Dark Ages

[Butler]

His arms swung at his sides inside long, poorly knit off-white woolen sleeves. The neck line was splintered open down his pale chest, neck pulsing with turns this way and that as he looked over the old architecture of this seemingly forgotten memory. Darkknell. It was familiar to him somehow. The dark gold lined with black metal emboldened the city in its dusk before the long night. People went about their business, and he, Lucifer, cared not for which way the people walked. He was above them, even in these dirtied white slacks and shoes, as he strolled over the steps of this once great site. Pillars lined the pristine porch that he walked on, his eyes searching the life that lived here. But more importantly, he wondered why this felt like home...

 

[Radiwalker]

Jaina was out searching. She was following a trail, a trail which she had been following for quite a while and had now suddenly lost track of. Despite that, she did not give up. But, while taking a break from her chase, one that would answer a great many questions about her and her origins, she had decided to stop at the most unlikely of places. Darkknell was a planet with a dark history. One could almost say it was a world molded to be controlled by the sith and yet Jaina felt rather comfortable there.

She didn't know whether it was the people, or the place in general, but something was making her feel empathetic. The place reminded her of her younger self. One who was alone in her struggles and constantly fought the demons within her. However, she managed to defeat those demons, whereas this place seemed to have succumbed to them.

Nevertheless, the people were preparing for a festival. She couldn't tell exactly what the festival was about, but the great number of kiosks and arcades being set up, she only guessed that it was something big. Walking through the busy streets, the girl managed to pick up two words hegemony celebration. That surprised her. Out of all the things to be grateful for, the people had chosen to celebrate just that. But were they celebrating the absence or the creation of the hegemony. Had they actually liked it, had the sith that used to rule over these worlds done right by the people, or had they wronged them so much, that there was a festival to celebrate their absence.

Much remained unknown, but nobody seemed to notice Jaina and she liked that. She kept her hood well over her head and her robes tightly around her body. She moved through the streets and relaxed, for she knew that after leaving this place and continuing her search, she wouldn't have much time, or reason to relax. For once she enjoyed the moment, even if it was dark and grim and full of mystery...

 

[Butler]

The light breeze kissed his cheeks, feeding through the long white locks of hair over his ears, as he read the pictorials of ancient tales and bloodlines upon the proudly heavy walls. Their history was long and arduous, the people of Darkknell, filled with war and achievement as well as pain and strife. Lucifer squinted as he followed the patters of lineage towards glorious dominance. He walked along the edges, discerning the depiction of family quarrels he'd read about during his days with the Jedi in their archives, until he came to the corner.

A blur of bodies out in the street, most shrouded in darker colors and gloom wrung faces, his eyes fixated upon a little girl. She was sitting in the street, passed by as she quietly cried to herself alone. She must have been five, maybe seven years old. Lucifer hadn't spent much time with children. Maybe one. And she reminded him of her. A dream. If even a dream at all. But still her silent tears called his attention as he lean in closer upon the wall, distant yet somehow seemingly right there next to her.

Someone's boot step kicked through her knee, and she cried out. A man stopped, offended at her loud obnoxious presence, and started yelling at her. Lucifer couldn't make out what he was saying at first, not until he focused in with his senses. The man screamed for her to get out of the street, to stop crying and do something. Most ignored him, while some did slow to see what it was for themselves. Though none seemed to care enough to intervene.

Lucifer wondered if it mattered. He'd just been stranded here, more or less. It wasn't as dire as it sounded. But Arisa no longer existed to him. And that meant his entire life could be something else entirely, if real to him at all. Was he Gabriel? Or was he Lucifer? And did it even matter...?

He just watched the helpless girl, empathizing with her pain rather than saving her from it when no one would save him.

 

[BZenwrath]

Serrah had been travelling on a personal mission to find a certain mandolorian after so much had befallen them. She had to know if her childhood friend was a part of those who were destroyed by the sith. This determination to find a long lost friend had brought her to Darknell, a place she would much rather not be. As she walked almost aimlessly among the crowd she came to an incident involving a man and a girl...

