tell me once about your life before all this, enslaved as a pit fighter?" Carden continued, her voice cracking as she jabbed a finger into Atin's chest. "Servitude for life, what difference does it make?!"

Atin's hand clasped tightly over Carden's mouth as the woman suddenly found herself pressed up against the wall. Atin had hardly realized he'd moved, or that his breath had become uneven. His jaw had gone rigid, and his grip was tight around Carden's arm. "Quiet." A lethal whisper. "Don't even begin to pretend you understand what I went through." Atin's back smarted fiercely, phantom pains that had him wince, even as his grip tightened, sure to leave a bruise on Carden's arm. "This is a whole other kind of damnation, yes. But don't pretend to know the difference."

The sound of footsteps began to echo from down the hall, surely a couple of guards who'd heard Carden shouting. Atin's eyes flicked towards the corner he'd pressed Carden against, and his body stiffened...

Anna Carden

 

[Ryana mina]

Tag: Corazona von Ascania Vizion Trozky

Ryana was worried she was intruding on coras and vizions conversation as she held the mischievous racyon and kept his grapes away with one of her lekku as pip tried grabbing them. Almost entranced by them as ryana listened to both of them speak "atleast both you two had planets to call home even if they where hit by tragedy later on" she didn't mean to be a buzzkill but at all but it was reality for her and one of the biggest reasons she kept pip around " I never knew where I was born or my parents I was sold and owned as property for aslong as i can remember until i was saved by Gabriel Pryce during a raid on a hutt crime lord on nar shadda" she said she made her lightsaber to always remind her of where she came from. Incase she ever became to big for her britches.

Pip had gotten ahold of the grapes and had began munching on one as ryana smirked at the little racyon. " pip here was the first friend I ever made after Gabriel freed me so I guess that's part of the reason I let him get away with more than I should" she commented as pip began purring in her arms.

 

[Alicio Organa]

Naboo
Objective II
- Amani Serys - Eloise Dinn - Maeve Linahan ​

Alicio retracted his hand as soon as it was clear Eloise wouldn't be using it. Sure, he saw it coming too, but it was better than the alternative of standing there without trying to help her.

Lia waited until the purple-haired girl got to her feet, and got a few pointers from Mom, before smiling wide at her. "Good job!," she encouraged. "Now, don't fall. Right, Daddy?"

Alicio sent a tight smile Eloise's way. "Yes. Good advice, baby." Then, he noticed August and Amani's attention taken by someone nearby.

"Maeve?!"

The Count's eyebrows shot up in pleasant surprise. Maeve had attending his and Amani's wedding, and had fought at his side against a literal dragon before. She was a dear friend, who had been sorely missed, despite her aloof attitude. Alicio, too, wanted nothing more than to walk up and greet her, but a spare look at Lia and Eloise told him he was needed here more.

He could say hello later. For now, he simply waved good-naturedly.

"My name is Liana," the toddler managed, waggling a stiff arm the padawan's way. "Hold my hand! I help!"

Eloise had denied Alicio. But did she have the heart not to rebuff Lia's starry-eyed excitement at helping her dad AND someone else learn how to skate?

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

Ship: The Red Night
Outfit: Tux
Weapons:
Objective: A Night to Remember
Tag: Closed | Lossa Darcuhl

He could hear Lossa's little breaths, vain efforts to hold back her tears. He could feel the slight shudder in her body, as her hiccups echoed within her lithe frame. Gatz held her as she trembled, with no intention of letting go anytime soon. Not unless she asked it of him. So often it had been him who needed this sort of comfort, finding it only in Valery Noble , as she acted the part of the older sister he'd never had.

He would never wish that sort of thing on Lossa. But it was nice to be the one to offer comfort, for once, instead of seeking it.

When he tried to pull back to look her in the eyes, she held him tightly. That told him all he needed to know. So, to keep her comfortable, he kept her pulled into him, opting to rest his chin on top of her head.

"Stop fighting your tears, Lossa," Gatz murmured, "I've got you. Just let go."

It was so unhealthy, to bottle sorrow up the way she had been. Of course, Gatz was a hypocrite for even thinking that—his whole heart beat to a fear he'd spent his whole life running away from, and what was more bottled up than that? But if anyone knew the value of a good cry, it was him. If not for Valery giving him her shoulder whenever he needed it...

