- Joined
- Nov 3, 2015
- Messages
- 171
- Reaction score
- 40
*Trying out a different type of literary profile with this character, I'd appreciate any feedback. I'm sure I've missed things or mixed up things as most of this was done late at night.*
"Gender? Really? That's not obvious enough?"
"Right, because whoever sees this wouldn't be able to tell..." *sigh* "...whatever. My name is A-yell-ah, A-E-L-L-A, Ko-reh, K-O-R-E, Fett; with two tees. I'm thirty-four standard years old and yes, I'm a woman."
"That's because I'm only part human, well, I am human but half of me is a different kind of human. My father was a Corellian and my mother was a Ragithian, she's where my, err, 'size' comes from."
"Larger, actually. I have no idea how long ago but apparently the humans that moved to Ragith Three underwent extensive genetic modification to adapt to the planet's high gravity, becoming musclebound 'giants' essentially. Something like more bulky Null I guess. Anyway, Dad was quite the small fry compared to Mom and I landed somewhere in the middle."
"I'm six-nine, or just under two-hundred and six centimeters depending on what system you use. And just so you don't have to ask I weight about two-hundred-fifty-eight pounds; hundred-seventeen kilos."
"Thanks, I think. There's a lot of muscle under these curves."
"Ya know, just because my last name is Fett doesn't mean I'm a mercenary... Buuuut yes, yes I am. Though I'd say I'm more of a part-time mercenary, part-time thrill seeker, part-time volunteer instructor, and part-time vivacious bar crawler; gotta have some fun every now and then."
"That's the one that stuck out to you? Okay... Yeah, volunteer instructor. Lets just say I'm affiliated with certain Mandalorian factions and I happen to be a rather skilled fighter, that and I know how to repair and maintain most types of equipment we use. Those abilities are valuable and should be passed on to the next generation of Mandalorians."
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"Well, I'm not exactly certain on the pound for pound specifics but when I've had a few too many drinks I like to find the biggest person I can and challenge them to a wrestling match. I have quite a few fuzzy memories of grappling with Wookies and Gammoreans in my skivvies and coming out on top... Err, why are you looking at me like that? Oh! No no no, not like that! Bleh, too hairy and too ugly. The sore losers usually try and claim that I used a muscle suit to win, soooo after a few more drinks I tend to strip down for another round to prove them wrong."
"Yep, plus I don't trust powered suits. If I can't carry it myself I don't deserve to carry it. Not to mention it probably helps that my parents trained me on Ragith Three most of the time, building muscle and stamina in high gravity makes working in 'normal' gravity a breeze."
"Certainly, but Ragithians are built to get around in it. I may only be half Ragithian but my body is still built to sprint, leap, and climb my way through heavy gravity; and to take some rather heavy blows for that matter. I doubt the Ragithians would've survived long if their bodies were as fragile as normal humans, falling in high gravity hurts. Our bodies are denser and tougher due to the genetic engineering, which is why we're usually heavier than we look."
"That's true, though with my more petite build it tends to transfer a bit better. Yes, I'm petite for a Ragithian. I'm actually surprisingly nimble for my size, the problem with my added weight is that without ideal traction it's harder for me to change my direction when I'm running and when I jump I'm going to land pretty hard; not exactly good for stealth as you can imagine. It's why I have a five-point propulsion system rather than just the single jetpack you see some bounty hunters with."
"Yep. The jetpack is one; I have additional jets built into my boots, two and three; then the flamethrowers I have built into my arm-guards can be swapped to a more propulsive less roast everything mode, four and five. The five points allow for much more acute control over my body while in the air or under water, though general flight is handled by the jetpack alone. I had to make sure all the jets were rated for underwater use, Ragithian density means we sink pretty damn fast in normal gravity."
"Short answer, neural collar. It took me a while to find an EMP resistant one, or two rather, but it sure as hell comes in handy. I also have a secondary verbal command system and a tertiary manual one."
