Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

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Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Kalja Falanis Leidias and her apprentice, Cadence Karna-Sinclair, sat in the cockpit of the Windfall as the Hyperspace timer slowly ticked down. They would be reaching their destination of Ord Mercek, homeworld of the Republic Engineering Corporation very soon. It was also the home of Sigarr Halomek, CEO of REC, and his wife, Jedi Master Faye Ward.

Kalja knew them both well. Just as Cadence was now training under Kalja, Kalja had trained under Faye for four years until obtaining the title of Jedi Knight. She had lived with the Halomeks and became an honorary member of the family in that time. Those days were mostly pleasant memories for Kalja.

Mostly.

Sigarr's older brother, Rowen, a living legend of the Galactic Civil War and the conflicts beyond, was finally retiring from service in the New Republic. Of course Sigarr was not about to let such a momentous occasion go by without a big celebration party in honor of his brother. In a few days time, he was going to host a giant retirement party for Rowen. As such he had sent out invites to everyone Rowen had ever known plus some other honored dignitaries.

One such invite had been sent to Kalja's mother on Tython to come and represent the Jedi Order. Her mother had politely declined as she was too busy running things on Tython to leave, but she offered up her daughter to represent the Jedi Order instead. Kalja had already received an invite as a friend of the family, but now she was also going in an official capacity as a Jedi Ambassador.

That was the situation. It was about as soft a mission as Kalja could ever dream of, but she still sensed Cadence's nervousness as they got closer to Ord Mercek.

Soft or not, this was Cadence's first official mission for the Jedi Order. The younger girl was bound to be nervous.

"Almost there," Kalja said to her. "Just keep a few things in mind once we arrive: I'll handle the Jedi business, so defer to me if you ever feel like you're being overwhelmed. The second point is even more important."

"Which is?"

Kalja glanced at her with a smile. "Don't forget to relax and have fun! Sigarr is hosting us until the party and you'll be hard-pressed to find a better one in all the galaxy. Make sure to show him and his family your respect and in turn he'll show you the time of your life. We're arriving a few days ahead of time specifically to acclimate and take it easy."

Cadence nodded back. "I'll try."

"Good," Kalja replied as she turned her attention back to the console. "Then prepare yourself. We've arrived."

She then brought the Windfall out of Hyperspace above Ord Mercek and the REC shipyards. Ord Mercek was a beautiful looking planet, equal parts oceans and land masses, with two moons orbiting around around it. The planet's most striking feature, however, were the iridescent rings that circled the planet. They captured the light of the sun and reflected it back as a rainbow of colors.

The shipyards themselves were massive and buzzing with constant activity, patrolled by several Defender-class Star Destroyers and their starfighter escorts. As such their arrival did not go unnoticed.

The comlink activated almost immediately. "Welcome to Ord Mercek, Windfall. This is the Corus. You've been given permission to land at the Halomek compound. Please follow the flight vector we're providing to you and we hope you enjoy your stay."

"Thank you, Corus," Kalja responded. "We'll do our best."

Before long they had pierced the atmosphere and were guided to a landing pad at what looked to be a private spaceport. A speeder was waiting for them as Kalja and Cadence handed over their luggage and sat down. They were soon taken down a private mountain road as Kalja explained a little more about their arrangement.

"Sigarr owns all of this land," she said to Cadence. "The private spaceport, the road we're on now that connects to his mansion, and of course the compound where he had his mansion built. It's a planet ruled by wealthy business owners and Sigarr is one of the wealthiest. Most of the aristocracy try to preserve as much of the planet's natural beauty that they can outside of the cities."

Soon they pulled up to a massive compound. The mansion was enormous and parts of it even looked to be built into the nearby cliffside overlooking one of Ord Mercek's oceans. Kalja and Cadence exited the vehicle before Kalja boldly walked up to the massive front doors and rang the doorbell...

***

From Young Jedi: Legacy's Shadow:
Pryde wrote: Mon Mar 18, 2024 8:16 am The allure of space travel quickly wore off as the training began. Cadence had been awed as the veil of Tython faded away, revealing a vast emptiness full of stars. James's fireworks display was a nice touch. She considered Kalja might have been right about the display being for her, but she—well... She knew how she got whenver his name was mentioned. Pointing out to Kalja the momentous occasion of her taking on a padawan was really more of a defense mechanism.

After their jump to lightspeed Kalja began her training in earnest. The goal was to lessen her reliance on singing to access her powers, something Cadence was beginning to feel might be impossible. At the very least, she needed to learn how to hum like she meant it, otherwise she might find herself in a dangerous situation, unable to defend herself due to sheer embarrassment.

Her shyness over her singing voice was another thing she needed to overcome.

The trip to Ord Mercek felt longer than it was, in large part due to Kalja's training. Cadence thought she was hard on herself with her training regimen, but hers was nothing compared to Kalja's. At the end of the day, she'd fall into bed completely exhausted, only to wake up the next morning just to do it again. Despite the hardship, however, she'd rather be doing that than standing in the foyer of the largest house she'd ever seen waiting to meet two of the most famous people in the galaxy. At least one of which whose reputation terrified her.

Cadence resisted the urge to pace, thinking her hosts might find it rather rude. Still, she couldn't help but fidget a bit. She had so much nervous energy built up inside her she felt like she needed to be doing something rather than nothing.

"Kalja, it is wonderful to see you," a man said as he descended the stairs. A woman in a beautiful Bunduki style dress hanging on his arm.

Cadence could easily guess who the pair were.

"This must be your apprentice."

Kalja smiled. "Word travels fast. I'm sorry my mother couldn't be here in my stead."

"Nonsense, we're glad to have you." He turned to Cadence, holding his hand out. "Sigarr Halomek."

"Um, Cadence—Sinclair, I mean. Cadence Sinclair." She reached to shake his hand, but was surprised when he cupped his fingers under her palm, kissing the back of her hand with an elegant bow.

"Charmed."

Meanwhile, the woman was staring daggers at her, leaving Cadence wondering if she'd done something to offend her.

"I see the Jedi dress code has gotten somewhat lax since I left the Order. Or do you just have no respect for your sacred charge?"

"Excuse me?"

Faye stepped away from Sigarr, circling Cadence and picking at her clothing. "Back in my day, students had more discipline. They wore the robes with pride. From what I hear, you have nothing but disdain, yet you dare call yourself a Jedi."

"No, that's not—I mean... I don't hate being a Jedi, I just—well... how do I... it's—"

Faye watched the girl fumble over her words, her lips curling up into a smile followed by laughter. "I'm sorry, dear, I couldn't resist."

She wrapped her arms around Cadence, being taller than her she had to duck slightly. "I'm so glad to finally meet you; I was starting to think your mother would never allow you to leave."

Cadence stared wide eyed at Kalja before sheepishly returning the hug. "Yea, well she almost didn't. Kalja got an earful about it—the Headmaster, I mean, not..."

Cadence's cheeks were burning bright red and she was still looking to Kalja for help.
Kalja gave Cadence a reassuring smile. "I don't think I've ever seen Master Ward wear the traditional Jedi robes a day in her life. Besides, you're my Apprentice and you can wear whatever you want as far as I'm concerned."

Sigarr nodded. "Your rooms are all set. I've tried to stock it with clothing that you'd each be into, but I included some more formal options for the retirement party in a few days. Oh, and a few selections for some other locales if you feel like being a bit of a tourist. My personal recommendation: the beaches of Laoh are amazing this time of year. The crystal clear waters are just the right temperature and when dusk approaches, you can stargaze at the rings of the planet. It'll take your breath away. Oh, and if anything I included in your wardrobe is to your liking, feel free to keep it."

"That's too generous-" Cadence started to object, but Kalja stopped her by placing a hand on the younger girl's shoulder.

"I know it's dogma in the Jedi Order not to accept gifts during missions, but that's just how Sigarr is. Trust me." She sent a knowing glance at Sigarr. "Even if you refuse, he'll charm you into it before you know it."

Sigarr grinned back as he rubbed the bottom of his beard thoughtfully. "Is that so? As I recall, Kalja, you had no problem whatsoever accepting my hospitality when we first met back in the day. Very little charm required."

Kalja laughed a bit at the statement. "Ah ha, yeah. I suppose that's true."

"Speaking of clothing," Faye added. "I see that you've added Bunduki accents to your robes, Kalja. Are you prepared to back up such a bold choice?"

Kalja smiled before bowing towards Faye in the style of a Follower of Palawa. "Of course! I look forward to proving I am worthy of them, Master Ward."

Faye returned the bow. "Good. Meet me in the dojo in 10 standard minutes and we'll see just how well you've retained my teachings." She then gave Sigarr a quick goodbye kiss before disappearing into the depths of the mansion.

Kalja rubbed her hands together eagerly. The combat droids at the temple could do a decent version of Faye, but they couldn't compare to the real deal. She looked over at Sigarr. "Same room I stayed at before?"

He nodded.

"Okay, I'm going to change into my training clothes and I'll see you both down there," she decided as she dashed off into the mansion. "Cadence, make sure you pay attention once the duel starts! This will be the level that I want us to be at eventually!" And with that she was gone before Cadence could say a word.

"Have you ever seen your Master go all out in a fight?" Sigarr asked Cadence as he gestured for her to follow him inside, taking it all in stride.

Servant droids had, by this point, already taken all the luggage Cadence had brought with her, so it was just her and Sigarr now. She shook her head. "I've heard some stories, but I've never seen it."

"It's pretty remarkable to see them go at it," Sigarr told her as he led her past the foyer and into the mansion proper. "Don't let this get out, but Faye has been pretty excited to see Kalja again. Seems the opposite is true too. Once Kalja began to take things seriously after the incident, I don't think there's been anyone else who can offer Faye as much of a challenge in hand-to-hand combat as your Master."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

"I--Is that so," Cadence said, stuttering slightly. In truth she wasn't really all that interested in watching the fight, she wanted to get out and see the sights. This was the only other planet she'd set foot on other than Tython and the last thing she wanted to do was sit cooped up inside watching her mentor and her former master going at it for--well... however long they go at it. She had no idea how long these things were supposed to last. Too long as far as she was concerned.

Kalja had what Cadence considered to be an unhealthy obsession with fighting. Cadence enjoyed it too--well, 'enjoyed' wasn't the right word. Lightsaber training was by far the most exciting part of her day, but her goal of becoming a great Jedi was really more of a sacred charge. A duty to be performed. Someone had to carry on the family legacy and Toshiro already turned away from that path so it fell to her.

She glanced up at her host, trying not to make it obvious she was looking at him. He wasn't quite what she expected. Or maybe that was wrong, he was exactly what she expected and it was Faye who surprised her. From the stories she heard about the woman she could be downright terrifying at times, but that wasn't the aged Jedi Master who greeted her in the foyer. No, instead she saw an older woman with a youthful expression and a wry sense of humor. A far cry from the rigid and proper Jedi Master everyone had told her about. Were they lying to her? Or had Faye been away from the Order for so long that they just didn't know?

Probably that second one, she concluded. "So..." she faltered. She really didn't have anything to say, hell she didn't even know what to say. The conversation between them ended so abruptly she felt she needed to fill the air. "nice house?"

She berated herself for making that sound like a question, it was supposed to be a statement. Great, now he's going to think I'm an idiot...
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

“It is rather nice, thank you,” Sigarr answered her without a trace of teasing in his reply. “Remind me to give you a tour once those two get fighting out of their system. I’m sure I probably have a room or two in here somewhere to match any of your interests.”

They stopped at what appeared to be a trophy display filled with awards for racing. Most had holos of a young man with black hair and a goatee next to an A-wing waving at crowds. It took Cadence a moment to recognize the man in the picture as Sigarr in his younger days. Now, instead of a goatee, he had a full beard with a few streaks of gray. Still handsome, but less of a heartthrob and more of a distinguished gentleman.

