As fate would have it (Naira)

[Tarsis]

It was late. Well past midnight and Tarsis had just came in out of the storm from doing some solo training; nothing serious, just a little calisthenics and a good run. It had been awhile since he got in a good run. He had kind of been slacking here lately; especially now that he was training with Zereth. Which was not a good, valid excuse, but it worked for now. He was dressed in a dark tunic along matching pants and his hair was up in a pony tail, and every inch of him was soaked.

Cracking his neck as dried himself off the best he could, Tarsis let out a deep sigh. He hated being cold. He never understood why he trained during the storms. The best thing he could come up with was, what doesn't kill you, makes you stronger.

[Naira Cross]

Having always been a night person, Naira often found herself wandering the corridors of the Order. Wearing dark pants, a black shirt and a dark jacket that came down to her knees made lurking in the shadows a little easier. She mainly roamed to see what she could discover when most were asleep. Most of the time she only found empty training vaults and more hallways however, tonight she came across something different. A man that appeared to be seven feet tall, short of breath and sopping wet.

Standing about six feet away she watched as he cracked his neck and took a final sigh. It was at this time she decided to say something. Most would think that to approach a person of his build would be frightening, especially if you were five foot five, but not her. Few things in this world scared her and they definitely weren’t him.

“Out of breath? I figured that someone as built as you wouldn’t have trouble with a little run in the rain.”

[Tarsis]

“Out of breath? I figured that someone as built as you wouldn’t have trouble with a little run in the rain.”

Tarsis just laughed. Lifting his head and looking to his right, Tarsis saw Naira. A short brunette, with an outfit on that made her seem ever shorter. If it wouldn’t have been for her smart mouth, Tarsis would have passed her off as cute, but Tarsis liked his women quiet. Unfortunately, she didn’t' fit the profile.

"Are you done?” he said as he walked past her a little and then stopped. “I may be built, but I can still get cold. Lets see you go out in that storm and run like I just did and see how warm you are afterwards." He said as he undid his pony tail. "You don't look any bigger then a minute anyways. You could probably benefit from a run like that. Take a lap and call me in the morning.” He was of course just joking, but a girl like this probably wouldn’t see things his way. Tarsis could only imagine what her come back would be...

[Naira Cross]

“I would but I’m currently busy” she said in her trademark sarcasm. It was nothing personal, that’s just how she usually came across. “And there’s nothing wrong with being my height. I use it to my advantage. So what are you doing up at this time of night? Shouldn’t you be sleeping like all the others?”

He was a lot wittier that Naira had expected. She didn’t know if it was a good thing or not.

[Tarsis]

"Currently busy?" He said with a brief smile. "Doing what? Roaming the halls like a thief? Besides, I don't even know who you are. How do I know your not some thief trying to steal from us? I should just kill you right now!" He said as he took a step closer towards Naira. Once again, Tarsis was just joking, but he would never let her know that. It was his own brand of humor that many people didn't understand.

Truth be told, he could feel her Force signature. She was an Acolyte of the Order just like he was. “I’m out training. I usually don’t get much sleep anyways, so why waste my time trying?”

[Naira Cross]

Never flinching as Tarsis stepped towards her, threatening to kill her. She simply waited for him to back down thinking to herself ‘try to be civil’.

“You never know, it might do you some good. Since you’re a Force user I know that you can sense that I am as well, and if I was a thief, I would have already left by now. No sane person is crazy enough to steal from the Sith. My name’s Naira.”

[Tarsis]

Good... she's no pushover, he thought to himself as he backed up a little bit. "Me? A Force user? Of course I am! And I knew you were one well before you stepped out from the shadows. You won't find many of us here who aren't, in some way or another, connected to the Force." He smiled as he pushed some hair from his face behind his ear.