"A custom set of mine that I've tweaked and upgraded over the years. I started off with a basic Aliit'Gam base; added some flamethrowers and holdout blasters to my arm-guards; then the extra jets on my boots; the second collar as a backup; got a repulsor belt; got myself a pretty good personal particle shield generator; and replaced my arm-guards, boots, shin-guards, and knee guards with a beskar alloy set. After the whole civil war and cluster-frack with the Empire thing I managed to score a MUNIN upgrade through some work with the Confederacy; tore apart some spare Vagabond pieces to replace my durasteel with matrix plating; attached a shoulder-launched miniature guided missile housing to the right side of my jetpack; and incorporated the launch-able blades from my mom's old beskar Tal'galar into my arm-guards as retractable forearm blades. Damn I love those blades. I used two per arm-guard with a locking dual protrusion system along the outer side of the guards. They sit side by side within the housing and when activated extend in opposite directions and away from the arm a few inches, locking into a single blade that runs six inches past my fist to a few inches past my elbow; pretty much turning my arms into axes."
"Yep. I love working on my gear, if you couldn't tell." *audible laughter*
"I do actually. Truth is while I love fire, probably a bit too much, and I enjoy melee combat, again probably a bit too much, I'm also a pretty good marksman, not the best or the quickest but still pretty damn good if I say so myself, and I regularly use a few different types of grenades and mines. My favorite gun has to be the Shoki, a heavy blaster rifle that shoots explosive beams? Yes please! I've even got an under barrel launcher attachment for the various grenades I use. I also have a Hiraku with an under barrel stun-gun and a Firestorm, because what self respecting pyro wouldn't?"
"Typically EMP's, thermals, frags, flash-bangs, and glop. I also carry a couple sticky trackers I can launch with my shoki, thorium breach charges, det-tape, and some tripwire to rig up long-term traps. Proximity sensors and light curtains are wonderful but their power source only lasts so long."
"Well, I was born and raised Mandalorian rather than joining later in life; my training started very young. I was lucky enough to have parents that specialized in different areas of combat. Mom was big on melee combat while Dad preferred range, stealth, and setting traps. Mom was also an armor and shield tech while Dad maintained the weaponry. The only lessons of theirs that didn't really stick involved farming."
"Ehh, it's a Fett thing."
"I do, it's a H-Seven Thity-Three-'O'-Three with some added flare and chaff systems for defensive countermeasures, as well as a handful of droids to keep things running smooth. I turned one of the spare quarters into a prisoner containment area for those live bounties and another into a med bay."
"Oh, I've got a Zee-Thirteen speeder for land transport."
"I've got a stationary medical droid in the med bay, well, it's limited to the room at least; a heavy labor droid to help with any cargo I might have; and two Arr-Nine astromechs."
"Well Red, I call them by color, never leaves the ship; handles the more 'techy' maintenance jobs, I'm good with physical repairs but not all that great with the computer systems; acts as co-pilot, or pilot while I'm not on-board; and is responsible for any on-board cybernetic offensive or defensive measures we might need. I outfitted Blue to be my in-field assistant, though Blue helps Red around the ship when I can't use em due to terrain issues and whatnot. Anyway, I gave Blue heavier armor; a mediocre ray shield generator; a flamethrower, because I love fire ya know; a stun prod; a heavy blaster with enough power for about seven shots before it needs another power cell; upgraded his jets to keep up with mine; and a grenade launcher, though he can only hold three rounds at a time. Despite the armaments I mainly use Blue to help with slicing and decoding while boarding craft or in city settings, that and reinforcing my connection to the ship."
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"Me? Haven't we been talking about me this entire time?"
*Heavy Sigh* "Fine. I was born on Concord Dawn, Nine-Eighty-Nine A-B-Y if you can't do the math. As I said before both of my parents were clan Fett..."
"Ba'jur bal beskar'gam... ara'nov, aliit... Mando'a, Mand'alor. An vencuyan mhi." *Sigh* "It's been a while since I've said that out loud."
"Ah, right. You don't speak Mando'a. 'Education and armor... self-defense, our tribe... our language, our leader. All help us survive.' That is our Resol'nare, our Six Actions, the tenets that form the very foundation of our culture. We who are born Mando'ade are raised with these tenets at heart, those who join us later in life must learn them before anything else, I was no exception. My childhood was rather peaceful compared to what most people think of when they hear the word Mandalorian, we are warriors by nature but we're not brutes. Well, most of us aren't at least. As a little girl I spent most of my time watching and helping my parents around the homestead. My parents may have been warriors but in times of peace they were farmers and hunters. I learned how to live off of the land; how to hunt and trap game; how to repair our tools and equipment; how to erect and maintain a vheh'yaim, one of our traditional dwellings; and in our spare time, how to fight."
