Private Your Circuit's Dead

[Kalyn Shif]

​

New day, new ship.

Mara had just picked up a strange beast of a freighter from some Ithorian on the holonet, a dude by the name of Jerec Asyr who ran some sort of used ship store on the Vault. Truth be told she hadn't even really been in the market for a new ship, she was just browsing when she came across it. She had her A-Wing, after all, as well as her Quadjumper. Did she really need another?

Well, yes and no. Yes, because mobile workshop baby! No because, well, it was already getting difficult to find a home for the ones not in use. She needed a hidden hangar, that was the conclusion she'd come to. That way when she got another ship - and let's face it, the way she was going she would be getting another ship in the future - she'd rest easy knowing they were safe. Problem was, Mara wasn't exactly known for having roots. Vagabond through and through this one, if only to keep her past from catching up with her.

That's why she was drifting away from the hyperspace lanes in her newly acquired Hangry Hellbucket: Scouring asteroid fields in search of something promising. Planets were easy, overdone, but hidden bunker in a floating hunk of rock? Well... That had also been done, case in point: Point Nadir. Not as done, though. Certainly not as safe... Pretty reckless, in fact, asteroids were destroyed by roving ships all the time if only to get them out of the way, and they weren't known for always remaining in place. That was what beacons were for though. Right?

Right.

All of these things were passing through her mind when she noticed a blip on her radars. Strange, she thought, to have another ship out this far. Stranger still for them to be stationary. With a sigh she pinged the vessel, and tried to open a com-frequency with it.

"This is Mara of The Hangry Hellbucket, everythin' alright over there mate?"

Fenn Stag

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[Fenn Stag]

​

Of all the things Fenn was, he was at most, a person who understood business. A mercenary and a Bounty Hunter- though of youth, he knew and understood the trade. You paid for a product, you received the product. For him, it was his service as a hunter, or a hired gun. Mostly muscle here and there, the occasional shootout here and there.



WIth a huff, he realized that he also understood business that you get what you pay for. And when you take a job for a junker ship off-world after yours was impounded by the Alliance- well, you get what you pay for. And the ship made it farther than he thought, however, it was a moot point. The beacon was an afterthought, he was securing his own exit when the comm relay clicked to life from the emergency power systems. He floated over- the gravity systems turned off. Various tools and bits of gear floated around the dark ship, requiring him to make use of his helmet light. Night vision was an option, but it ruined his depth perception and operated off ambient light- of which there wasn't much in a ship, in space.



A woman's voice. He had to think of an answer- he hadn't thought of a name for the ship, much less even thought of naming it. He floated over to the comm relay station near the pilots seat, managing to not float away for a few sparse seconds in order to transmit back.



"This is Fenn Stag."



He had a distinctly Concordian accent when he spoke Basic.



A Mandalorian.



"Ships going down- both engines offline. Running on emergency power."



He spoke in a very matter-of-factly matter. Barely a tone in his voice. Devoid of emotion, monotone. But deep, and gravelly. Like the man he was made from, in a sense. He turned his head, looking out the cockpit, but was unable to see the ship just yet.



The Hangry Hellbucket.



Out of the frying pan...

​

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​

 

[Kalyn Shif]

It took a few seconds for a response to come through; it was slightly cut up, though she could make out a familiar accent on the other end. Mentally cursing her own luck at running into a Mandalorian of all people, Mara had to remind herself of the code of the hyperspace lanes lest she lose her nerve and back out of her offer to help.

She didn't need someone who potentially tracked bounties aboard her ship. It didn't matter how karked up her bounty was, didn't matter that she technically hadn't done anything wrong in the first place, all those types saw were the potential credits.

Still... She couldn't leave him stranded.

"Alright, Fenn. Is it just you aboard?" Her scanners only picked up on one lifeform, but maybe there was someone in cryo, or... Well... Maybe the systems were wrong. New ship, hard to know. Emergency power... How long had he been floating out here? "Stay calm, I'll have Hangry connected shortly then you're welcome aboard."

True to her word, Mara began to slowly ease her ship alongside the other and prepped the docking tube. Nerves spiked within her, but there was nothing more to be done about it now. She'd already given her callsign, ship name, last thing she wanted was to have her good name besmirched should Mr Concordia somehow find his own way out of this mess.

Soon enough the two ships, parallel to one another, were connected; she swiveled her seat to glance through the small ship toward the airlock. After a moment, and with a light huff, she pushed up and made her way to greet him.