Next to the case full of racing trophies for Sigarr was another case, which was less full, but was also being stocked with racing trophies, except the figure in these holos looked a lot more like a younger Faye Ward. Before Cadence could get a closer look, the two trophy cases parted to reveal a secret turbolift.

“Secret passages,” Sigarr confirmed for her with a grin as they entered the lift. “The house is riddled with them. At first we just installed them as emergency exits in case the mansion was ever attacked, but these days they’re more for fun than anything else.”

The turbolift descended a few levels until the doors opened to a hallway that led in two directions. Sigarr chose the left path until they arrived at a set of double doors. They opened to reveal a large dojo replete with exercise equipment, training dummies, and a sparring area with seating on either side for those who wished to observe. The entire dojo was a mix of modern design sensibilities and iconography from the Followers of Palawa.

When they entered, Faye and Kalja were already in the sparring area. They were sitting across from each other, both crosslegged and apparently meditating. Faye was wearing a martial arts uniform, but a little to Cadence’s surprise, so was Kalja. Her master had so far just trained her while wearing her usual Jedi robes. Her uniform was near identical to Faye’s, just less elaborate. In fact it was downright plain for Kalja as it was entirely purple without any kind of elaborate designs involved.

Once Sigarr and Cadence had sat down, Faye and Kalja stood up near simultaneously.

“Thank you for waiting, Master,” Kalja said to Faye. “I wanted to make sure Cadence could see this.”

Faye smiled back. “Of course. I hope you’re prepared. I won’t be holding back.”

“I would be disappointed if you did,” Kalja answered her. “First to three strikes for the winner?”

“As you wish.”

They bowed to each other once more before each taking a step back.

There was no signal to start. One moment they were starring each other down and the next both women were a blur of motion: kicks, punches, strikes, counterstrikes... it was almost too fast for the eyes to track. Faye had the reach and the experience, but Kalja had youth and a somewhat more unorthodox style that was designed to obscure where she was going to strike next.

Soon they both had two strikes against them. The next person to deliver a solid strike would be the winner of the duel...
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Cadence was only half paying attention to the fight—well, maybe not half. More like a quarter. Her mind was still reeling from sitting next to Sigarr Halomek, CEO of REC and one of the most famous people in the galaxy. Not just that, but they were watching a fight between Kalja Falanis, daughter of the woman who brought peace between the Republic and the Empire, and Faye Ward, the infamous Blademaster of the Jedi Order. It was almost too much to process.

The rest of her thoughts were occupied with composing. She ran different chord combinations through her head, subconsciously fingering them with her left. As she did that, she wrote verse after verse, throwing out the ones she didn't like and making a mental note to write down the others. The whole while the two women in front of her hammered each other with lightning fast blows. They weaved between attacks, countered with attacks of their own, blocked, kicked, punched and dodged so quick the action was hard to follow. Partially why Cadence had given up trying.

Her hands itched for her guitar and not for the first time during this trip she wished she'd brought it with her. But this was an official mission for the Jedi Order and her guitar was a distraction, so she left it behind. Stupid, I could've left it on the ship. She sighed, at the very least she couldn't leave her voice behind and she loved singing just as much as playing her guitar. She didn't realize it at the time, but she tried humming different melodies under her breath to accompany the chords running through her head. She'd start and stop, revising the melody on the fly, throwing out any ideas she didn't like.

"So what'd you think?" someone said to her.

"Huh?" Cadence glanced up to see Kalja standing over her, giving her an expectant look. At some point, while she was distracted, the fight had ended and she missed it. "It was, um... You were very good."

"Really? What'd you think of the end?"

"Unexpected? Exhilarating? Edge of your seat action?" Seriously, what do I need to say to shut this down?

Kalja folded her arms over her chest. "Cadi, who won?"

"What?"

"Who won?" she asked again, emphasizing each word.

"I should go meditate on this," she said, quickly getting to her feet and turning to leave. "You know, reflect on what I've learned—which was a lot. I really learned a lot, so I should get started."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Kalja stopped her with a raised hand and a disappointed look on her face. “Hold it right there. I think I can help you out on this one. You didn’t learn anything. In fact, you seem to have forgotten something: never lie to a Jedi, and especially don’t lie to your Master.”

Cadence stammered for a bit in denial, before stubbornly sticking to her story. “I’m not lying!”

Kalja crossed her arms in disbelief. “Yeah? If you’re not lying, then tell me one thing you learned. There must be one tidbit you can tell me before you go meditate!”

“Mom won.”

The voice didn't come from Cadence. Both Master and Apprentice looked surprised at the sudden intrusion into their argument and turned near simultaneously in the direction it came from. A girl that seemed near Kalja’s age was casually leaning against one of the pillars in the dojo and eating some variety of apple. She had long brown hair tried back in a functional ponytail and was sporting a worn Bantha-leather jacket.

Neither Sigarr or Faye looked surprised to see her. It took Kalja a moment to place her. “By the Force! Mav! I didn’t even sense you come in. How long have you been here?”

Mav smiled back. “Long enough to see Mom get you with the open hand blow before your kick landed.”

Kalja growled in frustration. “Are you sure? This isn’t just some family bias?”

Mav took another bite before grinning back. “These eyes don’t lie. You know that.”

Sigarr stood up and gestured to Cadence. “Allow me to make introductions. Cadence, this is my daughter, Mavelyn. Mav, this is Cadence Karna-Sinclair, she’s Kalja’s new Apprentice.”

Mav took one final bite of her apple before effortlessly lobbing the core into a nearby disposal chute. She then walked up and gave Cadence’s hand a friendly shake. “Nice to meet you. Call me Mav, everyone else does. I love your Star Waver shirt. That’s a deep cut.”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

"Um, thanks. Pleasure to meet you and call me Cadi. Everyone else does."

Mav opened her mouth to say more, but Kalja interrupted them. "You're not off the hook yet, Apprentice. You weren't paying attention like I asked you."

"Fine, I tried, alright? But you were moving so fast it was hard to follow, so my mind just sort of... wandered."

"Sounded like she was writing a song," Sigarr interjected.

"Really?" Faye asked, turning her attention to Cadence. "I don't recall Caitlyn ever mentioning her daughter had musical talent."

Cadence's cheeks flushed under the older woman's scrutiny. She looked at Sigarr. "How did you—"

"You were humming and playing air guitar."

She groaned inwardly, her cheeks burning hotter. She hadn't realized her habits might give her away. Turning to Kalja she gave her an apologetic look. "I'm sorry. I write music when I feel nervous—or frustrated, or happy, or sad, or angry, or... pretty much all the time."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Kalja sighed and rubbed the back of her head self-consciously. “No, no... I might have gotten ahead of myself. I got excited seeing my former Master and was caught up in the moment. I know you don’t enjoy combat as much as I do. Just... don’t lie to me again.”

Cadence nodded. “Okay.”

Sigarr clapped his hands to turn all eyes to him. “So, Mav, I assume your trip was successful?”

She nodded back. “Yep, closed the deal with the conditions we wanted and on the way back I picked up the brat. He’s upstairs with Talvier right now. I believe he was saying something about not having a decent meal in months.”

“I’ve asked you not to refer to your brother that way,” Faye admonished her daughter.

Mav frowned. “I can’t even call him a brat? It fits so well!”

Faye simply shook her head.

Mav let out a defeated sigh. “Ugh, well, I suppose there are plenty of other terms to choose from.”

“What was that?”

“Nothing, Mom!” Mav said with a singsong reply before quickly striding towards the exit of the dojo. “Let’s talk more once you’re settled in, Cadi!”

Then she was gone before Cadence, or anyone else, could say anything.

“Getting a bite to eat does sound like a good idea,” Sigarr mused. “You’ll love it, Cadence! Talvier is my personal chef. He can make you any meal you desire. His cooking will blow you away, I guarantee it.”

Faye gave her husband a quick kiss. “Kalja and I will join you in a little bit. We need to hit the showers after a sparring session like that.”

“Don’t be long,” Sigarr insisted. “This is the first time we’ve had the whole family under one roof in quite a while. I’ll go ahead and order for you two while we’re up there. Kalja, I presume your favorite is still a nerf steak sandwich with protato wedges and a Photon Fizzle on the side?”

“Oh, I haven’t had that in forever! Yes, please!” she agreed.

“Wonderful. We’ll see you up there!”

Sigarr then escorted Cadence from the room until it was just Faye and Kalja left.

Kalja turned to look at Faye. “Well, what do you think of her, Master?”

“Cadence? I don’t know her well enough to judge yet,” Faye replied. “I am a little surprised by your choice though. I didn’t think Caitlyn was going to let anyone else train her daughter except her. You must have made quite the impression.”

“I suppose,” Kalja admitted. “It was surprisingly easy to convince her. I still don’t know why...”

“Are you having second thoughts?”

Kalja shook her head. “Not really. I know I can help Cadence reach her potential, but I’m not used to the responsibility of it all. We get along pretty well, but every so often I’m reminded that she and I are very different people. Did you ever have that feeling when you were training me?”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

"With you? No. With Elena..." she trailed off. "Training you was like training a younger version of myself, which is why it was so easy. I knew how to challenge you, how to push you to excel. Knowing how you would respond to my teaching helped in gauging just how far to take it. It was a rewarding experience, in its own right, but a rare exception."

She took a towel off the rack, using it to mop up the sweat on her brow and shoulders. "Kalja, I'm sure you'll find as time goes on that the world is full of 'very different people'. But being different doesn't mean we can't connect. Diversity of thought can be a weakness and a strength. You may find what worked for you will not work for her, and she may surprise you with solutions to puzzles you'd never have dreamed of. Our differences can challenge us, it's true. And yes, they may break us, but they may also bring us closer together. It won't be easy, for either of you, but the greatest rewards are rarely found by following the beaten path and the strongest bonds are the ones that persevere."

***

I'm alone with him again. How does this keep happening? Cadence quietly grumbled under her breath. She'd been a nervous wreck since stepping off the ship, and she'd yet to have a reprieve. Some time alone in her designated quarters to recharge her batteries would very much be welcomed right now.

They took the lift back up to the main floor of the house, where Sigarr led the way down the hall toward the kitchen. Cadence fell into step behind him, feeling more than a little trepidation. Twice now Kalja had left her in the company of strangers, and not just any strangers but Faye and fething Sigarr. The man radiated rich opulence and while her family wasn't exactly poor, her mother preferred a more modest lifestyle.

In the kitchen, a man was bent over a pan full of simmering meat. Cadence guessed he was Talvier. Whatever he was cooking smelled good, but she didn't have any time to think about that. Leaning against the counter behind Talvier was—

"Cassian." She'd said his name before realizing she'd spoken the first syllable. Immediately, she winced, regretting drawing his attention.

Cassian Halomek turned around, looking at her with surprise. "Well, if it isn't the prodigy. Don't tell me your ineptitude finally got you expelled from the Jedi Order. Did you come here looking for a handout?"

"Official... Jedi business."

She shrank back toward the door, her cheeks flushed red.

"No way. Master Leidias actually trusted you with a mission?" He looked at his father. "Was it delivering mail?"

"No, my master and I are here representing the Jedi Order at Rowe—Mr. Halomek's retirement party."

The smile vanished from his face, and he gave her a stony stare. "You have a master? Before me? Who? Since when?"

"Kalja. Since... almost a week ago."

"Falanis?" He seemed surprised by that—no, not surprised, shocked. "Why the hell would Falanis Leidias take a screwup like you as an apprentice?"

"Cassian," Sigarr snapped at his son.

"It's alright," Cadence said, "he's not wrong, I am a screwup. I couldn't do anything with the Force until..." She looked back at Cassian, then down at her feet, unable to hold his gaze.

"Until what? You're still a screwup. I can't fething believe it, this is complete bantha poodoo. Do you have any idea how long I've been petitioning Master Leidias to train with her daughter and she chooses you? The brightest student should train with the best master. You barely qualify as a dim bulb and that's an insult to dim bulbs."

