Ask When two people meet...

[Elidan]

While he prefered to read most of the time, Elidan would still visit the training grounds of the Jedi Temple. After all, even with his mutism, the half-Sephi still wanted to become a Jedi. To fulfill this dream, he needed to practice the use of his lightsaber. The boy considered himself average when using it, so even after having training classes with the other Padawans he would come to the train alone.

Walking toward the training grounds always brought a mix of nostalgia and sadness to the half-Sephi. It would make him remember his life at the Jedi Temple of Ajan Kloss, when he and the Padawans that were his friends would walk together to the training grounds to practice with their training sabers. No, he shouldn’t think about that. Remembering the past would only make him suffer. He needs to let these thoughts go.

Elidan arrived at the training grounds and was relieved to find that there was no one there. He left his datapad on a stone bench and pulled from his pocket a plastic band. He used it to tie his long auburn hair into a ponytail, the last thing that he wanted was to have it blocking his vision while he trained. Then he started to do some stretching exercises. Some time ago, the Padawan had read that it could improve the performance in physical activities. Since then, he would always do that before training with his lightsaber.

After he finished, the Padawan pulled his lightsaber from his belt and activated it. Elidan had decided to start with the Form IV, the one that he had more difficulty with. The boy preferred to use the Form II and he knew that a Jedi could become a specialist in only one Form of lightsaber combat. However, he wanted to at least be able to perform all forms properly. All of them would be useful in a combat.

Holding the saber firmly in his hands, the Padawan would take position to start his training. He needed to remember that Ataru was aggression, the gale and lightning of a storm. Used to secure victory swiftly. Focusing on it, Elidan started to move.


@Altaris

 

[Thelian Lsai]

If there was a single place on Yavin IV that Thelian enjoyed spending his time, it was the training yard. It had been far too long since he had an opportunity to unwind through exercise, having been only a few days out of the medbay. Much of his body still carried a dull ache from Dantooine, and it seemed like everyone – from his doctors to his peers – had cautioned him to take it easy for a couple more weeks, in order for his body to fully recover.

Thelian, unsurprisingly, decided to give them all the proverbial middle finger and do the exact opposite.

The Echani had quite literally zero desire to lay in bed for even a moment longer. He had no desire simply wallowing in his own thoughts and doubts, while Jedi and fellow Padawans alike flocked to his bedside – pestering him with questions that he didn’t want to answer. Despite never failing to meet their questions with deadpan responses and blank stares, somehow, no one ever seemed to get the hint and buzz off until he literally spelled it out for them.

As such, Thelian made a break for his sanctuary the moment he was physically able to do so. He arrived at the training yard in simple exercise clothes – sporting a tank-top, shorts and pair of sneakers. He hauled a small duffle bag with him, slinging it over his right shoulder.

Much to his annoyance, however, the Echani quickly realized that he wasn’t the first person to arrive that morning. Silver eyes immediately fixated onto the Half-Sephi doing stretches, the sight immediately elicited an annoyed groan from Thelian. He was desperately hoping to have the place to himself, and wasn’t at all in the mood to chit-chat with anyone – which this guy was undoubtedly going to want to do the moment he was spotted.

Thelian could just tell.

"Fuckin' great." He grumbled under his breath, a decidedly grumpy expression etched onto his pale features. Given that Elidan was half-Sephi, he probably heard the muttered expletive, but Thelian really didn't care. Without so much as a word to the half-Sephi, Thelian strode right past and made a beeline for the far corner of the yard, silver eyes fixating onto the section that contained an assortment of punching bags and a deactivated boxing droid.

Thelian tossed his duffle bag onto a nearby bench, fishing out a bundle of tan-colored fabric to wrap his knuckles. Still attempting to pretend like Elidan simply wasn’t there, the Echani proceeded to meticulously wrap each hand and started to warm up on the heavy bag.

@LouJoVi

 

[Elidan]

”Fuckin' great.”

