Selen - A bar of ill repute
Thirty minutes before the meeting
Bars were amazingly informative places. You never quite see how folks interact quite as well as these places. Alcohol was a great liberator, but it was grease that kept the cogs going around.
Aay'han had sat herself down at the bar, nestled between two couples. Neither were talking very much any more as their hands, lips and hips were doing all the communicating at this point. The half-breed idly wondered what their copulation would be like as she nursed her cold glass of wine.
The thought was fleetingly brief, as a small blush creeped across her cheeks from overhearing what had been uttered into the ear of one of the women.
Across the room, a Falleen pocketed a stash of Spice from his dealer like it was another day at work. They crept out hoping no-one had noticed.
The idle observations were to be cut short today though, as one of Aay'han's adopted uncles swung open the door and marched in as though he owned the place.
It was quite possible that he did, knowing him.
"Oi!" The exclamation rang out across the room. "Why do ye do this to me!?" The Ryn was explosively loud, though he had spent an hour looking for his niece and felt justification in his stressed mind.
The couples jerked away and slid past to gods only knew where. The Mandalorian was slightly disappointed to see them go, feeling she could have learnt more. At this point, half the bar looked up to watch the tiff, at least half of them hoping it would devolve into a brawl.
"I didn't do anything Uncle Kordath, you work yourself up all alone." A smile tugged at the girl's lips as she finished up the glass before it was taken from her.
"If ye bothered to answer your comm I'd not have te play this game with yer every karking day." His chiding went mostly unnoticed by the half Iridonian but she did deign to at least reply.
"Sera wants to train with me, I have half-an-hour before I need to get there."
"It's considered polite te’ at least acknowledge te’ messages ye receive yer know."
"If I turn up, I got the message." With a laugh she slid off the seat at the bar, slipping past her Uncle in a fluid motion of one who was exiting stage left rapidly. Kordath had no energy to argue further with his charge, knowing she would turn up now that he had forced her hand. Though before he left he gave the glass a curious sniff.
The herbal notes of plants and spicy roots hit his pallet hard but he gave an admiring sigh. His niece had good taste in wines it seemed. He ordered a bottle of it to take away and soothe his frayed nerves.
Twenty minutes later - Citadel Courtyard
In the height of the summer months, the air was always humid and warm. The blades of grass drank deeply, showing lush greens through the lawns of the courtyard. Contrasting sharply with the stone walls that marked the peripheral boundaries, it was a sign of good harvesting that would come in the next few months.
The non-existent breeze made everything feel stagnant, like walking through viscous fluid. The people were no exception, avoiding the outside as much as possible, though a few braved it to just get away from the indoor crowds.
Aay'han stalked around the walls watching and waiting for the Iridonian Battle Team Leader to show up. It was an exercise in patience for the young Mandalorian, who had very little regard for such things as appointments, meetings, or even orders which were a bit of a stretch if one were to be brutally honest.
Sera was nothing if not punctual. Aay'han was quite surprised by this, expecting that she wouldn't bother turning up since she had no reply from the latest recruit. The Warrior was not expecting the Mystic to actually contact the closest thing she had to relatives in Arconan space to get an idea of her habits though.
Hoping down from the wall, the younger Iridonian tried to remain behind the older, but it only worked for a certain distance. Before Aay'han knew it, she was face to face with Sera who watched her with big observing eyes.
"Aay'han, I haven't seen you in awhile..."She tried to make conversation but the Mandalorian was always suspicious of this tactic, depleting the space between them rapidly until it verged on invasion of space.
"Suuure." There were only two inches between the females so Aay'han didn't have to lean up very far to meet her Leader's eye. Sera on the other hand declined to back down to such a churlish tactic, standing her ground rigidly and unmoving for now.
"We were worried..." The word 'we' tugged at something. Rage was all the Mandalorian could feel. The Half-breed was no child in her own mind. Thoughts raced unable to be quashed down any longer.
Who was this stranger to say these things? How dare you worm yourself into my life!
The Warrior's thoughts were loud, practically screaming to any who had the gift of Telepathy. The Guardian worked hard to not flinch as her mind picked up these thoughts, a part of her hurt at the callousness, the other pitied the wretched child who had been left in the care of the Clan.
"Aay'han..." Sera's hand placed itself gently on the girl's shoulder, an attempt to offer comfort as a surge of loneliness assaulted her mind like an ocean wave caressing the shore.
This was a miscalculation on the Disciples part.
Aay'han's reflexes were swift and unyielding as she slapped her palm over her opponent's hand and yanked it away, twisting the wrist joint harshly as her boot lashed out at the woman's knee forcing it to buckle.
"I didn't give you permission." The words were hissed through clenched teeth as rage seethed under Aay'han's skin.
This had not been completely unexpected on Sera's part. She had done her research on the little one beforehand. She had reached out to Skar and Kordath particularly as the Students of her mother. They had both forewarned her of Aay'han's explosive temper as well as her heritage.
The older woman stood calmly. Shoving the Sith away with her free hand using some force, watching as the Mandalorian instinctually readied herself for the next blow.
Sera gave very little reprieve to her, swiftly clearing the distance yet again wishing to test the new recruit and see just how competent she was. Her fist clenched and lashed out no sooner as the Mystic was close enough to land the blow.
Having had time to read her opponent's body language it didn't take much for the Mandalorian to side step the fist that aimed to her face. Though she had not expected Sera to grasp at the matted strands of braided hair and yank it down ripping hair from the root. The sharp sting only added fuel to the Sith’s rage.
A boot lashed out aiming firmly at the Guardian's core with brutal efficiency. It dislodged the woman, knocking the wind from her lungs with a wheeze as she took a step backwards to keep her balance.
It wasn't long before Sera was back on the balls of her feet and rapidly closing the distance once more. An agile volley of blows thrown forced Aay'han to keep her guard up to protect vulnerable areas.
Thus far the Mystic had been playing, but now it was time to see exactly what this recruit was capable of.