Tarsis gave Naira the classic, look up and look down as he walked around her. “Well, I guess you're telling the truth..." He said sarcastically. "Your no thief, but you'd find yourself in a world of trouble if you were.” He paused as he placed his hands behind his back and began walking down the hall. “Walk with me, if you would be so kind. I don't know if you know this or not Miss Cross, but these halls are enchanted or so I've heard. I don't know much about it to be honest, but allegedly there are Sith magic’s placed on all these halls by Lady Vader herself and if you're not a member of the Order, you'll spend the next God knows how long wondering them until your dead or Lady Vader decides she's laughed enough at you and let's you out only to be killed on the spot I'm sure.”

Tarsis stopped as the hallway they had been walking down divided into a would-be four way stop. Looking over his right shoulder at Naira, he said, “My name is Tarsis Iv…” But before he finished, he cut himself off. “Call me Tarsis, and please forgive me for not introducing myself earlier, but I don’t usually take to people so well. If it had not been for me joining the Order, I might still be that way, but I have learned many things here that have changed the way I looked upon the galaxy. What about yourself? Has the Order taught you anything new about yourself?” He had hoped his mess up would go unnoticed. Naira seemed like a very perceptive person; like she would catch on to things with little ease, but as the saying goes, “looks can be deceiving…”

[Naira Cross]

As she walked with him, Naira listened to the rumor about the enchanted halls. She has heard it as well, and was sure that there was not a soul in this building who hadn’t. A little while later, they stop and he introduced himself and explained briefly about his manners. After all ‘when you have to kill a man, it cost nothing to be polite’.

“Well Tarsis, Iv is an interesting last name. Not one you hear very often.” She said with an ‘I know, but won’t go on about it’ look. “The Order has taught me many things. I suppose the main two things would be that I still have far to go and that this is what I’m meant to do. But I never forget the past. My past was… interesting... to say the least and that is what fuels my ambition to get where I need to go.” They were at an intersection of two halls and it appeared as if their journey was about to change course or end all together. Since her curiosity always gets the best of her, she just couldn’t wait, she asked the inevitable question that was brewing in her head since they began.

“So where are we going? You asked me to follow you and I did. Is this the part where you ‘kill me’? If it is, then you’re bound to be in for a few surprises.”

[Tarsis]

Tarsis smiled as he stepped into the crossing from where he was and made a right. Along the walls where columns spaced out about four feet from each other and torches that seemed like they had been burning for centuries placed in-between them. Every so often, a painting of some Sith from the past would grace the draped walls with it's presence, but other than that the hall was pretty much empty.

Tarsis had slowed his pace down so that he walked next to Naira now. Looking to his left, Tarsis spoke. “I think that everyone of us here has an interesting past. It's what fuels us, as you said. It allows us to move on and look forward to the future I think."

Tarsis found himself smiling again as he caught a glimpse of Naira in the light of the passing torches. He had to admit, she was quite beautiful. Her eyes had a glow to them that drew Tarsis in deeper and deeper the more he looked at them. It was like he was stuck in the spinning vortex of a black hole; he just could not turn away. Her hair fell so elegantly on her shoulders and her body was just stunning to look at and the fire's glow just added to it. It gave it mystery.

Just as quickly as Tarsis had discovered all this about Naira, it disappeared just as fast as he caught himself before he tripped over his own feet. Having just made a fool out of himself he quickly turned away to avoid her direct stare, composes himself and moves on. “Anyways, no...” He said as he tried his best to act like that didn’t just happen. “I am not taking you to some place where I’m going to kill you. If I wanted you dead, you would be already and buried in a shallow grave.” He said as he looked over at her with a stern expression on his face. “But you shall see soon enough were it is we’re going. In the mean time, where are you from Naira?”

[Naira Cross]

Following Tarsis, she took a right down a long corridor. Passing the columns and torches, the slight breeze that they created made the fire dance along the walls and floor. She kept her gaze towards the end of the hall and listen as he agreed that the past is fuel for the future.