Cadence winced at that. He was right, and she knew it, she didn't deserve to be Kalja's pupil. What he said about petitioning Master Leidias, though, that was news to her. She thought she was the only one. She turned to Sigarr. "Um... I'm actually not feeling very hungry right now, I think I'd prefer to rest for a bit. It's... been a long day."
Last edited by Pryde on Wed Mar 27, 2024 12:57 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Sigarr placed a firm hand on Cadence’s shoulder to keep her from leaving. For the first time since she had arrived, Sigarr wasn’t smiling. Instead his expression had become like stone as he looked at his son with a disapproving stare.

“Cassian Halomek! I can’t believe what I’m hearing out of your mouth! Cadence is a guest in our house!” he reprimanded the boy with a steely tone. “What have I told you about this family’s commitment to hospitality?”

“But, Dad, you don’t understand!” Cassian argued. “She started it! She mouthed off to our entire class at how great she was, but then she couldn’t back it up! She was bullying us first! She’s got no respect for the sanctity of the Jedi Order!”

Sigarr took a deep breath to remain calm. “Regardless of how it started, you don’t insult a guest in my house! I want you to apologize to her right now!”

Cassian sulked in his seat and said a few unintelligible words under his breath.

“What was that? I couldn’t hear you.”

“Please, it’s okay,” Cadence insisted. “He’s right. I’ll just go.”

Sigarr looked at her with a regretful expression. “If you insist. Allow me to apologize on my son’s behalf for his rude behavior. The house AI will direct you to your room. If you do get hungry, there’s a datapad next to your bed where you can request meals and have them delivered to your room. Talvier is always on call, and everything is on me, so don’t feel guilty about any of it. Okay?”

Cadence nodded but remained silent. It was clear she just wanted to be anywhere but near Cassian.

Sigarr nodded back and then spoke to seemingly open air. “Duo, would you please direct Ms. Karna-Sinclair to her quarters?”

“As you wish,” a masculine droid voice spoke up from a nearby speaker. A moment later a holographic arrow appeared in front of Cadence. “Please follow the arrow and it will lead you to your quarters. If you have any other requests, you need only ask.”

“Uh, thanks,” Cadence replied as she started walking in the direction of the arrow. The arrow started moving with her so that it was always a few feet ahead.

As Cadence began leaving, Sigarr turned back to his son. “Cassian, you’re grounded for the night. Go to your room and forget about dinner tonight. I won’t tolerate rudeness or insults to my guests – especially not from my own son.”

“But, Dad...”

Sigarr firmly pointed out of the kitchen. “March! Don’t make me get your mother involved in this. Maybe tomorrow morning you’ll have a better attitude.”

Cassian got up from the counter he was seated at and stormed off in a sulk.

***

Kalja and Faye, all cleaned up, entered the kitchen to see Sigarr sitting at a table alone. He was picking at an amazing looking sandwich, but didn’t seem to have an appetite for it. Meals for Kalja and Faye were already set at the table, waiting to be claimed.

When Sigarr noticed the two of them enter, he sat up straighter. “Ah, ladies, I’m afraid it’s just us tonight. Cassian started insulting Cadence out of the blue for some reason. Both of them went to their rooms; Cadence by preference and Cassian because I grounded him for the night. I’m not sure what happened to Mav, probably got lost in some project of hers.”

Kalja quelled her surprise at the turn of events. Of course, she should have seen this coming. “I know some of the students at the temple were teasing Cadence, but I never thought that Cassian would be one of them.”

“He’s got a lot of pride that he inherited from... somewhere...” Sigarr replied, being careful to not name names. “It seems he also requested to be your Apprentice and doesn’t think Cadence is worthy of your time.”

Kalja sat down at the table and looked at her meal. It smelled incredible. She felt her stomach rumble. Lacking an appetite would not be a problem for her. She grabbed her nerf steak sandwich and took a bite. It was so delicious that it almost brought tears to her eyes.

After swallowing, she regarded Sigarr. “Is that so? Honestly, I never looked that closely at all the teaching requests that came my way. I wasn’t even planning on teaching Cadence until I caught a glimpse of her true talent. The problem right now is that she’s her own worst enemy. This...” she frowned as she thought about it more. "This is going to make things more difficult."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Faye knew exactly what Sigarr meant about where he got his pride from, but she let it slide. She knew her younger self and knew that Cassian was more like her than his father. She saw her arrogance and innate skill reflected in the boy. Cassian was talented, for sure, but being talented wasn't a bad thing. Being talented and acutely aware of your talent, however...

She sighed. She could try to intervene, but forcing the subject would drive them apart. Better that Cassian make the same mistakes she did and learn from them. Only he could curb his pride, no one else can do it for him.

She muttered a curse in Bunduki. "That boy..."

She needn't say more, her frustrations with him matched her own frustrations with herself. She glanced up at Sigarr. "You know, I'll have to make you pay for that 'somewhere' remark. Don't think I don't know who you're talking about. Maybe you'd like to go for round two? Think you could push me as hard as Kalja?"

She had a sly look in her eyes, the corner of her mouth turned up into a smirk. The arena in which the two of them did their sparring was her favorite.

"We'll see how the night goes," he said, returning her smile, though he still had a troubled look in his eye.

Sigarr took any attack against his guests as a personal attack against himself. It was going to take a while for Cassian to dig his way out of the doghouse for this one.

Faye turned to look at Kalja. "Right now I'm interested to hear more about your young apprentice. True talent, you say? Odd, I didn't sense much potential from the girl. I would say at first glance your pick of apprentices does seem very strange."

"It's a mental block, like the one my Grandfather had. Only Cadence doesn't know she's doing it."

"How did you discover her true potential?"

"It's in her musical talent. When she sings she lets her emotions flow more freely, it brings her closer to the Force. She hushed an entire room full of people at karaoke with nothing but the sound of her voice."

"Really," Faye said, leaning in closer. She had a curious expression on her face. Glancing over at Sigarr she said, "There's room for one more musical performance at the party, right? Think we should ask her?"
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

“I don’t think Sara will mind sharing the stage for a little bit,” Sigarr agreed. “I can for sure stretch out the length of the evening's entertainment. Although I know that look, my dear. You’ve got something in mind?”

"Hold on a moment...” Kalja cautioned the pair before quickly taking another bite of her sandwich. She hurriedly finished the portion before washing it down with some Photon Fizzle. “It might not be as easy as simply asking Cadence. She’ll probably insist that she’s not good enough to perform at a high society celebration like Rowen’s retirement. Knowing that Cassian will be present probably isn’t going to make her any more eager. You’re going to need to plan for that possibility before planning for anything else.”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

"Well, then it's a good thing you're here," Faye said with a sweet smile.

"Me? But I—"

"From what Caitlyn has told me, her daughter is notoriously shy. But a moment ago you said she hushed a whole room of people at karaoke, something I suspect she never would have done on her own, correct?"

Kalja nodded, somehow managing to seem even more uncertain.

"Good. Then you'll convince her to perform at the party."

"It might not be as easy. On such short notice? With no time to prepare? She doesn't even have an instrument."

"We'll provide whatever she needs."

"But, Mast—"

"Please, Kalja, I need to see her perform on stage in front of a large group of people. I have to be sure."

"What's this about?"

"A hunch," she said. She stood and collected her plate, turning to leave. "I'll take the rest of my meal in my study."

She'd gotten used to calling it a study instead of a meditation chamber because of the odd looks she got from Sigarr's regular guests. Now that she spent most of her time as a high society wife rather than training younglings on the Skywalker it was easy for people to forget she used to be a Jedi Master. Faye never forgot their teachings, though, just like she never forgot the teachings of her Palawan mentors. So on occasion she still devoted regular time to meditation. Especially now that something interesting has fallen into her lap...
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

After her talk with Faye, Kalja made her way through the mansion to Cadence’s room. She had no idea what her former Master wanted to learn about Cadence, but it was also rare to see Faye take such a vested interest in someone. It made Kalja wonder if there was more going on with Cadence than even she suspected.

As she walked up to the door to Cadence’s room, she spotted Mav approaching from the opposite direction. In the younger girl’s arms was a medium-sized box.

Kalja waved to her. “Hey, Mav! What’s in the box?”

Mav looked down at the box and then back at Kalja. “I guess you could call it a welcome gift for your student. The idea came to me when I spoke to her in the dojo and I just had to get to work on it right away.”

Kalja’s eyes widened. “You built something for her in one night? In just a few hours? What is it?”

“Patience,” Mav chided her. “That’s what the Jedi are always espousing, right? Just wait until Cadi opens it up.”

Kalja chuckled ironically. “Me and patience don’t see eye-to-eye very often, but I guess I have no choice.”

She then activated the door intercom for Cadence’s room. “Cadence? It’s Kalja and Mav. I heard about what happened. Do you mind if we come in?” She glanced back at Mav before turning to the intercom once more. “We got something here that might make you feel better.”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

"It's open—I think," Cadence called, not even bothering to get up.

She was deep in thought, scribbling notes on pages and humming bars to herself. When Kalja and Mav entered the room, she'd finished penning the last note, then immediately crumpled up the paper, tossing it behind her before starting again. She rewrote exactly what she'd written the first time with a few modifications, humming the whole while until she reached the bottom of the page. Once again, she crumpled it up, tossed it behind her and started once more.

"What... what are you doing?" Kalja asked.

"Working."

"Should you be tossing them away like that? Aren't you going to forget what was on them?"

"It helps the process."

Cadi continued scribbling, making fewer and fewer modifications with each new page. For a while, no one said anything, and Cadi began to wonder if they were still even in the room. Until Kalja broke the silence, solving the mystery.

"Cadi, about Cassian—"

"I'm sorry I got him into trouble. I just... I should've known he'd be here."

"Why are you apologizing?" Mavelyn asked, she sounded confused. "Whatever Cassian did, I'm sure it wasn't your fault."

"But it was. What he said to me was totally justified. Believe me, I've said worse things to him, so I deserve it." Especially since he's right and I am just a dim bulb.

"Cadi, no. You don't—"

"I made you something," Mav said, interrupting Kalja before she could finish.

"What?" Cadi dropped her pen, finally turning around. "What is it?"

Mavelyn held out the box to her. "Open it up and see."

Cadence took the box, popping open the lid. Almost as soon as she did, a small little droid hopped out, surprising her. It chirped happily, hopping into her lap before scrambling onto her back. It had a blocky rectangular head, squarish body, and two spindly legs. Its metal plating was colored deep black with blue highlights like her hair.

"Say hello to JD-1, or JayDee for short," Mav said, "He's an assistant droid. He can record music for you and play it back with an accompaniment from a variety of instruments. He's basically a tiny recording studio. Thought he might help you record your latest song."

Cadence's cheeks flushed, but she had a genuine smile on her face. "He's perfect, thank you."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

"You made a droid!?” Kalja exclaimed as she looked from JD-1 to Mav. “All I did in that same amount of time was eat dinner.”

“I modified a droid,” Mav corrected her as she raised a finger. “And I forgot to eat dinner. When Cadi mentioned back in the dojo that she’s always composing songs, I had a flash of inspiration. Whenever that happens, the idea will just stay lodged in my brain until I finally start working on it. Thankfully, this one was pretty simple to accomplish.”

Kalja leaned in closer to get a better look at the droid. In the process she noticed something was conspicuously absent amongst Cadence’s mess. “You haven’t eaten anything yet either, have you?”

Cadence shook her head. “I, uh, lost track of time.”

“Hopeless, the both of you,” Kalja gently chided as she used the Force to call the house datapad to her hand. She quickly went through the various menus until she found the kitchen menu. She selected a few food and drink items to be delivered to Cadence’s room. “You’ve got to keep the body fed so the mind stays sharp.”

The moment Mav deduced that Kalja was ordering food, her face lit up. “By the stars... are we about to do a slumber party!?”

Kalja and Cadence’s reactions were near simultaneous.

“What?”

