Dark visions from the future.

[Necro Stormborn]

(( rushed, and took my own material for this one))

There was a wavy opulescent mixture... a cloud like vision with only a tunnel of light, through which Eurachis gazed through and saw only white light. However, soon this light blurred into a green existence, and an open field could be seen. the blue sky opened up and the sun shone down on the ruins that lay in the middle of the field between two large hills. The view panned upwards and then moved away from a centered image showing a robed figure.

The grass moved and swayed with the wind, as a calm breeze passed over the dark looking man clad in black and gray robes, his pale white skin shining in the light. The dark red eyes, shimmered in the sun, and flashed a hue of orange as he glanced up into the sky. His attention turned to the ground before him. He took a few steps forwards ... and the grass seemed to die. The greenery close to him slowly became devoid of life, charring or flushing any semblance of color they had.

Tight fists clenched as the arms swayed slowly back and forth with each step. The Robes were snug to this man, his large muscles baring down on the fabric, causing it to form fit and really give an image to how strong this individual was. He was at the peak of his strength, physically marvelous; a walking force of nature, one that would require immense amount of luck and prayer to hope for it to turn course.

The robe swept over the drying and dieing foliage, and made a soft crinkling sound as it did so. A brow furrowed, and eyes narrowed as this force of nature stopped slowly and briskly in front of a pillar where a collection of ruins seemed to lay. His ears listened softly and intently, and finally he caught something. Rather, several somethings, grouped tightly together and enveloped by the force.... if not channeling it.

"Lovely." Said this dark robed figure. With that the clouds closed up and the murky pool of gray vanished slowly and brought Eurachis back into the plain of existence.

He opened his eyes to a cold room full of metal and inscribed walls, he was sitting in a chair in the corner and everything was quiet. He could not help but Watch the door, almost expecting someone he knew to come stomping through with a question or problem, as they had been for quite some time since the temple's reconstruction.

After a prolonged sigh, Darth Eurachis brought his hand up and palmed his face, closing his eyes softly and breathing in a rhythmic pattern.

And he continued to wait, silently, until it would be time for supper, he was quite ravenous.. and nothing sounded as good as supper did at the moment.... well, except for some home baked merkwell pie from Carida...

[Hotel]

Shandari knew she had to find at least one of those with that extreme power. The Rilan managed to slip into the temple undisturbed, keeping her true power hidden. The temple seemed grand to her, something to rival, even surpass, her former home, the Jedi temple. Even she could not help but stare in wonder at the grandeur of the temple. She walked through the crowds of initiates, just staring at everything in sight. Even if she felt most here were below her, she knew she had to be a part of this. She had come to Korriban not knowing why she was drawn back to it, but now she knew. This was the reason, the reason for her return to where it all began, and once more it would begin again.

The Rilan woman continued to wander the halls, no longer concealing her strength in hope of attracting one of those she had sensed. Her hand was always at her hip, ready to draw her sabers should she need to. Shandari continued down the hall, sensing the presence of one of those she was searching for nearby. Her pace quickened as she headed for it. Once she found the presense, she would find out the truth behind this place, and hopefully someone that could explain what her master could not, the power he had called Deadly Sight.

[Karl the Unfettered]

There were a few people whom Shandari could have sensed, among the many who inhabited the Temple. One of them, a Miraluka of considerable talent, had sensed her as well. "Wings," he said to himself as he made his way down the hall to see her. He had detected her the day before, at the promotion ceremony, but there hadn't been time to confront the Rilan more directly.

Now, however, there was time to spare. "Hello there," he said, quickening his pace as Shandari rounded a corner and came into view. He had sensed her wonderment at the vast Temple, and smiled. "Quite the place, isn't it? We built it ourselves; took quite a while." His smile widened, as if he was winking beneath those impenetrable glasses.

"But I am remiss, allow me to introduce myself." He put one foot back and bowed in an old-fashioned manner, graceful and correct; it fit well with the cut of his robes, which had the look of money and custom tailoring. "I am Charlill Sylvorr, but call me Shard," he went on as he straightened, his voice taking on the air of a formal introduction. Anyone else might have flubbed it, appearing ridiculous and pompous, but Shard had the charisma and the air of poised authority to pull it off well.

Up close, he could see her power, could percieve the swirling aura that coiled around her. He could see that she had just as much disdain for the lives of the weak as he did, though perhaps he controlled himself better. He saw the ornate lightsabers at her hip, and the black glimmer of her eyes. Such things were open for anyone to percieve, however; he, Shard, could see deeper.

