Chapter 41
Prepping for Danger
The snapp-hiss of a lightsaber filled the room and a purple light flickered into existence. The blade thrummed as it was taken through a sword kata before being closed down. Shortly after that came the sound of a hilt being looked curiously at Keira as she ejected the crystals from her newly built lightsaber. Taking a closer look she saw that there were a few empty slots built in for additional crystals in the hilt of the lightsaber
"May I ask what you are doing? I thought removing your focusing crystal breaks the link between the sabre and the crystal. Velvet asked
"I thought that too till the gatekeeper on the holocron told me otherwise. From what she said meditating with your crystals binds it more to you and that is what improves the link between the crystal and the weapon. Something that can only help since the crystal did not choose me." Keira replied
"What do you mean, the crystal chooses you." Velvet responded
"Sorry I forgot none of you would have known" Keira replied
Keira sat down on a meditation mat purposefully set there for the first meditation while aligning the crystal to the hilt of a lightsaber, Velvet followed suite struggling slightly toget into the proper position for meditation. Jaune, Pyrrha and Hina laid down the tools on the workbenches where they were constructing their hilts and turned around to listen as well.
"Have any of you read about the customs the Jedi followed in regards to building your first lightsaber?" Keira asked
"No, nor did the builder droid mention anything regarding any customs." Velvet answered
" I assume it thought a master would have covered that area. Anyway before a padawan could built their first lightsaber they would be taken to planets rich in the Force and that had crystal deposits. Mainly Ilum or Jeddha. The purpose was to find a crystal for their weapon." Keira started explaining
"We have heard of that custom." Hina said pointing to herself and Jaune
"A lot of people have come to believe that the trip to collect your first crystal is purely a custom to mark progressing from initiate to padawan level, and that finding your crystal is a spiritual journey to connect to the force." Keira continued explaining
"I overheard master Jacarda explain it like that to the initiates the few times she was back at the temple." Jaune admitted
"And I am guessing that those were few and far between as I can not see the Council being happy with her dragging a force mute around the galaxy with her." Keira replied
"Yes, you could say there was a lot of unhappiness regarding that." Jaune rubbed his neck
"Anyway. What my ancestor said, was that the force guide you to a crystal or crystals that will help you connect to the force. The crystal once fully attuned to you becomes a representation of you in the force and not just a conduit." Keira continued
"On the old ranks just what level are you?" Hina asked
"It would be ranked as a senior initiate. My mission was to have been my padawan trail." Keira admitted
"I take it your people did not spend time exclusively on training then." Hina remarked
"We tried to balance normal Mandalorian training and force training. Though the latter fell a bit by the wayside, due to us having lost some of our lore. Add to that my people gave more reflection on the Resol'Nare." Keira shrugged in response
"So basically you are as untrained as we are." Pyrrha said
"Yes, and we have a lot of learning to do in a very short time. To be honest if it were not necessary for us to have to do cross training with the others I would probably be stuck in front of the holocron learning for hours on end." Keira said
Keira paused for a moment before looking to the secured shelve where the holocron of Jacarda and the one obtained from Arkaxis stood
"Have you made any progress with the Arkaxis holocron?" She asked
"Opened it once. I have been spending more time with master Jacarda's record going over the lessons she had prepared. Wel that was before our incarceration, have not had much time since then to really study" Jaune admitted
"We learned what Jaune and Hina taught us." Pyrrha said pointing between her and Velvet
"And my training was very basic at that. Before my aura was unlocked I was as powerfull as a young initiate. So did not spend a lot of time on training." Hina admitted
Hina looked at her datapad as she received a message, reading it she started smiling widely and her tails started wagging happily. She gave a small cheer and gave a fist pump on reaching the end of her message "Good news?" Pyrrha remarked
"I think I have a way to give Aura to those not from Remnant." Hina said
" How? We tired unlocking Keira and Amelia's but failed." Velvet replied
"But how did ours get unlocked then?" Hina asked smugly
Hina lifted the datapad higher
"Faunus and Remnant humans have a genome that both Amelia and Keira don't carry and I believe that genome is key in how we access aura." Hina said
"But it still does not explain how you got the genome." Jaune replied
"How did you join our family?" Hina hinted
"We did the adoption ritual,… wait a moment, we shared blood!" Jaune said snapping his fingers