"That began when I was a little older, when I turned eight and I started to grow into my, err, Ragithian body. It was the prelude to my coming of age, the five years of martial and survival training that would prepare me for the verd'goten, our right of passage into adulthood. My mother chose her home planet as the setting, she believed that if she could teach me to fight and survive in the high gravity despite being only half Ragithian then I would be able to thrive in lower gravity like she did, perhaps even more so."
"Oh, it was. Very much so. Most of the first year I struggled just to get around the terrain with my gear, but I gradually became accustomed to it. I could feel my body adapting to the terrain as if I were meant to be there, well, I'm not sure if I actually felt it but that's how I remember it anyhow. After a few years I was well acclimated. Sure I was smaller and physically weaker than most pure-blooded Ragithian but I was quicker and more agile. Bladework and hand to hand combat came naturally to me, much like my mother, and I turned out to be a fairly good shot. Dad would occasionally stop by and teach me more about long range combat, tracking, and trapping. He needed a muscle suit to stay on planet though and the heavier atmo prevented him from staying for extended periods of time. After five years of training on Ragith Three I felt stronger and quicker than I ever did on Concord Dawn; I could move around just as easily if not more so. The reality of just how much that training had affected me wouldn't set in until I returned home. I felt so light, so quick, and so strong... it was surreal. Getting used to the thinner atmo took a little while, not to mention our whole issue with swimming. Hell, I had to undergo special training just to keep my body in check." *Audible laughter*
"Verd'goten, and yes, immensely. At least in the physical aspects of the trial. Shooting, tracking, and the like are generally the same regardless of gravity, you just have to account for the clime and the wind. For my trial I had to successfully track and... confront another member of Clan Fett in the wilderness."
"Attempt to capture. The chosen target is instructed to take it easy but considering they generally have far more experience victory for the child isn't necessary, the child simply has to prove themselves worthy of passage in the eyes of the target."
"Not always. Every clan does things differently, as does every tribe within that clan. For me it was a 'man-hunt', for others it could be a beast hunt, a tournament, or just a series of challenges set up by their family. Regardless of how it's done all who pass are considered adults from there on out."
"Good. I managed to track my target down just fine, though I'm sure he could tell I was close to him a few times. When the time came to spring my trap he managed to evade my tripwires and a pitfall I dug but he didn't anticipate just how strong I'd become. I actually managed to overpower him physically and legitimately back him into a corner, though in the end he managed to turn the tables and pin me down. I still managed to impress him and everyone else in our tribe that heard him tell the story, then we all drank in celebration of my passage."
"Well, yes. I was an adult and an equal in all rights, the right to alcohol included."
"Like many other Mandalorian girls I'd imagine. I started to accompany some of my closer tribesman on off-planet work; the occasional mercenary job or bounty hunt. Since I was now an adult and approaching marriageable age, which is generally considered sixteen in our culture, my mom started to teach me the general duties of females in Mandalorian society. Though the only difference from males is that we were expected to be able to cook and care for children while our mate was away in addition to being able to fight."
"Oh? I suppose it could to an aruetyc, non-mandalorian. You see, the position of raising the next generation of Mando'ade and ensuring your family's health is a highly respected one. It is considered just as, if not more, important than being a warrior. Not to mention that females were also expected to be warriors and fight alongside the men if there were no children to care for. Of course that didn't mean men couldn't fill the same roles of family cook and dedicated parent, and they quite often did. There is no gender bias in our culture."
*Loud audible laughter* "Frack no!" *less audible laughter*
"Well, it certainly wasn't for a lack of suitors. Since skill and strength in a woman is 'hot' for us every man, and a few women, worth their weight in our tribe practically lined up for the honor, and some of them were rather tempting. The problem was that as a teen, and now for that matter, I loved life and freedom too much to tie myself to one individual like that. Even if 'adultery', as most call is, isn't so much of an issue in our culture as long as any offspring from said act are raised as one of their own I simply didn't want to break someone's heart. My parents respected my desires to stay single, though that didn't stop them from trying to find me a good suitor every now and then. Who knows, maybe I'll find the desire to actually stick with someone one day."