Fenn Stag

 

[Fenn Stag]

​

A killer, a mongrel, a savage. A brute, a lumbering mass of a man.

But not a liar.

The hiss and locking metal-on-metal contact brought him closer to the airlock. He stopped short of it, floating for a moment. He braced himself for the exchange of air. It was a stiff sound, the escaping pressure, and it shifted him slightly. His helmet lights were the only thing illuminating him for a moment, and the airlock gave way to the... Hangry ship. Hangry Hellbucket? Hangry Hellraiser? He already forgotten everything besides the word "hangry".

The airlock gave way to her ship, and he looked inside. He stood a good deal heads and shoulders tall than most- like his genetic template. Not that the Captain of the vessel needed to know he was a perfect genetic copy of one of the deadliest and most violent- and infamous Mandalorians to walk the galaxy. Now deceased, and apparently, by his own hand.

A crushgaunt adorned hand was the first thing she'd see- him entering her ship. Then, the distinct T-shaped visor of a Mandalorian visitor. It first looked left, and then right. He was checking his corners.

"Thank you."

He said politely, lifting his head up and then pulling it down in a semblance of gratitude. Body language was important to Mandalorians- and he needed to show great gratitude to the woman who saved him.


The less questions she asked, the better, however.

Kalyn Shif

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[Kalyn Shif]

As the airlock pressurized part of his ship and brought him back down to a gravitated state, Mara reached the connection point and awaited his arrival with arms crossed at her chest. She wasn't sure what to expect, but when she saw him with his bucket and all she couldn't help but mentally sigh. Of course, what was a Mandalorian without their famed armour?

Somewhat guarded herself, she only nodded her head when he thanked her. Stepped back enough that he could enter, then gestured toward the pair of bunks built into one of the walls. The ship was small, cabins weren't exactly a commodity that could be afforded. "Top one's mine. There's gluk on tap over yonder," she gestured toward what might be constituted as a galley but barely, but at least the gluk noodles were good. "I'll fetch the coords for you, so you can have someone come and grab yer ship. Where you headed, pal?"

As she spoke and made her various gestures this way and that, Mara ventured back toward the cockpit. True to her word, she jotted down the coordinates on a piece of flimsiplast and handed it over to him. "You got anyone you wanna call, you can head up front and use the coms. 'fresher's back there," another gesture, this time with her head.

Tour unceremoniously concluded, she awkwardly glanced at him then shrugged loosely. Sort of an it is what it is, I don't like this any more than you do exchange.

Then she headed back up to the cockpit, no further questions or introductions or what have you. Didn't need the Mandalorian knowing anything more than he had to, on the off chance he was a hunter.

Fenn Stag

 

[Fenn Stag]

​

He could tell she was apprehensive. Most of the spacers he ran across had bounties.

He never liked to turn them in, usually. Some crossed criminal putting a bounty on another criminal, effectively petty crimes and personal slights being turned into bounties were not something he liked to do.

Plus, he felt something off about her. Like he would need her help later. Furthermore, and more importantly, she saved his life. And in turn, he'd risk his to save hers, and he'd be eternally grateful.

"Thank you."

He said genuinely. Thanks from a Mandalorian were rare, and often more than not extremely honest. He followed her into the cockpit, examining the ship in it's detail. He looked out the viewports, still taken aback by the beauty of the stars.

Fenn reached to the bottom of his helmet, letting it fall into his hands. Admittedly, he had a handsome face. A square jaw, good hair and amber-brown eyes. His face was clean shaven and well kept, just as much as his hair, collected behind his head in a braid.

"Roon. I can pay you for your time and fuel."

He said, laying a handful of shiny credits on the armrest from a pouch on his belt.

"I always forget how wonderful it all can be." He said mostly to himself, gazing out to the stars.

Kalyn Shif

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[Kalyn Shif]

She watched him as he assessed the ship, giving little verbal response to the further thanks beyond a short 'mhm'. When he joined her in the cockpit his shielded gaze lingered out at the stars as they lingered all around, the ship not yet in motion. Reaching for a switch she detached the two vessels from one another, and then waited for a destination.​

​

One came, though not before the bucket was removed. Mara studied his face, and the braids, and then nodded. Roon... Wild Space. Not exactly following the course she'd been on, but what could you do? Goodbye asteroid fields, and potential future hangars, hello a longer journey through the stars.​

​

She searched through the navicomputer, found the planet in question, and began to chart a course toward it. "Roon," she repeated, with a nod. At least he was willing to pay... Oftentimes those who were rescued from derelict ships were transported for free, on goodwill alone. The morality of it all bounced around her skull...​