"And that is how we got the genome. With the help of TD and the databanks I have isolated the genome and more importantly can transfer it to another." Hina said
"And once they have it their aura can be unlocked after it has assimilated to them." Jaune realised
"That also means we have an extra training tool." Velvet said
"Of course! using Aura as you practice allows you to get results quicker." Pyrrha exclaimed
"How does that work?" Hina asked
"Have you not noticed that you are stronger than those with their aura locked?" Pyrrha asked
"No. we have not really had that much contact with civilians." Jaune replied
"Oh. Getting back on topic, aura helps repairs damage an aura user takes quickly and also increases your reflexes and strength. It is a permanent effect once your aura is unlocked." Velvet explained
"What has been found that if you use your aura as you practice allows you to build muscle mass quicker and it allows you to learn combat techniques quicker. It also decreases the time you need for your body to adjust to the changes heavy exercising brings about and the recovery time your body requires from doing so." Pyrrha continued
"Kind of like steroid use then." Keira stated uncertainly
"Without the short and long term medical dangers and side effects. Not that there are not side effects from using your aura like that?" Velvet said with a shrug
"What side effects?" Hina asked
"While you are doing it your aura is brittle for a lack of better description. It will break easier and it takes longer for your aura to recover fully if it is overused. Of course while it gives quick results it takes work to keep your sudden gains at the level you achieved, should you stop exercising you will lose the gains quicker too. That is why most hunters do not bother with aura pushing" Pyrrha expounded.
"There is also a negative effect from constant overuse of your aura." Velvet cautioned
"Okay, any day now Bun." Hina prompted
" Constant overuse of aura can effect you mentally. Delusions of invincibility and a lowering of inhibitions have been recorded, similar to people indulging in recreationanl drugs. The slang name is Aura High. And only Jaune, Pyr and Coco can call me Bun." Velvet replied
"Okay, no need for the Bunny Fu." Hina replied lifting her hands in surrender
"Yeah that's right You know I am superior with my Bunny Fu over your scratching and clawing style." Velvet replied mock superiorly
"Care to put your credits where your mouth is." Hina challenged
"Call your sister, you will need their help to lose less spectacularly." Velvet retorted
Jaune was ignoring the mock turf fight and smack talk looking pensive. Pyrrha laid a hand on his arm
"Lien for your thoughts?" She asked
"Your aura , does it recover fully?" Jaune asked
"Yes it does. That is why it is safer than steroids for rapid gains." Velvet said
Keira was thoughtfully looking at the holocrons again, idly closing and opening her hand over her crystal
"It sounds a lot like what you can do with some force techniques, though once you stop using the power you lose the abilities you gain." She said musingly
"What techniques are those?" Velvet asked
"Well there is Force sprint at basic level you double your base speed, with practice you can increase that further. Force enhancement allows you greater strength and dexterity, actually force jumps is the basis for enhancement. But both tires you quickly as your body uses a lot of energy and fortifying you with the force over long periods damages the cellular structures in your body. Overuse can literally burn you to ashes. Of course on the other end you have force healing but that leaves you in a meditative state while the force heals you more quickly, leaving you vulnerable while you are in the trance." Keira answered
Keira shook her head and lifted her crystal into view
"Anyway we have strayed from what I was saying. The more attuned you get the crystal the better it works for you, and adding different crystals to your hilt can have a synergistic effect as well. How the belief started that you can only use a crystal per hilt I will never know." She said
"How do you know the crystal is the one you want?" Pyrrha asked
"It is a strange feeling, it is like a voice calling to you, or that was how it was for me. Sure you can attune with any crystal but it just takes longer, normally the first meditation the Jedi did with their finished lightsaber to attune it could take up to a week, Rumour had it that there was new way developed during the clone wars to shorten the ritual but it has not been recorded as far as I know." Keira said
"I guess it is the long way for us then. It is not like we can go to Ilum, Jhedda or any known planet with crystals." Jaune shrugged
" There might be another place. My ancestor found hers on Dantooine. The Jedi actually had a training facility on the planet. The holocron actually have the location marked of the Enclave and the cave she found hers in." Keira said
" And Dantooine was where the Green Jedi had gone to when they abandoned the Dawn." Hina pointed out.