Hearing this made Elidan stop halfway through a lunge with his lightsaber. It was just a whisper, but due to his Sephi hearing he could hear it perfectly. As a Jedi, this ability could be considered very useful. He could hear anything that would approach him even before he could see it. However, the half-Sephi always thought that it was a curse. With it, he could also hear what the others were talking about him. He had lost count of how many times he had clearly heard the whispers of other Padawans calling him weirdo as if they were talking directly to him.

Elidan turned to where the voice had come from. He saw a pale boy with a grumpy face looking at him. Due to his pale skin and white hair, the half-Sephi could identify him as a Echani. This conclusion made Elidan wide his eyes. This guy was Thelian, the Padawan that survived the Battle of Dantooine and punched an Acolyte in the face!

Another thing that his Sephi hearing allowed him to do was hear the gossip and rumors without needing to be part of these conversations. Some days ago, while he walked through the corridors after a visit to the library, Elidan passed by a group of Younglings that were talking about the “legendary Thelian”, an Echani Padawan that participated in the Battle of Dantooine and punched a Sith Acolyte in the face after the creepy guy tried to kiss him. The half-Sephi became impressed with Thelian and also disgusted by the Acolyte. If something like that happened to him, he would probably not only punch the creeper in the face, but also give him some kicks between his legs, with all his strength and the Force.

While the Echani walked to the punching bags, Elidan continued staring at him. Was Thelian mad with his presence there? Someone famous like him probably has several friends that would have told him about the weird half-Sephi Padawan that doesn't speak. The other boy probably doesn’t want to be seen close to him, probably afraid of what the others would think of him.

These thoughts made Elidan’s ear deflate a bit. He longed to have friends, but his shyness and mutism made things difficult. Now his growing reputation of being a weirdo also became a problem. He didn’t know how Ruzaan and Arata even wanted to talk with him. Now with someone famous like Thelian thinking that he is weird too, probably any other Padawan would follow his opinion and think the same.

Deciding that it was better if he continued his training rather than musing about the remote chances of him making more friends, Elidan returned to the position to practice Ataru. He started by holding the lightsaber vertically with both palms, on the right of his body. Then he started to make several aggressive movements, always having in mind that the Form IV was the gale and lightning of a storm.

Elidan’s movements of Form IV would still be too graceful, an effect of his preference for the Form II. They lacked the aggression that was the main characteristic of the Ataru. After some time doing it, the half-Sephi would not be satisfied. Drenched in sweat and already starting to feel tired, the boy decided to make one last move before having a pause. He would risk a jump followed by a strike with his lightsaber.

He gathered the Force around himself and jumped, this part of the movement happened as he expected. However, due to the sweat on his hands, the hilt of his lightsaber slipped from them. While he landed, Elidan stared in horror while his saber flew and then hit the floor, rolling until it stopped where Thelian was delivering punches in the punching bags. Thankfully, before starting to train, the half-Sephi had toned down the blade of his saber, making it like a training lightsaber.

Before the other could say anything, the half-Sephi would run to where he left his Datapad and grab it. Then he would start to type there, while approaching the white haired boy. He was so distracted by it, that he would trip. Thankfully, he was able to maintain balance and not fall. However, it made him even more nervous.

“I’m so sorry. I’ll understand if you want to denounce it to an adult. I should have been more careful, please forgive me.” he showed the message that he typed on his Datapad to Thelian. His face was red from embarrassment and the point of his ears were twitching from nervousness. He would quickly bend down to pick his lightsaber and would turn to walk away. He really hoped that the other would not punch him on the face like he did with the creepy Acolyte.


@Altaris

 

[Thelian Lsai]

Once he reached his corner of the training yard, Thelian began to tune out the rest and focused entirely upon what he was doing. The Echani didn’t have much desire converse with his peers and simply wanted to get his workout in - a fact that was made even more apparent by the earbuds that he popped into his ears as well, music turned up to block out the noise.

