Ask Picking up a Spare

[Asminys]

Eiattu 6, Warehouse District​

Asminys cruised the warehouse district of Eiattu 6 in the stolen speeder with a trunk full of stolen lockboxes. He had dropped off his new friend Mask along with his share of the loot not too long ago and arranged a meeting with the man at a later date. Now he had another problem to deal with. That problem sat in the passenger seat of the speeder.

A young Pantoran, presumably Sith. She had hopped into the vehicle during their escape from the bank and Asminys hadn't had the time to argue with her about it, eager to flee the scene of the crime before the authorities arrived. Giving her a side-eye from the drivers seat as he cruised, looking for a suitable abandoned warehouse or empty alleyway to inspect his prize, he considered what to do with her.

He could kill her, have done with it, but that seemed like a waste. Surely she would fight back and that would cause a scene. The last thing he needed was someone to call the cops on a pair of red blades having at it in the warehouse district. He wasn't certain of her intentions when she had tagged along, didn't know who she was. Literally knew nothing about her. He supposed that was a good as a place as any to start.

"Do you have a name?" He shot her way as he rounded a corner, passing a pair of Ithorian workmen who eyed them suspiciously, the shined and waxed speeder standing out in the rundown district. They really needed to get out of the open.

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

The flight had been quite, well hectic and confusing. Halfwaythrough, Mask had left them, taking a part of the loot, while Chi had just decided to stay behind. Since them the two of them had driven in silence. Now he seemed to remember having her riding shotgun in his speeder, she had yet to decide if that was a good development.

Taking a look at him, she decided that she wanted to know more about him before giving anything away. He was clearly a Sith, but she had no clue how much of a help that was. Allegiance did not seem to come naturally withe the dark side "Certainly, don't you? Its pretty common." She looked over her shoulder, exhaling for the first time in a long drive, unsure whether his driving skills or the option of being caught was worse. Probably the former. But she was pretty certain that no one was following them now. Excellent.

"If you are looking for a place to drop off this speeder, there is an empty garage a few blocks from here." Better not ad, that that was the place where she had rested last night. She would spare him those details. She took a careful look at the streets before her, before pointing out to him: "Next one to the right. We are almost there."

Could he kill her? Or would he? The later one she believed he would, the former she did not want to concede. Maybe she could life is she bailed. But she did not want to let it go that far. How did you start a conversation with a Sith. It was ludicrous, they had just robbed a bank together and could not even talk? She sighed and spoke up. "The name's Sonya, pleased to meet you, Master?" She dragged the last word out, emphasising that she had no name to address him with. She just assumed that Sith, like Jedi, called their superiors with that name. And she knew from texts that strength rules with these new Sith. So he was certainly on top, for now.

@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

Asminys wasn't sure whether to be annoyed or amused with the young woman's snark. In the end he decided on amused. "Not as common as you might think." He said without going into any more detail. No need to tell her that he had existed without a name for quite some time. That was personal. And besides he had a name now.

Nodding as she directed them towards an empty garage he was glad that she seemed to know the area better than he did. It was his first time on the planet, really out in the civilized galaxy, and he was quickly learning that it was a big place.

The tension between them was palpable, two Sith that didn't know each other, each trying to gauge the others power, deciding whether to make a play or not. Sometimes it felt ridiculous to Asminys, the constant paranoia. But not so ridiculous that he would ever abandon the notion. He knew himself well enough, which meant he knew other Sith well enough to not trust them.

"You may call me Asminys." He stated. He could smell the lie on her lips, or at least the scent of a half truth but it didn't bother him. What care did he have what name she decided to offer him. He did not miss the fact that she called him Master, which meant she was either not a fully fledged Sith like himself, or saw herself as subservient to him in power. Not something that another Sith of equal power would call him certainly.

Taking a right, he turned in to the garage that she had suggested, pulling into the bay and closing the door behind them. Exiting the speeder, he considered Sonya. "Now, what am I to do with you?" He left the question open ended, he wanted to see how she would react, whether she would take the initiative or not.