“What!?”

Mav either didn’t notice or didn’t care about their surprised exclamations as she snatched the datapad from Kalja’s hands. “Let’s see... we’re going to need this, and these... oh that too...” She then handed it back to a dumbfounded Kalja with a smile. “Oh... this is going to be so much fun! I’m going to get cleaned up and changed and I’ll be right back.”

Mav then quickly exited the room.

“Master, what just happened?” Cadence asked, equally dumfounded.

“I guess we’re having a slumber party.”

Cadence’s face turned red again. “I’ve never done one of those before.”

Kalja shared a look with her student. “Honestly, neither have I.”

A lot happened in the next 15 standard minutes. Droid servants moved two spare beds into Cadence’s room. They were smaller than the main bed Cadence was using, but still large enough to be comfy, and each was placed so the occupants could see each other.

A small table was placed near the door and then added to with plates of food, including platters of nerf steak strips and cut vegetables with dib. A big bowl of popcorn was also added at one of the ends along with a variety of bottled drinks. Spare plates and cutlery were located on the other end.

Several pillows and extra blankets were placed in the center of the room.

Mav returned in a pair of shimmersilk pajamas. Kalja also got changed into her usual nighttime attire: sweatpants and a tank top.

Once the droids were gone and it was the three of them again, Mav clapped her hands. “Perfect! The place looks great! What should we start with?”

“Food,” Kalja insisted. “Before we do anything, you two are getting something to eat. Hop to it!”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Cadence cast a forlorn glance at her work before sighing in resignation. She could pick it up later, she supposed. Standing, she moved over to where the food was located and fixed herself a plate. After choosing a few choice entrees and some sides, she sat down on the edge of her bed and began eating. The whole time, she kept casting uncertain glances back at her desk.

As she ate, the other two women chatted idly about... something. She really wasn't paying attention. Her mind still raced with ideas for lyrics, a few chord changes, a modification she wanted to make to the bridge—just to try it out. She'd probably change her mind about it like she always did. She was just about finished with her meal when Mav said something.

"What?"

"I said, are there any special guys in your life?"

"Special? Like, you mean—" her face turned beat red. "N—no. No one like that."

"No one? Not even James?" Kalja asked, a devilish grin on her face.

Cadence's cheeks burned hotter and she shoved the last bite into her mouth to buy herself some time.

Mav's face brightened. "Wait, your brother?"

Kalja nodded. "Yep, Cadi's got a little crush."

"I do not," Cadence snapped, a little louder than she intended.

Mav's smile grew wider. "Oh my stars, she totally does. That's adorable!"

Cadence set the empty plate aside, groaned inwardly, and fell back into the bed. "Kalja, why?"

"Just having a little fun at your expense, Apprentice."

Could you maybe not?

She rolled over onto her side, deliberately turning her back to them. Across from her on the other side of the room was her desk, discarded remnants of past revisions still scattered on and around it. Her hands twitched, eager to pick up her pen again and get back to work. She tucked them under her head to get them under control. She'd never had a slumber party before, so she had no idea what she should be doing. But she suspected isolating herself in a corner of the room to work on her song wasn't it...
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

"Well, you can’t blame Cadi for having good taste,” Mav said, coming to her defense. “If they put that boy on a recruiting holo, they’d get half the galaxy to follow him. I've thought about taking a crack at him if our paths ever cross.”

“Mav!” Kalja exclaimed. “Hush.”

“What?” she replied with faux-innocence. “I might say the same for Tosh. I’ve seen his skills on the track. He’s not half-bad. Not half-bad to look at either. Don’t tell me you’ve never noticed, Kalja.”

“As a matter of fact, it’s never crossed my mind,” Kalja retorted. “Not that there’s anything wrong with him. I’m just too busy to worry about relationships.”

“Realllllly?” Mav asked her, a sly smile growing on her face as she laid down and rested her head in her hands. “Nobody? I seem to recall a rather famous anecdote about you and a monk on Lin’La when you were still training under my mom.”

For a change, Kalja could feel her face turning red as Mav’s implication even caused Cadence to turn from what she was doing to look at the both of them.

“What is she talking about, Master?”

Kalja looked away. “Nothing. Not. A. Thing.”

Mav chuckled. “There’s a story that Kalja had a fling with a Linshi Monk when the Skywalker stopped in Lin'La'Se space to pick up some recruits. It was near the end of her training and you really can’t blame her. The monks are all in incredible shape and most of them seem allergic to shirts.”

“Mav!”

The other woman stuck out her tongue in a teasing fashion. “You’re my sister from another mister, so of course I’m going to keep an eye on your exploits. The same might be said for you too, Cadi, although it’s probably too soon to declare that after one night. Let’s say you’re on a probationary period.”

“Oh, okay. Thank you?”

“Getting Cassian grounded on his first night back is a pretty good start,” Mav continued. “You must have really struck a nerve for him to mouth off like that in front of Dad. That’s like the golden rule of the Halomek household: you don’t mistreat guests. Ever.”

“I’m not proud of that,” Cadence replied meekly. “He’s right in everything he said about me. I was awful to him and my other classmates for a long time because I thought I was better than them. It turns out the opposite was true. I really am just a – MMPHH!”

Cadence’s words were abruptly cut off as she suddenly caught a face full of pillow thrown by Kalja.

“Enough of that talk, Cadence,” Kalja admonished her. “Maybe you did make some mistakes in the past, but as far as I’m concerned it’s taught you one of the most important lessons a Jedi can ever learn: humility.” She self-consciously rubbed at a spot above her chest. “Believe me, there are much worse ways to learn it.”

“Mmm, it’s true,” Mav agreed. “You used to be as insufferable as Cassian. For the longest time it felt like there was nothing you couldn’t do and you were always the first to point it out. It probably taught Cassian some bad habits now that I think about it. I know he still idolizes you to a degree.”

“Well, that’s an idea...” Kalja replied thoughtfully. “Why don’t we teach Cassian a little humility?”

“Master?”

“I know this is a big ask, Cadence, but I’d like you to sing a song at the retirement party,” Kalja said to her Apprentice. “It could be a cover. It could be an original. Up to you, but the moment Cassian hears you on stage, he’s going to be eating his words. Trust me.”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Cadence's eyes widened at the request. Her? Sing at a high society ball? There's no way, I'm not good enough... "I don't really see how my singing is going to make him jealous."

Kalja let out an exasperated sigh. "It's not your singing--well, it is but... look, we talked about this. When you sing you open yourself up to the Force. If you want Cassian to see your true potential, that's the way to do it."

She still didn't look convinced. As much as she wanted to believe her she still had her doubts. How could she know this won't be like any other time she tried to show off in front of Cassian? Of course this wouldn't be different. She'd try to do something stupid, screw it up and he'd mock her for it. "I don't know..."

"C'mon, Cadi. You can't tell me after what he said tonight you don't want some payback."

She did want some payback--or to at least make him eat his words--but could she really do it? Without an instrument and no time to prepare? "But, my guitar..."

"My master says she and Sigarr will provide you with whatever you need. They both really want to see you sing."

"Couldn't I just sing for them now? Well, not now now, but like tomorrow?"

Kalja sighed again, taking a moment to compose herself. She seemed to be thinking about something until finally she shook her head, apparently having made up her mind. "Look, Cadi, Master Ward wants to see you sing in front of a large group of people."

"Why? Why does the size of the audience matter?"

"I don't know, but whatever the reason it's important."

"To who? Her?"

"To you. There's... something about you she wants to confirm and this is the only way to do it."

Cadence's body was visibly shaking. She looked over at Mav who held up her hands with a shrug as if to say, 'Don't look at me, I have no idea what's going on.' She groaned. "Is there no other way?"

Kalja shook her head. "Trust me, if there was she wouldn't have asked me to convince you."

She looked down at her trembling hands, there was no way she could do this. Perform in front of so many people? On stage? There were going to be news crews there, they'd broadcast her across the Republic. No no no no, there's no way I can-- She stopped when Kalja clasped her hands, squeezing them tight. She looked up at the older woman.

"I'll be there with you. You can do this, Cadi."

She let out an explosive breath, tried her best to control her nervous quaking. "Fine, I'll tr--I'll do it."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Kalja gave Cadence a supportive hug. “Thank you. I know that wasn’t an easy thing to agree to.”

Cadence nodded, but had no more words.

The waking portion of the slumber party petered off fairly soon after that conversation as the three agreed that sleep was needed.

When Kalja awoke the next morning, Mav was already gone. Cadence was still asleep. Her new droid, JD-1, was in standby mode next to her pillow. Rather than waking the pair, Kalja quietly snuck out to let her apprentice get as much sleep as she wanted.

Kalja made her way down to the kitchen area, not quite sure what time it was, but she could feel her stomach rumbling and the smell of food was wafting through the mansion. When she entered the dining room, she saw Sigarr and Mav sitting at the table discussing the finer details of some business deal.

Mav had a mug of caf in her hand. She was already dressed for the day.

Sigarr, on the other hand, was wearing a robe and had a plate of food in front of him. Unlike Kalja, however, his hair was perfectly styled. In one of his hands was another mug of caf. He was also the first one to notice her enter.

“Good morning, Kalja,” he greeted her with a smile. “You’ll have to excuse my appearance. I had a rather exhausting night.”

Kalja wisely decided to not press for more details. She ran a hand through her tangled hair to try and straighten it out a little. “Mav insisted on an impromptu girl’s night. Cadence is still sleeping it off. It’s probably more social interaction than she’s used to, but I think she had fun.”

Sigarr nodded. “Mav mentioned a little bit about it. I heard Cadence is also going to sing at the party. That’s wonderful news. Faye will be happy.”

Mav abruptly cleared her throat to turn Kalja's attention to her. “You kept something from me last night, Kalja,” she said, pointing her mug at the Jedi accusingly. “I can’t believe I had to find out about it from Dad.”

Kalja looked at the other girl, puzzled. “What are you talking about? If anything, I’d say you were a bit too eager to share my secrets.”

“You didn’t tell me you flew here in the Windfall!” Mav clarified for her. “How could you keep that from me!? It’s such a legendary ship! I’ve got to get a look at it!”

Kalja smirked as things became clear. “Maybe I didn’t want drool all over my family’s legacy.”

“Don’t be like that...” Mav pleaded. “You know I’d handle it with the utmost respect!”

“You would at that, but I know you, Mav... You’d also be in the guts of the ship trying to tweak more performance out of it as soon as I turned around,” Kalja pointed out. “I’m not sure I want that.”

“I think you should reconsider, Kalja,” Sigarr spoke up after taking another sip of his caf. “REC specializes in modernizing older craft and you’d be lucky to get someone as gifted as Mav working on your ship. You know better than most people that it’s still dangerous out there. Having REC upgrade your ship with the best mechanic in the company – for free – that's an offer that doesn’t come along every day.”

Kalja sighed in defeat. She didn't really have a good argument against that logic. “Oh, fine.”

Mav started squealing with delight.

“But!” Kalja added sternly. “You run all your planned upgrades by me first! I don’t want to have to deal with a bunch of new systems I know nothing about when Cadence and I leave.”

“You’ve got a deal!” Mav agreed. “Oh, I already have so many ideas, I can hardly wait!” She then rushed out of the room.

“You’ve made Mav very happy,” Sigarr said to Kalja with a smile. “As it turns out, I’ve also got some business I’d like to discuss with you, but it can wait until after you’ve had breakfast and a chance to get refreshed.”

“If this is about Cadence and Cassian-”

“No, no,” Sigarr interrupted her. “Completely unrelated to those two. In regards to Cassian, I’m hoping a night of being grounded has cooled his head enough to remember his manners.”

Kalja nodded. “In that case, I think I’ll get cleaned up first.”

“As you wish,” Sigarr said with a nod. “I’ll be around in case your apprentice pokes her head out of her room.”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Kalja may have let her sleep, but Faye had other ideas. Cadence awoke with a start when light struck her face after the curtains were thrown wide open. She threw the pillow over her face, groaning. "Mom, can you not?"