Serrah watched as the poor girl was yelled at. The scene had taken a toll on her emotionally, the girl reminded her so much of how she was treated in the undercity of Coruscant. Instinctively, Serrah ran to her and picked her up onter her shoulder, apologizing to the man, and then carried her to the side of the street. The girl began to cry a as Serrah knelt to set her back onto her feet. Serrah held her hands as she gained her stability once again. With a quick glance around her she spoke to the girl in a friendly tone, "Are you ok? Where's your mother or father?" Serrah feared that the girl's answer would be far too familiar to her...

 

[Radiwalker]

As relaxing as her walk was, it was suddenly disturbed by something as casual and common as the screams of a child. Jaina was one who always rushed to the aid of the weak, not only because of her jedi training, but also because of her beliefs. Every act of kindness and compassion, was an act that pushed the World forward. She burst into a sprint, heading towards the source of the cries.

Somewhat of a crowd had swarmed the streets, but still the girl made her way through it, while trying not to push, or hurt anyone. Finally she emerged to a small clearing, at one side of the street, where the girl that had produced the screams was being tended to by another girl, one with relatively short black hair, who had her back turned to Jaina. She took a step to approach the pair, when she suddenly stopped. She felt a presence, or rather a disturbance. She wasn't sure what it was, but it almost felt as if there was someone watching, someone conflicted and, for the time being concealed.

She looked around, her eyes piercing through the crowd, but she saw no person that would attract her attention. Could it be that her feelings had deceived her, or was it a skillful rouge that she had sensed. Whatever it was, she could not be bothered by it. She approached the two girls, while keeping a note to herself to remain on high alert.

Her heels tapped the dusty ground, creating small clouds of smoke beneath her feet. She stopped just a stretch of a hand away from the two girls, when she realized that a portion, even if a small one, of the crowd had taken interest in what had occurred. She slowly turned to them, keeping her face serious, as she reckoned that a smile wouldn't be well received at a gloomy place like that. "Return to your business, folks." She didn't know if it was her voice, her words, her expression, or her clothing that had proven effective, but the people dispersed, returning to their tasks.

Jaina, on the other hand, turned to the two girls. "What happened? Is there something I can do to help?"

 

[Butler]

Lucifer stumbled out from his corner, nearly falling into his leaning interest as he watched; the girl, swooped up and whisked into loving arms. His brow furrowed, eyes glaring, with a moment's allowance of anger showing through at his disappointment and jealousy as he wondered in confusion why she could not suffer as he did. But his curiosity almost instantly melted back into innocence as he followed, creeping along the walkway behind the pillars around the building.

A woman walked in front of him, obstructing his view. She excused herself. He frowned at her, exaggerating the bend of his shoulder around her. He walked in closer without realizing just how close he'd come.

He'd come this far, he justified to himself as he reached his toes down the steps out into the open. A curious jealousy swept his bold creeping steps in even closer until he stood a short distance away beside a necklace and bracelet vendor. He turned in to feint interest in the black lace and silver trinkets, cowardice second guessing his childlike wonder of the little girl and those who now cared for her. He peeked over his left shoulder. His eyes widened to soft blue saucers as he heard the one offer to help the other.

"I know the girl!" he blurted out accidentally to them with a shuffled step forward, his eyes fluttering soft pale flesh in comprehension of his own over eager thought processes.

The girl was in shock, confused and in pain. A life on this planet trained mistrust into even the most innocent. He hoped she wouldn't say anything at all so he could feed himself into this fantasy for just a little while. He was lonely, said his pouting lip. And they were kind. To garner their attention, through hers, meant to feel accepted and safe. For a while, at least.

 

[BZenwrath]

Like a beacon in the dark, the air was filled with force energy. Serrah's skills in the force were sensory and emotion based, just as her master's were before the her. She always seemed to have a knack for picking out force users, even hidden ones. Their aura was always potent and almost clear as day. Today however, her senses were thrown askew. The proximity of the Force users was already so close that by the time she realized it, it was hard to tell if there were two separate users approaching or one.

She turned in reaction to hearing someone divert attention away from them. The woman she saw before her left her in an awestruck gaze. It had been years but, somehow she could still see the young girl she met among the chaos of Coruscant. Jaina... Of all the places... someone she knew from before. The chances seemed impossible, but her likeness left no question about it. It was Jaina... The presence she felt must have been her, but something seemed amiss. Serrah could feel something different, something... Colder.