" Sounds we like another reason to go there then. But first let us concentrate on what we need for now. Keira can you share your plans for building a multi crystal hilt?" Jaune replied
"Sure, it is actually similar to when you build a dual phase hilt." Keira said
"I have a quick question. Is there a way to connect quicker to your crystal than hours of meditation?" Velvet interrupted
"Not that I have found something to that effect. There is something my ancestor claimed that could qualify." Keira replied after a moment of thought
Again she was in the midst of an expectant silence as the other four waited on her to continue. Keira continued
"She claimed that she and the other force sensitives would hold joint meditation sessions while making physical contact with one another and their crystals between each other. She stated that it helped connect them to one another to the point where their presences merged." She said with a thoughtfull shrug "And since they merged they had greater access to the Living Force."
"And the greater the access the easier the connection I would assume." Velvet replied
"It would suggest that, though her insistence that it was best done naked or with minimal clothing between participants seem a bit off to me." Keira replied
"I think we can try it once, fully clothed though." Velvet said
"And now the bunny is a prude." Hina returned to teasing
Ruby shifted around in her newly forged armour, at Yara instruction she was moving about the room in exaggerated motions like lifting her knees as if she was climbing onto abnormally high steps and overextending her arms to the front and back to test that her movement was not hampered in any way. After finding no problems she was instructed to do squats and jumping jacks to make sure. After a few moments Yara told her to stopp. Ruby started to take of the armour but was stopped by Yara
"Take your time you get used to it. And practice getting in and out of it as quickly as you can. Also wear it as much as possible to get used to it and wearing it in, just like you would a pair of boots. Why don't you try using your semblance, see how it affects how you move?" Yara suggested
"It still feels very akward." Ruby replied squirming a bit
"You get used to it rather quickly. Maybe once you feel a bit more comfortable tray accessing your semblance and see how your semblance is effected." Yara said reassuringly
"Is it likely to have an effect?" Ruby asked worriedly
"We don't know. Neither Katya or myself have a semblance yet so we are operating in the vacuum here. I think it is unlikely though, but the wight of the armour may slow you down." Yara shrugged
"Just don't do what you did the first time you activated your semblance." Yang snickered
"Yang!" Ruby exclaimed, her helmet covering her blushing face
"That sounds interesting." Yara perked up and leaned in eagerly
"It sure was." Yang chuckled harder
"Come on tell us. You know you want to." Yara encouraged Yang
"Yang, NO!" Ruby whined
"Yang, Yes!" Yang retorted
Yara was not the only one showing interest. All of those present for armour fitment looked to Yang. Ruby rushed Yang to physically stop her from speaking but was easily subdued in the resultant tussle. Yang held on to her squirming sister, while the rest waited eagerly, though Weiss pretended to not be interested in it and was seemingly engrossed in a datapad. Her shifting closer in her seat and shifting her head to the side belied her interest. Yang as usual looked happy at being the centre of attention and she dramatically cleared her throat while lifting Ruby in the air to stop her from kicking her shins in her attempt to stop Yang from speaking or to escape her current predicament.