Thelian took a few moments to finish meticulously wrapping his knuckles, flexing his fingers a few times before starting his warm-up drills on the heavy bag.

Several minute passed, and the Echani was well into his drills. The rigorous exercise and humid climate of Yavin left the Thelian drenched with sweat, his snow-white hair slick and matting down to his forehead. Focused entirely on what he was doing, Thelian simply wasn’t paying attention and didn’t catch sight of any of Elidan’s exercises, nor his fumbled maneuver. Nevertheless, silver eyes did abruptly snap to the left when the lightsaber left Elidan’s hands, tossed through the air in his direction.

He just barely caught sight of the plasma blade through his peripheral vision, not entirely sure what had just happened. Instinctively, Thelian broke away from the bag and sprang backwards, wanting to avoid any possibility of getting hit with the wayward weapon. Training saber or not, the damn things still hurt to get hit with.

“The hell!?”

He watched as the blade extinguished and rolled lifeless between himself and the bag, brought to a halt by the tip of Thelian’s sneaker. Before Elidan could bend down to grab the saber, Thelian reached out with the Force and abruptly summoned it into his own hands. He scowled at Elidan for only a moment before his gaze flicked to the datapad, blinking a few times. The Echani wasn’t really aware of the half-Sephi’s mutism, and he was clearly confused why the boy didn’t just say something.

He didn’t linger on the question, instead reading the message that was jotted down on the datapad. After a moment, Thelian flipped the saber hilt around and extended the flat end back to Elidan. “It’s fine.” He muttered flatly. He wasn’t about to punch the half-Sephi, and neither did he care enough to go whine about the incident to an adult.

Thelian waited for Elidan to take the saber before he turned his attention back to the punching back. If the boy continued to walk away, Thelian would simply resume his boxing drills from before.

@LouJoVi

 

[Elidan]

Before Elidan’s hand could reach his lightsaber, Thelian used the Force to summon it to his hand. The half-Sephi gulped when he noticed the scowl that the Echani had while looking at him, the white haired boy seemed to be so mad that Elidan was afraid that he would want to punch him.

Even with him being taller than the other, the half-Sephi was certain that he had no chance in a fist fight. After all, Thelian defeated a Sith Acolyte with only one punch in the face, and according to some rumors, even broke the skull of the guy. Elidan didn’t want to have problems with someone this strong.

However, the Echani’s scowl soon disappeared when he saw the message on Elidan’s Datapad. The half-Sephi felt relieved when the other boy offered the lightsaber back to him and didn’t seem to be mad with what happened. “My name is Elidan and I have mutism.” he showed him one of his premade greeting messages. Then he quickly typed another one and presented it to Thelian “Sorry again for what happened, even with my lightsaber toned down it could have hurt you, I should have been more careful. It only shows how I'm terrible with Form IV.” he gave the boy a weak smile

“Thank you!” Elidan showed this last message to Thelian, then picked his lightsaber and walked back to where he was training. The half-Sephi didn’t want to disturb the other boy, who seemed more interested in his boxing drill. After returning to his place, Elidan took a deep breath to calm himself. Once again holding the lightsaber vertically with both palms, on the right of his body. Then he started to move again.

However, after some time trying to practice Ataru, Elidan had become frustrated. He couldn’t put in his movements the aggression necessary to make a decent Form IV. All that he made ended up being much more like the Form II. Tired, the half-Sephi would stop abruptly and, an attempt to vent his frustration, he stepped with strenght on the floor, making a sound. Then he sat, staring at the ceiling and thinking.

He really needed to find someone that could teach him how to do it. Maybe he could ask a Knight. No, with the war against the Sith they were already so busy. He would never disturb them asking for a training session. The safety of the Galaxy was more important. While he thought about what he should do, Elidan had completely forgotten about Thelian still being there.