​

As the navicomputer finished charting the route, she pushed the credits back toward him. "We can alternate on fuel if ole Hangry needs it on the way. I ain't takin' your creds elsewise."​

​

Would it have been nice to have a little extra in her coffers? Sure. But the girl was a spacer through and through, and some things just... Weren't how it was done.​

​

There he went staring off at the stars again, only now with his face in full view she could see the awe held within. She'd lost that awe a long time ago.​

​

"Ain't seen much of 'em?" she inquired, perking a brow, "Well, Roon's a ways away. Feel free to watch up 'ere, though hyperspace ain't much the same as the stars 'emselves." No less pretty, of course...​

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Fenn Stag ​

 

[Fenn Stag]

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"I haven't seen much of anything." He said in a slightly somber reply.

He pushed the credits towards her still. "My money or my favor- the terms are non negotiable." He said...with a sort of grin.

So he was capable of emotions. Even bad jokes.

"Are you alone, up here. Often, at least." He said, a hand absent mindedly reaching out to the vastness of space, though he stopped for a moment, his hand falling back at his side.

Kalyn Shif

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[Kalyn Shif]

Hm.​

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Sheltered then...​

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"Well, there's plenty to see" she stated, with a shrug, "Might be that you see some of it on the way to Roon. Bith knows we'll have to make a stop or two for fuel and the like. Maybe you could study the route, ya know? Figure out if there's anywhere we're gonna pass you like the sound of. I ain't in no rush."​

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He pushed back the credits. She stared at them, then at him. "Favour?" she inquired, clearly not quite understanding what was meant by that. She picked up the credits and set them into a tray which may amidst the consoles, no doubt meant for cigarra's and the like. It would do to hold the creds for now, until either they used them for fuel or she could figure out a way to get them back to him.​

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Damn her morals.​

​

"Yep. Just me, my ships, and the stars. Alone ain't so bad, quiet mind you but... Means I can go where I please, do what I want, ain't no one to tell me otherwise. What about you? You got many folks out there, wherever you're from? What's got you venturin' out?"​

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Fenn Stag ​

 

[Fenn Stag]

​

He stood silent and very still for a moment.

"A Mandalorian owing you a favor is something you'd want to keep."

He turned his head back towards her, wondering how to answer her question without causing a spacer with a likely bounty.

"Helping my people. Have to make ends meet. Rebuilding the Mandalorians takes some doing, after all." He turned back to the stars.

"They welcomed me, you know. Saw me more than the circumstances of my birth." He ran a hand through his hair, collecting his hair neatly as to not interfere with his eyesight or helmet, more importantly.

He hadn't told anyone that. Then again, Fenn rarely had the opportunity to speak on a personal level with people, most Mandalorians were fairly stoic as it was.

Kalyn Shif

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[Kalyn Shif]

She reckoned that was probably true. They were known for being good at what they did, and in her line of work having the backing of one such as he could prove the only thing which tipped the scales in her favour. Still, she wasn't used to being the one owed.​

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Quite the opposite in fact.​

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"Alright" she replied with a shrug, "Then take back your creds, ye?"​

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Favour instead of credits, that she could do. As he spoke more she swiveled further in her seat to fully face him, catching his gaze when he turned toward her. Just a brief moment, mind, while he stated the reason he was out here, and then the stars sought his attention once more. Couldn't blame him, though it did make her feel particularly bad for what she was about to do next.​

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"Alright, gonna make a jump to hyperspace" she warned him at least, and true to her word soon the viewing port did not show individual stars but instead streaks of such. Not as pleasant to look upon, in fact doing so could drive her crazy at times.​

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With that in mind, she rose out of her seat and offered him a brief smile. He wasn't as bad as she'd been expecting, in truth. A little rough around the edges, sure, but he didn't seem particularly pent up or aggressive. Might be just because she'd helped him, of course, but whatever.​

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"C'mon, let's get some gluk." He'd mentioned how the Mandalorian's had taken him in, and she tried to recall the name she'd once heard to refer to such. Try as she might she couldn't though. "Hey, well, good luck with all that, these are tryin' times but I hear that makes for good credits for people of certain persuasions," she shrugged her shoulders, passing him by to head out into the lounge where the gluk machine lay.​

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Tasty noodles in a rich broth... Just what the doctor ordered. "You got many contacts out here? Might be I can throw you toward a few if it's credit's you're after."​

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Fenn Stag​

 

[Fenn Stag]

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"The credits stay."