"So there we were heading to Patch to get to the market. Ruby was in a rush to get there and had been pestering me and Dad to get there quicker." Yang started her story
"Any reason for the urgency or was it Ruby's usual eagerness?" Weiss asked, abandoning her pretended indifference
"No there was a reason, one of great importance to one Ruby Rose. It was so important to her that she had ignored our dear Zwei that morning, if not for her amazing older sister the poor dog would likely have died from not being served breakfast. And it was not only poor Zwei that suffered that day. It was day of great shame for the Xio Long household, for we were the ones who ultimately paid the heavy price." Yang said solemnly
"She ran after something shiny or cute and activated her semblance." Blake said dryly
" If only. That would have been preferable" Yang sighed
"We are not getting younger here, you know?" Yara prompted
"It was wonderfull day, the sun was shining brightly and the birds were happily singing in the trees, before crapping over everything as is their habit. You see on that day something happened. Something that had been anticipated with great ice cream shop was launching a new flavour." Yang stated
"Ice cream, all this built up for ice cream." Weiss stated incredulously
"Not just any ice cream. A trial for a limited edition ice cream. Strawberry mixed with milk and cookies flavoured ice cream." Yang said
"Really, I could understand the hype if it was triple chocolate and fudge, but strawberry and cookies? Or maybe if it was tuna flavoured" Yara scoffed
Blake nodded in agreement to the last with the rest looking nauseated by the mere suggestion of fish flavoured ice cream. Ruby intensified her struggles to break free. Her new aim was to eradicate the heretics around her. How dare they besmirch the sanctity of strawberries and cookies and milk! Yang tightened her grip
"Of course Ruby was convinced that by the time we got to the market they would be sold out. She nagged us until we left for the marketplace at an unreasonable hour that morning" Yang continued
"Okay. I can see that." Yara made a get on with it gesture
"So while we were walking Ruby would start running ahead and then come back as Dad called her back. Each time she would go farther and faster. Not that it was unusual for Ruby to do that, but Dad had unlocked her aura a week ago and we still had no idea what her semblence would be. Of course Ruby had heard of pushing your aura into your body to speed up and decided that now was the best time to do that." Yang's chuckles got louder
"I take it she unlocked her semblance that way?" Weiss querried
"Yes, we learned that she has a speed semblance and that polyester does not conduct aura. She rushed off in her usual burst of petals, but petals was not the only thing she left behind. She basically ran out of her clothes." Yang laughed
Ruby stopped squirming and lower her head, her whine of mortification clearly heard. Yang hugged her close
"So here we had her rushing off right into the market. Of course me and Dad ran after her picking up the clothes she dropped. We found her standing right in front of the ice cream shop which was still locked up, it was still early morning after all. Lien card in hand wearing nothing but her boots and a smile, right in the middle of the market place. She did not realise her state till Dad and I dragged her around the corner of the shop, the best part was she fought us tooth and nail to get back to the front of the shop, clothing and propriety be damned. And there you have it, the reason we can no longer shop early in the morning" Yang finished
Laughter filled the room and Ruby sat down despondently on the deck her head lowered in shame. Still chuckling Yara walked to Ruby and helped her up.
"Go test your semblance, then come back and we can trick out your armour. Think what you want extra apart from the basics and we can see if we can build it in for you. Also think about what colours you want your armour to be."
"You are not keeping it all the same colour?" Blake asked
"We can if you really want to, but I know it is your culture to express yourself in colour." Yara replied
Ruby was about to start her sprint when Yang stepped up next to be fitted handing over datapad with her measurements. Yara started inputting the data to the machine to start producing the armour. She stopped once she reached the helmet specifications. She gave it another look before looking up at Yang
"Not happening. I am not adapting the armour to accommodate your hair Go get a haircut." Yara said firmly
"But…" Yang started to protest
"Long hair and helmets don't work. The same goes for Weiss and Blake. All three of you get a haircut" Yara said crossing her arms
"But…" Yang tried again
"You are wearing armour, you will not be needing long hair to draw attention to you. And no I will not make you sexy armour. You will have to draw your man, or girl, through personality alone." Yara interrupted her again.
Yara looked at the three looking at her in shock. She shifted her hands to her hips and took on a lecturing posture, ears and tail upright and stiff, eyes glittering
"Do you have any idea how long it took to me to reconfigure the plans to accommodate for boobs on the chest plates without compromising protection. And no we will not drop the helmets from the sets so you can have long hair. You will get fully body armour and you will like it." Yara ranted a bit
Ruby decided that she did not need to be here to hear the rest. She had to test how her semblance worked with armour after all. She sped off, leaving a trail of rose petals behind her. She ignored the bleeping Laid made as the droid complained about the mess on the deck it had cleaned moments ago.
Hours later found Ruby and team sitting in the mess still dressed in their armour. The longer she was wearing it the more she got used to it, as Yara had said, though she suspected it will take long still till it became something she no longer noticed. What would also take some getting used to was the other three with short hair Their hair were considerably shorter than they had planned on, Meg was a huntress after all and not a hairdresser. For the first time all could clearly see Blakes second set of kept on rubbing her short hair and was glaring at Fox where he was sitting at the far end of the room while Coco was busy lecturing him yet again on propriety. Needless to say Yang had not taken it well when Fox had made a joke about angry lesbian haircuts, something Ruby did not get. What did short hair and lesbians have to do with one another? She looked up from her plate as Jaune sat down opposite her and slid a datapad before her.