"Damn right. Through my mid to late teens I would spend a few years off and on training on Ragith Three and eventually I started doing my own mercenary work. Bodyguard, escort, hunter, salvager, and the like. Long distance transportation was an issue though so I tended to do local jobs or jobs with their own transportation between hitching rides from fellow Mando. Practically all of the credits I earned went into upgrading my armor and getting better weapons, though I'd set aside a set amount from every job towards a ship of my own. This cycle repeated into my early twenties, and I could finally afford an H-Seven with an astromech co-pilot when I turned twenty-three. I had flown my parents' quite a bit so it didn't take long for me to get used to the controls. Once I did I was finally free to go just about wherever I wanted whenever I wanted and by twenty-four I had enough money to buy myself a few more droids and some more upgrades... Then the call came to rally in preparation for a blitz on the core worlds on the behalf of the Imperium."
"Yeah, I fought alongside my parents and the other warriors of my tribe, carving a path for the Imperium war machine with our fellow Mando'ade under Mandalore's guidance. The battles were bloody but we emerged victorious, though not without loss of our own. Still, even after losing many close friends and a leader I can't say a part of me didn't thoroughly enjoy it, and I gained my first real scars there. Got impaled through the left thigh with some shrapnel and a large burn on my back from my jetpack catching fire, ya know, the basic stuff. After the core worlds were in the hands of the Imperium we turned our sights to the Kuat Drive Yards. Had a fun time there too, lost some more friends though. Still drink to their memory, probably always will, just as I do for my parents..."
*sigh* "That's because it didn't... They were killed during the Mandalorian Fracture. Mom was killed during the Battle of Jaster's Reach alongside our leader Aliit'alor Vhett and most of our Clan. After that father and I sifted through the ashes and the corpses to find what memorabilia we could and aided what was left of our Clan in cremating our dead, but we didn't even have enough time to find solace in honoring their memory before the Sith began their firebombing campaign against us... Clan Fett didn't have enough people left to fend off the empire, but that didn't stop our eldest warriors from banding together with the other fractured clans and doing what they could while the youngest evacuated to carry on the memory of Clan Fett. I managed to escape Mandalorian space before the Sith blockaded it, but my father was one of the pilots that ran a suicidal diversion to make an opening. Watched his ship get taken out by an Imperium dreadnaught in the rear-view... After that I had enough of 'fighting the big fight', I simply wanted to enjoy what I could in life and stick to taking my doses of violence and action on a much smaller galactic scale."
"Pretty much. I am still Mando'ade, I desire to see our culture survive and am more than willing to pass what I know on to the next generation, but I do not wish to be drawn into any larger conflicts they back. I keep myself distant because I know that if I'm asked to fight alongside them as a fellow Mando'ade and for the survival of our culture I wouldn't be able to refuse. I've seen enough of my people die... Frack that was grim."
*Surprised and confused laughter* "What!?! My favorite cheese?" *more laughter* "You sure know how to lighten the mood. Well, lets see... I don't really have a favorite but I guess I prefer mild cheeses, especially the kinds with spicy herbs mixed in."
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Aella Fett
[fancybox4="http://i930.photobucket.com/albums/ad148/darkkon/Aella%201_zpsgnxn1vrd.jpg"]"Recorder set... Alright, why don't we start with the basics. Could you state your full name, age, and... gender for us?"
"Gender? Really? That's not obvious enough?"
"It's just for audio clarification."
"Right, because whoever sees this wouldn't be able to tell..." *sigh* "...whatever. My name is A-yell-ah, A-E-L-L-A, Ko-reh, K-O-R-E, Fett; with two tees. I'm thirty-four standard years old and yes, I'm a woman."
"I'm sorry, but even you have to admit your physique is rather... intimidating for most human women."
"That's because I'm only part human, well, I am human but half of me is a different kind of human. My father was a Corellian and my mother was a Ragithian, she's where my, err, 'size' comes from."
"Ragithian? Are they all around your size then?"
"Larger, actually. I have no idea how long ago but apparently the humans that moved to Ragith Three underwent extensive genetic modification to adapt to the planet's high gravity, becoming musclebound 'giants' essentially. Something like more bulky Null I guess. Anyway, Dad was quite the small fry compared to Mom and I landed somewhere in the middle."
So how, uh, tall are you exactly?
"I'm six-nine, or just under two-hundred and six centimeters depending on what system you use. And just so you don't have to ask I weight about two-hundred-fifty-eight pounds; hundred-seventeen kilos."