"I'm not your mother," Faye said coolly.

Cadence's eyes went wide, and she sat straight up, her cheeks burning. "Master Ward!"

"Please, Mrs. Halomek is fine. Or Faye, call me Faye."

Cadence had no idea what to say to her, she wasn't expecting an early morning visit from the lady of the house. Why is she even here? What does she want?

"You know, you should keep a tighter lid on your thoughts. You're broadcasting on an open frequency." She tapped her forehead with a finger.

Her cheeks flushed an even brighter red. "I'm sorry, but, um—"

"Get dressed and follow me." Faye moved to the door and stepped outside.

Cadence shared a glance with JayDee who had woken up after the curtains were opened. He cocked his head to one side as he looked at her and she shrugged. She threw the covers off herself, climbing out of bed and quickly getting dressed.

Faye waited for her outside, directing her down the hallway with a gesture. Cadence gave her a confused look but did as she asked, falling into step beside her. The older woman led her back to the same trophy case from the night before. Cadence gawked at it, then up at Faye.

"Look, I'm not a fighter like my master. If you're looking for a challenge—"

"Relax, dear, I'm not planning to spar with you." She opened the secret elevator and stepped inside, directing Cadence to follow her.

Cadence swallowed hard, stepping into the lift with her. Down in the dojo Faye directed her to stand in the center of the mat while she moved to one side of the room, grabbing a pair of practice swords. She moved to step in front of Cadence, tossing her a sword. Cadence fumbled with it, managing to keep hold of it through sheer luck.

"Fighting stance," Faye said.

"But you said—"

"I know what I said. Fighting stance."

Great, now I'm going to get my ass kicked.

"Language," Faye said, though she looked slightly embarrassed after. Almost as if she said it on instinct.

Her face blanched, she'd already forgotten the woman could read her thoughts. "Sorry."

Faye tapped her sword twice on the mat and Cadence got the hint. She held her practice sword in both hands, right elbow up, sword held high and tight. A standard Ataru stance.

"No, dear, like this," Faye said. She gripped her sword in one hand high up by her head, its blade parallel to the ground. Her other hand she held out in front of her, two fingers fully extended, pointed directly at Cadence.

Cadence had never seen that stance before. "I don't understand, what is that?"

"The most powerful form of defense you'll ever know..."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Maveyln could feel herself grinning from ear-to-ear as she pulled her speeder up to the landing pad that contained the Windfall. The blocky Mandalorian aesthetic wasn’t for everyone, but to her it looked beautiful. Perhaps more accurately, the design barely factored into her appreciation. Far more important to her was that she could just tell that this ship had history and personality.

She walked up the hull and placed a hand against it. “I bet it feels good to be used again, huh? You weren’t ready to be retired, were you? No, I can feel it. You still want to be of service.” Mav then patted the hull reassuringly. “Well, don’t worry. I’m going to give you the best service in the galaxy. By the time I’m done with you, you’ll feel stronger and faster than ever before.”

Mav then opened the entrance and took the lift to the top floor of the ship, where the cockpit was located. Slung over her shoulder was a bag filled with tools and diagnostic computers. She reached in and plugged one of the diagnostic computers into the main console before powering up the ship’s electronic systems.

As she waited for the diagnostic computer to run through it’s checks, she busied herself by browsing through the ship’s menus to see everything she’d be working with. She ran across a storage folder of music that apparently hadn’t been accessed in decades. As Mav skimmed through the songs, she noticed most of them followed a single genre.

“I guess ol’ Tulsar was a fan of Jatz. Who knew?”

She selected a song and listened to it a bit before feeling the groove and hitting randomize on the player, letting it play through the speakers throughout the ship.

It was also at that moment that the diagnostic computer pinged an alarm. She picked it up and frowned at the display; some kind of power drain in one of the living quarters. That was a little strange considering only one of them had been claimed. Maybe it was the room Cadi had selected and she’d forgotten to turn something off? Teens did that all the time.

She also did that all the time, but that just gave further weight to the theory that there was something running that should be shut off.

It would be a while before the diagnostics were complete, so Mav decided to kill some time and check into the power drain. She quickly strapped on her mechanic’s goggles, grabbed her tool bag, and took the lift down to the bottom floor.

The first problem she encountered was that the door wouldn’t open even when the proper access code was entered. It took her about 30 standard minutes to remove the lock and force the door open manually.

When she did, she saw right away that this wasn’t Cadi’s room. It was far too neat and clean. It almost looked like it hadn’t been used in years. Almost.

When Mav entered the room, she turned to inspect the door first for a clue as to why it hadn’t opened. She was a little surprised to see that the interior wiring for the door had been changed. There would have been no reason to do that unless the person inside wanted control over the door from exterior access.

A mod Tulsar had installed? Maybe. Seemed a little odd to do that though.

Mav searched the room further before she noticed one of the wall panels was slightly askew. It wasn’t a very big panel, barely taller than one of her boots, but it was strange nonetheless. Before messing with the panel, Mav inspected the rest of the cabin. It seemed pretty clean... except for the bed.

The covers were messed up and as she looked at it even closer, she saw stray hairs sticking to the fabric.

It looked like the Windfall had a pest problem. Some creature had found its way inside and was making a nest of this room.

Except that didn’t quite fit either. What kind of pest knew how to rewire a door?

Was there a stowaway? A very tiny stowaway?

Setting her mouth into a determined line, Mav quickly removed the panel and pushed it aside. Sure enough, behind the panel was enough room for a small creature to roam around or hide if they felt like it.

Coming to a decision, she sat down next to the open panel and rooted around in her tool bag until she found her lunch. It had some fruit, some crackers, and some of the leftover nerf steak strips from last night. Mav grabbed a cloth napkin and set it down in front of the hole. She then placed some pieces of each food type on the napkin.

“Hey, little friend!” she said aloud. “I don’t know if you can understand me, but I don’t want to hurt you. Come on out and I’ll share my lunch with you. Doesn’t it smell good? My dad is always bragging that he has the best chef in the galaxy.”

No response.

Mav leaned against the wall. “Take your time! I just want to say hello. I like what you did to the door!”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Two hours after Faye had awakened her, Cadence was showered and wearing clean, sweat free clothes. She'd yet to eat anything, so she made their way down the hall toward the kitchen with JayDee riding along on her back. Along the way, she bumped into Cassian in the hallway, almost quite literally. He looked distracted—or was it troubled? When he saw her, he avoided her gaze.

"Good morning."

"Um, good morning, Cassian."

The conversation ended there. Cadence fidgeted in place, her eyes darting from him down the hallway toward the kitchen. She waited for him to say something else, but he just stood there, staring at his feet. Great... do I just leave? Should I say something, or—

"What is it that's so special about you?"

"Excuse me?"

"Kalja picks you, despite your lack of talent. Now my mother is training you personally? Why?"

"I..." She didn't know what to say. She had no idea why Faye woke her up to train her. "Cassian... you're right, I'm not worth the effort. Maybe they just took pity on me."

"My mother doesn't take students out of pity. She sees something in you, so what is it?"

Cadence gave him an incredulous look. How the hell should I know? I probably shouldn't even be here. "Look, I—" a loud rumble from her stomach interrupted her. She blushed, turning away.

"Fine," he said, stepping aside while gesturing down the hall. "Father's waiting for you, anyway."

"Waiting? For me? Why?"

But he had already turned his back to her, heading in the opposite direction. Cadence watched him for a moment, confused by his behavior. A whistle from JayDee snapped her back to the present, and she realized she'd been standing there uncomfortably long. Shaking her head, she spun on her heel before heading down the hall.

As Cassian had predicted, Sigarr was waiting for her in the kitchen—well, not waiting but sipping from a cup of caf while nursing his breakfast. He hadn't noticed her standing in the doorway and she briefly considered coming back later. In the end, she decided against it. She was staying in this man's house, she couldn't avoid him forever.

"Good morning," she said, getting his attention before entering the room...
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Mir »

With lightning like alacrity a small paw shot forward, extending a single claw from the middle of the paw. The claw found purchase in one of the nerf strips before retreating, with the same speed.

Mav smiled. Success.

"Hello there." She said.

Slowly, two small ears extended into view, followed by a furry forehead, followed by a single eye. The visible portion of the head moved slowly but surely, as the rest of the person chewed.

Mav decided to give the creature some space and took a few steps back, dropping into a crouch so that she was below the height of the creature. "What's up?" She asked. "Great job on the wiring by the way, I was serious. You had a pretty difficult rewiring job since this is an older ship."

"It's a MandalMotors. Mandalorians make thing streamlined for simplicity's sake. What do you want?"

Another nerf strip disappeared.

"What's your name?"

My name is not important. Please leave.

Somehow this person had to be related to Akain and Cadence. She was mimicking both of them in personality and speech.

Then it clicked. Mav's smiled grew as she remembered someone her mother had spoken of in the past. Briefly and possibly with some slight annoyance at disruptions during training. "You wouldn't happen to know Faye Halomek by any chance?"

I know of no one by that name.

Another nerf strip disappeared and if the Anuran's choices were any indication, Mav was running out of time. Wait, her parents wouldn't have been married when Salvatore had met and been around Faye so....

"What about Faye Ward?"

How do you know the Grandmother?

Mav considered herself lucky that as a racer she had to be able to have good balance. Because that sentence almost caused her to fall backwards in laughter.

We do not laugh about the Grandmother. She is fearsome. My Grandfather has told me of her. He said she is like the Great Grandfather.

Mav swallowed back the laugh, adopting the the solemn and serious look she could only believe the unseen portion of the head bore. "Right. Yes. Well, I am her daughter."

The rest of the head popped out. You? Grandmother Faye's daughter?

Definitely an Anuran.

"Indeed."

The eyes narrowed. Prove it.

"I don't...I can't..."

The Anuran's nose twitched. Suddenly, she bolted forward to the ground, staring up at Mav while on all fours. You do smell like her.

"How do you know what she smells like?"

Familial smells are passed down through biomarkers from one Anuran to another. The little one sat upright. I am Sasha G. Salmurian, Granddaughter of Salvatore E. Salmurian, Great Grandaughter of Akain Karna and Caitlyn Sinclair. I was charged by my grandfather to assist and protect my grandsister Cadence Karna-Sinclair. I do not know your name but we are cousins. You may stay.
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Kalja had cleaned up and changed before Cadence was finished with her training with Faye. When she returned, Sigarr was in the same place as before. Either he was taking a day off or... Faye had really taken it out of him last night. Kalja didn’t want to think about it, but she had to admit that something about Cadence had put quite the spark into her former master.

“What was it that you wanted to speak to me about?” she asked him as she entered the room.

Sigarr took a leisurely sip of his caf before nodding. “I know you and Cadence are taking it easy before the party, so I hesitate to bring this up, but the president of one of my subsidiary companies seems to have disappeared.”

Kalja raised an eyebrow. “Disappeared? For how long?”

“It’s unclear,” he answered her. “At least a few days. The last anyone knew he was staying in his condo here on Ord Mercek, but there’s no sign of him now. I was wondering if you could investigate to see if you could find anything that the investigators might have missed.”

Kalja scratched the back of her head hesitantly. “Uh, I don’t have a lot of experience finding missing persons. I can’t promise anything.”

Sigarr nodded. “To be honest, I’m not expecting you to. My hope is your connection to the Force will uncover some kind of clue that the investigators missed.”

“What about your wife?”

“Faye's skills are, um...” He took another sip of caf. “Let’s just say that they’re great for combat, but not as well suited for solving a mystery like this.”

Kalja nodded. “I suppose I can take a look. It’s the least I can do to thank you for your hospitality.”

Sigarr smiled at her. “Thank you, although I will stress that you’re free to turn this down and I won’t think any less of you. Asking for your help is simply me trying to make the most of the resources available to me.”