"What is this?" Ruby asked
"I downloaded a weapons design application when we were on Nar Shada. I though you would like to design a new weapon for yourself. I know you don't like the fact that all we have currently is mass produced." Jaune said
"Also we made sure the replicator is fully stocked with raw components. Once you have a design let one us look it over then you can start building it. It won't be mechashift like Crescent Rose was, but at least it will be unique." Yara added sitting down as well
"Also as added safety you will be working with SCD when you build it. Since this is new technology to you he can stop you from making errors." Jaune said firmly
Ruby rushed around the table and gave them both hugs before grabbing the datapad and skipping to her room eager to get started. Yang gave them a thankful smile before glowering at Yara again as she remembered the reason for her short hair.
"I wonder, what did they do with our old weapons?" Weiss asked suddenly
"You know I actually never though about it." Yang admitted
"Officially? They will have been taken apart and then destroyed." Yara said
"And unofficially?" Yang asked
"Sold to collectors or be taken by the officers for their collections if it was sufficiently exotic." Jaune replied
"Better not mention it to Rubes then, I know she is hoping to retrieve Crescent Rose somehow." Yang said
"She will have to rebuild Crescent Rose in its entirety not that we can replicate mechashift as it works on Remnant technology which is reliant on dust." Yara said shaking her head
Jaune started eating his food, being on ship rations and cooked by droids saying the food was bit bland was a mild understatement. After a few bites he turned his attention back to the three remaining of team RWBY.
"There is something we need to discuss." He said
"Sounds serious, shall we call Ruby back?" Weiss replied
"It is, and we don't need Ruby for this. It is about what you want to do while on the ship. You all have progressed well with your studies but you need to start thinking about a specialization. I believe Ruby is the best choice for weapons master and armourer." Jaune answered
"Yeah she is the obvious choice for that and she would have fought tooth and nail for that position." Yang said
"What options de we have?" Blake asked
"There is several engineering possibilities. Mechanics, electricians, droid repairs, circuit repairs. Then of course you can go for the boring things like piloting, navigator. Or you could go for security or infantry, gunnery officer, systems specialist." Yara replied
"At some point we will need officers and the ones here will be given first choice of assignment and training." Jaune said
"Derrick also said he will be looking into teaching what he had been taught by his agency. That is once he has a handle of what is still relevant from his training. Daphne is already teaching Nora advanced demolitions. Though to be honest Nora did not expect the amount of physics and maths she has to learn" Yara said
"What of the others?" Yang asked
Jaune took a few more bites of food before lowering his utensils
"Right now Amelia is the most qualified of us all having gone through the Imperial fleet academy. She is currently teaching my Father what she was taught on how to command a ship such as this. Nebula and Dew are learning how to pilot this ship from Katya."
"Aren't you helping?" Yang asked
"There is a massive difference between flying a freighter and a ship of this class. Just like there is difference between a freighter and fighter. Sure I could fly this if I really have to but I am not really skilled at this type of piloting." Jaune replied
"Just like I am a master mechanic with the Bantha. Here I class as an apprentice mechanic. There are massive differences in how things operate between classes and not just in the size of the things." Yara added
"Okay, makes sense if you put it like that." Yang nodded
"Also right now my time is taken up with Force training as is Pyrrha, Velvet, Hina and Keira. I am hoping to get hold of flying simulators both for freighters and fighters. If you want a headache you can learn electronic systems and basic slicing from the droids." Jaune said
"Terra seems to be doing well with that." Weiss said.