While she may have been staring forwards, Tarsis obviously was not and tripped over himself. Luckily, he saved it at the last minute. He may have prevented himself from falling on his face but not from Naira seeing it in her peripheral vision. Silently laughing to herself with a grin, she looked over at him just in time to see Tarsis look away. Changing the subject, Tarsis asked where it was that she was from.

Unable to help herself, she said, “Walk much?” Letting that be all the sarcasm that she would say, she continued with his question about her home. “I’m from Corellia. More specifically Coronet, at least, that’s where I grew up. I don’t know where I was born. It’s a nice enough place I suppose. Coronet and Kor Vella are some of the largest cities; good places to get lost. Have you ever been Corellia?”

Genuinely interested in his response (which was a rare thing, she was hardly ever genuinely interested in anyone’s response), she looked up at him, wondering were all of his travels had taken him.

[Tarsis]

Tarsis let her comment about what had happened moments ago slide. He would give her the benefit of the doubt and assume that she knew to stop while she was ahead.

"I have indeed been to Corellia. It was where I was recruited into the Order. I didn't really explore the area much, but I found it to be an interesting place to say the least." He said to answer her question. "I was born and raised on Nar Shaddaa up until I was 17 or 18. I don't really remember how old I was when I left. Anyways, Nar Shaddaa is a lot like Coruscant; kilometer-high buildings and populated. Unlike Coruscant though, it's a moon; hence the nick-name the 'Smugglers Moon'. It orbits the planet Nal Hutta out in the Outter Rim area and it's a planet known for it's dealings with the Hutts, smugglers, thieves, and the like. A very dangerous place to live if you don't know your way around..." A smile creased Tarsis' face as he finished. Home sweet home huh?, he thought to himself as the smile left his face.

As he finished, they arrived at another four way crossing. Without stopping this time, Tarsis continued on and made left. "The only other planet I've visited is Coruscant. I actually acquired a droid who has yet to be returned to me now that I think about it." Tarsis paused for a moment as he thought about XI and if Kyp had held up his end of the bargain or not. The last time Tarsis had stopped by XI was almost complete, but things were not going as fast as he would have liked them to. He would have to pay him another visit to see how things finished up. “But yeah, other than that Corellia is the only other Core Planet I’ve been to. Have you been anywhere else besides Corellia?”

[Naira Cross]

“Nope, I’ve never been anywhere other than Corellia and now Korriban. Going from there to here may not have been far but it was an immense change. As far as what the Priest told me, I was born and raised on Corellia.” Seeing the surprised look on Tarsis’ face when she mentioned the word ‘priest’ she went on and explained.

“I was raised in a church. Don’t let that fool you. I only stayed there until I was able to be on my own.” She stopped for a little bit recalling her past. “From what the Priest has told me my mother dropped me off there, told the Priest my father’s name is Cain and was a politician then disappeared. I stayed there being shipped to and from different homes but when I was 14 I knew I had to leave. I moved around going from Coronet to Kor Vella, and back. Never staying in one place for too long. In spite of my tribulations there, it’s still my home, and I slightly miss it.”

She said this, not with sadness or longing, but with more of a realization of how long it had been since she was last there.

[Tarsis]

"Well, at least if you wanted to you could find your mother. My Mother is dead; killed by my Father." Tarsis smiled as he recalled his mother and what she looked like. She was a lot like Naira now that he thought about it: long brown hair, dark eyes, kind of small, and a nasty attitude if you ticked her off, but a kind women at heart. His smile grew but quickly faded as he thought about this her killer, his father. " It's alright though. He got what was coming to him... him and my siblings."

That was enough strolling down memory lane for Tarsis. Not because he was ashamed of what he did or regreted it, but simply because it was in the past and that is where it needed to stay, only to be called on when he needed it. "So you miss Corellia huh?" He said as he came to a stop. "Care to go back for a visit?"

[Naira Cross]

She was sincerely sorry about his mother. But, finding her own mother was a thought that she would never entertain. She figured if they were ever to meet and she forgave her mother for leaving and things got back to how they were supposed to be, then she just might not be the great person that she was today. And that was a risk that was too large to take.