@Altaris

 

[Thelian Lsai]

Thelian couldn’t help but stare at the half-Sephi with a blank, deadpan expression when he handed the lightsaber back, allowing Elidan to retake the weapon he clearly didn’t know how to use. Silver eyes once more flicked to the datapad when Elidan displayed the premade greetings, blinking a few times in response.

“Thelian.” He replied flatly, reciprocating the greeting even if Elidan already knew who he was. The revelation about mutism, at the very least, answered the question of why the half-Sephi had been creepily silent the entire time.

The Echani raised a brow when Elidan proceeded to apologize again – giving an elaborate explanation for his clumsiness with the training saber. Thelian, in response, simply stared at the boy and gave him a shrug of his shoulders.

When Elidan finally accepted the saber and started to walk away, Thelian didn’t make any attempts to stop him. The Echani was, in fact, more interested in completing his boxing drills than having a conversation. Or reading one, anyway.

Silver eyes only lingered long enough to make sure Elidan was at a safe distance away – well beyond throwing range of the Echani – before he flicked his gaze back towards the heavy bag in front of him, resuming the boxing drills that had been interrupted.

Several more minutes would pass, and this time – thankfully – Thelian was allowed to finish what he was doing. The Echani completed his remaining boxing drills and finally made his way over to a nearby bench, sweat lining his skin and dripping from his forehead. It seemed that Elidan had completely forgotten he was there, and Thelian much preferred it that way.

While Elidan silently mused about finding a teacher, Thelian was in the process of starting to roll up his boxing wraps – coiling them into tight little bundles before chucking them into his dufflebag. His thoughts, conversely, were largely occupied by what the temple cafeteria was serving for lunch today.

Once he was done with the boxing wraps, Thelian finally rose up from the bench, flexing and stretching a bit while standing in place. Without another word, Thelian reached down and pulled the bag over his shoulder, starting to make his way towards the exit of the yard. He walked, passing by the half-Sephi without even looking in the boys direction.

@LouJoVi

 

[Elidan]

Tired of thinking about the necessity of finding someone to help him teach how to make Form IV, Elidan rose from where he was seated on the floor. After dusting his pants, the half-Sephi picked up his Datapad and started to walk out of the training yard.

All that training had made him hungry and he wondered what there would be for lunch today. However, he really needed to take a shower first. Elidan was completely covered with sweat. A good shower followed by a delicious meal would be perfect to make the half-Sephi forget about the fiasco of his training.

When he entered a corridor, Elidan saw Thelian walking in front of him. The half-Sephi widened his blue-green eyes, he had completely forgotten about the other boy. When had he left the training yard? This probably happened when he was distracted.

Elidan was grateful for the Echani staying silent and not being mad for his lightsaber nearly hitting him. The last thing that he wanted was to hurt one of the most popular Padawans of the Order.

"Elidan, wait!" he stopped walking after hearing the familiar voice. Turning around, the half-Selphi saw Jedi Healer Asadra Seh approaching him. She was his therapist and was famous for working with Jedi that suffered trauma. She was always kind and nice to him. During their conversations she always knew what he was feeling, probably because she was an empath "I was trying to find you. I need your help." then she saw Thelian walking down the corridor and smiled. "Thelian, come here! I'll also need your help!"

If the Echani decided to listen to the Twi’lek, she would explain what happened "An earthquake happened on the planet of Lucazec, damaging some cities. The government contacted the Council asking for help. A small Jedi task force is being sent to hel. Being a healer, I'm going to participate. The Council said that I could bring some Padawans with me. Would you two be interested?" she smiled at them, waiting for their answers.

Elidan eagerly nodded in agreement. Even with his mutism making communicating to others difficult, he would not let it stop him from helping those in need. He turned to Thelian, waiting to see if the other would also want to help.

@Altaris

 

[Thelian Lsai]

Thelian strode right past Elidan, not so much as looking in the half-Sephi’s direction as he moved. Despite the familiarly moody expression on his face, it was clear that the Echani did not linger on the entire incident with the lightsaber – having largely forgotten about it by this point. Instead, the Echani was entirely engrossed within his own thoughts as he walked, thinking solely about what he would be having for his next meal.