The woman in question was seated working on three portable terminals at once while LAID and another astromech was connected to them. Jaune snorted and Yara snickered
"Don't let Sapphron hear you. She is still pissed with Terra." Yara cautioned
Yara pushed her now empty plate forward and addressed the crowd waiting for the explanation
"Seems Terra found her semblance, it allows her to interact much more effectively with anything that has a processor. Droids terminals, once she get used to the system she will likely give master slicers a run for their credits." She said
"And why is Sapphron angry? I would have thought she would be happy for Terra finding a semblance that enhances her interests?" Weiss asked
"No she is happy for Terra with that. She is pissed at Terra for using her semblance to take a shortcut to learn Aurabesh. You remember the cognition chairs we pointed out to you. The ones we said was extremely dangerous to use?" Yara responded
"Yes, though you never really said why they are so dangerous." Blake replied
"They are dangerous because you are downloading data directly into your brain like you would a program onto scroll. People have been known to start having convulsions and brain damage from those chairs." Jaune replied
"If they are so dangerous, why did the Republic use them?" Weiss asked, her face shocked
"Because they were used on clones. And as far as some in the Republic was concerned a clone is nothing but an organic droid. And should one be broken it could be replaced easily." Jaune replied
" That is so wrong on so many levels." Weiss replied
"Anyway Terra had decided she will use one to download the data directly while her aura was up and her semblance active, by her reckoning it would allow her to quickly master our technology. She had this idea it will negate the chances of getting brain damage." Yara continued, shifting the conersation
"Did it work?" Yang asked
"Yes and no. She learned Aurabesh but she was knocked out for a day and had no bladder control for two days." Yara replied
"Okay, enough said. I see what made Sapphron angry then." Yang commented with a wince
Weiss placed her utensils neatly into her empty plate and pushed it forward the required distance etiquette required to indicate that she was no longer using the plate.
"What is everyone else concentrating on?" She asked
"Peach decided she wants to be the Science officer, TD and the tutor droids are working with her to bring her up to speed with sciences. Sapphron wants to study astro navigation, she gets Laid as a a tutor. Gwen, Coco and Fox are looking at gunnery officers. Yatsu and Octavia are learning mechanics from me." Yara listed off
"Moody will take up as instructor for infantry and survival training as soon as we get recruits. Misses Nikos and my mother will share quartermaster. Misses Scarlatina is still deciding." Jaune added
"Not on a first name basis with the in laws yet?" Yang grinned
"Working on that." Jaune rubbed his neck
"You definitely have an uphill task with that. You know ravishing their daughters shortly after meeting them might not have been your best idea yet, stud." Yang remarked
Jaune could only groan as the others snickered at his discomfort. He resisted the urge to slam his head on the table. He shot Yara a glare as she patted his back in a mock comforting gesture
" Don't worry it could have been a lot worse." Yara said cheerily
"I can not see how it could be any more akward." Blake remarked
"They could have been caught going at it in a public area. Or they could have been found by his innocent sister walking into the room." Yara suggested
"Not helping." Jaune ground out
"Did not intend to." Yara replied happily
Weiss was seated in the dark the observation dome, an effort had been started to turn it into a recreation area. She could hear the tinkling of the water features, the room was covered by a light purple glow from the uv lamps being used to simulate sunlights for the growing plants. Angrily she rubbed her eyes, she sniffled slightly
"Just eye strain and allergies." She told herself
"I call bullshit." A voice spoke
Weiss spun around. Sapphron was seated in the back of the room, the mobile crib hovering next to her. Sapphron pressed a button and a flicker came as the shield was activated. She tapped the seat next to her and motioned for Weiss to approach. She waited till the younger girls was seated before speaking
Weiss, what is wrong?" She asked
"Nothing, just tired." Weiss replied hurriedly
"Nope , not buying it. You look exactly like I did before I bolted for Argus. I know what it looks like when someone is buckling under pressure and when most of the pressure comes from yourself." Sapphron replied
Weiss remained silent. After a few moments of silence Sapphron started speaking
"Okay , I will go first then. It has always been the tradition of the Arc family that the firstborn son take over as family head and as governor of the Fort Freedom region, though that name only started after the colour war. Before the region was called Vale Royalle. Though should there not be a son born, the eldest daughter would take over as regent till a son is borne in the main line." Sapphron spoke
"Why are you telling me this?" Weiss asked
"I am getting there, I started training for future role the day after I turned six, and believe me I was not happy with the extra classes. But to be honest the classes were not as stringent as they could have been. Then Jaune was born and I no longer had to take the classes as the responsibility had moved on. I went back to be being a tomboy with a vengeance."
"But then he got captured." Weiss prompted
"No we believed he was dead. Then the classes came back but with an intensity it had never been at. Not only that, nothing I did was right, I walked the wrong way, I talked the wrong way and when I realised I was lesbian I made the mistake to talk to one of the nannies I had. Instead of helping me she went to my mother. And then everything doubled."