"Two-fifty-eight? You don't look that heavy.
"Thanks, I think. There's a lot of muscle under these curves."
"So..." *clears throat* "You said you were a Fett right? Are you by chance a mercenary?"
"Ya know, just because my last name is Fett doesn't mean I'm a mercenary... Buuuut yes, yes I am. Though I'd say I'm more of a part-time mercenary, part-time thrill seeker, part-time volunteer instructor, and part-time vivacious bar crawler; gotta have some fun every now and then."
"Volunteer Instructor?"
"That's the one that stuck out to you? Okay... Yeah, volunteer instructor. Lets just say I'm affiliated with certain Mandalorian factions and I happen to be a rather skilled fighter, that and I know how to repair and maintain most types of equipment we use. Those abilities are valuable and should be passed on to the next generation of Mandalorians."
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ASSETS
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"Why don't you tell me about some of your capabilities. As a mercenary that extra strength of yours must come in handy, just how strong would you say you are?"
"Well, I'm not exactly certain on the pound for pound specifics but when I've had a few too many drinks I like to find the biggest person I can and challenge them to a wrestling match. I have quite a few fuzzy memories of grappling with Wookies and Gammoreans in my skivvies and coming out on top... Err, why are you looking at me like that? Oh! No no no, not like that! Bleh, too hairy and too ugly. The sore losers usually try and claim that I used a muscle suit to win, soooo after a few more drinks I tend to strip down for another round to prove them wrong."
"I see... that's quite uh, impressive. I take it that means hauling your equipment around is rather easy then?"
"Yep, plus I don't trust powered suits. If I can't carry it myself I don't deserve to carry it. Not to mention it probably helps that my parents trained me on Ragith Three most of the time, building muscle and stamina in high gravity makes working in 'normal' gravity a breeze."
"But wouldn't the high gravity hamper your ability to get around?"
"Certainly, but Ragithians are built to get around in it. I may only be half Ragithian but my body is still built to sprint, leap, and climb my way through heavy gravity; and to take some rather heavy blows for that matter. I doubt the Ragithians would've survived long if their bodies were as fragile as normal humans, falling in high gravity hurts. Our bodies are denser and tougher due to the genetic engineering, which is why we're usually heavier than we look."
"How well does that translate to normal gravity though? Being denser must hamper your movement some."
"That's true, though with my more petite build it tends to transfer a bit better. Yes, I'm petite for a Ragithian. I'm actually surprisingly nimble for my size, the problem with my added weight is that without ideal traction it's harder for me to change my direction when I'm running and when I jump I'm going to land pretty hard; not exactly good for stealth as you can imagine. It's why I have a five-point propulsion system rather than just the single jetpack you see some bounty hunters with."
"Five-point?"
"Yep. The jetpack is one; I have additional jets built into my boots, two and three; then the flamethrowers I have built into my arm-guards can be swapped to a more propulsive less roast everything mode, four and five. The five points allow for much more acute control over my body while in the air or under water, though general flight is handled by the jetpack alone. I had to make sure all the jets were rated for underwater use, Ragithian density means we sink pretty damn fast in normal gravity."
"Wow, how do you manage to control all of that at the same time?"
"Short answer, neural collar. It took me a while to find an EMP resistant one, or two rather, but it sure as hell comes in handy. I also have a secondary verbal command system and a tertiary manual one."
"What sort of armor do you use?"
"A custom set of mine that I've tweaked and upgraded over the years. I started off with a basic Aliit'Gam base; added some flamethrowers and holdout blasters to my arm-guards; then the extra jets on my boots; the second collar as a backup; got a repulsor belt; got myself a pretty good personal particle shield generator; and replaced my arm-guards, boots, shin-guards, and knee guards with a beskar alloy set. After the whole civil war and cluster-frack with the Empire thing I managed to score a MUNIN upgrade through some work with the Confederacy; tore apart some spare Vagabond pieces to replace my durasteel with matrix plating; attached a shoulder-launched miniature guided missile housing to the right side of my jetpack; and incorporated the launch-able blades from my mom's old beskar Tal'galar into my arm-guards as retractable forearm blades. Damn I love those blades. I used two per arm-guard with a locking dual protrusion system along the outer side of the guards. They sit side by side within the housing and when activated extend in opposite directions and away from the arm a few inches, locking into a single blade that runs six inches past my fist to a few inches past my elbow; pretty much turning my arms into axes."