Just as he reached the end of the yard, Thelian froze in place – a shiver practically running down his spine - when he recognized a familiar, feminine voice call out his name. With an audible groan, the Echani turned around, catching sight of Asadra Seh staring back at him. The woman had a reputation as the temple therapist and had gone out of her way to offer her services following the events on Dantooine. Unsurprisingly, Thelian had bluntly refused the woman each and every time she approached – and was hardly polite about it after the first time.

Seeing her now, the Echani had an overwhelming desire to get the hell out of dodge as quickly as possible. He naturally expected more of the same from the Twi’lek, and Thelian had quite literally zero interest in whatever group therapy session was about to take place in the training yard.

To his surprise, the woman mentioned needing help, rather than insisting that he did. It was enough to keep the Echani’s attention, begrudgingly making his way back towards the two other Jedi. He crossed his arms over his chest, silver eyes narrowing slightly as the situation on Lucazec was explained.

Thelian blinked a few times, silver eyes flicking between Asadra and Elidan – both of whom were staring directly at him, waiting for an answer. Sighing under his breath, the Echani finally shrugged his shoulders. “Fine.” He said flatly.

@LouJoVi

 

[Elidan]

Elidan smiled when Thelian agreed to help. It would be good to have more Jedi going to Lucazec, this way they would be able to help more people. The auburn-haired boy also couldn’t wait to leave the Temple. Since he still doesn’t have a Master, he rarely went on missions. Looking back to the Echani, he noticed that the white-haired boy still remained with his grumpy demeanor. The half-Sephi thought that it was strange, the other Padawans were always excited with an invitation like this one.

“Wonderful!” Asadra seemed satisfied with their answers. Elidan knew her since he was eleven and he was starting to suspect that the Twi’lek was going to turn this mission into some type of therapy session. While he knew how important it was and how kind the Twi’lek used to be, he wasn't in the mood to do one of these sessions right now.

However, the people of Lucazec needed their help, so he would go even if Asadra turned it into a therapy session. “I still need to organize some supplies that we will bring to the people of Lucazec. You two can go change clothes and eat something. We’ll meet at the spaceport in one hour.” then she turned and walked away.

Elidan typed a message on his Datapad and showed it to Thelian “See you later.” then he started to walk toward his room. There were so many things that he needed to do before going to the spaceport. First he needed to use the refresher, he was covered in sweat from his training. Then he would need to dry his long hair, which used to take some time. He also wanted to eat something.

As soon as he arrived at his room, Elidan grabbed some clothes and ran to the refresher. The half-Sephi thought that he needed to be fast or he would be left behind. He couldn’t let this happen, it was rare for him to be invited to go into missions. Who knows when another opportunity like that would appear.

----------------------​

After he've practically swallowed his lunch, Elidan ran toward the spaceport. He was carrying a bag with his Datapad and what he would need for this mission. Drying his hair had taken longer than he expected and now he was going to be late. He hoped that Asadra hadn't left yet.

When he arrived at the spaceport, Elidan saw Asadra carrying some boxes with supplies inside the shuttle. While the half-Sephi walked toward her, he felt relieved that she hadn't left yet. "Elidan, I'm happy that you arrived. Can you help me with these boxes? I still need to put these inside the ship and we can wait for Thelian."

Elidan nodded in agreement and started to help her. While he moved the boxes, the half-Sephi noticed that some contained food, while others had medicines. The boy had read that Lucazec was a typical Outer Rim World, barely developed and with a high number of people living in poverty. He couldn't even think how they were suffering. When Thelian arrived, he would see Elidan and Asadra finishing moving the boxes inside the shuttle.