Kalja crossed her arms. “No... no... If I can help, I should try and see what I can do.”

“Thank you. There’s an airspeeder down in the hangar that has the address already entered.”

Kalja shook her head with chagrin. “You were that sure I would agree to check?”

He took another sip of caf. “You don’t become the CEO of a highly successful intergalactic company without learning to read people. Seriously though, thank you.”

***

Mav nodded her head in a respectful bow towards Sasha. She had to repress a squeal of glee as images flashed through her head of making tiny little things for Sasha. “Well cousin, my name is Mavelyn, but you can call me Mav. I always wanted to meet an Anuran, so it’s an honor!”

Sasha nodded back. It seems I must update the family tree.

Mav sat cross-legged on the floor. “We can talk more about that later. Now that introductions are out of the way, I’ve got to tell you that I’m going to be taking this ship up to my workshop above the planet. I’m going to take it apart, tune it up, make it better, and put it back together again. How would you like to help me with that?”

This will help to better protect my grandsister?

“Without a doubt!” Mav assured her. “Maybe we can even make a modification to add a special room for you stay in so you don’t have to take over this one.”

Sasha seemed to think it over, but her tail betrayed how excited she was at the idea. You do seem to know machines. Will there be more meat?

“All you can eat,” Mav promised as she extended her hand. “What do you say?”

***

By the time Cadence entered the kitchen, Kalja had already left to fulfill Sigarr’s request.

“Cadence,” he greeted her with a smile. “I wanted you to know that I asked your master to do a favor for me, so she’ll be gone for a few hours. You were busy at the time training with Faye.”

He set his mug of caf down. “Mav is also going to be out all day working on the Windfall, so that leaves just me, you, Faye, and Cassian. Was there anything you wanted to do today? Don’t be shy. Whatever it is, I’m sure I can make it happen.”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Cadence blinked in surprise. A favor? Like running to the store to grab some milk? Or something dangerous? She knew Sigarr had servants and bots to run menial errands for him so she doubted he asked her to do something so simple. Whatever he needed her for it required a Jedi, which meant it was dangerous. Shouldn't she have gone with her then? Master and apprentice, they were a team. They watched each other's backs.

"I'm sorry, but—"

"It's nothing," Sigarr interrupted her, having accurately read the concern in her eyes, "She's just looking into something for me, it's not anything dangerous."

She wasn't convinced. If her recent ordeal on Tython had taught her anything it was that danger had a way of creeping up on you when you lest expect it.

Sigarr clapped his hands. "So, what shall we do today?"

He said that like they were on vacation, but she was here on official Jedi business. Should she really be so relaxed? Still, this was the only other planet she'd ever set foot on, it would be a shame to waste this opportunity. "I'd like to see the sights, maybe go into the city. Do touristy stuff."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Mir »

Sasha gingerly sniffed Mav's hand. Despite the familial connection, she was still mildly untrusting. It was less of the family connection and more of the perceived expertise. She touched her paw to Mav's hand. I will be the judge of your abilities, cousin. If this process does not improve the mechanics and efficiency by at least 10%, you will have failed. I will be forced to take over and complete the task myself. As punishment, I will shred your clothes. All of them. You will cry. I will not feel any emotions as you will have brought this upon yourself.
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

“10%?” Mav repeated with a smirk. “If we only improve it by 10%, I’ll shred my clothes myself! Come on, I’ll take you to the cockpit and we’ll get started!”

Sasha quickly climbed up Mav’s arm and stood on her shoulder. Very well. Let’s go.

Once they were in the cockpit, Mav checked the diagnostic computer and saw that it had finished its checks. She unplugged it and skimmed through the list before handing it to Sasha. The display was almost as large as she was, but she seemed to have no trouble holding it.

“Those are the first set of issues we’re going to be fixing,” she said to her new companion before she started up the engines. “I hope you don’t get space sick because our next stop is my workshop.”

Once again Sasha’s tail started twitching, betraying an eagerness she was trying to keep hidden. I will be fine. Stop your prattling and get us to the workshop already!

“As you command,” Mav replied good-naturedly before gunning the engines and sending the Windfall speeding off into space. She could feel Sasha’s claws dig into her shoulder as the inertial dampeners let through some of the g-forces from the intense speed.

Mav expertly weaved the boxy craft through the super structure of the REC shipyards before arriving at a seemingly unassuming berth away from the main manufacturing lines. She quickly guided the starship in and set it down with barely a bump as the landing struts touched the hangar floor.

“Here we are!” she announced. “Let me show you around!”

Mav, with Sasha still on her shoulder, quickly exited the craft. She then pulled a data pad out of her toolkit and pushed a few buttons. Lights started turning on inside the workshop, revealing that it was larger than it appeared from the outside.

There were numerous shelves of spare parts, some out in the open, some stored in drawers. Tools of all kinds decorated another wall. In the center was a giant work station that had some projects in-progress on it. A few other work tables were nearby, some empty and some that had yet other incomplete projects on them. The skeletonized remains of a few other ships were stored in the back.

An astromech came wheeling out to greet them. It looked like a standard R2-unit, but it lacked the usual large sensor eye on the dome. Instead it sported a small sensor dish, revealing it to be an R8-unit.

“R8-E5,” she addressed it before gesturing to Sasha. “This is Sasha G. Salmurian. She is my guest and is to be given every courtesy. Please inform the other droids of this fact.”

The droid swiveled his dome, as if getting a better look at the person in question, before responding in a posh upper-Courscanti accent: “Yes, milady. Doing so now.”

Mav then turned to look at Sasha. “Feel free to explore while I’m disassembling the ship. There are a couple of Class 2 and Class 5 maintenance droids that I keep in here to assist me. You should be okay now that Fiver has communicated with them. He runs the droid pool. He can also help you find anything you may need.”

***

Sigarr thought about Cadence’s request for a moment before smiling. “I’ve got just the place: the Central Mall of Laoh. It’s an enormous shopping venue, filled with pretty much any shop you could imagine. It’s so big that they put an amusement park in the center, complete with rides. It has two holocinemas, a giant arcade filled with games of all sorts, and the food court has restaurants from across the galaxy.”

“That sounds fun, but I don’t have a lot of credits to spend,” Cadence replied.

Sigarr waved off her concern. “You’re my guest. I’ll get you a card that you can use to charge your expenses to one of my accounts. I think I can trust you to be responsible with it.”

“Th-that’s really too kind,” Cadence stammered. “I don’t know if I can accept that.”

“Nonsense,” he insisted. “Besides, I happen to be a member of the business aristocracy that runs the planet. It’s just how their government is set up, long story. All you need to know is using one of my accounts will automatically grant you benefits and discounts.”

“You’re not going to let me say no, are you?”

“You always have that option, Cadence, but I think it would be a shame to spend your whole time here cooped up in the mansion.”

She sighed in defeat. “Okay. Why not? It sounds fun!”

Sigarr grinned. “Excellent. Once I get changed, I’ll gather Faye and Cassian and we’ll head out.”

Cadence tensed up. “Cassian is coming with us?”

“It’s not a family outing if I leave my family behind,” Sigarr replied matter-of-factly. “I understand you two have some issues from Tython, but I promise Cassian will be on his best behavior. You might even find that you two have more in common than you think.”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Cadence stood in the open doorway of the mall gawking at the massive interior as beings of all shapes passed her by. The place was huge, full of people and crowded with stores selling goods from all over the Republic. She'd never seen anything like it on Tython, none of the malls there could even compare. She might've lingered in the doorway a moment or two longer had Cassian not nudged her from behind.

The younger Halomek was dressed casually just as she was, something Cadence hadn't expected to see. She'd only ever saw him wearing the Jedi robes, but when he came downstairs wearing a jacket over a t-shirt and jeans, her jaw just about dropped.

"You're not wearing the Jedi robes?"

"Are you stu—" he cast a nervous glance over his shoulder at his father, who was giving him the stink eye. "—no, of course not. I'd stand out like a sore thumb."

Cadence stepped aside, no longer blocking the door. As Cassian and Sigarr led the way she fell into step beside Faye, the two of them falling behind a short distance. Despite the rather informal outing she still found it difficult to feel comfortable around Cassian. She wondered if Cassian felt the same or if he was just nervous in the presence of his father.

"Everything alright?" Faye asked.

"Um, yea. Fine."

Faye glanced from her to Cassian, a wry smile on her face. "Remember what we discussed earlier, during your training?"

Cadence looked up at her, furrowing her brow. What did that have to do with anything?

"Yield to force, redirect aggression. It applies to everything, even social etiquette." She nodded her head toward Cassian.

Cadence followed the gesture with her eyes. Redirect aggression? How the hell am I supposed to do that?

"Language."

She flushed, diverting her gaze toward her feet...
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Kalja tried to ignore her own apprehension as she walked up to the door that would lead into the condo of Trakan Lakshire, the president of REC Agricultural, an offshoot that specialized in terraforming locations that were usually deemed too harsh to grow crops. Its purpose was to innovate farming techniques within the New Republic while at the same time providing help and food to impoverished areas across the galaxy.

Kalja didn’t know too much else about the company other than that - and she only knew that much because REC Agricultural had reached out to the Jedi Order’s AgriCorps for consultants a while ago. Apparently they were experimenting with a lot of revolutionary concepts and technology, but nothing much of substance had come from the company just yet.

Two security droids were stationed on either side of the condo. They stared at her in silence with their unblinking photoreceptors. Kalja was wearing her usual Jedi robes, but she wasn’t sure if that would be enough to bypass their security protocols.

“I’m Jedi Knight Kalja Falanis Leidias,” she announced herself as she brought out her ID. “I’m here at the request of Sigarr Halomek to investigate the scene.”

The droids were silent for a moment before one of them spoke: “You are authorized. You may enter.”

Kalja nodded as she put her ID away. “Thanks,” she replied even though it was probably lost on the droids as she entered the condo.

Once the door closed behind her, Kalja sighed. She still didn’t know what good she was going to do here. Sure, she was clever and had a different way of looking at things, but James was the detail-oriented sibling. There were probably a half-dozen details James would be picking up on that she was missing. As Kalja checked room after room, everything looked frustratingly ordinary to her.

She was about to call the whole thing a bust when she looked inside one of Trakan’s walk-in closets. It was large and spacious, filled with his suits and other pieces of clothing. It should have been another round of nothing, but something felt... off.

Kalja entered the closet cautiously, trying to pinpoint what was giving her such an ominous feeling. She reached the end of the closet without finding anything suspicious, but the feeling refused to go away. There was something tugging at her psyche just beyond the wall. Kalja looked for some kind of seam or keypad that might indicate a secret door, but came up empty.

That’s when she noticed that there was a line of sealant running down one of the corners of the back wall that seemed newer than the paint around it.

Trusting in her gut, Kalja took out her lightsaber and carefully cut down the line of the seam. She continued until she had created a hole large enough to walk through. Using the Force, Kalja removed the cut wall portion and moved it out of the way.

What she found behind it was underwhelming. It was a small room. More of a small space. Inside it was an empty pedestal with a UV light affixed above it. Kalja looked it over, curiously. It looked for all the world like the setup for growing a plant. The question then was what was Trakan growing that he felt the need to hide it away like this? Also, what kind of illegal plant could survive growing in such a basic setup?

Kalja didn’t have any answers, but the ominous feeling that had been gnawing at her persisted. There was something else here that she wasn’t seeing... Making a snap decision, Kalja used the Force to yank the pedestal off the floor and move it out of the space.

And that’s when she spotted it.

A leaf, dry and withered, resting on the ground. It must have fallen off of the mystery plant at one point and become lodged under the pedestal. There was no doubt that this was what had been triggering Kalja’s senses.

She picked it up with the Force and slowly brought it closer to her. The closer the leaf got, the greater the sense of apprehension and even feelings of dread started to grow in Kalja. It was so bad that Kalja could feel a trickle of sweat bead on her forehead as she brought it closer. She braced herself before attempting to use the Force to probe deeper into the leaf...