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

As they pulled into the garage she smiled over to him. This was her first real encounter with a Sith, if one didn't count Mask from fifteen minutes ago. So she was thrilled by what lay ahead, paranoid and definitely careful, but thrilled still. This would be memorable, even if nothing happened.

"Asminys, understood." She smirked, there was no trace of a Master in that. So he didn't consider himself one. He did not seem to well versed in all of this generally. Was he an acolyte? Maybe, he was not much older than herself. She guessed she would learn eventually, she would certainly not ask. In fact, she did not have to ask anything he did. With a smirk she exited the speeder, her face in perfect composure. She was good at acting her parts, and this was just one of them. And thinking about one of her last dialogues with a Jedi, not even the most dangerous one.

"What to do with me you ask, well, truly a great question. So many options... You could thank me for pointing out the garage for a start." She made sure her jacket was loose enough to get her sabre if needed. Of course she did not check openly, but brushed some dirt of her clothes. Having ensured it, she looked up to him still smiling. "It would be a common courtesy."

She strode toward the trunk, opening it. "I see you have a lot of stuff... where you after something certain? It was quite the impressive act." He certainly felt dark. Very dark indeed. He also looked quite in shape. She sure hope this would not escalate

@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

The woman, Sonya, had quite the silver tongue. Words were never Asminys' strong suit, but he knew when someone was trying to manipulate him. His eyes watched her every movement even as he feigned disinterest. Something was off about her.

"Common courtesy." He let out a low chuckle. To think that she thought he owed her anything of the sort. "I could. Or, you could thank me for letting your ride along and not leaving you for the authorities." Could she have gotten out of there by herself? Perhaps. He knew little about the woman or her skills. He knew that the garage was convenient, but he would have found his own spot to park the speeder well enough on his own.

Watching her pop the trunk and examine the contents, he bristled a bit. She asked a lot of questions, gave few answers, and was far too nosy for his comfort. With a flick of his hand, the trunk would slam closed, keeping her from getting more than a brief glimpse of its contents. "It is of no concern to you."

Reaching his left hand out at her, he would bring the brunt of his power to bear. She would feel an enormous pressure locking down on her arms and body, isolating them and freezing them in place. "I am the one asking questions here." He snarled, tired of whatever game she was playing. First she had addressed him as a master, something no self respecting Sith would voluntarily call another, now she sought to pry in his business and claim his gratitude. "Who are you really? Do not lie." He said as he pulled the lightsaber from his hip with his right, though he left it unlit for now.

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

The trunk slammed hard as soon as she let go of it. The boxes inside were mostly unopened and so she had no idea what he had stolen exactly. His mood seemed to worsen, and she decided that the time to play with him was over. "Maybe I ought to, getting out of there with the police would have been quite the hassle." Up to now she had been testing the waters, trying to determine what she should think of this man. Now that seemed to be over, and as she turned to face him, another suprise hit.

Frozen in place, she could do little but gawk at him taking has sabre from his belt. Could she break this force stranglehold on her body? Probably, but that would probably be seen as provocation by the angered Sith. Nevertheless she got ready to break it should he come close enough to attack her. She would not let him slaughter him like a fearful chicken. But she would submit, for now.

"Clearly you are, so I will do my best to answer." She offered a confident smile. "I am a Sith, like you." She watched him, ready to try to flee if he seemed like he ought act out something upon her. "Just not as long as you I presume." She did not really want to confess her inexperience to a stranger. The fact that he was Sith made it worse. Showing any weakness seemed. horribly dangerous to her, admitting to being a Jedi before even worse. "And I, just like you, don't know what to do with this situation."

She really quite did not. She could hardly ask him to his face to help her understand the Sith, or to train her some of those neat little tricks he knew. He was certainly not interested into an apprentice that was of equal age and had received training to a great extent already. Also she was not certain she wanted to play that role again. For now she awaited his reaction.

@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

Even as Asminys held the pantoran in his grip she had the confidence to smile and weave her words in a way that wasn't to his liking. Perhaps it was just her nature, there were many Sith that preferred words to action much to Asminys annoyance. The fact that she admitted her tenure with the Sith was shorter than his was a start, but Asminys realized that she would try to weasel her way out with half truths and avoidance.

