Ask I Don't Sympathise

[Wodan]

Corsin sat in the grey space between the Sith Empire and the Jedi Aligned Resistance, even though a ceasefire had been called between the Empire and the Jedi Order forces. This did not prevent either side from looking into the grey area between their respective spheres of influence. Corsin was of particular importance to the Empire due to its pre-established resistance to any peaceful overtures from the Sith.

Those paid much more than Wodan were concerned that due to its proximity to The Resistance, that the world would instead raise a blue flag instead of a red one. As such they had authorised an expedition to the planet to remove any anti-Sith/pro-Jedi sympathises from the planet. Allowing the ‘peaceful’ acquisition of Corsin into the Empire proper.

Wodan was a fair distance outside the planet’s primary spaceport, in the distance shuttles of all shapes and sizes could be seen descending from the clouds towards the port and city beyond. He wore his typical Imperial Armour and was equipped for battle; he expected that any contact with the sympathisers would probably turn hostile quickly. So had prepared for any kind of combat, be it up close and personal or at a distance.

“I would have assumed it would be more than just the two of us, considering the numbers reported.” He said looking over at the Tiefling next to him.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair didn’t feel great about this mission, but he always knew being Sith meant taking on unsavory jobs. He was waiting for Wodan ahead of time and the acolyte would notice he wasn’t wearing obvious Sith armor. Instead, he was dressed as a poor civilian or some sort of agriculture worker. Truthfully, this was much closer to his roots but with a far more sinister twist.

He glanced up from his datapad when Wodan arrived. The acolyte was dressed in uniform as expected - acolytes sometimes didn’t get the full brief on these types of missions. For a moment Altair simply stared at him, wondering if he would be able to stomach this or jeopardize everything. The tiefling didn’t feel great about it and he was a Champion.

“What, you ain’t got faith in us?” Altair cracked a grin and answered. Wodan would immediately notice that his smile didn’t exactly reach his eyes. The Firrerreo had spent enough time around him to pick up on subtle cues. Altair put the datapad away for now, “How you been? You and that Arla chick a thing now?” He asked with a playful wink. He recalled Wodan getting rather lucky on the yacht even though the follow up was disastrous.

Altair looked over at Wodan again, pointing to a makeshift campsite set up nearby, “Go inside and get changed. We ain’t supposed to look officially Sith for this one,” He said, though he didn’t entirely reveal the full extent of the mission yet, “We’re gonna be posing as resistance civilians. Up ahead is their base even though it looks like a regular village. This means we gotta gain their trust. I’m posing as a farmer, but you can choose from several identities - steel worker, cook or maintenance worker. It’s gotta be non combat because our mission requires us to get access to their infrastructure. Got a preference?”

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

It was strange seeing the Tiefling dressed as an ordinary person, the yacht party excluded. “I just thought there would be more of us.” He replied, setting his small pack down near the centre of the little campsite the Tiefling had set up. Altair had a good grasp of the outdoors and the immaculate campsite was proof, everything was placed for efficiency, tent, chairs, cooking instruments, firewood. Looking round at the campsite he missed the obvious cue in the Tiefling’s eyes, the Firrerrian continuing on oblivious to what was ahead of him.

“Haven’t had the chance to see her since.” They had both seemingly been busy since, though he cannot deny Arla had crept back into his mind more than once as he travelled the galaxy. Wodan gave Altair a weird look when he was told to change, he hadn’t heard anything about them going undercover? It also didn’t make any sense, they knew where the Pro-Jedi Resistance was, they could just eliminate them easily with numbers, infiltration seemed a waste of time and risk to both their lives, they could easily avoid with a platoon of blasters.

After a moment of hesitation however he shrugged, Altair knew what he was doing, the Tiefling hadn’t led him array yet. Ducking inside the tent, he spotted the different sets of clothes set out by the Champion. If they were to succeed he would need to choose wisely, Wodan could burn spaghetti, so the cook wasn’t an option. Maintenance worker meant he would need to have some mental knowledge he couldn’t make up on the fly. Steel worker seemed the best option, it was more physical than the others which maybe didn’t one hundred percent fit his frame. But it didn’t require as much in depth knowledge like the others.