He saw the desire that burned within her, to find out about this place and expand her own talents. He saw her thirst for blood, her capacity for destruction. It almost rivalled his own, in fact, and he knew that he would have to tread carefully with her. "What brings you here, if I may ask?" he went on, his tone one of polite curiosity. "Many have come, of course, but few are truly worthy."

To Shandari, Shard would appear as an exceptionally well-dressed fellow who wore his clothes rather than the other way around, with a confidence bordering on arrogance that was almost palpable. Yet there was a subtle undercurrent, beneath his self-control, of great madness and insanity; she might, perhaps, percieve his own lust for battle, for blood.

[Hotel]

As Shandari turned a corner, a man around the other side called out to her. He was a strange appearance to her. The Rilan woman was not used to such richly dressed people, her own black robes simple in comparison. One hand rested on the hilt of one of her sabers. Her black eyes met the mans strange glasses, and then he spoke to her.

As the man spoke, Shandari continued to examine him, though on a different level. This man seemed to emenate power, possibly even surpass her own, but he was not one of the five from the day before. Still, this strange man intrigued her, she could sense the raw, primal power and bloodlust in him, just like she could feel it within herself,and she payed attention to his words.

Finally when the man, who had introduced himself as Shard, finished speaking, she moved. Not physically, but she reached out into his mind, and he would feel an unfamiliar presence within it. The presence spoke out in his mind. "My name is Shandari. I came her seeking to return to where it all ended for me, and where it all began."

Suddenly images of the girl's past would cross through into his mind. A younger Shandari stood with a human man. It was in the ruins of the old academy. The two charged in and saw an Echani male dressed in black robes. He strode out to meet them, as if he had been expecting them. She activited her icy blue saber, holding the curved hilt loosely, Carn, the human with her, activated the two sabers with him, one pink, the other teal. They charged, but he shoved them back with a force push with barely any effort."This is the true power of the Dark Side," he had said to them, and Shandari couldnt help but still admire him. He then turned to her,"Shandari, have you never been curious about your parents?" She looks at him, a but surprised. She shook her head, having never thought about them before. However, Carn just stood there, as if frozen in shock about something. Was he really going to reveal it? Shandari paid her former master a glance, but decided to ignore how he looked for the moment. She charged Vornak, blade drawn, her wings beating as she took to the air, and attempted to attack using the very skill he had soo carefully trained her in. He defended easily, using his own combination of Makashi and Juyo to counteract it. They seemd to fight at a stalemate, but as they fought he continued to talk to her. "They were both Jedi at the temple. They had begun to fall in love, something forbidden, so they kept it secret. They met every night, and often took missions together, just so they could be alone. Soon they began to notice the folly of the temple, and how their love strengthened their power. They began to notice how strong the forbidden techniques and powers were. Soon your mother realized she was pregnant. They fled the temple, to protect her, and hid in the slums of Coruscant. I was their only ally. I kept their secret, kept them hidden. Your mother was like a daughter to me, and I loved her as such. The Jedi searched for them endlessly, and her pregnancy was nearing it's peak. I helped them sneak onto a transport, one that was heading to Narr Shaddaa. The Jedi somehow discovered they were on it, and during the journy, had a republic battle cruiser order it out of hyper drive. Six Jedi boarded, with orders to bring in your parents alive. They found your parents while your mother was in labor, and like any father, he pushed the danger away from the woman he loved and his unborn child, and sealed the door behind him. Not many know the truth about what happened next, but I do. I had spies on the ship.....and I saw it in a the eyes of the man responsible for your parents' death. The six jedi and your father fought, and fought for a long time. He managed to take down five of them before your mother finally gave birth. He knew that he was beat, he had also found out that he was to be taken in alive. He accomplished what he had planned to, and held them off until you were born, so he deactivated his saber and fell to his knees before the final Jedi. He just laughed at her and spoke words of spite and jealousy, then beheaded him with one fell swoop. He grabbed your father's blade, discarding his own, and walked into the room to find your mother dead, she had died from the stress of the situation combined with the pregnancy, and the loss she felt through the force when your father was killed. He also claimed your mother's blade, and wrapped you in her cloak, naming you." She looked at him shocked, then turned to Carn. He stared for a moment, then a wicked snarl appeared on his face as he spoke to her,"That's right. I killed him. I loved your mother, and she deserved better then him. It is his fault she died, not mine. It was your fault too! I tried to look past it, but I just couldn't. You look just like her, but you were the death of her! I hate you!" He spat words of hatrid and bitterness at her, but she just stood there, seething in rage. Not only had the man she had began to trust killed her father, but he blamed her for the death of her mother. He lied to her all these years. All the pain, all the torment, all the suffering over the years had been because of him! The aura around her started to swirl with a mix of black and red, her eyes becoming deep dark pits of pure hatrid and malice, anger and rage. Every ounce of torment, every moment of suffering, every bit of the dark side she had ever felt was concentrated in this gaze of the purest hatrid at the man. Her eyes seemed to pierce straight through him, and for a moment he just stood there, then he collapsed, dead. She continued to stare in hatrid at the body, before she suddenly became dizzy, then everything went black.