Well, Gatz didn't want to think of where he'd be now. And whatever that fate might have been, it wasn't one he wanted for Lossa.

"I couldn't help when it mattered. I couldn't help them." The choked way it came out brought tears stinging to his own eyes.

It was a gut punch that evoked memories of every single time he'd had the very same thought. Dad. Mom. Klein. All dead, despite his best efforts to do right by them. Gatz had to force himself to swallow past the lump in his throat, lest he breakdown with Lossa.

Later, he told himself. Alone, in the privacy of his own ship. He'd grieve then.

"Yeah," he said softly, "I know what that's like."

And finally, she broke. There was nothing else he could say to her; nothing that would fix her pain, or patch the holes in her life that had led her to this moment. So he stayed silent, held her a little tighter, and rubbed small circles into her back.

Sometimes words simply weren't the answer.

 

[Maeve Linahan]

Maeve's face was deadpan as she traded looks with the Padawan, just before they almost face-planted on the ice. She pitied the girl. No doubt she'd develop a few bruises by the night's end, purple as her own hair, but even Maeve had to respect how determined she was to continue.

But what more did she expect from an apprentice of Amani's?

Speaking of which, it didn't take long for the Jedi Master to notice her. Amani caught her in moments, and at the shout of her name, descended on her like a trap net. Maeve barely had time to acknowledge Alicio's wave before his wife had crossed the rink.

She blanched when Amani immediately moved in for a hug. "Wait, not so fast, there's no need for—" Too late. Amani practically threw herself at her, nasty child and all, wrapping an arm around her back. Maeve stifled a groan. Still, for all her dislike of physical touch and affection, she almost found herself appreciating the gesture.

Ashla's Light, what was she turning into?

"It's good to see you again, Amani," she said when they parted. "I had heard about these celebrations and thought to stop by on my return to Coruscant. I'm glad to have caught you." She offered a faint smile. "As for those Sith I was hunting, of course, I caught them too. I'd say they're busy counting worms, but I made sure to burn their… ah, never mind."

Maeve had just noticed the little boy in Amani's arms staring, watching her with too-wide eyes. He waved his soft, sickly little fingers her way and she cleared her throat, quickly changing the subject. "Well, now who is this?"

She studied the boy. "Hello, little meat siren. I am Maeve. And you are?"

Amani Serys , Alicio Organa , Eloise Dinn​

​

 

[Eloise Dinn]

"Is your butt okay?"

"It's seen worse."

Amani offered a few words of advice, then ran off to hug the blonde woman, taking the boy with her. Apparently they knew each other, because Amani seemed very happy to see her. Eloise was left with Alicio and the little girl. Alicio gave her a tight smile. Eloise was tempted to scowl at him, making her contempt obvious, but she didn't want to do it in front of his kid, so she just did her best to ignore him.

"My name is Liana."

Now, there had to be a better response to that than judging the Organas' choice in baby names. (Liana was about as boring as its more popular sister Ariana, neither of which Eloise liked. If she had learned the boy's name too, she might not have been able to stop herself from saying something, because if Liana was unoriginal, August was atrocious.) Eventually the Padawan figured out that she could just introduce herself. "My name's Eloise."

"Hold my hand! I help!"

"Little lady, if I fall again I don't want to take you down with me." Eloise slowly rose to her feet. She fared a little better this time, managing to make it to the wall without falling. Once she had something to support her, she stayed there, looking out at the rink with a sigh of relief. Holy chit, she sucked at this. It wasn't even fun. Sure, the people who were good at it looked nice, but much like ballet, watching the pros was about the only enjoyment Eloise could get out of it.

Alicio Organa​

 

[Anna Carden]

A Night to Remember
Atin Tracinya
​

"Sithspit. Even if I wanted to, you know I'd be tossed out of the Enclave for violating the Catechisms."

"-Then we talk to the Jedi and ask him to release you from the lifelong debt. I'm sure we'll get something if we try..."

"Don't even begin to pretend you understand what I went through."

She wanted to scream, she wanted to shout, let it all out on him, but she had to keep quiet. For almost a minute, there was just only silence and muffled sounds of the party below them, enjoying the night. Moments passed, and the guard seemed to have returned downstairs to their post. She removed the man's hand from her mouth.