Picking up the clothes, he went through the awkward procedure of changing out of his armour and into the civilian clothes within the small confines of the tent. Sticking his head out of the tent halfway through he looked up at the Tiefling. “How about you, both Master Tiamat and Vahliri were clinging to you most of that night. Seen either of them since?” He said, raising his eyebrows, before popping back inside to complete the outfit change.

A minute or so later he exited the tent, pulling on the beaten up boots provided for all three outfits. “I am assuming they will search us. So no weapons then?”

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair chuckled at Wodan’s question, “I saw ‘em. But I ain’t trynna do the whole relationship thing,” He said as Wodan ducked back into the tent. After a moment the Firrerreo emerged and Altair couldn’t help but laugh a bit.

“You’re way too pretty to pull off that look,” He scoffed, shaking his head, “Should wipe some dirt on your face to really fit in,” Altair grinned as he picked up a shovel, “No weapons except for shit that fits within your job description,” He tilted his head towards the shovel that could leave a decent dent on someone’s head with enough force.

“You got your little bio card memorized? I’m Al the vegetable farmer,” He said as he began making his way over towards the base, “We’re both comin’ back from the city with supplies,” He pointed to the preloaded cart with general goods and trade tools, “Don’t let any of ‘em catch on that you some kinda prince, got it? Work on your accent a bit, it sounds too posh right now.”

Altair hopped into the slightly janky speeder they were provided. Once Wodan hopped in, he began to make his way over towards the town. He couldn’t help but admire the fields and rows of corn he saw as he drove, “This ain’t so different from where I’m from,” Altair explained as he looked around, “We been living on the same homestead with a huge farm for generations. Belongs to Ma and Pa now, and before that it was my grandparents and their parents and so on,” He gazed over at Wodan, “But you prolly don’t know about all that. Prolly had someone around to wipe your ass for you, eh?” He asked with a smirk as he nudged Wodan.

After a while, they finally arrived near the village. Altair got out of the speeder and dragged the cart over towards the entrance. There was a ‘guard’ of sorts with a spear. He was checking things off on a datapad. He eyed Altair and Wodan for a moment.

“Evenin’,” Altair said, “Checkin’ in with some produce seeds and drill bits from the city,” He explained, gesturing to Wodan. The guard eyed Altair suspiciously, but he knew it was because of the horns. He then looked over at Wodan before circling around to check the cart. The man looked at Wodan, “What’d you say your name was?” He looked down at his datapad, “Weren’t you due back an hour ago?”

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

Wodan furrowed his eyebrows about the pretty boi comment. It was funny coming from the guy who constantly had women dangling off his overly chiselled physique, but he relented. Digging his hands into some loose soil nearby, he rubbed it into both hands, coating his fingernails, before rubbing his hands down his overalls. Once his hands were ‘clean’ he would go about touching his forehead, cheeks, running his hands through his hair. All natural movements which would slowly dirty the Firrerrian noble on their way to the village.

A steel worker wouldn’t carry much, all his tools would be at the shop. So he was left with just a small bag which carried his lunchbox, some credits, a holo and his ID. “I gess, I shud copy you, then.” He replied in an overly dramatised version of Altair’s own accent with a giant smirk on his face. Hopping into the busted up speeder next to Tiefling he pulled out his ID to give it another once over.

“George, a refugee ov’course, higher ups can’t thing much more of us it seems.” He said, flashing his fangs in the Tiefling’s direction. Wodan stared out into the fields as they made their way up and down the shallow slopes of the fields. “Hard to find someone to wipe your ass, when your near entire family was blown to smithereens and you are bouncing from refugee to refugee camp. But luckily I picked up a few things from the maids before then. So it's nice and clean, thanks for asking.” Wodan replied with a sarcastic tone to hide the real sadness and anger at the situation he grew up in. Pretty much all the pomp and circumstance Wodan created around himself was fake, his true rank and prestige was destroyed years ago by Raze. What existed now was a memory of what it once was, a memory he wouldn’t let die.

Wodan felt a bit bad that his sarcastic remark seemed to end the conversation, but before he could say anything more they were approaching the gates to the village. Wodan tried not to stare at the man, relaxing his head back on the headrest trying to act as nonchalant as possible. “George, Al’s given me a ride in.” He replied pulling himself up right. “Yea, but Al here drives like an ol’lady, seen bantha’s move quicker than his ass.”