It was the finality of his statement that was striking, in a way. There was no argument to be had. That, and how was she to argue with a nearly six and a half foot armored killer? "The galaxy is large. Someone is always in trying times."

He stopped near the machine, raising a brow, before collecting a bowl and taking her up on the offer. It wasn't as bad-smelling as hoped. Then again, Mandalorians tended to eat rations, or worse.

"I'd appreciate it- though not many are willing to work with my people, understandably so. A good portion of the galaxy has good reason to not trust the Mando'ade."

So far, he didn't find her unpleasant or that terrible to talk to. She infact, seemed pleasant, or at least, comfortable to be around for the moment. Then again, Fenn rarely got to speak to anyone at length, so this was a welcome change.

Kalyn Shif

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[Kalyn Shif]

His tone warranted no further arguing, so she held up her hands in mock-defeat.​

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"Alright, alright," she stated, leaving them in the tray they occupied as she made her way from the cockpit. "You wanna call for someone to get your ship, or you good with whatever service I can hire to bring it to Roon?"​

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By the machine, she pulled out a couple of bowls and set the first of them beneath it. Pressed a few buttons, and soon enough there was the soup piping hot and ready to eat. Pieces of meat floated throughout, noodles lay in the depths, but frankly it was the broth that was the best part. In her eyes, at least.​

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She gave the first bowl to Fenn and then set about making a second portion for herself.​

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"Galaxy's full of prejudices," she agreed with a nod, "I'm lucky not to belong to much of anythin' at all that might keep me from a job. Even so there are those who'll pass me over for bein' a girl so..." Kalyn shrugged. "Just gotta prove'em wrong, I guess. Where you can. 's what I do!"​

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Her mind drifted back to the issue of two pilots hired for one job, that at least had somewhat subverted the norm. It had been the other pilot, the man, who had been passed over in favour of her, though given the state he'd been in she couldn't blame their employer.​

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Kalyn made a point of showing up to potential jobs spick and span. It just made sense.​

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Fenn Stag ​

 

[Fenn Stag]

"It's been arranged."

A strange answer to a question about the ship. Seemed there was more to that than he was saying at the moment.

"I've been past over jobs for being human. Or- human enough, at least." He said. His eyes seemed to flick to his left wrist, involuntarily so.

He twirled the noodles, filled with.. mystery meat. He blinked, before trying it.

Not bad.

"What would you call yourself- a Spacer? How long have you been at it?"

Kalyn Shif

 

[Kalyn Shif]

"Cool, cool," came her response, with no hint of surprise or confusion about the whole thing. His business was his business, and if he'd already figured out a way to get the ship from point a to point b then more power to him. It was one less thing for her to worry about at least.​

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She tucked into the soup once she had hers, leaning against the counter of the kitchenette with a pair of reusable chopsticks in her left hand. She seemed to be pretty deft at using them, but then she more or less survived on gluk so was it any surprise?​

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"Bein' human... No, that's a new one for me. Can't say I ever been turned down for that. Tho' maybe the girl thing was just a more viable excuse." Not that she was human. An odd blend in truth, Firrerreon and Kiffar, but they balanced one another out, she didn't have quite the golden hue that many Firr's had, nor the clan tats from her paternal side.​

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That red hair though... That was all natural.​

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She mulled his question over as she sipped on the broth from the edge of the bowl, then nodded. "Reckon spacer cuts it, yeah. Pilot, mostly, tho' I do ferry goods every now and then. Regular ole delivery service." She hummed, as though agreeing with herself, then shoveled some of the noodles into her mouth.​

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Waited until she was done chewing before she spoke again.​

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"Can do a few different bits tho'. Gotta learn to be self sufficient an' all that, keep my ship in good shape and what not. Ain't no top tier mechanic or owt, but it works out in a pinch. What about you? What'd you do before you made your way into the stars?"​

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Kalyn wasn't exactly expecting the truth from him.​

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Fenn Stag​

 

[Fenn Stag]

He stared at the red hair for a moment.

He didn't hate it. He might even have looked at the person below the hair for just a moment longer, as he leaned back in his seat, finishing rather quickly with his....gluk.

"I didn't have much of a before. I was..." Born? Made? Created? Crafted? He looked absently down at his wrist again. Some nights, he could still feel the tubes in them, and the lukewarm blue tanks he was kept in up until he was four years old.

Years.