The images disappeared and Shandari's presence retracted from the man's mind. She was still looking him over, her hand slowly leaving the hilt, but still prepared to grab it at a moment's notice. What had been shown was her fall to the Dark Side, happening in the ruins under the very place they stood. Something seemed to stir within the girl at these memories she revealed, and the aura around her swirled until she was almost lost in it. But then the Rilan took a deep breath to calm herself, and as she exhaled the swirling darkness around her seemed to calm, until it was nothing more then a light haze once more.

[Karl the Unfettered]

Interesting, Shard thought to himself as Shandari retracted from his mind. Native telepathy, not at all a common trait. Shard knew there were few races with racial telepathic abilities, perhaps half a dozen at most; Shandari was of the Rilan, then. Also it seemed she was mute; in the scene she had revealed, she had not spoken a word. He had also seen her use of Deadly Sight, and gathered it had been an instinctive use.

"You would prefer telepathy, then?" he communicated. "That is well, we can avoid being overheard." He smiled and nodded his head. "Thank you for showing me that, I understand why you have come. In return, allow me to reveal something of myself as well. First, though..." He glanced about to make sure they were alone, then turned to face her once again. "You know of the Miraluka? Eyeless humanoids who see through the Force?"

With that, he reached up and pulled his glasses down, for exactly one second. Without them his face was dramatically altered, for his eye sockets were empty. It was obvious why he wore the glasses, aside from racial taboo; with them on, his face could be considered handsome, angular and largely unlined despite the fact that his fiftieth birthday was less than a year off. But without them, one's attention was inexorably drawn to the two gaping maws where his eyes should have been; what appeared to be scars radiated outward, and his eyebrows cast shadows over the already darkened holes. The overall effect was intensely disconcerting, almost frightening, and could inflict nausea (or worse, easily) on anyone with a weak stomach or mind.

The eyes were said to be the gateway to one's soul; Shandari might have a black soul, but Shard had no soul at all.

The second passed, and the Miraluka put the glasses back on; instantly the gaping maws disappeared, and the graceful, immaculately dressed Sith once again stood before her. "Many think my glasses are unnecessary, foppish even, but you know the truth now. Anyway, now for what I really have to show you."

Like Shandari had done, Shard entered her mind, a much more graceful and unobtrusive presence. Before her mind's eye an image formed; it was the Jedi Temple, and a much younger Shard was arguing with an older human man. A Zabrak female looked on, anxiety clear on her face. "Here I am, twenty-five years ago," came Shard's voice, the present Shard. "Slavers had been kidnapping Jedi, and I was going to go save them." Even as he spoke, the younger Shard stood up, dropped his lightsabers on the table, and walked out of the room. "You see? I was very foolish back then, but if it hadn't been for that act of defiance I wouldn't be where I am today."

From there the images fast-forwarded: Shard going to a dark alleyway and causing a fuss, getting captured and knocked out; Shard on a dark ship, speeding through space to Corellia. When it slowed down, Shard was standing amidst a large group of other slaves, and a menacing Trandoshan slaver was making its way along; together with the smaller men following, it was clear this was an inspection team. "Here is where it all goes south for me," Shard spoke again, narrating. "Hard to believe a Jedi in a bad place could be so arrogant, eh?" The inspectors reached him, asked questions; he gave the wrong answers and was cuffed aside...

And his scard was torn off. Immediately his secret was revealed, and they set on him with stun weaponry. He fought back, though, with such ferocity that they were driven back temporarily; three of them even lay dead behind him. "Quite the fist fighter, wasn't I? Still am, if you ever want to find out." But it didn't last, and they subdued him quickly; then, one of them came forward with a bulky collar...