The comment produced a chuckle from the guard, who after checking his pad once more waved them through. Wodan grabbed one side of the handle of the cart allowing them an easier time up the slope into the village proper. “Grain store is over there.” He stuck his chin out in its direction Wodan had learned the key locations in the city as he planned his imaginary assault. Dropping his voice as they entered a part of the street with no passers by he moved closer to Altair. “Now what?”

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair gave him an unamused stare as Wodan mocked his accent, “Yeah, yeah, that’s what you’d sound like with my dick in your mouth,” He fired back while rolling his eyes. However the grin on his face suggested he found antics entertaining. The mood shifted rather quickly as Wodan jumped to mentioning the Firrerre glassing. He had that annoying habit of doing that the second any conversation about past lives were mentioned and Altair never knew how to react. The tiefling stayed silent, focusing on driving and letting Wodan stew in his own decision to bomb a lighthearted conversation. However, the sentiment stuck with Altair and he’d file it away for now.

At the gates, he had to bite back a grin as Wodan flawlessly eased into his role. He walked with the Firrerreo, glancing over to see if anyone was listening. He grasped Wodan by the arm and ducked into a side alley. Altair looked around a few times before looking at the acolyte again, “Aight listen,” He said barely above a whisper, his gaze fixed on Wodan’s, “The mission…it ain’t like the usual ones. We’re supposed to poison the water and foodstores to rile up some chaos and plant seeds of doubt against the planet locals,” He waited to see his reaction before he continued, “If you can’t stomach it, I need to know now,” Altair eyed him for a moment, “That stuff you always bring up about your home planet…it’s like it nags at you all the time. It’s like you ain’t even in this or the Sith. And if you ain’t, then you need to get out while you’re still just an acolyte. This shit only gets tougher from here on out. If you’re here for some revenge shit or to infiltrate from the inside, it ain’t gonna work out how you want,” He placed a hand on Wodan’s shoulder, “Just…pick a side and stick with it. If you’d rather be a Jedi, now’s the time to bail,” Altair’s face fell slightly and he knew the words he spoke could be considered treasonous. However, he had always been honest with the Firrerreo and that wouldn’t change now.

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

Wodan was caught by surprise as Altair yanked him into the side alley, almost slipping the muck and filth that flowed through the village’s streets. He was about to throw out a snarky remark when he saw the look on the Tiefling’s face, shit something was right. His own face quickly changed from cheerful to blank, waiting for whatever the Champion had in store for him.

Poison, that was, difficult to stomach for the Acolyte, the blank expression turned to confusion and anger. Poison, wasn’t discriminatory in who it targeted, if they went after the water supplies, hundreds would suffer, not only the Pro-Jedi rebels, but also the parnters and children pulled along by their foolish other-halfs. Wodan couldn’t look the Tiefling in the eye, pulling his gaze away from the man and looking down into the gutter. Was Altair ok with innocents suffering, dieing? Wodan thought he knew the man better than that, the jolly fun filled Tiefling seemed miles above the muder of babies.

He gritted his teeth, lips pulling back revealing fangs beneath them. “If your Ma and Pa were murdered by a tyrant wouldn’t you want revenge?” He spat back, shrugging off the Tiefling’s hand. Any of the goodwill and kindness in Altair’s words were completely lost on the Firrerrian. Turning away from the Champion, Wodan brushed past the man and began walking down the alleyway he had been pulled into.

Rage and anger filled him as he stalked away, though at that moment he couldn’t tell if it was pointed at Altair or himself.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair’s nostrils flared as Wodan stormed past him. The tiefling didn’t chase after him right then, but he called out loud enough so he could hear, “I would join the side that openly fights against those that killed my parents instead of hidin’ like a rat and pretending to be something I ain’t,” He stated flatly. He turned to look at the Firrerreo, his face grim and serious.

“Don’t be pissed at me for spittin’ some truth,” Altair said as he glared at Wodan, “Most Champions would mount your fuckin’ head on a pike for your shit. I’m telling you to get the fuck out,” He started walking towards the Firrerreo, though he channeled the Force in case Wodan lashed out, “War is war. The Jedi resistance does the same kind of shit like this mission so don’t think it ain’t ugly on all sides. If you wanna be away from it all, go be an accountant or steel worker and choose to turn a blind eye to the war. But don’t for one second be in this to stab me and other Sith in the back later like a fucking coward. Try and kill me on the battlefield with your head held high if that’s your goal.”