"I see." Weiss said softly
"Yes, you do. I was told to suppress a part of me and strive to forget it. Over and above that I was to be perfect. To cope I start using anti depressants, then one night I found myself with a handful of pills and a stolen bottle of wine."
Sapphron stared into the falling water of one of the water features.
" That was when I broke and ran. I had two choices stay and die or try for freedom. I made it as far as Vale." Sapphron said softly
"I assume you got caught." Weiss stated
"I was. Derrick boarded the train at the station just before Vale. I was sure he was going to take me back, I tried to run, throw myself out of the train. He stopped me. But something happened." Sapphron continued
"What?" Weiss asked
"Instead of taking me back, he helped me. He kept me at his flat and hid me when my father made it to Vale. He gave me a place to stay, paid for my schooling, went with me when I went for therapy and not once did I hear him complain or in any way indicate I was a burden."
Sapphron took Weiss's hand
"That is how I know what is going through your mind right know. I will not say our circumstances are the same, it can not be. I can see you need help, and the help you need your team and friends can not provide. What I can be is a sounding board for ideas, a sympathetic ear."
"Thank you." Weiss said, a tear running down her face
"Now before I take you to TD and have it start with therapy there is something I can tell you that has helped me." Sapphron said
"What?" Weiss asked
"Perfection is an illusion and unattainable. The only thing you can be is to be the best version of yourself. Two good enough is more often than not all that is needed. Three by letting people in you become stronger, no one can do anything all by themselves. Real friends will help you to achieve whatever you want. Four it is okay to ask for help."
Sapphron pulled Weiss in close and hugged her. She did not loosen the grip she had on the petite girl for one moment. She felt the moment the dam broke and soon her shoulder was getting damp as Weiss finally let go.
Yara woke early and silently got out of bed. April muttered in her sleep and pulled the blankets closer as she suddenly lost the head of her bed partner. Yara pulled the blankets higher over april and tucked her in slightly before gently kissing the girls forehead. She took a look at the door leading to the refresher and dismissed it. She would return after she had finished her exercises. She yawned deeply and scratched her stomach as she sauntered over to her cupboard and opened the door. Deciding on practical underwear she pulled on a pair of panties and a bra before stepping into a coverall. Her boots were still unlaced as she stepped from her and April's room.
The passageway was silent as she made her way to the cargohold that had been turned into a training area. She paused as she saw that the door to the armoury was open. She looked into the room expecting to see Ruby in there. To her surprise Weiss was standing there a variety of weapons laid out in front of her. She stepped into the room
"What are you up to?" She asked Weiss
"Trying to find something I can work with." Weiss replied
"I thought you were happy with the standard loadout." Yara remarked
"I pretended to be. The carbine just does not feel right to me." Weiss responded
"What are you looking for?" Yara asked
"Myrtenaster. I have always been a fencer, and to be honest I struggle with shooting." Weiss answered
" You do okay with a blaster pistol, So let us find you one you are comfortable with or if needs be we get Ruby to build you one. As for a fencing blade, a vibroblade will not work for you. A lightsaber is right out. But I think I can help you there." Yara said musingly
"How?" Weiss asked
"I found several bars of cortosis and we have a forge, first we make you a blade you like and then we forge one out of cortosis for you. It may not be as fancy as Myrtenaster bit it will not be cut in half should you go against vibroblades or lightsabers." Yara said
Weiss pointed to the array of handguns
"Can you help me pick one?"
Rukill station had started as an orbital repair station at the edge of the Gyndine system and had served the Republic fleet until the first shots were fired in the Clone wars. It had stayed operational for a while longer but with less and less use as the Republic upgraded the fleet and the station became more and more obsolete. It was closed down and declared defunct two years into the war. There it had stayed in orbit of its planet as scrapping and recycling the station had been deemed not to be cost effective. This fate was not unique to the station, many off the sameclass littered the galaxy, the number of dereclict stations now also included stations that had been expressly built to service the Grand Army of the Republic.