"Very impressive, and you did all of this yourself?"
"Yep. I love working on my gear, if you couldn't tell." *audible laughter*
"It certainly sounds like it. Aside from the missiles your weaponry seems to be geared towards close and mid range combat, do you use any long range weapons or other explosives or do you focus primarily on pyrotechnics and melee?"
"I do actually. Truth is while I love fire, probably a bit too much, and I enjoy melee combat, again probably a bit too much, I'm also a pretty good marksman, not the best or the quickest but still pretty damn good if I say so myself, and I regularly use a few different types of grenades and mines. My favorite gun has to be the Shoki, a heavy blaster rifle that shoots explosive beams? Yes please! I've even got an under barrel launcher attachment for the various grenades I use. I also have a Hiraku with an under barrel stun-gun and a Firestorm, because what self respecting pyro wouldn't?"
"You mentioned grenades and mines, which kinds do you usually use?"
"Typically EMP's, thermals, frags, flash-bangs, and glop. I also carry a couple sticky trackers I can launch with my shoki, thorium breach charges, det-tape, and some tripwire to rig up long-term traps. Proximity sensors and light curtains are wonderful but their power source only lasts so long."
"That's quite an arsenal, it must have taken quite a bit of training to get used to it all."
"Well, I was born and raised Mandalorian rather than joining later in life; my training started very young. I was lucky enough to have parents that specialized in different areas of combat. Mom was big on melee combat while Dad preferred range, stealth, and setting traps. Mom was also an armor and shield tech while Dad maintained the weaponry. The only lessons of theirs that didn't really stick involved farming."
"Farming?"
"Ehh, it's a Fett thing."
"Okaaay... moving on. What sort of transportation do you use? Do you have your own ship?"
"I do, it's a H-Seven Thity-Three-'O'-Three with some added flare and chaff systems for defensive countermeasures, as well as a handful of droids to keep things running smooth. I turned one of the spare quarters into a prisoner containment area for those live bounties and another into a med bay."
"What about on the ground? I can't imagine a jet-pack would have enough fuel to take you everywhere."
"Oh, I've got a Zee-Thirteen speeder for land transport."
"You mentioned droids, which do you have?"
"I've got a stationary medical droid in the med bay, well, it's limited to the room at least; a heavy labor droid to help with any cargo I might have; and two Arr-Nine astromechs."
"Two for that size of vessel?"
"Well Red, I call them by color, never leaves the ship; handles the more 'techy' maintenance jobs, I'm good with physical repairs but not all that great with the computer systems; acts as co-pilot, or pilot while I'm not on-board; and is responsible for any on-board cybernetic offensive or defensive measures we might need. I outfitted Blue to be my in-field assistant, though Blue helps Red around the ship when I can't use em due to terrain issues and whatnot. Anyway, I gave Blue heavier armor; a mediocre ray shield generator; a flamethrower, because I love fire ya know; a stun prod; a heavy blaster with enough power for about seven shots before it needs another power cell; upgraded his jets to keep up with mine; and a grenade launcher, though he can only hold three rounds at a time. Despite the armaments I mainly use Blue to help with slicing and decoding while boarding craft or in city settings, that and reinforcing my connection to the ship."
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BIOGRAPHY
[fancybox4="http://i930.photobucket.com/albums/ad148/darkkon/Aella%202_zpsctcsnccq.jpg"]"How about we talk about you for a little while."
"Me? Haven't we been talking about me this entire time?"
"Only what you own, what you can do, and a bit about what you look like but not who you are. Why don't we start at the beginning, where were you born? What was your childhood like?"
*Heavy Sigh* "Fine. I was born on Concord Dawn, Nine-Eighty-Nine A-B-Y if you can't do the math. As I said before both of my parents were clan Fett..."
"We don't have to..."
"Ba'jur bal beskar'gam... ara'nov, aliit... Mando'a, Mand'alor. An vencuyan mhi." *Sigh* "It's been a while since I've said that out loud."
"What does it mean?"