@Altaris

 

[Thelian Lsai]

If Thelian was at all enthusiastic about leaving the temple for this mission, it didn’t manifest in the slightest on his pale features. The Echani kept his arms crossed over his chest, silver eyes flicking between Elida and Asandra – that broody, deadpan expression while present on his face. He listened as Asandra gave her instructions, shrugging his shoulders a bit when she was finished.

He briefly glanced toward the half-Sephi and his datapad, giving the kid a curt nod. With that, Thelian spun on a feel and continued on his way out of the training yard, not saying another word to either of the Jedi. Once again, his mind turned to getting himself showered and well fed before he was begrudgingly dragged off to Lucazec.

---​

Over an hour would go by before Thelian arrived at the spaceport – keeping with his usual tradition of arriving several minutes late to board the ship to Lucazec. In the time before he arrived, Thelian had cleaned up from the training yard and changed into his usual Padawan uniform – sporting a simple brown-and-tan tunic, hood pulled up over his head and a utility belt clipped to his waist, alongside the unignited hilt of his lightsaber.

Silver eyes gradually settled upon Elidan and Asandra, watching as the pair moved the last remaining boxes into the cargo hold of their shuttle. Had he arrived a few minutes earlier, the Echani probably would’ve helped, but with most of the heavy lifting already done by the time he arrived, Thelian simply strolled his way up the ramp, moving to seat himself within the passenger compartment of the ship.

“Let’s get moving.” He muttered dryly. With that, the Echani pulled out his datapad and started to idly scroll through the screen, waiting for the ship to lift off and depart.

@LouJoVi

 

[Elidan]

Elidan was finishing helping Asadra with the boxes when Thelian arrived. He watched the white-haired boy climb the ramp, without even saying hello. Then he heard him say that they should get moving. The half-Sephi didn't like to judge other people, but he was starting to think that the other boy was rude.

He couldn't understand why so many other Padawans seemed to have crushes on Thelian. Elidan had heard them talking about it in the corridors of the Jedi Temple. Many say how the other boy was hot with his white hair and nice body.

The half-Sephi would never understand how they could have crushes on someone that had a grumpy face most of the time. He had a crush on Zana because beyond her being pretty, the Twi’lek was also kind, nice and a good friend. Only because Thelian was hot wasn’t enough for him to feel this way about the Echani.

Then Elidan’s cheeks became a bit red. Did he think that the white-haired boy was hot? It's the second time that he thinks about another boy this way. First was Ruzaan being cute and now Thelian being hot. He could understand why he thought this way about the Togruta, they were friends and there was nothing wrong about him praising his friend, right?

But why had he thought that Thelian was hot? Elidan decided that it was because he was repeating the opinion that he heard from the other Padawans. It wasn’t like he was also developing a crush on him. It would be impossible, he barely even knew the other boy and his mood also wasn’t something that attracted him. And the half-Sephi was also certain that he liked girls, he had a crush on Zana after all.

"Elidan, we finished. It's time to go." his musings were interrupted by Asadra's voice. He nodded at her and walked toward the passenger compartment. He saw Thelian using his datapad and remembered what he was thinking about before the Healer interrupted him. The half-Sephi had decided to think about it another time, now he needed to concentrate on their mission.

Wanting to respect the other's space, Elidan took a seat away from Thelian. Then he picked his own datapad and started to read what he could find about Lucazec. Apparently it was one of the worlds where the Fallanassi, a religious order that also studied the Force, used to live until they were expelled by Palpatine's Empire. However, there were still some of their ruins on the planet. Some were very ancient.

Soon the ship would start to move, not taking much time for it to reach the space near Yavin IV. Then it jumped to hyperspace. When it happened, Asadra would approach the two boys. "I'm really happy that the two of you accepted to come with me. The earthquake was one of the most powerful that Lucazec had felt in some years, many people lost everything that they had. The government considers it as one of their greatest crises. We received reports that criminal groups are appearing on the planet due to the chaos. Other Jedi are dealing with them, but we need to be careful." the Twi’lek said. Elidan thought about how much these people must be suffering. First the earthquake destroy their houses and now the criminal threaten them. It was terrible.