His tail swished back and forth in irritation and it was clear Altair would fight him right there if he escalated things further. He would also interject if Wodan attempted to jeopardize or blow this mission, “If you want out, leave peacefully and I’ll finish the job myself.”

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

Wodan stopped in the street, why couldn’t Altair just leave him to think, no instead he had to continue on, throwing insults on top of it all. Turning on the spot he held out his arms, flashes of anger could be seen on his face. “Ha, you think the fucking Jedi stand a chance. If so, you're deluded. Either that or fucking one got to your brain.” He spat back.

“Also what shit? Taking a fucking moment to think about a mission? Not all of us were born a thick headed hillbilly who shouts Yes, Sir, No, Sit, three bags full, Sir. Also I am pretty sure any Master worth their lot would have your head on a pike for fucking the Enemy!” Wodan pulled The Force inside himself, he wasn’t stupid enough to think his words wouldn’t bring some kind of physical backlash from the Champion. Luckily the torrent of emotions flowing inside the Firrerrian allowed him to pull on the Dark Side with ease. “Don’t be pissed at me for spitting the truth.” He continued putting added emphasis on the G in spitting.

“Who said I wanted to stab you in the back you fucking fool. I trust you, look up to you. I wanted you by my side, not standing across the bloody field.” Wodan’s emotions were running high, his fangs were barred and a deep growl was flowing from his chest.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair had mostly kept his composure, but Wodan’s accusations began to cut through him. It wasn’t because of the words alone, but because they came from him. They came from someone he had trusted, someone he began to see as a true friend for the first time since he had lost Cairo. And it all blew up in his face just like anytime he had opened his heart to a woman. The tiefling’s chest began to rise and fall as he tried to keep his fury in check, but the tip of his tail flicked back and forth to betray his rage. His fingers curled into fists. All he heard was the way Wodan spat his words and spoke of fucking the enemy. As if she were some common cantina whore. As if she was someone to screw and forget like Wodan had done with Arla.

“Take that back,” Altair said through gritted teeth as he met Wodan’s gaze. He walked towards the other man, his rage pulsing through him, “Take it back,” He said again, his tone low and dangerous as he quickly closed the distance.

Without warning, he whirled in with his fist out of the blue to collide with Wodan’s jaw. It was only out of considering the man a friend that it wasn’t imbued with the Force or enough power to shatter the jaw to bits and remove it from his skull. And Wodan would know that. Altair wouldn’t stop there, his jab followed with a cross punch. He would slam the Firrerreo into the wall behind him and rain blows on him until stopped.

“TAKE IT BACK!” He screamed in Wodan’s face, “I swore to serve a regime and my loyalty doesn’t change with the wind. I know what I am. I chose a side and I’ll stick with it,” He threw another punch, “I’ll never apologize for it. I stick to my principles cuz I'm a man, not a sniveling fucking worm like you,” He glared at Wodan, the purple hues of his eyes glinting with murder, “She may not be in my life no more, but I will fucking destroy you if you speak of her like that ever again. Do you hear me?”

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

He had struck a nerve, the demeanour in the Tiefling had switched and now he was advancing on Wodan with the eyes of a killer. Fear filled Wodan’s heart for a moment and in that same moment he wanted to turn tail and run. But the anger and rage from before still flowed through his veins, so he perhaps foolishly stood his ground, a smug look purposefully plastered on his face as Altair demand he take back his words.

Perhaps too smug as he missed the punch, Altair’s fist slamming into the side of his face. It hurt, god damn it hurt, but it did not have the true power of the Champion behind it. Wodan had seen Altair smash steel and concrete with his fists before, the fool was going easy on him.

The back of his head smashed against the concrete wall as Altair slammed him up against it. Wodan covered up for a moment, blocking a few of the blows towards his face but leaving his body open for a few more shots whilst Altair screamed in his face. Everything was coming together, every emotional twist and turn the Firrerian had seen Altair experience over the past few months was because of this Jedi. Clove was her name, did she even understand what she had put him through? She had so many times turned this vicious killer into a beaten puppy with just a mention.