Just as she began to speak, a man shouted out to them. Serrah stayed silent, the rogue presence emanating from the man. Something didn't seem right, his aura was damp with emotion; jealousy chief among all others.

 

[Radiwalker]

When the woman turned around, Jaina was startled for a moment. She instantly recognized the face. It had been ten or more years since she had last seen it and it had aged, but the memory was so intense, so well ingrained into her mind, that she would never forget. It took a moment to put a name to the face but then it came... "Serrah," she mumbled as her face remained astonished.

In an instant the scene revolved before her eyes. The burning temple. The sith. The death. Maric. She tried running towards him but someone grabbed her and thrust her onto a shuttle. There, through her tears, she had barely been able to look at any of the other passengers. But, for some reason, there was one she could relate to. Serrah.

Jaina was drawn out of her reminiscing by a voice. The voice of a man. She was distraught for a moment, so she took her time locating the source of the voice, but once she did, she felt it again. The presence from earlier. The eyes that had been set upon them. That was the man. But who was he? There was certainly something cold and dark about him, or at least so she felt.

Serrah didn't answer him, so Jaina decided to take the lead. "How do you know her?" she tried not to sound defensive, or prejudice, yet she could not help but put her body between the two girls and the man.

 

[Butler]

"I-" he accidentally swallowed a nervous gulp of air in stutteringly assaulting thought, "I know- I mean I met her yesterday."

His right eye, dried in a bleeding stare, twitched the formation of a young glossy tear as his smoothly cold fingers, perfectly polished cuticles, fed over each other almost pleadingly and subconsciously protective over his waste.

"I didn't get her name. I accidentally bumped her mother, I think, into another man and he became angry. She," he daintily gestured to the little girl, "ran off when he took her away," he concluded in reference to the fabricated mother figure.

Lucifer's eyes darted back and forth between the two women. Normally his exquisite beauty pardoned his emotional activity, veiling even the most obvious signs of extremism. But this time he actually desired someone's approval. And it showed, weakening his conviction and watering down his potency. And yet, he was beginning to think he knew their warmth somehow, somewhere. They were, the both of them, in touch with their potential to some unknown extent; immeasurable to him even by his power, especially in this dormant state. Though it was familiar, naggingly so, that it begged a greater pull to his longing of them and their empathy. If only he could be one of them for just a little while.

"I'd only just become stranded here. I was worried I'd be blamed..."

It was half true, at least the part about being somewhat stranded. And his jealousy fed into their gallant undertaking of the girl's wellbeing, while he had allegedly hid in fear of imprisonment. His was the mastermind of clouded emotions, twisting and turning even unbeknownst to his own fanciful imaginings. Where he was now, he'd completely lost track; though he never seemed to try. Perhaps they would discover his Jedi origins, though he didn't consider the Jedi his beginning. All that mattered to him now was belonging, company. If he were in any other city within Hutt space, he would have payed a woman or two and the Force knows what would've happened to them in his anguish. But instead he had seen this little girl, inciting the last known memory of a broken soul.

 

[BZenwrath]

The man was strange; something about him was dark and much didn't seem to make sense. However, she didn't sense any kind of malice from him like she had expected, instead she felt yearning. It was strange, in a way it was the same emotion and feelings she could feel very vibrantly from the child next to her. It was as if the man wanted the same things... Warily, she quietly whispered to Jaina under her breath, "I don't think he's going to hurt her."

Serrah looked to the girl again, checking over her for any bad cuts or bruises. Serrah couldn't help but feel sorry for her, she knew all to well what it was like. Being alone and at such a young age, it was heartbreaking to see anyone in the position she had known as a child. She would go days sometimes without having any food. She begged but most ignored her and a few told her to get lost. It was one man that made the difference in her life, the same man she was looking for now. A Mandalorian. She reminisced for a short period on the days he would come to that all too familiar cantina and retrieve some warm food for her. The time he would spend sitting in the alleyway with her, sharing stories, telling her of the galaxy. She felt like she mattered when he came around. Then, she got an idea on how to cheer the girl up.