"Ah, right. You don't speak Mando'a. 'Education and armor... self-defense, our tribe... our language, our leader. All help us survive.' That is our Resol'nare, our Six Actions, the tenets that form the very foundation of our culture. We who are born Mando'ade are raised with these tenets at heart, those who join us later in life must learn them before anything else, I was no exception. My childhood was rather peaceful compared to what most people think of when they hear the word Mandalorian, we are warriors by nature but we're not brutes. Well, most of us aren't at least. As a little girl I spent most of my time watching and helping my parents around the homestead. My parents may have been warriors but in times of peace they were farmers and hunters. I learned how to live off of the land; how to hunt and trap game; how to repair our tools and equipment; how to erect and maintain a vheh'yaim, one of our traditional dwellings; and in our spare time, how to fight."
"You said your parents would take you to Ragith Three to train in high gravity, when did that start?"
"That began when I was a little older, when I turned eight and I started to grow into my, err, Ragithian body. It was the prelude to my coming of age, the five years of martial and survival training that would prepare me for the verd'goten, our right of passage into adulthood. My mother chose her home planet as the setting, she believed that if she could teach me to fight and survive in the high gravity despite being only half Ragithian then I would be able to thrive in lower gravity like she did, perhaps even more so."
"That must've been rather difficult after living on Concord Dawn for so long."
"Oh, it was. Very much so. Most of the first year I struggled just to get around the terrain with my gear, but I gradually became accustomed to it. I could feel my body adapting to the terrain as if I were meant to be there, well, I'm not sure if I actually felt it but that's how I remember it anyhow. After a few years I was well acclimated. Sure I was smaller and physically weaker than most pure-blooded Ragithian but I was quicker and more agile. Bladework and hand to hand combat came naturally to me, much like my mother, and I turned out to be a fairly good shot. Dad would occasionally stop by and teach me more about long range combat, tracking, and trapping. He needed a muscle suit to stay on planet though and the heavier atmo prevented him from staying for extended periods of time. After five years of training on Ragith Three I felt stronger and quicker than I ever did on Concord Dawn; I could move around just as easily if not more so. The reality of just how much that training had affected me wouldn't set in until I returned home. I felt so light, so quick, and so strong... it was surreal. Getting used to the thinner atmo took a little while, not to mention our whole issue with swimming. Hell, I had to undergo special training just to keep my body in check." *Audible laughter*
"Did it help you with your verd... vaerdgotin... your right of passage like your mother had hoped?"
"Verd'goten, and yes, immensely. At least in the physical aspects of the trial. Shooting, tracking, and the like are generally the same regardless of gravity, you just have to account for the clime and the wind. For my trial I had to successfully track and... confront another member of Clan Fett in the wilderness."
"Confront?"
"Attempt to capture. The chosen target is instructed to take it easy but considering they generally have far more experience victory for the child isn't necessary, the child simply has to prove themselves worthy of passage in the eyes of the target."
"So the Verd'goten is essentially a coming of age man-hunt?"
"Not always. Every clan does things differently, as does every tribe within that clan. For me it was a 'man-hunt', for others it could be a beast hunt, a tournament, or just a series of challenges set up by their family. Regardless of how it's done all who pass are considered adults from there on out."
"I see, so how did your trial go?"
"Good. I managed to track my target down just fine, though I'm sure he could tell I was close to him a few times. When the time came to spring my trap he managed to evade my tripwires and a pitfall I dug but he didn't anticipate just how strong I'd become. I actually managed to overpower him physically and legitimately back him into a corner, though in the end he managed to turn the tables and pin me down. I still managed to impress him and everyone else in our tribe that heard him tell the story, then we all drank in celebration of my passage."
"You drank at thirteen?"
"Well, yes. I was an adult and an equal in all rights, the right to alcohol included."
"I see, so how were things after that? What were your teens like?"
"Like many other Mandalorian girls I'd imagine. I started to accompany some of my closer tribesman on off-planet work; the occasional mercenary job or bounty hunt. Since I was now an adult and approaching marriageable age, which is generally considered sixteen in our culture, my mom started to teach me the general duties of females in Mandalorian society. Though the only difference from males is that we were expected to be able to cook and care for children while our mate was away in addition to being able to fight."
"That sounds... slightly sexist on the males part."
"Oh? I suppose it could to an aruetyc, non-mandalorian. You see, the position of raising the next generation of Mando'ade and ensuring your family's health is a highly respected one. It is considered just as, if not more, important than being a warrior. Not to mention that females were also expected to be warriors and fight alongside the men if there were no children to care for. Of course that didn't mean men couldn't fill the same roles of family cook and dedicated parent, and they quite often did. There is no gender bias in our culture."