Another insult cut into the Firrerrian’s pride like a knife. Pulling The Force inside him he channelled it into his body before thrusting out with a single kick straight to the Tiefling’s midsection. Sending him flying backwards into the wall opposite. Wodan was no match to Altair physically, the Tiefling was born on a farm where physical labour had been his entire life. The man had more muscle in his legs than half the Sith Acolyte’s Wodan had ever met had in their entire body, The Force was the only way to level the playing field.

Pulling himself off the wall he spat a mouthful of phlegm and blood into the gutter. “I am not the one who labelled her Altair, I am just saying the words of your precious little regime you so loyally serve.” He said mockingly. “A pathetic regime which murders with one hand whilst preaching peace with the other. Cries foul and sends help to the poisoned Mon Calamari whilst poisoning their own enemies a moment later. If I don’t know what I am, fuck knows what the Empire thinks it is.” His teeth were coated with blood, a crimson grin as he spoke, looking down on the Tiefling. “Your the snivelling fucking worm Altair, bowing down to these half baked leaders who couldn’t lace even lace your or my boots. They forced her away, you know that right, their petty little war with the Jedi.”

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair was too blinded by rage to see the kick coming, and it sent him flying back into the opposite wall with a loud thud. His horns scraped against it to leave marks and he felt pain course through his entire torso since Force was used. The tiefling was about to launch more attacks, this time using his actual Matukai methods, but he paused to stare at Wodan’s bloody face. He glared at the other man, tail still flicking dangerously in irritation.

“What happened with her is on me and no one else. Nothin’ else. I never shoulda let my walls down and I own that,” Altair said after a moment, not entirely sure whether he believed that or not. Not like it mattered anymore, “The Empire promises stability, not sunshine and kittens. And it’ll do what it must when it’s in a war. Resistance fighters ambushed me on a Sith planet while I was out on regular patrol duty. They were gonna saw off my horns, cut off my tail and keep parts of me as a god damn trophy. You know who bailed me out? The Sith. All sides have blood on their hands."

The tiefling was calmer now, exhaling softly as he continued to stare at Wodan, “If you don’t believe it in it, then leave, Wodan. You’d be no different than all the other wimpy Sith that can’t face the realities of war and run with their tails between their legs to join the Jedi kumbaya circle. Look where it’s gotten them. And the Resistance? They ain’t no different than the Sith. So again, pick your poison instead of standing there bitching about the regime that took from you but also trained you and fed you. You can mope and cry about your planet and let that be the entirety of your being, or you can become a better Sith and help change the empire from the inside."

He gave a hollow laugh, “I may bow today, but even the Empress started off bowing.”

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

Wodan continued to instinctively growl in the direction of the Tiefling, even though the man didn’t attack him straight away. Wodan was not foolish enough to fully let his guard down around the man. “Don’t lie to me like you lie to yourself Altair. Are you telling me if either of you didn’t have the threat of execution over your heads for fraternising you wouldn’t be on some sunshine world making babies?”

The fact that the Tiefling didn’t move to attack him again was even more infuriating than being attacked himself. The animalistic side of Wodan’s blood began to surface as he started to prowl in the small alleyway, moving back and forth as he looked down at the Tiefling. So much of him wanted to lash out at the man, a torrent of lightning, a maelstrom of pain, just something to wipe that calm look off his face. Wodan was mad, furious, he wanted Altair to feel the same. His mouth opened for a second, Clove’s name was on the tip of his tongue, but he stopped, why? It wasn’t fear of what Altair might do to Wodan physically, no the stupid fool was worried about what it might do to Altair mentality. Through all this rage, anger, fists and coarse words he still liked and respected the horned idiot.

“No, I don’t believe in this half baked Empire, no!” Through the red mist Wodan began to see things more clearly, Altair’s words, if brutal, were effective in making him realise at least one thing today. A smile, sadistic in nature crawled across his face as he continued. “But I’m not leaving, I may hate the way it's run and the people who run it. They make me sick more often than not. But I’m not like you Altair. I don’t run away from things I want.”

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair scoffed bitterly at Wodan’s words, “There ain’t no threat cuz she ain’t Jedi no more. If I ran from things I wanted, I wouldn’t keep getting fucked over and bearing the cost of it. It don’t matter. It was another reminder that people you think you can trust end up turning on you in the end,” He looked him hard right in the eye, “Like you’re doing to me now, Wodan,” He stated flatly, his tone cutting like ice daggers.