The pent-up emotion that failed to explode finally escaped through the tears in her eyes.

"Pretend to understand?" Her head down, Anna didn't bother pushing the man away or getting his hands off her. It hurt more somewhere else other than her arm. "I don't, hence why I was trying to spare you from that thought."

She didn't look at him. She's a Mandalorian, a huntress. They don't show their weakness.

Yet it is hard to avoid staring Atin right in the eyes and punching him in the face.

"Is it my fault now? To worry, to think about someone's feelings?" Her voice grew weaker, she already lost any energy to argue further."Our partnership all this time, and I'm just someone who pretends to understand? That's how low you think of me, after everything we've been through?" Adventures, multiple near-death situations, clearing bounties, and even sharing profits and settling debts together.

Tears ran down her face, and she sobbed.

"Why do I even bother..."

 

[Amani Serys]

Maeve Linahan - Alicio Organa - Eloise Dinn​

"Willingly stopping by a party? Are you sure you're the real Maeve?" Amani said with a broad smile, "It is a welcome Life Day surprise, though." Her expression twisted incredulously as Maeve began to describe the current status of her quarry, and she raised her hands to August's ears just in case. But the Shadow seemed to recognize the unnecessary details, and dropped it.

August stared at her with wide-eyed curiosity, doing a poor job at hiding it, even as he shyly kept his gaze sideways. When Maeve acknowledged him, he suddenly looked away entirely, until Amani nudged him to be polite. Slowly he faced her, rubbing his nose on his sleeve, "…August," He replied, "Hello Miv." He pronounced it as best he could.

"Why don't you come join us? I could introduce you to my padawan," She looked back over at the rink, seeing Eloise finally make it to the wall, and chuckled, "Now that she's back on her feet."

 

[Corazona von Ascania]

Vizion Trozky Ryana mina

"Theed." Cora repeated, idly swirling her glass in thought. "Ah, Theed. I can't say that I've ever been there, but I have a friend who organized a food drive on Theed." She smiled for the thought of Gatz Derrevar 's charitable nature which he seemed to deny at times.

Cora had learned of this gathering through the Noble family - well, in one sense that was. "Regrettably, I've yet to meet Briana Sal-Soren . Which is odd, given our number of mutual friends and the fact that we share a master in Valery Noble .”

A frown tugged her lips. That was something she would have to rectify, given that the pair had always seemed to just miss one another. An invite to tea, perhaps?

As bright and happy as Life Day was, it could cast shadows over what someone lacked. A family, a home. Cora's thoughtful little frown deepened into something more earnest and sympathetic as Ryana spoke. She couldn't have imagined what life had been like for the Twi'lek as a slave.

Carefully, she reached out to give the other woman's hand a gentle squeeze. The mention of Pip being her first friend lightened the blonde's expression.

"He certainly is a handful, but I can tell that he cares for you as much as you do for him." Cora extended her hand slowly over to Pip, offering the little troublemaker a scratch behind the ears. "They say that racyon can form an almost telepathic bond with close companions, and share their visions of the future. I'm not sure how true that is."

She drew back her hand. "Do you have any pets, Viz?"

 

[Alicio Organa]

Naboo
Objective II
- Amani Serys - Eloise Dinn - Maeve Linahan -
​

Eloise was rather quick to both pointedly ignore the Count, and turn away Liana's help. Seeing all the signs of someone wanting to be left alone, Alicio turned away. "Alright, Lia. You can keep helping me."

"But..." The girl looked back towards her mother's padawan, her grey eyes sharpened by defiance. "I want to help her!" She started inching towards Eloise, as if she were going to strong-arm the taller girl into accepting her.

"No, lovely," he returned, guiding Liana a little ways away. "Some people don't need help. And that's okay."

"Mmm..." She didn't accept it, puffing her cheeks out at Eloise, but she did turn away with her father, to begin skating again.

 

[Maeve Linahan]

"August," she said after the boy's introduction. "How… nice it is to meet you."

The words came out hesitantly and with restraint. She never liked children. They screamed, whined, thrashed and made a mess of everything they touched. Still, in Amani's arms, this one seemed almost… cute. How deplorable.