With a smile on her face and an excited tone in her voice, she asked the little girl, "Hey, you look hungry. How about we get you a warm meal? I'm sure there's a nice place around here! Once we do that we'll help you find your mom. Does that sound good?" The little girl was able to show a slight smile; an improvement in Serrah's eyes. She nodded sheepishly at Serrah and then grabbed her hand. Serrah stood up to face the other two again, "Jaina, you're more than welcome to come along." She then gestured to the man, feeling an assortment of sadness and jealousy emanating from him, "You too, but I've got my eyes on you..."

Serrah and the girl walked hand in hand through the street until they found a cozy cafe on the corner of the street that was a little quieter and secluded from the festival. They were led to a booth once inside and Serrah slid in to a seat next to the girl, handing her a menu and instructing her, "get whatever you want, ok? it's on me." She knew that her time with the girl probably wouldn't last but she would try to make a difference in her life, no matter how small.

 

[Radiwalker]

Jaina's judgement of the man was clouded. She couldn't quite realize what he was feeling, nor could she read his thoughts, he was some sort of an enigma, but she could still tell something was not right. Nevertheless she was glad when Serrah took matters into her own hands and lightened the mood, getting everyone to go to a cafe. The knight gestured to the strange man, inviting him to walk beside her, as she asked "How did you become stranded?"

Her tone was not defensive, or offensive, it was not friendly either. She was passive, she wanted to talk to the man before making a judgement. Jaina led the way into the cafe, behind Serrah and the girl. Keeping silent and allowing the man time to talk, should he chose to use it. Finally, once inside the establishment, she sat across from Serrah and the girl, watching the man with the edge of her eye, to see where he would decide to sit.

Now that she got a better look at him she couldn't help but admit that he was quite attractive. Even though she didn't usually allow such thoughts into her mind, this once she pleasured herself, scanning the man from head to toe, in the quick, barely noticeable manner of a lady. His light-blue eyes and white hear were quite appealing to her, yet she put a stop to those thoughts there, as she knew nothing much of him, at least not yet.

Jaina's attention then turned to Serrah, who had handed a menu to the little girl. "It has been quite a while since we last saw one another," the knight spoke. "I hope this time the circumstances are not as bad and the outcome of the meetings is better... for both our sakes." The ruin that had been made of Coruscant was not a pleasant memory in Jaina's mind, but it was an important one and she would not forget a face she had seen that day, be it of a friend or foe.

 

[Butler]

Lucifer's sore sockets, teetering back and forth, recalled this feeling of lip-lust envy. His gut didn't simply sink in emptiness, but wrenched with pain; a symbolic hunger that cowered to the physical starvation of his own youth; like many others suffered, and continue to suffer, both before and after him. He too faced those hardships, a deliberately targeted famine of deprivation. Only he had no one to lift him out of lovelessness and determined death. He had no one but himself to dig deeper into the darkness. No one was his to cherish, to seek out and save him. Not anymore. Not anymore.

Lucifer gulped his pitiful lie down his throat as he watched it play into their perception of justification, though cautious as they were. And he nodded approval of the first gesture, accepting this first woman's terms of company. Then his feet kicked forward behind them with the second gesture, beckoning him to this other woman's side as they walked along the stained street.

Carefully dodging a passerby, Lucifer hesitantly stepped up next to the strong woman who prodded further.

"She-" he stuttered a frustrated start to his quietly concealed and true anguish, staring into the pavement beneath their feet. "I crashed this ship. I mean, when I was in this ship, I kind of damaged the ship while it was linked to another ship and... Well this girl, this Echani girl was there and she helped me land the ship, but it kind of crashed and we're, well she's sleeping back at the hotel," he bent a thumb back over his shoulder behind them, "and we're kind of stranded here. And I only have a few credits left. And, I mean, I was, well I didn't but I was looking for, well I thought that, at least I hoped. But I was told, and she wasn't even though they assured me she- she had to have been, I mean anything would have, any sign would have been enough. But there was nothing, nothing there but- but those," his fingers angrily closed, dangerously close to balling fists, "those smiling, slobbering, saprobic, sallow faces..." he finally crescendoed within clenched teeth.