Nothing.

Her feelings of dread and apprehension were still present, but with already being so close to the leaf, the Force probe didn’t make much difference. Maybe because it was dead? She wasn’t sure, but it was the only thing in this condo that seemed like a clue to her.

Kalja didn’t dare touch the leaf herself. Aside from contaminating a potential crime scene, she wasn’t sure if she wanted to risk touching a plant that had her senses so on edge. Somehow the fact that it was dead and still getting such a strong reaction made it even worse.

Kalja summoned one of the guard droids and ordered it to contact local law enforcement again. She needed to know what kind of plant this leaf belonged to, and she needed to know ASAP!
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Mir »

Sasha went to work, grabbing a datapad. She pressed a few buttons and was soon accessing the mainframe of the work shop. She started going through her different diagnostics and pulling up the old MandalMotors blueprints for the Windfall. The diagnostics was giving her the information she needed. One didn’t have to be an idiot to tell the ship was already heavily modified. But she needed to know the full extent of what had been done.

That would take a few moments.

Which gave her time to fully go through the inventory of Mav’s workshop.

Spare parts were one thing.

But she was much more interested elsewhere.

She needs a Radiux. That’s what she needs.

Mav’s head turned. “I don’t think she can take one of those. Besides, those aren’t even on the market yet. We haven’t even started really getting the advertising campaign done. How do you know about that?”

Sasha’s tail swished. Are we going to waste time discussing how I know about it or are we going to waste time when you try to tell me she can’t take one?

Mav’s eyes narrowed. “I suppose the former is a waste of time. That’s a prototype reactor we built with CEC and Muir. How will the spacing even work?”

Sasha scurried over to Mav and handed her the datapad. Constraints of the hardware notwithstanding, the ship would need a top to bottom rewiring job. We can make it fit, look. It’s a smaller model designed to fit on transport ships but it’ll work.

Mav studied the datapad screen. The current reactor’s size was definitely not the problem. The Radiux series was smaller than the current reactor. They could probably save space, once they were finished. “How are you going to run the coolant lines?”

We’ll bypass through the medical bay. Sasha said. You promised me over 30% improvements.

“I said 10% wasn’t ambitious enough.”

Yet here I am, the only person trying to keep you in possession of your clothes. Sasha said, grimacing. Can't take a Radiux. Already so negative, and you already barely have any fur. What has Grandmother Faye taught you?

The datapad dinged, as the diagnostics were complete. Sasha almost squealed with joy. I will pull the reactor. There may be engine fluids dispersed. I may get messy. You will avert your eyes.
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Despite her reservations, Cadence actually had fun. The mall had various shopping centers, arcades and—just as Sigarr had boasted—an entire amusement park inside. Faye had taken her into several clothing stores, picking out various Bunduki-style dresses for her. It wasn't typically a style of fashion you'd find on Ord Mercek, but when your husband was the CEO of one of the largest shipbuilding manufacturers, details like that were mere technicalities.

After that, they visited some arcades. This was mostly for the children, though Cadence did get to play a game or two against Sigarr. He won, of course. Faye preferred to watch, so she mostly played games on her own or with—sometimes against—Cassian. It didn't surprise her he was better, Cassian was good at a lot of things—and he was a teenage boy. Not to say that Cadence wasn't interested in games because she was a girl, she just preferred to spend her time writing music.

After the arcade, they broke for lunch, making plans to visit the amusement park after. Cadence had never been to one before, which left her feeling anxious and excited at the same time. Glancing across the table, she caught the eye of Cassian before quickly looking down at her plate. He'd been cordial with her today, not friendly, exactly, but at least he wasn't giving her a hard time—well, most of the time. He did find her 'help' in a couple of the games they played inadequate. At one point, he almost slipped and called her useless before remembering his father was standing behind him.

She didn't care—okay, maybe she did... a little, but she wasn't going to let the fact she had to spend the day with him ruin her experience. After lunch, the four of them headed straight for the ticket booth into the amusement park. There were so many rides and carnival games, Cadence had no idea where to even start. Fortunately, Cassian made that decision for her.

"Let's do the tumbler."

"Cass, are you sure—"

"She can handle it," he interrupted his father. "She's a Jedi."

Sigarr looked at Cadence, who stared back at him with a blank expression. Before he could voice the question, she quickly composed herself.

"I'll be fine."

With a shrug he breathed a sigh. "Alright, let's head to the Tumbler."

It wasn't until later when Cadence realized she should've asked what the Tumbler was first. Unfortunately, she had to learn that lesson the hard way. She stood in the line, staring up at the ride as a single car filled with several rows of a dozen or more seats went straight up and, quite literally, tumbled down. Her body tensed as she watch, her stomach doing loops before she even got on the ride.

Cassian must have noticed her nervous behavior. He leaned in close with a devilish smile. "You're not scared, are you?" He said under his breath.

Cadence steeled herself, balling her fist. "Of course not."

Famous last words...

At first the ride seemed pleasant enough. The car rose up off the ground with no surprises, and from her seat in the front row she could see the entire breadth of the park. At the top there was a brief pause, the calm before the storm, then the floor fell from underneath her. She screamed, digging her nails into Cassian's arm though her restraints kept her securely in her seat. The car bounced several times, spinning end over end as it went up and down.

Cadence never let go of her death grip on Cassian. He had to be regretting his choice to bring her on this ride, if she only just opened her eyes she could see the discomfort on his face. Oh well, later she would consider it payback.

After the ride was over they met back with Faye who had been watching their things while sitting on a parkbench nearby. Cadence was feeling a little woozy, but she handled it better than Cassian—who was still viciously rubbing his arm.

"So, how was it?" Faye asked.

Cassian opened his mouth to speak, but Cadence cut him off. "It was fun, let's do it again!"
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Mav grinned as a courier droid beeped to get her attention. It was a simple model, barely more than a photoreceptor with an engine array to propel it through space. It had two dangling arms which it used to clutch a small package that it dropped off at her desk. Since it was a model that REC used for company business, Mav didn’t need to worry about a delivery fee. She simply waved it off as it turned to exit her workshop.

They had been working on the innards of the Windfall for over eight hours to prep it for its new upgrades... including the Radiux reactor Sasha had been so insistent on. Mav had been resistant about replacing the original reactor until she saw how easy it would be to tweak the Radiux for even greater performance than its admittedly impressive default specifications.

Kalja would probably cry if she saw how many pieces her grandfather’s ship was in right now, but Mav was nothing if not thorough. She had everything carefully cataloged and itemized, down to the smallest bolt in the hull. When they were ready to put it back together again, the old ship was going to positively purr!

Speaking of purring...

Mav had given Sasha one of the free desks to work on some of the smaller devices. She didn’t quite know how Sasha was so good with machines, but the Anuran was quick, efficient, and focused on her work. After inspecting a few of Sasha’s initial improvements, Mav had quietly given up on checking the others. Sasha’s work was consistently clean and some of her rewiring jobs had caused Mav to rethink her usual methods. The little feline was even careful to vacuum out any stray kitty hairs that might be shed as she was working.

Mav walked over to Sasha’s desk and dropped the package in front of her. “That’s for you, Bossy Boots.”

Sasha looked up from her work in confusion. I don’t wear boots.

“You don’t wear anything,” Sasha agreed, choosing not to explain the nickname. “I thought that was kind of unfair if I’m the only one to get threatened with shredded clothes, so I got you a pair of work coveralls – sized to fit you. Plus these will help to keep oil and grease out of your hair.”

Sasha seemed surprised at the gift before she opened it and lifted up a set of dark blue coveralls that looked to be exactly her size. In the box there was also a tiny toolbelt already equipped with some basic tools that were scaled down to better fit Anuran paws with plenty of empty pockets and loops to fit anything else Sasha might want to have on her person for some reason.

As her new friend inspected the clothing, Mav kept talking: “Anyway, I’m about to call it a wrap for the day, which leaves the question of where you’ll be staying. Since you snuck aboard the Windfall, it’s clear you were trying to keep your mission to protect Cadi a secret, but I’d say you’ve been thoroughly discovered...”

Mav casually sat on the edge of Sasha’s desk and crossed her arms. “Currently I’m the only one who knows you're here. I’m happy to keep it a secret and let you stay up here, but I think you’re going to be found out eventually by Kalja. Why not come back home with me and you can make a formal introduction to everyone? I have a feeling they'll be pretty accepting of your mission.”

***

Kalja had returned to the Halomek mansion a few hours before the rest of the family came back from their outing. Sigarr had left her a message that they had gone to the Central Mall of Laoh and she was welcome to join them, but something about that dead leaf left her feeling too disturbed to seriously consider it.

Instead she found herself sitting in one of the living room areas, staring out of a window as the sun gradually set and moons Zero One and Zero Two started to become visible past the planet’s rings. The initial tests from the police lab didn’t have any matches for the plant and neither did the company records for REC Agricultural. The police were going to run a more extension series of tests tomorrow, but there was no guarantee that the results would be any better.

Kalja had a nagging feeling about the leaf, but she didn’t know enough about it yet to make any judgment calls. Right now all she had was a dead leaf and a bad feeling. She didn’t even know for sure if the hidden plant was the reason why Trakan Lakshire had disappeared in the first place. The two things could be entirely unrelated...

“And I’m a Hutt charity worker,” Kalja chided herself silently. The pull of the Force was too insistent for it to be a coincidence and she knew it. She just didn’t want to call her mother for help on what was supposed to be a Blue Milk Run of a mission.

As much as she hated the idea, Kalja resolved to send the results to Tython once the police lab was done running the rest of its tests tomorrow.

By the time she came to her decision she could hear the return of Sigarr and everyone else. She got up to greet them. She was especially pleased to see that Cadence looked like she’d had a good time. The girl looked the happiest Kalja could remember seeing her outside of their initial breakthrough into accessing the Force.

“Welcome back!” she greeted them with a smile. “Sorry I couldn’t make it, but I’m glad it looks like everyone had fun.”

Sigarr nodded. “I dare say a good time was had by all. What do you think, Cassian?”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Cassian was taking off his coat in a half daze when his father spoke to him. He handed the garment off to a servant droid, carefully folding it up into the bot's arms. When he turned around he realized everyone was staring at him. "What? What is it? Something on my face?"

"We were asking if you had a good time," Sigarr repeated.

"Oh, um... yes. It was... fun. I, uh... gotta use the 'fresher, I'll be right back."

He retreated from the room, absently rubbing his left arm. The arm Cadence repeatedly clung to whenever she was feeling alarmed or scared. She never balked at any of the rides he suggested and she screamed on every one, insisting they ride it again. It was odd, but not what bothered him. Despite their history, everything she said to him and everything he said to her, for this one day it was like it never happened. He wondered if she even knew what she was doing. Was it instinctive for her to grab him instead of Sigarr or Faye? They were similar ages, so it made sense in a way. Or was it something else? Did she trust him because she knew he was competent? That he could protect her? Or, did she—

He shook his head, pounding his forehead with the palm of his hand. What the hell did he know about girls? He was fifteen, and the only girl he ever spoke to was Cadence. Well, the only girl his age, that is. He had conversations with Kalja Sairu and Kalja Falanis, mostly professional, concerning his future education as a Jedi. Neither of the two women were an appropriate age for him and could hardly be considered "experience."

Basically, he was a moron.

"I need a shower," he muttered under his breath...
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Mir »

Sasha regarded the overalls with distrust. Less because of the overalls but more because of the words that accompanied them. She had not been told not to reveal herself to Cadence. But she also had not been told to reveal herself to Cadence. This then was a dilemma. A decision. She squared her shoulders and looked up at Mav. Her eyes narrowed. This could be a trick.

"We're family."

Family still can trick one another.

Mav had to give her that. She and Cassian had played pranks on each other. "Not like that though. Don't you want Cadence to feel reassured you have her back?" She asked.