Maeve forced a weak smile. Fortunately, she was spared at having to engage with the boy any longer once Amani stepped in, offering her to join them on the ice. The overwhelming majority of her instantly wanted to refuse, to smack her for even suggesting it, but this was Amani, and it was Life Day. She could afford some fun. Right?

"Normally, I would rather fall on my own lightsaber, but tonight, I suppose I can try," Maeve said. Reluctantly, she retrieved a pair of ice skates and stepped into them before nearing the edge of the rink. She was certain she could do better than the pitiful, purple-haired girl.

What could possibly go wrong?

Carefully, Maeve took a step forward, but the second her foot slid over the ice, her entire body went with it. She lost her balance and the world seemed to tip on its axis. She fell backwards, then cracked against the ice in an awkward sprawl.

Amani Serys , Alicio Organa , Eloise Dinn​

​

 

[Eloise Dinn]

Alicio Organa Amani Serys Maeve Linahan
​

I didn't say I wanted you to leave, Eloise thought but did not say as she watched Alicio and Liana depart. Just that I wasn't going to risk falling on top of a three year old. Or whatever age the little girl was. Why did every Force User family have to have such precocious toddlers?

For the second time that night, the Padawan found herself wondering why she even tried. People seemed to take her every action and utterance as a sign that she disliked them. If she hated them, she'd come right out and say it to their face. (But she couldn’t say her thoughts aloud while Alicio was in earshot because… well. It’s a long story.) Hell, nobody seemed to stick around long enough for her to develop an opinion of them either way. Feth's sake...

She looked down at her skates, by now seriously considering taking them off and calling it a night, when she heard the distinct crack of an ass hitting the ice. Not her ass, for once. Turning toward the source of the sound, she found the blonde woman whom Amani had been talking to now sprawled upon the ice. Eloise gave the woman a grimly sympathetic smile, and left the wall behind, intending to offer some help—

Only to slip and fall yet again. Third's time the charm, as they say, for she also happened to land directly in the path of another skater. Trying to maneuver out of the way, the unfortunate stranger lost his balance, taking his girlfriend down with him. She toppled over against a passing mother and daughter, and on and on it went, like dominoes around the rink...

 

[Lossa Darcuhl]

Objective: Make it through the Party
Equipment: Dress, Heels
Accessories: Bracelet, Echo Stone
Tags: Gatz Derrevar

The ebb and flow of her sobs had no pattern. The comfort he offered the only thing keeping her from feeling like she would shatter. Leaning into him so much she wasn't sure that she was actually standing when the tears began to ease.

Her face hurt, her chest burned, and she was sure the alcohol had long wore off when she was finally able to take a breath without gasping.

What are you crying for? Not everything is about us.

Her hands biting into the jacket as her own thoughts began to batter her once more.

"I'm tired." The only thing she could think of to silence her own mind for a while. Unable to keep holding him with how exhausted she felt. Sniffling as she tried to steady her legs into being useful. Bleary eyed, miserable, lighter somehow.

 

[Amani Serys]

Maeve Linahan - Eloise Dinn - Alicio Organa​

August waved at her again, then nuzzled his head in his mother's shoulder. Amani chuckled, giving him a pat on the back. "How noble of you," She replied to Maeve, leading her over to the rink once she had her skates. Amani slid back across the ice, still holding August for the moment while her friend joined in. Maeve seemed a bit more confident than Eloise, but she too fell right down on her back, "Ope," Amani winced, "You good?

Eloise on the other hand, was currently standing by the wall, and even moved to approach Maeve, seemingly to— Oh, nope, she fell too. This time, the fall knocked her into another skate, and another, and another, cascading down the rink, "Oh dear…" Even August looked up now, watching the chaos unfold. Once it was all said and done, Amani kept looking back and forth between the two other women, and everyone else. Nobody seemed to have gotten seriously hurt, at least, "So, uh, Eloise, this is Maeve…" She started, as if nothing had happened, "She's a good friend of mine. And Maeve, this is Eloise, my padawan…" Amani sighed, then looked a little closer for Alicio and Liana, making sure they hadn't been caught up in the mess, "Everyone okay?"