"An Acolyte then?" He asked, slowly stalking closer to her. "Then you should know, in this situation, to KNEEL!" Venomous anger filled his voice as he brought his hand down sharply, forcing her stasis bound torso and arms down to buckle her into some sort of kneeling position, if she was smart and complied. If she fought with her still free legs he could only assumed that the pressure would put intense strain on them and injure her. He was too annoyed to care about whether she got hurt.

"Enough with the games, Sonya." He declared, wishing to cut through the woman's silver words and serpent tongue. "I want answers, and if you do not give them freely I will rip them from your mind." He declared in an ultimatum, letting the threat hang in the air momentarily. "Let's start with the bank, why did you join us? The truth."

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

She knew how Training Force Stasis was, if she truly opposed him, she should be able to break free. But then this first meeting with a real Sith would turn sour more quickly than the bank robbery did. She exhaled, air pressed from her lungs as he tightened his grip and forced her to the ground, and instead of kneeling, she just let her body sink in. Somewhat dangling from her torso in the air. She was also ready to use the force herself now if his actions worsened. For now she still believed that she was not in danger for her life. If he came within striking distance she would break free, she would not die because of him.

"I play no games, and so far I answered all your questions truthfully. If you do not like my answers, then maybe you ask the wrong questions" She took a deep breath before quickly adding the answer to his last question. "About your bank adventure. The screams could be heard from the other side of the street, and your presence could be felt even further. I knew that something was up, and that there was a Sith involved."

The hold on her torso truly made it hard to breath, and left little wiggle room. So she knelt down properly, to get more support from underneath, and relief the pressure a bit. Hatred filled her as she looked at the man standing over her. She had not left the Jedi to be hobbling in the mud again, but she had to be patient.

"So I joined the bank, and relieved your friend from the entanglement with a ranger droid." She glared. If he was truly so simple that she had to state it out word by word, she would have to do it. He seemed quite annoyed, and so was she. She did however still suppress that, still smiling. She should probably also suppress her tongue, but that was harder. "Is that answer to your satisfaction? Or do I have to spell it out?"
@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

Asminys listened to her story, could feel her hatred for him no matter how much she tried to conceal it. Good. He thought to himself. It was good that she hated him, for hatred was the tool of the Sith. As much as he enjoyed her suffering he would let the pressure ease from her bondage, giving her room to breath and rewarding her slightly for her truthfulness. He was still wary however should she try to break free. That's what the lightsaber was for.

"It is." He stated calmly as he considered her. There was still something off about her but so far she had answered his question honestly. Still smiling however, and babbling with her insolent tongue.

Perhaps she was right though, perhaps he was asking the wrong questions. Asminys knew much of fighting, but his social awareness was somewhat lacking due to his teachers rather one dimensional training during his time in the Cadre. A weakness he was aware of and knew he would overcome with time. But now it was time for the right question.

"What do you seek?" He asked. A simple question, but one that would reveal much. "What do you desire?"

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

The lessening of pressure did wonders, and she took an easy breath. Stretching her neck a little, it was all getting stiff. But there was a hard way talking around the question he then presented her with. "To be honest, I am lost right now, and am searching for a cause." She answered. Trying to sound decisive and let no meekness show.

It was hard to articulate this, without showing that she had no true idea on what to do right now, or just how bade her state was. "I strive for true greatness with the dark side, yet I find myself alone in this search." That was probably to high again, is she had said that much, why not spell it out. "I need someone to show me the way of the Darkside."

She studied him as he spoke. Waiting for a reaction.

@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

Asminys watched as the pantoran stretched her neck, relieved of some of the pressure that he had been applying. She spoke true, or about as true as someone like her probably could.

She was lost. Searching for a teacher, knowledge in the Darkside. A Sith, yet not fully. He could sense the darkness in her, but it was unfocused, untrained and in much need of guidance. He could show her the way.

But it would not be easy.

He would not be gentle.

"You are not a Sith then, but you seek knowledge?" She would feel his hold on her lessen. Perhaps lull her into a false sense of security.