"We are going to land in the fields near the city of Jisasu. The city was heavily damaged by the earthquake, but it was in a better condition than the nearby towns and villages. Several refugees were flocking there. Our mission is to help them in any way that is possible. Does anyone have a question?" she said, looking at Elidan and Thelian. The half-Sephi didn't have any doubt, but he would pay attention if the Echani decided to ask Asadra about anything.

@Altaris

 

[Thelian Lsai]

If Thelian was at all concerned about the task ahead of them, it certainly didn’t show on his face. He passed Asandra and Elidan without a second glance before seating himself in the ship’s passenger compartment – once more exuding that aura of inapproachability. For several minutes, the Echani kept his silvery gaze fixated strictly onto the datapad in his hand, idly thumbing the screen to scroll.

While Elidan did his best to knowledge up about the planet they were bound for, Thelian did nothing but scroll through the line-up for the next GFC fight-night. He felt as the ship rose into the air, gradually breaking out of the atmosphere of Yavin.

Just as Thelian thought he was safe, the Echani glanced up from his datapad – spotting Asandra making a beeline for them. He groaned under his breath, finally placing his datapad down in his lap as he braced for whatever long-winded speech was about to take place.

The Echani maintained a completely blank expression when the twi’lek went on to describe the situation on Lucazec, seeming entirely unphased by the terrible conditions they were headed into. He couldn’t help but narrow his eyes significantly when Asandra mentioned gang activity starting to spike on the planet.

“I’m sure we’ll be fine.” He muttered dryly. The Echani somehow managed to resist the urge to roll his eyes, but his tone didn’t lack in dismissiveness. Between Nar Shaddaa and the lower levels of Coruscant, Thelian was convinced that he’d seen things that would make most people quake in their boots. Compared to the organized crime of those two planets, the Echani was entirely unbothered by the prospect of some petty thievery taking place in some refugee camps.

Quite frankly, Thelian was more concerned about his current company than any criminal elements planetside. The Echani was convinced that the entire flight to Lucazec was about to turn into some kind of impromptu therapy session from which he could not escape.

And if by some miracle Thelian managed to avoid spacing himself by the end, and actually arrived on Lucazec? He had no doubt that Elidan would become butterfingers once again and accidentally throw his lightsaber at one of the refugees.

Thelian gave a curt shrug when Asandra asked if there were any questions. “Nope.” He muttered drly, immediately picking up his datapad once again and starting to scroll through his fight line-up. He would remain in that position the entire rest of the way if not interrupted.

@LouJoVi

 

[Elidan]

Thanks to his half-Sephi hearing, Elidan was able to hear Thelian’s muttering. What he heard made him frown. The other boy sounded so cold. How could someone act this way in front of the suffering of innocents? No, he was probably overreacting to that. The Echani could be in a bad mood and it was making him act this way

Since none of the padawans had any doubt, Asadra smiled and went to her seat. Elidan continued to read on his Datapad. He had found some articles about the earthquake, how it destroyed several villages and killed so many people. The half-Sephi wanted to know even more about what they were going to deal with.

While he searched more articles, the Padawan had found one that explained how the earthquake caused the collapse of part of a small hill near the city of Jisasu and revealed an ancient Fallanassi ruin. Elidan ignored this one, deciding to focus on the ones that gave information that could be useful for their mission.

—--------------​

Since Lucazec was close to Yavin IV, the trip didn’t take much time. Soon their shuttle had left the hyperspace near the planet and started to descend on its atmosphere. Elidan couldn’t wait for it to land, there were so many people down there that were needing their help. Asadra had explained the situation, but after the half-Sephi read the articles he understood how bad the things really were. He hoped that they would be able to save as many lives as they could.