 

[Atin Tracinya]

Objective 1: A Night to Remember
Anna Carden​

Atin pressed himself as close to the wall as he could without crushing Carden, pinning her against the stone. Deciding to pause to enjoy the view he could explain, and he might've been able to explain a secret meeting with a pretty woman away too. But shouting about Mandalorian customs...They might as well have both thrown each other over the balcony if they were caught.

Moments passed, then another. A minute, and Atin finally relaxed, and Carden pried his hand from her mouth. As Atin released his grip on her arm, he finally noticed the warm tears clinging to the skin of his hand as he took a step back.

When next she looked up at him, Atin wasn't sure if Carden was going to break down further, or break his nose. She said, "Why do I even bother..." and her voice hitched. "Worry for your own feelings, Anna," Atin replied, his voice approaching something akin to remorse. "Go home. That Kryze woman, she came for you. Don't waste your freedom on me. I'll be fine..."

Anna Carden

 

[Gatz Derrevar]

Ship: The Red Night
Outfit: Tux
Weapons:
Objective: A Night to Remember
Tag: Closed | Lossa Darcuhl

Her tears soaked through the lining of his suit jacket, dampening the button up he wore underneath, but Gatz made no complaint. He just held her, rubbing circles into her back, letting her vent her sorrow in silence. She was pressed into him so firmly that he was practically supporting her weight—which wasn't much at all, given her build.

He didn't complain about that either. He was content to let her get her feelings out.

Eventually, her arms dropped, her tears dried, and she tried to steady herself on her own two feet. Which, Gatz presumed was probably a lot more difficult in heels. Even if she hadn't bluntly admitted that she was tired, he still would have been able to see her exhaustion in the way she held herself—to say nothing of how tired her eyes looked.

"Maybe you should call it night then," Gatz said softly, "you said you had a room here, right?"

Gatz was relieved that she had already committed to staying in the manor. Now, his only concern was that she might swipe more alcohol on the way there, or have it brought to her afterwards. She seemed sober enough now, and she was an adult who could make her own choices, but more champagne would only make things worse.

Hypocritical, to think that way after downing three drinks of his own... but he was thinking a lot more clearly now, than he had been an hour ago.

"I don't think anyone would hold it against you, if you chose to turn in early." Gatz grinned at her, "and if anyone asks where you're at, I'll just tell them you had a hotter date than me. I mean, that's a hard lie to sell while I'm in this suit, but I'm willing to put in the work if it's for you."

 

[Maeve Linahan]

"I'm… fine," Maeve grunted, barely leashing her own frustration, pretending like she hadn't just completely embarrassed herself.

Skating on the ice took finesse, balance, and control. Qualities that, to be perfectly honest, Maeve lacked. Of course, that wasn't going to stop her. Slowly, she climbed back to her full height, and just to keep herself balanced, she stabbed her skating blades into the ice.

Forget gliding smoothly over the rink. If she was going to reach the others, she would do it her way, because that was the only way that mattered.

Maeve took another step, crushing ice, and then another. It didn't take long before she settled into place by Amani and the purple-haired girl, small cracks webbing around her feet.

"Eloise," she said. "A pleasure." She looked over the girl's shoulder, taking note of the many other people around the rink still recovering from the utter disaster she'd left behind: a little boy nursing a bruise on his head, a couple trying to un-entangle themselves from the ground.

"You are lucky to have Amani as your master, as I'm sure she… well, I'm sure she is glad to have you too," Maeve said, hesitantly glancing over to the Amani in turn. Was she lucky to have her? Debatable. Considering Eloise had probably gifted half the guests here with concussions, one had to wonder if her training was equally tragic.

Amani Serys , Alicio Organa , Eloise Dinn​

​

 

[Rik Perris]

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER

Location: Ballroom
Wearing: X
Equipment: Lightsaber
Tags: Ivalyn Yvarro

Then don’t.

The succinct essence of her dare rolled through his thoughts, and nailed him in place; giving Ivalyn his undivided attention was one of the easiest things in the ‘verse, but then… that was a matter of respect for anyone’s time, polite. It came naturally, even if he was a touch enthralled by her beauty.