"Earn it." He declared. Without any warning, he activated his blade, swinging it in a fast slice that would put the tip of the crimson blade at her spinal cord as it sliced through her neck, should she be slow to react and do nothing.

He would be sorely disappointed if she did nothing. She would fail his test, and she would die.

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

Slowly the remaining force boxing's her in would vanish, and his last question was easy to answer. She was a Sith, just not one who knew the direction. She opened her mouth to answer, but something felt off. Then the room was lit with the red colour, that she herself had experienced quite often in the last days, but never on this end.

Rolling backwards she escaped the wide swing of the sabre aiming for her neck, and used the force to jump to her feet, her own hilt leaving her jacket and finding her place in her arm. Her smile had returned. There was some fear in here, but she loved the lightsaber as a weapon., and dueling as a result. She had trained often with the blade. And felt much more confident with a chance, then in his grasp.

Also this was unlike her former duels. There were no rules here. So she charged forward, and for a moment concentrated hard on her sabre. Although her master had always discouraged it, and she later had agreed, a quick second would not be too bad. Her opponent had held her in Force Stasis for much longer, so he had to have some fatigue. Creating an Illusion of the sabre, she left the fake sabre attack from the right, while her actual sabre swung in from the left. She was interested in how the Sith would resolve this. She also maintained the illusion for just a fracture of a second, but that could be all that was needed to nudge someone into the wrong direction

@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

Luckily for Sonya, and much to Asminys' satisfaction the pantoran did not do nothing. She rolled back, his blade narrowly missing her throat. He could smell her fear, but also her excitement.

Returning the pantoran's smile with a mad grin of his own, Asminys knew well the joy of the fight. The lust for battle always dancing on the edge of his mind. He was a weapon, and he enjoyed his function.

He also knew he was likely much more powerful than her in the Darkside. She was a novice whereas he had steeped in the darkness his whole life. As she rushed at him, he wouldn't give her a chance to get close. Her blade nor illusion would find no purchase on his mind as he concentrated his will and with a thrust of his left hand sent a powerful force push at the charging Sith. With her mind focused on trickery, she would have little energy to defend herself and would likely find herself flung hard against the wall of the garage.

It was his turn to push the attack. Immediately following the attack he would push forwards, his saber leading as he half lunged at her with a short stabbing chop of his saber, his arm driving forwards as his wrist flicked the blade down towards her chest. He didn't intend to kill her, this was a test after all, merely to gauge her abilities with the force and the blade.

But if she died, well then clearly she wasn't worthy of the knowledge to begin with.

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

She should have expected the force to be used, and as she was flung from her feet, she mended the mistake as best she could. Using the force she cushioned her impact to the wall, and relied mostly on the force to sense the Sith in this moment of bedazzlement. She raised her sword to redirect Asminys stab to the side, burying his sabre in the wall, while evading to the other.

Getting back to her feet she decided to use the force more defensively, using it to predict his force attacks and counter them. She had studied Makashi as best she could from Holochrons and the few Masters who still used it, and therefore she may be better if she used the Lightsaber more. She stepped forward again, trying to gauge the Sith's movements.

She raise her sabre slightly and attacked, a most basic form, a way to make him react, but it was a feint, she never followed through after the suggestion of striking. She kept her distance, and her poise, her sabre holding him at distance. She would wait for him to make a move.

@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

Sonya was quick enough to prevent herself from being seriously injured or dazzled by the impact with the wall, which was good. Her parry sent his strike wide and he quickly retracted his blade as she reset herself and regained her footing.

He let her.

He could have pushed the attack while she was stunned and disoriented, her footing unstable, but he opted not to. He wanted to see what she would do, and he had to admit he was a little bit disappointed. His initial push must have shaken her confidence as she adopted a Makashi stance and made a basic strike against him.

Asminy' blade waved towards her's and she withdrew, her strike likely a feint. Immediately he followed up, the transition between his near block and his strike fluid and nearly imperceptible with a simple rotation of his wrist. The tip of his crimson saber lashed out at her saber hand, an unlikely hit but the tip of his blade would graze her fingers if she was too focused on her own feint to react.