The tiefling coughed a bit from the hit to his torso. He was sure he had a few bruised ribs, but it was nothing compared to the hurt he put on Wodan. The Firrerreo’s clothes were stained with blood and his steel worker uniform was a mess.

“What is it you want? To bide your time like some two bit criminal and try and spring a trap for the current leaders? You’re gonna sneak up on Raze or the Empress from the bushes? You’ll be dead before you even get into their radius,” Altair scoffed and shook his head, “Besides.. You lost your chance for vengeance. It was the old Eternal that ordered the Firrerre attack. Raze followed that command,” That was, after all, what was broadcasted and explained to all Sith. No one knew the truth of the attack. No one but Raze, Andruil and Tiamat.

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

His pacing stopped when he mentioned his name. The growling reduced slightly and his eyes narrowed as he looked down at the man. “I didn’t turn on you.” He mumbled to himself, turning away from the Tiefling. He leant up against the wall, pressing his forehead into the cold concrete, Wodan could feel the heat, anger and Dark Side radiating off him into the surrounding area.

Another mouthful of spit and blood dropped to the floor between his feet, even without The Force Altair had done a number on the Firrerrian, luckily his body was already working on the cuts and bruises. Before the hour was out he would be almost back to normal.

“I am pretty sure half the instructors in the academy would praise such an action.” He said sarcastically. “But no, I won’t sneak up on them in the night.” Turning around, the proud and smug look had returned to the Firrerrian noble. “I have grander ideals than a simple dagger in the back.” The smug look dropped for a second and his voice turned vicious. “He still pulled the trigger, even if it was by someone else's request.” The smug mask peeled itself back on, anger still bubbled beneath the surface, The Dark Side of The Force still flowing around the pair like a rapid.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair looked over as a woman passed by the alley, staring from him to Wodan and then back to him. When she caught him staring at her, she quickly shuffled away with a concerned look on her face. God damn it. He looked back at Wodan.

“Just like you pulled the trigger when you went to invade Onderon. Just like you pulled the trigger when you did the operation on Atravis, where your soldiers pulled the trigger after you asked and died because of it. Just like you pulled the trigger on Targon,” Altair stepped closer towards him, but his body language suggested he wasn’t going to attack again. Not unless Wodan attacked first. His face was closer to Wodan’s, amethyst eyes meeting golden ones, “Don’t act like you’re above it all. Don’t act like you ain’t got blood on your hands just like Raze does. You don’t pick and choose when to be loyal. You choose and you stick with it.”

“I’m about to pull that trigger on this mission. Because I am a soldier and I am loyal,” Altair stated, that familiar ice lacing his words, “Are you gonna try and kill me for it?”

He held his gaze for a long moment after that, “If you wanted to do something meaningful, you woulda helped out the refugees that survived from your planet or gone back to help bring Firrerre back to life instead of planning some bullshit comic book revenge arc.”

Altair shook his head, “Just fucking admit you’re in this ‘cause you like how powerful it makes you. You like the Dark Side. You just been using the Raze end goal as an excuse to justify it so you can sleep at night. So you can look in the mirror and just see your prettyboy face and not how ugly you are inside. So you keep thinkin’ you’re really the good guy and that using the Dark Side, becoming a Sith, getting more powerful is just a means to an end and nothin' more. At least I got the balls to know and own all the ways I'm ugly."

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

He caught the women's movement in his peripheral vision, Wodan wasn’t surprised they caught the attention of passers by. They both stood out for one reason or another and anyone with half a brain could feel the tension in the air. She was smart to get out of there, he just hoped she wasn’t smart enough to report them.

“And they have the right to hate me.” He said through gritted teeth, as Altair approached Wodan sidestepped and moved away. Even though his body language was to the contrary, Wodan wasn’t dumb enough to get within striking distance of the Champion, he had seen what those fists do. “I may have blood on my hands, you may have blood on your hands as well. But that isn’t the blood I care about. You can kill a hundred or a million people, I don’t care as long as they are not precious to me.”

He looked straight back into the amethyst eyes of the Champion. “You know what, I never said I wouldn’t do it. You just assumed that me having one moment to think about the situation meant I wouldn’t or couldn’t do it. Speaks volumes of the standards you hold me in Altair, why did you even bring me along if I was as weak as you think?”