From zero to fifty, his pale skin had radiated a redness of heat that formed from his failure to face facts; initially meager and unassuming vocabulary rising into the malicious lexeme that defined the real Lucifer, bubbling with emotion. Though soon it faded as he remembered the kind of company that kept him currently. And he stammered a wavering and inhaling breath of calm that cooled his tumultuous temperament.

He looked up at the woman, at the back of the other woman's head, and back to the woman next to him; regretful and docile. He swallowed, then cleared his throat weakly.

"I-I'm sorry. I'm not myself."

His head lowered further in shame under their scrutinous starring, even as he slinked into the cafe with them, trying to seem as normal as possible. It was a challenge, needless to say. Emotion was his very being, vocabulary as complex as his heart. Though now he labored to dumb himself down to less threatening levels of white hot perfection. That was not the direction he wished to plow, not the person he wished to be in this moment. He couldn't accept that he was Gabriel, that all of it was just jumbled memories of the body he now inhabited. He just wished, for once, to find peace. He'd hoped. He'd lost to hope.

Lucifer stopped, standing at the table, as the first woman slid in next to the little girl; where Lucifer obviously wished he could have sat. But now that seat was taken. He painfully pulled his heavy eyes up to the other woman who sat alone, a slight lilting roll of the head in acceptance of his fate in penance. Finger lifting to uncomfortably tug at his torn collar, light gray threads stripping open over his chest, Lucifer prepared himself to unaggressively bend into the seat next to her without much of a choice.

And there he sat, spine rolling straight against the back-rest, stiff as a board. His palms rested on the table, like a dangerous prisoner needing to show his unpredictable hands to his captors at all times, index fingers nervously tapping light pecks onto the peeling plastic that safeguarded the wood's wearing finish.

"You aren't going to get anything...?" he asked the woman who offered to buy the little girl anything, across from him.

 

[BZenwrath]

"You aren't going to get anything...?"

She looked to the man as if slightly caught off guard by the question, "Well, I hadn't really given it much thought," She looked at the menu for a moment, making sure she would have enough credits with her. The prices were somewhat expensive for what it was but definitely within her range. She wasn't very hungry but still spotted a cider she wanted to try. "I'll probably have a drink though, maybe the hot Cider. How about you?" She was genuine; the man seemed harmless enough so making him feel unwelcome would only press an issue that could otherwise be avoided.

Jaina spoke up, "It has been quite a while since we last saw one another. I hope this time the circumstances are not as bad and the outcome of the meetings is better... for both our sakes."

The topic called forth memories she didn't enjoy delving into, despite the time that had passed since then. "It would take an invasion to match the last time we met..." She sighed, shrugging off the bad recolection. "It's been too long Jaina, how have you been?" A Devaronian waitress started to come their way shortly after she spoke, right on time as it would seem everyone had found what they wanted, if anything.

"Hello, welcome to Celestial Cafe," She paused, handing them a few napkins, "My name is Vanya, what can I start you out with? Drinks?"

 

[Radiwalker]

Jaina listened to the man stagger and burst with emotions as he tried to tell his story. She was about to cut him off and calm him down, when he seemed to completely lose it. Something was very wrong. She didn't know what, but there was something about this person that troubled her deeply. She didn't let her worries surface and kept them to herself.

Upon receiving Serrah's reply at the cafe, Jaina slightly nodded her head. She didn't allow the memories of those times to resurface as she needed to focus at the here and now, as it seemed there was a pressing matter to attend to and it was sitting just beside her. "I have been well," Jaina began, being cut off by the approaching waitress. The knight hadn't considered getting anything, but decided to try out the cider that Serrah had mentioned. "One hot Cider for me, please," she spoke to the waitress, while she reached out through the Force and relayed a telepathic message to her counterpart. "There is something very troubling about this man, we ought to return the girl to some relatives of hers and tend to the man, for I fear his case is one much more pressing and could as well be dangerous. . . no place for a little girl around such a man."

She made sure to use the time the waitress was around them to relay the message, so it would go rather unnoticed, or so she hoped. It was essential that she and Serrah managed to communicate well in this situation, otherwise things might escalate out of their control and that would not be good for the locals, or them, or anyone, should Jaina's suspicions turn out to be true.