[ Dosuun? ]

He was no real student of history, the planetary name ringing an almost indiscernible bell tone of vague recognition, and nothing more. And he’d never been. When Ivalyn turned the question on to him, Rik was equally forthcoming, “Corellia,” he informed, “born and raised.” He took a sip from his glass, “Y’know, I don’t usually come to things like this,” he was used to the more intimate gatherings of friends, comrades, people he would walk into and out of the fire with, the grander celebrations of the Alliance being only a distant collection of memories, “but--”

He tore his eyes away from Ivalyn to take a short look around, but quickly wound back to her, pulled like a magnet.

“--this is nice.”

Only now, was it, in her company. When Rik's eyes returned to the woman before him, his expression had softened into something intentional, rather than daring, as he followed a distinct impulse, and offered her his hand.

“Ivalyn, would you… care to dance? With me?”

 

[Seku Bondara]

Objective: Drink to forget, but try not to do anything that winds up becoming awkward upon regaining consciousness....

Still at the bar, Seku seemed determined to drink herself into a state of total oblivion, when a persistent beeping interrupted her. Looking around for the source of the sound, Seku soon realized her holocommunicator was going off. KARK IT, she thought she'd turned the damned thing off. before deciding to come to the party....

"This better be good," she grumbled, as the visage of one of the anonymous SIA intel nerds who worked the night away inside a room full of secure comms and data banks, slowly came into focus.

"Hey, Blue, finally got a lead on that Jedi of yours...."

"And?...."

"The news is not good...."

"What do you mean NOT GOOD....I hate when people in our line of work tell me something's NOT GOOD."

"You been drinking?..." The intel nerd asked, noticing the nearly empty glass next to Seku.

"If you must know...I'm at a Life Day Gala."

"Oh...um...well....Just...don't do anything like the last time you were at a Life Day party, the guys here STILL talk about that one...."

"How the hell did you find out about that party in the first place?!..."

"Newsflash....We're SIA...it's our job to know things...."

"Ok...forget that...you said you had a lead on Alex..."

"You'd better sit down. As I said...the news is not good...."

Retrieving her glass, Seku found an empty table nearby.

"Alright...spill it," she said, taking a seat.

"Ok...starting from the beginning. Alex StormWolf, Knight Of The Jedi Order, last known whereabouts..Osseriton after receiving Priority One coded message from Jedi Counsel."

"I knew that already from a mutual friend on Tatooine. That was a dead-end...."

"Strap yourself in Blue, this is where it starts getting ugly."

Swallowing hard against the sudden knot of fear that crept up into her throat, Seku nodded.

"Go on..."

"Locals on Osseriton recounted details of an infestation of quote...monsters. Jedi Knight matching Alex's description seen engaging a canine creature of some sort, only to be severely bitten. From there, accounts of Jedi Knight matching Alex's description surfaced in space ports over a several month interval, on a direct course leading to Yanibar."

"Yanibar was Alex's homeworld...."

"The trail leading to Yanibar ends abruptly. However, other sources indicate that two Sith Lords were allegedly spotted near the ruins of an old estate, reputed to be the haunted site of a massacre that occurred more than 30 years ago..."

"Alex's childhood home," Seku said, suddenly feeling as if the floor under her was about to give way.

"Moving on...Previously unknown Sith Lord has recently been seen in the presence of a.....hang on here.....Lady Venge..."

"NO! It can't be....IT CAN'T BE!...."

"Afraid so, Blue...My conclusion is that your Jedi's gone way beyond rogue...."

An image of the Sith Lord, Lady Venge, came into focus above Seku's holocommunicator. Standing beside Venge, was a Sith wearing a helmet that fully concealed his features, and head to toe armor a bit reminiscent of something Alex would have worn, only far more darker. Lady Venge, the woman who had haunted Alex day and night for over 30 years, had apparently succeeded in breaking his will once more.

Unable to bear hearing even one detail more, Seku abruptly shut off her holocommunicator. She wasn't sure who she hated the most at the moment. The Jedi for abandoning Alex, Venge for succeeding in corrupting him once more, or herself for not being there when Alex needed her the most.

Life Day was supposed to be a joyous occasion, but Seku felt as if her heart was suddenly about to shatter into a million pieces. Intoxicated, heartbroken, and alone was no way to spend the holiday....

"Damn it...why do I do this to myself.....why?...."

TAGS- OPEN