When the ship finally landed, Asadra rose from her seat and walked toward the exit. Without waiting for Thelian, Elidan went after the Twi’lek. The only thought on his mind was that he needed to help the people. While he walked down the shuttle’s ramp, the half-Sephi could see what happened to the place. They were in a field, with several tents. There were Jedi, doctors and rescue teams running around the place. Beyond the refugee camp, he could see some buildings of Jisasu. There was smoke coming from there.

While he looked around, he saw a hill with a small forest near it. This probably was the place where the Fallanassi ruin appeared. Elidan noticed that a ship was landing beyond the trees of the forest, near the hill. He wondered what it could be, perhaps it was going to rescue people that were there when the earthquake happened.

“Elidan and Thelian. Can you two help me bring these boxes to the tents, please?” he turned to look at Asadra. She and a human male in an uniform were carrying boxes with the supplies that they brought. The half-Sephi ran to help her, the mysterious ship landing near the hill was completely forgotten.

@Altaris

 

[Thelian Lsai]

Unsurprisingly, Thelian remained entirely silent the rest of the flight to Lucazec – silver eyes fixated onto his datapad while he completely ignored the presence of both Asandra and Elidan. Any attempts at conversation or small talk were met with minimum acknowledgement from the Echani, and whatever thoughts he had about their mission were kept to himself.

A few minutes more, and his minimum acknowledgement shifted to being flat out ignored the moment Thelian popped his earbuds back in – drowning out his companions with some of that catchy Induparan music that he would endlessly deny that he’d been listening to frequently.

By the time the ship touched down within that refugee camp, Thelian was already back on his feet – idly adjusting his gauntlets and double-checking his utility belt while he waited for the ramp to descend towards the earth, silver eyes staring holes into the durasteel interior in front of him. He said nothing to either Asandra or Elidan as he stepped out into the open field - taking a moment to flick his gaze across the makeshift tents and aid station that had been established for those displaced by the disaster.

While the Echani certainly hadn't been enthusiastic about the journey, Thelian pointedly kept his attention upon the task-at-hand now that they'd arrived. As a result, he completely ignored the nearby hill and didn't notice the ship that landed beyond the trees.

He flicked his gaze towards the twi'lek when the woman spoke. "Right." He muttered under his breath. With that, Thelian walked right past Elidan and made a beeline for some of the crates full of relief cargo – positioning himself to begin hauling them one-by-one on his own.

@LouJoVi

 

[Elidan]

While Elidan moved to help Asadra, he saw Thelian move there first and start to pick the crates. At least the Echani didn’t stay apathetic while the others helped. He even seemed to be wanting to do it alone, his face still broody. The half-Sephi wondered why he acted this way. Was it normal for someone to be born this way?

Deciding that he was losing his time trying to play the annalist to understand Thelian’s behavior, Elidan went to move the crates. He would pick some and move them to the tent that Asadra had mentioned. There was several people in uniforms there, they were opening the crates and removing the supplies that were going to be distributed to the victims of the earthquake.

After some time, they would finish moving the crates. Most of them were already empty, with the people that were working at the refugee camp having taken the supplies and distributed them. Elidan noticed Asadra talking with a man that was wearing a uniform that reminded the half-Sephi of a military commander.

When she finished talking with him, the Twi’lek walked to where the Padawans were. “Follow me, we are going to help at the medical tent.” then, Asadra started to guide them toward it. While they walked through the refugee camp, Elidan would be able to see the suffering of the people that survived the earthquake, but lost everything. There were entire families, some with babies. There were also individuals with their bodies covered with bandages. The half-Sephi had pity for them.

While he looked around the refugee camp, seeing more and more homeless and wounded people, Elidan didn’t notice a Rodian girl coming from nowhere and holding Thelian’s legs. He was so distracted with the sound of the people crying that the half-Sephi didn’t hear the Rodian say to the Echani “Slavers!” while pointing toward the forest and pulling his pants, trying to make him follow her.

@Altaris