"Fortunate like that, I suppose. Once I became old enough, I was expected to help with the Enclave, that's all. So- I do what I was made to do, I suppose." What else was a clone of one of the deadliest killing machines that the Mandalorians had known in a long while to do? He was a perfect genetic copy, no tampering by the Spaarti creations. One of many like him. Nearly a million still wandered the galaxy, though some aged up rapidly due to the process. He himself was only just a young man- taken in shortly after the fall of the Republic, in which swarms of clones nearly brought the Republic to ruin.

His fingers curled against themselves, lightly into his palm.

"We all do what we were born to do, I suppose."

Kalyn Shif

 

[Kalyn Shif]

Having completely neglected the second part of his query, Kalyn was left to ponder just how long it had in fact been since she'd left the Wheel behind with Killian and his crew. How long had the stars been her home?​

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Well, that was a stupid thought. The Wheel was a station, after all. The stars had been her home her whole life. But still... Freely, of her own volition, not under the constraints of some Hutt?​

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"I think I had to have been like... 14" she said, a slightly faraway look in her eye, "Not sure, feel like the years before it all just sort of merged together. Almost half my life tho', out here... Pavin' my way." Okay, a lie. Some of them had definitely not been spent 'out here', they'd been spent in some stupid Imperial labour camp for entirely bogus and unfounded reasons, but who was keeping track?​

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Oh, right, Kalyn was.​

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"Never quite loses it's appeal tho'."​

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In comparison, it seemed as though Fenn had lived something of a secluded existence until recently. Not that everything else he'd said and done didn't elude to such, of course, but now it was a little more concrete.​

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"Well, I was born to dance and I sure as feth made sure that didn't end up my reality" she responded with a grimace. Every day she was thankful that her early teenaged years had been spent looking more boyish than feminine. Luh would never have let her go if he'd expected she'd turn out anything like her mother where looks were concerned.​

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Killian had saved her more than once in her lifetime. The few times she chose to drink in life it was in his memory to be sure.​

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"Well, what do you want to see now you're mobile?" she inquired, more curious than anything. They had time to kill after all. "Anythin' you were missin' out on back wherever you're from?"​

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Fenn Stag ​

 

[Fenn Stag]

Someone born into a life. He could empathize. He didn't say much of anything for a while, pondering how to answer her question.

"I wasn't really born. I don't have a home planet, truthfully. I was-" Another pause.

"Created. Cloned. From Preliat Mantis, by the Republic. I was one of the lucky ones, in a way. Perfect genetic copy- no aging, no flash cloning, no imprinting. A test for the rest of the batch. There are about a million of me running around, somewhere."

He looked back over at her.

"Is this what you really want to do?"

 

[Kalyn Shif]

His response was unexpected.​

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Kalyn found herself trying to grasp at any recollection she might have of the name he uttered but nope, she had no idea who he was a clone of. But did that matter? Maybe... She frankly didn't know.​

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Still she had no issue with clones and the like in general. Wasn't their fault someone had formed them with spliced DNA.​

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"And the Mandalorians adopted you?" she inquired softly, piecing it all together. "Surely that means you have something of a home, though. Wherever you were raised..." Might not be a planet though, hers hadn't been. Then again... "I can't say I have a home either, though. Just my ships..." That suited her just fine, but was it enough for him, she wondered...​

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No family, no home, they had more in common than she'd expected. Strange how things worked out. "So there's nowhere you want to visit? Random places you might have heard of once upon a time? No preferences for places we might stop along the way? Oceans, deserts, forests..?"​

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Why was she pressing this so much? When first he'd come aboard she'd just wanted the fastest route back to Roon, no messing around in between. Well she supposed that was still the case, but they'd have to pause to refuel and the like anyway.​

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Why not make the most of it?​

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Then he posed his question, and she met his gaze for a moment before shrugging. She looked away then, unable to really look at him as she thought about it.​

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"Ain't ever really had much of an option about it" she replied, "Don't even know what else I could do. Keeps me free tho', don't it? There's somethin' to be said about that."​

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Fenn Stag ​

 

[Fenn Stag]

"Concordia. After the Republic fell, my father found me. Not much of it left, after everything." Everything. A war. A schism. An unnatural force event. A destruction. The burning. The Sith. The Seven Day War.

What remained, was ashes and memories, and little hope for a strong future.

"I've yet to see any mountains. Only great cities- and the only greatness therein was the scope of them."

The people, the smells. Far from the world of a homestead and training circles he knew.

"I've never enjoyed freedom." He said rather bluntly- and the air of honesty in them. He had much more to say on that.

Kalyn Shif