"Interesting. Did you ever marry?"
*Loud audible laughter* "Frack no!" *less audible laughter*
"Why not? If you don't mind me asking."
"Well, it certainly wasn't for a lack of suitors. Since skill and strength in a woman is 'hot' for us every man, and a few women, worth their weight in our tribe practically lined up for the honor, and some of them were rather tempting. The problem was that as a teen, and now for that matter, I loved life and freedom too much to tie myself to one individual like that. Even if 'adultery', as most call is, isn't so much of an issue in our culture as long as any offspring from said act are raised as one of their own I simply didn't want to break someone's heart. My parents respected my desires to stay single, though that didn't stop them from trying to find me a good suitor every now and then. Who knows, maybe I'll find the desire to actually stick with someone one day."
"Without the demanding job of raising a child I bet you had a lot more time to train."
"Damn right. Through my mid to late teens I would spend a few years off and on training on Ragith Three and eventually I started doing my own mercenary work. Bodyguard, escort, hunter, salvager, and the like. Long distance transportation was an issue though so I tended to do local jobs or jobs with their own transportation between hitching rides from fellow Mando. Practically all of the credits I earned went into upgrading my armor and getting better weapons, though I'd set aside a set amount from every job towards a ship of my own. This cycle repeated into my early twenties, and I could finally afford an H-Seven with an astromech co-pilot when I turned twenty-three. I had flown my parents' quite a bit so it didn't take long for me to get used to the controls. Once I did I was finally free to go just about wherever I wanted whenever I wanted and by twenty-four I had enough money to buy myself a few more droids and some more upgrades... Then the call came to rally in preparation for a blitz on the core worlds on the behalf of the Imperium."
"You took part in the Core World Blitz of Ten-Thirteen?"
"Yeah, I fought alongside my parents and the other warriors of my tribe, carving a path for the Imperium war machine with our fellow Mando'ade under Mandalore's guidance. The battles were bloody but we emerged victorious, though not without loss of our own. Still, even after losing many close friends and a leader I can't say a part of me didn't thoroughly enjoy it, and I gained my first real scars there. Got impaled through the left thigh with some shrapnel and a large burn on my back from my jetpack catching fire, ya know, the basic stuff. After the core worlds were in the hands of the Imperium we turned our sights to the Kuat Drive Yards. Had a fun time there too, lost some more friends though. Still drink to their memory, probably always will, just as I do for my parents..."
"For what it's worth you have my sympathies. When did your parents die? You didn't mention it happening during the Core Blitz or the assault on Kuat Drive Yards."
*sigh* "That's because it didn't... They were killed during the Mandalorian Fracture. Mom was killed during the Battle of Jaster's Reach alongside our leader Aliit'alor Vhett and most of our Clan. After that father and I sifted through the ashes and the corpses to find what memorabilia we could and aided what was left of our Clan in cremating our dead, but we didn't even have enough time to find solace in honoring their memory before the Sith began their firebombing campaign against us... Clan Fett didn't have enough people left to fend off the empire, but that didn't stop our eldest warriors from banding together with the other fractured clans and doing what they could while the youngest evacuated to carry on the memory of Clan Fett. I managed to escape Mandalorian space before the Sith blockaded it, but my father was one of the pilots that ran a suicidal diversion to make an opening. Watched his ship get taken out by an Imperium dreadnaught in the rear-view... After that I had enough of 'fighting the big fight', I simply wanted to enjoy what I could in life and stick to taking my doses of violence and action on a much smaller galactic scale."
"Is that why you affiliated yourself with the Mandalorian factions that grew from the Fracture rather than outright joining them?"
"Pretty much. I am still Mando'ade, I desire to see our culture survive and am more than willing to pass what I know on to the next generation, but I do not wish to be drawn into any larger conflicts they back. I keep myself distant because I know that if I'm asked to fight alongside them as a fellow Mando'ade and for the survival of our culture I wouldn't be able to refuse. I've seen enough of my people die... Frack that was grim."
"I just have one more question for you. What's your favorite cheese?"
*Surprised and confused laughter* "What!?! My favorite cheese?" *more laughter* "You sure know how to lighten the mood. Well, lets see... I don't really have a favorite but I guess I prefer mild cheeses, especially the kinds with spicy herbs mixed in."
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