His own stance was not too dissimilar to Makashi, right foot leading slightly, blade held forwards and away from his body. His left hand was held open and up by his head, ready to wield the force offensively or defensively at his command.

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

It was a shame to see he did not take her seriously. That strike was very clearly aimed at her hand, and she was quite certain that if she had not reacted in the slightest, it would merely graze her fingers. This change in his tactics had occurred the moment she had toned her fighting style down, and went to a more lightsaber oriented way.

There was a notion within her to repot to the offensive, force heavy attacks from before. To please this Stih's apparent expectations. To let go of her aggressive potential and get wild. But this was Makashi, fast yet focused, and ideal in a duel. It was not meant to be used like a sledgehammer, it was an art. And so she pulled her hand backwards, leaving the opponents blade flow by, creating the opening she needed, before attacking herself. Aiming a small jab at his hand and sabre hilt. If he redirected his swing fast enough, she would curve the gap to a slice, and keep his sabre away while coming down on his hand. She was waiting for his reaction to this.

She also readied herself to anticipate a force attack, the one area where he seemed particularly knowledgeable. Maybe it was part of Sith training. She knew a lot of force powers herself, but her Illusions were much to taxing to use in such a concentrated, quick exchange of blows, and a mind trick amidst a duel would be impossible. She could impale herself right now if she opted for that. She had an idea, but she would await the Sith's response to the current attack. He seemed rather rash and quick, maybe the reactions and observations of Makashi would bore him and he would resume his bold pattern from before?

@Arclight

 

[Asminys]

Sonya pulled her hand back, avoiding his grazing blade. Asminys was no stranger to Makashi and knew what the likely follow up would be. His attack had been powered purely through the wrist and he could easily redirect it with a twist of his wrist. His own stance left him with plenty of room to draw his own hand back, tucking his elbow in and rotating his wrist to bring his blade in contact with hers.

Parring her saber to the right, he would stay his blade for the moment. Instead of attacking with his saber, he thrust forwards with his left hand from its position by his ear. A small force blast aimed directly at her face, it would rock her head back against the wall once more if it hit.

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

Having only waited for the next time he used his force, Sonya was able to withstand the blast, though it messed up her plan of disarming him, her blade truly being redirected away from him, and not following her strike down to his arm. Knowing that this opening was just as bad as his position before, she tried another approach. Stepping back to ensure no follow up hits on her, she got her blade once again between the two of them.

Having secured her standing, she made a diagonal step, so she would not be boxed in against the wall. There needed to be something she could do to distract him, and she had quite the idea. The garage was old, and hardly used. Pebbles and small chunks of wall and dirt lay everywhere. As she surgerged forward, feigning another attack whilst actually keeping to far to strike, she used the force to haul the dirt and pebbles at him, her offhand slowly getting under her jacket, face wincing. If he remembered boxing her into a force cage, he may know why she could have sore muscles. She was thrilled to see how this went

 

[Asminys]

Asminys had kept her on the defensive, indeed it seemed that she preferred to fight defensively. Or perhaps he was just overwhelming her. She fell back and changed her angle of approach. He shifted his stance with her, his rear facing leg moving with her to match.

Her feint came in, but she was too far to make a real threat which gave the game away. Instead came a spray of dust and pebbles. He let it pelt him and dirty his blast vest, a simple wave of his fingers with the hand held near his head keeping any dust from his eyes. Stepping in as he waved the dust away from his face, he made a feint of his own. Once more he aimed for her saber hand but pulled back before the attack would hit, ready to react to her reaction.

@Cpt Geary

 

[Chi Soni]

She had been in the defensive to long, she was trying to prove herself, not to stretch the fight into length. Something had to happen, and therefore she had set this situation up. This would be the decisive try to show her strength. As expected, he held his own against dirt, but her plan had still worked.

With her dirt trick, she lurched forward. He had a feign incoming, that was too far away to hit her, by closing in, she had just enabled herself to block his attack, her other hand now left her jacket, together with the second sabre she owned, pointing it into his direction. She did not want to kill him, so she did not activate it, but merely pointed it at him. If he tried nothing funny, this should be it. It had been a dirty trick, but that was the point of it.
@Arclight