 

[Butler]

"Uhm," he gulped indecisively to her return of his question. "Well I guess I've never had cider..."

Lucifer felt the distance from their conversation, not having known the Jedi's movements for years and not being "one of them". Their words were shared as one, pain shared as one. Yet his was kept at the edge of his seat, leaning towards what he could not touch. And in their absence, his eyes veered towards the little girl; questions across her face, questions across his face. She cowered to his longing stare. She was not Krynn.

Hearing the woman next to him join in the decision for hot cider, Lucifer too internally opted for the sweet taste; turning his teaming blue eyes up to the waitress. Fearing to even speak, ashamed to be in their company and shy to be judged in his joining of their drink as one of them, his mouth hung open with sight falling to her nametag.

But then he felt it. Like a pinprick, a shock sent through the air. Invisible as it was, untouchable and inaudible, it was there - crossing between the two connected minds in this stillness and silence at the table.

Lucifer's shaky demeanor melted into unnerving calm, shoulders sinking, and he looked away from the waitress and past the little girl and at the light as it highlight the strands of her hair; suddenly exuding an abundance of confidence in a pool of indifference. Unnecessary was his attention for her to know he was addressing her to take his order.

"Chamomile. Cream."

Those two words left his lips like the snap of nerve ending, dissatisfied in its delicate delivery. Fingers no longer tapping.

"What did you say your names were again...?"

He tarried not, impatient with the waitress trying to finish with them - those eyes drifting up to hers across from him, the Jedi, careful to also partake of the figure sitting next to him in periphery. And yet, he showed no sign of threat. Diligent he was to endear himself to them, if only chillingly so.

 

[BZenwrath]

Serrah glanced at Jaina discretely, hoping that would be enough to let her know she agreed. Once the girl had gotten something to eat she would be okay with finding the girl's relatives. This man seemed to be of more importance at the moment, as much as she hated to admit it. Plus it probably wasn't a good idea for her to be around him. If anything, Serrah could take the girl while the other two waited for her return later.

"And I'll have the cider. What about you?" She gently nudged the girl, encouraging her to order something.

Quietly she pointed to the menu, speaking timidly while not making eye contact with the waiter, "Can I get a juice and this sandwich please?"

With the final order, the waiter left the table. Serrah quickly answered Lucifer's question, "My name's Serrah. Serrah Völsung." Before continuing she lifted her hand in the direction of Jaina, "My friend here is Jaina. You?" Shortly after she spoke, a man and woman walked into the cafe, worried looks drawn across their faces. They peered around the room for a moment before their daughter, the girl who sat next to Serrah, happily shouted out to them.

"Mommy, Daddy!"

Quickly, Serrah got out of her seat to let the girl squirm passed her and run to her parents. Still standing, Serrah looked back to the two still sitting at the booth, "I'll go make sure everything's okay, I'll be back in a minute." She then left, walking to the family and leading them outside so as to minimize any disruption inside the establishment. Serrah was happy to see the family reunited and her fears thrown askew. As much as she enjoyed helping the girl, it was far better for both parties that they had been so lucky.

((OOC: I apologize for the extremely late post, please forgive my absence!))

 

[Radiwalker]

(OOC: I too apologies for the great delay! I should be more active henceforth.)

Jaina was pleased that Serrah agreed with her. She wasn't certain whether the man was a threat but she was certain that he could be dangerous and that was enough of a threat. The knight was about to pronounce her full name when the girl saw her parents and ran out of the booth and past Serrah to meet them. That halted Jaina and as Serrah moved to engage the parents, the knight decided to continue the conversation with the strange persona seated next to her.

"What do you do for a living," Jaina asked trying to make the question sound as casual as possible, whereas she was trying to learn more about the man, his past and what exactly may be troubling him. His mind was sealed, his thoughts bare readable. She hadn't tried to get inside his head but she could feel he protected himself well. Could he have been taught in the ways of the Force, or was he just strong willed? A mystery, or rather an enigma, that's what this man seemed to be and Jaina did not like one bit of it.