I haven't given her the Cadesh communications device I've fashioned for her.

"A what?"

Sasha produced the small device. Small for human standards, not for Anuran standards. This is a Cadesh communications device, created in the same vein as the Akaitlyn series of products. Designed for use by the family. It has the ability to bypass every known level of encryption and immediately transmit a signals channel to either the Great Grandfather or the Great Grandmother or both. I slipped one into Tosh's bag before I left. He will not know he has it, but he will find it. He is a smart boy. She said, and there was pride in her voice, even if she wouldn't say it to Tosh.

"How did you do that?"

I do not reveal my secrets to cousins. Sasha replied, her tail flicking. You ask too many questions.

"Well, I've got one more. You joining?"

Sasha considered. Very well. She said, donning the overalls. Someone must accurately submit and represent the work we've done here today for review.

Mav rolled her eyes as Sasha walked away. "You're a challenging little thing, aren't you?"

I'm tall for my age.
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

“Well one thing is for sure, we’re not getting back down to the planet with the Windfall today,” Mav said to Sasha, offering her arm for the Anuran to climb up and perch on her shoulder. “I guess we’re taking my personal ride.”

As long as it gets me down to the planet safely, that is all that matters. Sasha replied as she clambered up and rested a paw against Mav’s face.

Mav grinned in response. “If you say so, but I’m getting wise to how you think, cousin. I think as a fellow gearhead you’re going to appreciate what I’m about to show you.”

My head is not full of gears! Sasha said to her indignantly.

Mav simply chuckled as she entered a code to enter a private room in the back of her workshop. Inside was a smaller hangar with only a single ship inside. It was an RZ-2 A-wing interceptor, a newer model than the RZ-1's that were used for a large chunk of the Galactic Civil War. The A-wing was nearly all black except for a pair of red wings painted on to the fuselage in front of the cockpit.

“Meet the Blackbird, my pride and joy,” Mav said to Sasha as she popped open the canopy. “I’ve taken great pains to make her still look like stock, aside from the paint job. She’s rocking a lot of modifications under the hood – not the least of which is a new proprietary SLAM system of my own design so powerful it’s caused pilots to black out even with inertial dampers.”

It looks adequate. Sasha tried to look uninterested, but her twitching tail gave away her true feelings.

Mav nodded, but didn’t try to dispute her tiny passenger as she got in the starfighter. Normally an A-wing wouldn’t be able to hold two people, but Sasha was small enough that Mav could place her on her lap before securing the safety harness.

After flipping a few switches, the canopy was secured and the hangar was ready for launch. Technically Mav had a flight plan down to the planet, but it wouldn’t be the first time she ended up taking a few detours. She planned to give Sasha just a little taste of what the Blackbird was capable of, but she also didn’t know how much stress that tiny Anuran body could take in terms of g-forces...

***

They arrived at the mansion in one piece. Sasha remained conscious throughout all of Mav’s speedy flight maneuvers, and tried to seem nonchalant about the whole thing, but once again her body betrayed her. The Anuran’s hair was sticking on end everywhere that wasn't covered up by her new jumpsuit by the time they pulled into the mansion’s private hangar.

It is an impressive craft. Sasha admitted. Very fast.

“Well, that is high praise coming from you,” Mav answered as they exited the starfighter.

The maneuvering thrusters could use more calibration.

Mav chuckled to herself. That was more like the Sasha she had come to know.

“Is that so?” she challenged her furry companion. “Maybe, if there’s time once the Windfall is rebuilt, I’ll let you poke around inside the Blackbird.”

Sasha was looking more composed now. She had spent a little time grooming herself to tamp down her hair. I don’t poke. I fix.

“Of course, how silly of me.”

***

Kalja could sense the arrival of Mav and something else vaguely familiar as Cassian was departing. She couldn’t quite place what it was, but it was a presence that would have been easy to miss. She might have missed it this time too if she still wasn’t a little on edge from her investigation earlier in the day.

“Hey, everyone!” Mav greeted them as she made her way into the common room where they had been conversing. “Look what I found while I was inspecting the Windfall!”

Kalja recognized the small creature on Mav’s shoulder as an Anuran right away. Uncle Sal was well-known to the Leidias family, but this one was decidedly not Sal. It also took her a moment to realize that Mav was implicating that it had been hiding on the Windfall this entire time. Kalja kept her expression neutral even as she felt a flush of embarrassment for not identifying the presence as Anuran earlier. She had sensed something of course, but had written it off as one of the typical pests that made nests on starships.

“Mother probably would have known about the stowaway before even stepping foot on the ship,” Kalja silently admonished herself.

Out loud, Kalja tried a bluff: “Oh, so you found her, I see. I’m glad you two are getting along.”

Mav smirked knowingly at Kalja’s statement, but didn’t pry. “Not just getting along, she’s a marvel! I’ll let our guest introduce herself though.” She gestured to the fuzzy companion on her shoulder. “Go ahead...”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Mir »

There was silence for a moment, as Sasha trembled. While it appeared as though she was twitching and unable to control herself, she actually was in quite solid control of herself and therein lied the problem.

While Faye had been around Sal before, only Cadence truly understood at first glance what was happening. Undoubtedly, there was going to be some kind of explanation for this, longwinded and potentially cumbersome, but there was only one way to get to the explanation.

Cadence smiled and patted her shoulder.

There was a moment of relief on Sasha's face before she leapt through the air, now unable to control the biological function.

She landed neatly on Cadence's shoulder and wrapped her tail around Cadence's neck.

I was charged by the Grandfather to watch over you and keep you safe. That one, She said, pointing at Mav, discovered me, though I had remained hidden from both of you for some time..

"Dad?" Cadence asked, forgetting the family tree, whose brances were more complicated and convoluted than a gnarled, winding tree that had existed for millenia.

I remain uniformed whether the Great Grandfather of us all knows I am here. I was sent by the Grandfather.

"So Sal." Cadence said and Sasha nodded.

He felt another set of eyes couldn't hurt. He helped the Great Grandfather and the Great Grandmother on numerous occasions. Sasha said, swelling with pride.

Then she remembered whose presence she was in and with tail still around Cadence's neck, much like Sal used to do when Cadence was growing up, she rose to her hind quarters and bowed to Faye and then to Sigarr. Grandmother and Grandfather. Your daughter has passable skills as a mechanic and exceptional skills as a pilot. You should be proud, she is a credit to you. I would like to see a race between her and my Great Grandbrother. I think he would win. Assuredly, you think she would. You are wrong, which is unfortunate..
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

"This is Sasha G. Salmurian,” Mav explained to try and help clear things up. “Great Granddaughter of Salvatore E. Salmurian. As you can see, she’s quite outspoken and opinionated but she usually makes a good point. And far be it for me to argue with my new cousin, but I would leave Tosh in the dust any day of the week!”

Sigarr placed a hand on Mav’s shoulder to keep her from going any further. “I thank you for the respectful greeting, Sasha, and if there’s any way I can assist you in your mission, you only need to ask. In the meantime, please accept my hospitality for as long as you’re staying with us. It seems you already know most of us, but I think you should make introductions to my son, Cassian, so there are no surprises later.”

He shifted his glance to Cadence. “Since Sasha has chosen you to perch on, can you go find Cassian and see that he meets our newest guest?”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Pryde »

Cadence gaped at him. "Me? But--" She caught a look from Kalja, sighing. "Alright."

She left the room, asking the house AI for directions to Cassian. Sasha spoke to her the whole time about her grand assignment and her great grandfather's trust in her. Cadence simply smiled and nodded, though in truth she was somewhat chagrined. Her mother had just about insisted on coming along too and she narrowly dodged that bullet. But she hadn't counted on Sal trying to pull something. Seems like in a way her mother ended up coming along anyway. Great...

When she found Cassian he was coming out of the 'fresher. "Hey, Cass, I--fething hell," she said turning away. The boy had come out into the hallway wearing only a towel around his waist.

"Cadence, what..." he fumbled a bit when his towel slipped. "What are you doing here."

"Your father asked me to introduce you to Sasha, but--why aren't you wearing any clothes?"

"It's my house."

"So? That doesn't--" she faltered, stealing a quick glance. Cassian was surprisingly fit, though considering how rigorous Jedi training could be that shouldn't have surprised her.

"You're staring," Cassian said, his cheeks turning red.

"No I'm not, I'm... why would I stare at you?"

"I don't know, why would you?"

"Well, I'm not."

"Except you are, still."

"I... oh just put some clothes on, and hurry." She turned away, heading back the way she came and rounding the corner out of sight.

A short while later Cassian, fully clothed, came around the corner to join them. His face, much like Cadence's was still bright red. "So, father wanted me to meet someone?"

Cadence gestured to Sasha. "This is Sasha G. Salmurian. My..." she paused, thinking about it. What was their relation again? The Salmurian family tree was so convoluted and complex she had difficulty keeping track of it. "brother Sal's great granddaughter."

Cassian bowed his head to her, mostly to hide his embarrassment. "Pleasure to meet you, Ms. Salmurian."
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Halomek »

Kalja waited until she was sure Cadence was out of earshot before she shook her head in amusement. “You’re terrible, Sigarr.”

“I’m sure I don’t know what you mean,” he replied with feigned innocence.

“I noticed that you didn’t object to it, Kalja,” Faye pointed out. “If Sigarr hadn’t made the decision, you probably would have.”

“Well, maybe...”

A second later the distant sounds of Cassian and Cadence having a bit of a heated exchange made its way to them.

Everyone laughed quietly in response, not wanting to give away that it was precisely what they had all wanted to happen.

“I’m glad to see that they’re getting along better. Seems like today’s outing did them a lot of good,” Kalja remarked. “Cadence seems to be opening up well and Cassian barely seems spoiled at all. Uh... no disrespect.”

“He was letting his abilities go to his head,” Sigarr stated. “I was a little worried how he was going to act, but today was pleasant. I agree that those two spending more time together has been a benefit to them both.”

“Good! In that case, tomorrow morning I’d like to quash the lingering resentment Cassian has about me choosing Cadence over him,” Kalja said to them. “Things might get a bit heated, but I can’t let things stand as they are. He needs to understand my reasons in no uncertain terms.”

“Do you want me to supervise?” Faye asked.

Kalja shook her head. “It shouldn’t be necessary. Cassian is a smart kid. He just needs an adjustment in his perspective. I’m probably the only one who can provide it right now.”

Sigarr and Faye glanced at each other before looking back at Kalja. “Just don’t go too hard on him. I thought we might spend some family time at the beach tomorrow. That seems like another novelty Cadence has yet to experience.”

“Tython has a few oceans, but it definitely doesn’t have any curated beaches like Ord Mercek. Not to mention Tython’s oceans aren’t the safest places in the galaxy to swim in,” Kalja replied thoughtfully. “I actually don’t even know if Cadence can swim... Still, she could splash around on the beach... maybe I could teach her... I think it sounds fun.”

“Much as I’d like to join you, I’ll be busy working on the Windfall again tomorrow,” Mav spoke up. “It seem pretty likely that Sasha will insist on going back up with me to make sure I do everything right.”

Kalja raised an eyebrow “Do I dare ask how that is going?”

“Probably best for you not to see until it’s done,” Mav replied before she started walking off. “Have fun tomorrow! I know I will!”
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Re: Exodus Legacy: Unusual Business

Post by Mir »

There was something about this one. Sasha could tell. Cadence both got along and didn't get along with Cassian. She didn't need to worry about the times they got along. But her cousin would behave himself around her Great Grandsister, that was for sure. Her tail end, loosely wrapped around Cadence's neck, twitched. A pleasure as well, Mr. Halomek.. She said. She gave him a cool look. Either he did not know they were family, which was his mistake, or he was deciding to be formal for some reason. Also, his mistake. She liked Mav much more than Cassian. She turned back to Cadence. I've met him. There's work to be done on the Windfall if it is to be the best ship it can be given it's older chassis and base design.
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