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair grew steadily uneasy about the woman that had run off. He expected her to return any moment with others and blab about a scuffle taking place in an alley. He watched Wodan stumble away when he drew closer, seeing the fear clear in the Firrerreo’s eyes. The sight caused Altair to scoff and shake his head, but he allowed Wodan to keep the distance.

“Spoken like a true Sith,” Altair said after a moment when Wodan made it clear he didn’t care for the welfare of those he didn’t know. The tiefling glanced over his shoulder and began to walk down the alley, “Come on, that pearl clutching woman from earlier is probably on her way to report us,” Altair said as he ducked out of the alley right in time for a group of people to arrive on the opposite end of it. Unless Wodan hung around, they would only see an empty alley.

Altair turned to look at Wodan when they had a moment alone again, “I don’t hold you to any standards. I just know you as you,” He stated flatly, “I know you let your mind get the best of you sometimes. You looked like you were on the verge of a fuckin’ breakdown when I told you the mission.”

They walked further and he walked back to retrieve something from the cart. He grabbed a small vial and handed it to Wodan, “Climb up to the water tank and pour this in without being seen,” He explained.

It was shortly after that when a woman approached them both. She was middle aged with a kind face, “Haven’t seen you two before. Are you new to the village?” She smiled warmly, “I just made lasagna with bantha sausage if you’d like to have some!” She looked at Wodan, "And your clothes look a mess, dearie, why don't we get that washed up?"

@Braden

 

[Wodan]

The way Altair just ended the conversation infuriated the already blood boiling Firrerrian, he was ready to argue or fight for the rest of the day. But the Tiefling’s level head took control of the Champion pulling them both off and out of the alleyway. Wodan let out an audible huff and followed Altair back down the alley. As he walked close to the Tiefling, Altair could hear a growl still imitating from Wodan’s throat. He was clearly not done with the situation even if Altair had moved on.

“We have that both in common then.” He said in reply to the comment about his mind getting the best of him. Altair had, seemingly to the Firrerrian, developed a trust issue which liked to rear its ugly head at inopportune moments as well. The vial was pressed into his hand by the Tiefling, Wodan took the small glass object and placed it inside his overalls. “Subtlety is not my strong suit.” He replied, he was still pawning for a fight, running around in the shadows was exactly not what he wanted to do right now.

Wodan took a single step away from Altair, when the middle aged woman appeared. Her warm smile was met with a snarl and growl from the Firrerrian. His fist clenched, The Dark Side of The Force coiled around it, then he spotted another woman in the distance walking past, then another. The street was more crowded than his initially narrowed vision had realised.

Releasing the energy around his hand, his snarl dropped slightly. “Sorry, this idiot here reminded me I agreed to cover his shift today. Perhaps he can grab me a portion for later.” Without another word he stormed off from the pair, heading in an indirect course towards the water tower. His body was still tense, his nerves almost shredded after the confrontation with Altair.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair pointedly ignored Wodan’s little jabs at him. While the tiefling was prone to anger here and there, he was also quick to move on. Wodan, on the other hand, was the broody grudge-holding type. Altair simply rolled his eyes on their walk over until they were caught off guard by the woman. He turned and stared at Wodan as he outright snarled at the woman and he could sense the Force churning. Altair’s jaw tightened as he looked at Wodan, attempting to silently remind him not to blow the mission. In the end, the Firrerreo stormed off in a huff. The tiefling exhaled and turned back to look at the woman who looked mortified and shocked.

“You know what?” Altair said loud enough for Wodan to overhear, “I would love to try some o’ that lasagna. You got a nice drink to go with that?”

“Uh..” The woman had to recover from the exchange with Wodan before addressing Altair, “Why, I could make you some tea! My sons don’t visit me very often so it does get a bit lonely. Would be wonderful to have some company,” Wodan would see Altair casually walking off with the woman, engaged in deep conversation about vegetables and produce.

Meanwhile, Wodan was stopped in his tracks after a moment by a big, buff man.

“Is this the guy?” The man asked gruffly before glancing over at a woman. It was the same woman from the alley earlier.

“Yes! There was another with him though..” The woman looked around, “Some guy with horns.”

The big man and woman scanned behind Wodan but Altair was nowhere in sight. The man turned to look at Wodan, glaring at the Firrerreo, “Why are you starting trouble, kid?”

@Braden