The station had remained abandoned till a smuggler had chanced upon it two years after the close of the war. The smuggler had had her ship shot to pieces as she had been caught in a skirmish between the Hutts and the Black Sun, both side having taken the time to stop shooting at each other to target the independent. She had limped to the station and had barely been able to dock
Her ship had been too damaged to repair but she had gained so much more. The station had power, water and had not been stripped of its supplies as it had been abandoned. She started off small. The station had become a place for quick and dirty repairs to their ships for smugglers. Once the credits started coming in she expanded, the repair bays got activated one after the other, refuelling was started along with offering repairs. The next step was a cantina. A whorehouse followed as soon as the drunken cantina patrons demanded extra services, the casino was the next step. A former pirate group was hired for security once the Hutts and Black Sun had come sniffing around. Now Rukill station was deemed to be neutral grounds for smugglers and freighter pilots now matter if they were independent, trading company or guild, Hutt or Black Sun, a safe haven to rest, a place where bounty hunters and fighting was not tolerated, the peace enforced by the station security. Parvati Saleen had come along way.
Parvati Saleen, a Zeltron of indeterminate age, made a point to be close to the command centre of her station, her quarters and office was right next to it. She was on her way to do her daily walkthrough of her station when she was met by the commander of her night staff the moment her door opened. The Twi'lek woman had once been a worker at the whorehouse, that had been until she had had been scarred by a blaster shot meant for Parvati. Now she was the closest to a second in command as one could be
" Selen, you look like you want to say something" Parvati said
"We have a new arrival at dock seven." Selen replied
"I assume it is something special." Parvati stated
" It is the Wallowing Bantha. And already they are drawing a lot of attention." Selen replied
"Wait a moment. Why does the name sound familiar?" Parvati replied
"Because the ship was listed in the top ten of wanted ships, its crew is listed in the top thirty of Empire fugitives with price of a hundred thousand credits per head but only if brought in alive. Delivery is to be made at the Imperial Palace." Selen replied reading from a datapad
"And is it too much to hope that it is just the ship and it does not have its regular crew on board. Or even better that it is in the possession of a prize crew and the regulars are prisoners on their ship." Parvati rubbed her eyes
"No it is the regular crew, and if the scans are accurate there are a lot more in that ship than just the regular crew." Selen said
"I assume we have eyes on all bounty hunters on the station?" Parvati said
"Yes, I also authorised overtime for the off duty watch to have extra boots on deck in case someone decided to test the neutrality. I have not allowed the crew to disembark till I spoke to you first. In my opinion we should tell them to leave. We can not afford the heat their presence brings here" Selen said firmly
"But if we kick them out we can no longer claim we are truly neutral. Fine I will go talk to them, if they are deemed to high a risk I will kick them out. Let them know I am on my way, waive their landing fee but tell them they have six hours here and the clock starts to run the moment I get there." Parvati sighed
"Boss, I would suggest letting me go and talk to them. Bounty information has it that five of them are Force active. You know how you get when one of them is around." Selen said apologetically
"Okay go on then, spoil my fun will you." Parvati mock grumbled
" Going then. Shall I also launch our air patrol to make sure no one gets ideas to go and wait outside the station for them to leave?" Selen asked
"Yes, make sure our air patrols stays within our area of control. Should anyone try something beyond the zone it is nothing to do with us."
" Done. I am on my way then." Selen nodded to her boss
"Send a few teams to bring in the Imperial, Hutt and Sun spies. I will brief them myself and make sure they understand this station is neutral."
Selen almost missed her step in surprise as she spotted the group waiting at the lowered boarding ramp of the freighter. Smugglers had the habit of dressing eccentrically or dressing the same way to mark them as a crew but never before had a group dressed up in old clone commando armour coming through the station. She immediately identified one as the listed captain as he was the only one not wearing a helmet. She walked up to him
"Captain NoName, what brings you to Rukill station?" She demanded
"The same as everyone else, to trade and make use of available services." Jaune replied
"And what services are you looking for?" Selen asked
"Refueling, top up on our water supplies and access to an information broker."Jaune answered "Your cargo?" Selen asked
"As per station rules that is my business. But to make it easier for you I can tell you what I have to trade and that is only part of my cargo." Jaune replied
"What do you have?" Selen asked with a grimace at hearing the implied rebuke at her question
"Twenty five crates of blaster carbines, brand new from Blastech. Could I perhaps interest you to buy some of them for your station security?" Jaune smirked at the expression of surprise the answer produced