“A visit? I wouldn’t mind going for a short while. Maybe I could show you around. But why the sudden interest in my home? Is there an ulterior motive?” she said with a sideways look and a sly grin. No matter how you cut it, the things a person does, always benefits themselves first.

[Tarsis]

Tarsis just smiled. Truth was, she greatly interested him. She was mysterious but easy to read, a seemingly kind person with a black heart, and most of all, she reminded him of his mother. She was comforting; like a cool breeze on a hot day. A welcomed company. "Truth be told Naira, I've got nothing better to do and I'm enjoying the conversation. It's something that I haven't had much time for here lately." He was being completely honest with her and for the first time in a while, he didn't mind letting someone in; letting someone get close to him, to know him a little better then anyone else. It was…nice.

“Follow me then if you would be so kind.”

Luckily for Tarsis, his room wasn’t that far from the docking area and little to Naira’s knowledge, he had been leading her to his room this whole time. Not for any real purpose, that was for her to decide when the time came, but for the simple reason of that was where he was going when they first met. Instead of making his usual right, Tarsis made another left. Shortly after traveling down the hallway, the two Acolytes came to a closed door and behind it held all the Order's ships. “After you…” He said as he extended his arm towards the door.

Once inside the hanger, Tarsis looked around and finally pointed over to the ship that they would be using: The Theta-Class Shuttle. It was a standard light utility aerospacecraft used throughout the Republic to transport senators, so why the Order had one here on Korriban was only apprent due to its dealings with the Govenor of Corellia. It’s two folded up main wings surrounded it’s long fuselage and the short blade-shaped wing on its top while the neck that connected it all together met with a rounded off cockpit. Nothing to really admire but a decent ship from what Tarsis had read and easy to piolet. “That is our ride. Still want to go?”

[Naira Cross]

There was something about the way he smiled that made Naira believe that he was thinking a lot more than he was telling. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but she’d let it go… for now. Since now that she realized how long it had been, going back for a brief visit sounded like a good idea and she would appreciate the company seeing as he didn’t have anywhere to be. Naira was usually the kind of person who likes to be alone. It wasn’t that she didn’t have time to be with people and enjoy their conversations, like Tarsis, it was that she didn’t have the patience.

However he was different. Tarsis was able to keep her interest. A good mix of biting sarcasm, and a seemingly handy person to have in a tight spot was something that was needed, especially on Corellia. He led them down a couple more hallways and finally entered the hanger. He pointed at the Theta-Class Shuttle and said to her “That is our ride. Still want to go?” She tilted her head back to look up at him and simply smiled, then started to walk over towards the spacecraft. She then stopped and turned around, “Are you coming or not?”

[Tarsis]

Tarsis nodded as he watched her walk off towards the ship and followed shortly after. Walking up the ships rear entrance ramp, Tarsis made his way through the ships interior and finally found the cockpit. He had never actually flown one of these, but if his father was right in saying, Once you've flown one, you've flown em all then they were going to be ok. Making himself comfortable in his seat, he looked back towards Naira and said, "Are you going to stay in the back or come up here where the real view is?" His question was simply answered with a quick nod as she made her way up towards the cockpit. Once they were situated and ready to go, Tarsis fired up the engines and lifted off.

After a very shaky lift off and after Tarsis made sure everything was ok, (he had accidentally scarped the shuttles upper wing on the ceiling of the hanger as they made their way out) he throttled the shuttle down towards Corellia. Looking over at a deathly pale Naira, Tarsis chuckled and said, “I never said I was a pilot. So don’t look at me like that. It’s your own fault. You assumed too much.” Checking with the docking officials, Tarsis required the necessary permission to land and made his way for Coronet...

To be continued...

[Tarsis]

Continued here: A Trip Home (http://www.swforums.net/forum/showthread.php?s=&postid=750907#post750907)