"Best hope you never, ever see one of those," he narrated as the slaver advanced. "That's a Force Collar; no matter how strong you are, if one of those gets around your neck it's all over." Sure enough, the collar was fastened around Shard's neck, and he screamed as the universe was reduced to hearing, smell, and the feel of cold concrete beneath his skin. "You could never even begin to comprehend what that felt like," the Miraluka said, bitterness clear in his voice; his presence in her mind radiated such mad fury it was wonder she wouldn't get scorched. "Imagine living with the Force your whole life, using it as easily as breathing; hell, you see through it, and the universe is beautiful.

"Then, in the space of a second, it's all ripped away. You are forced to see things as everyone else does, if 'to see' is even the right phrase; you can't even see! Everything comes to you through your ears, your nose, your fingertips; but the noises are loud, ugly and jarring, your nose only conveys sewage, rot, unwashed beings and tainted fumes, and your fingers are either so hot or so cold they convey nothing useful. You can't even eat on your own without help!" The scenes were flashing by again: Shard being watched over by the other slaves while he adjusted to a galaxy without the Force; Shard being sold, treated as a joke, forced to serve as some comic relief butler while his masters laughed and threw things at him. Shard being made to fight, as some jobber for everyone to beat up on while the crowds roared and the lights beat down relentlessly on the combatants.

Throughout all of it, there was the growing madness, the festering rage and the helpless fury; without the Force he could not meditate to cleanse himself, he couldn't even recall the teachings of the Jedi for guidance. Beneath it all, feeding the madness, was the growing certainty that his master had set him up, had been jealous of his talent and his power and, not having the courage to simply kill him, had arranged for him to simply... go away.

From there it skipped ahead; Shard finally losing it one night in the arena and beating his opponent senseless, his plotting to be free and the coup that brought his freedom. Shard throwing a sword at the repulsive Hutt who had owned him for so long. And at last... the collar being removed. "The galaxy came back to me then," his voice said. "But it was different, darker, full of possibilities I had been blind to before. So long without the Force, so long cooped up with my own madness and fury... I was tainted from that day forward, and so was the Force as I percieved it.

"After that I became something of a pirate, but we'll skip that." Fleeting images of piracy and deals with the devil went by, scenes from Shard's life. They lingered on the torture and breaking of the Jedi who came for him, and those Jedi being sent back empty shells of themselves. Finally, he could not stand by any longer. The one man who stood a chance against me, who taught me everything I had known..." The images resolved into an area on Nar Shaddaa; Shard, now recognizable as the one people knew today, and the older Jedi from long before, older still now. His Zabrak student was a Knight in her own right, and she was there too, but so was Shard's own student, a former dancer whom he had found and freed.

"Naturally we fought; naturally I won, and he died. Even then, he still tried to save me." He chuckled as he revealed that last event, Shard's old master broken and bloodied, yet still reaching out to the Miraluka. "There was more to that encounter, much more, but I have yet to deal with it myself so I must hold it back." Again the images flashed forward, and resolved on Korriban, just months prior. It was the formation of the new Order, the destruction of the old temple and the dedication of a new era. "This needs no explanation, for this was the beginning of everything we do today. I was here at the beginning, and as I have vowed I will be here until there is nothing left of me."

He stepped back, removed himself from Shandari's mind. "That is why I am here... to give my strength and my skill to those who ask, and to further my own goals and ambitions." He cocked his head to the side and smiled. "What about your goals, hmm?" Another pause, and he became thoughtful. "That power you used at the end of the vision you shared... that was Deadly Sight, was it not? A rare talent, but with training you could learn to hone it." He knew that rare powers, like the more common ones, required control and finesse, things he could pass on.

If he could find a willing student.

[Hotel]

Shandari was suprised when the man decided to converse in the same way as her. The only other to have ever done that before had been her master, the very one that helped her to master it. The longer she spent with this man, the more he intrigued her. The Rilan woman did not even so much as flinch when he had removed his glasses, revealing the empty sockets beneath. This Shard was like her. Different, an outcast among normal society. Already she felt closer to this man then she had felt with any Jedi, except her master, but she did not count him among them. Even in this temple they were different then the others. The mute and the blind.

And then Shard showed her his past. Every time the Jedi were mentioned or show, a bitter, primal hatred seemed to rise within the Rilan, yet she kept herself in check. She continued to watch and listen to his tale, sensing the raw emotion behind it. This man had been wronged badly. She did not see him being as badly hurt by the Order as herself, but still... When he finished, she seemed to hold herself, as if something had torn down her tough demeaner, yet she still radiated hatred and anger. But there was something else hidden among it now, and for only a fraction of a second, her cold black eyes were tinted a deep shade of blue.

She spoke out into his mind once more. She seemed not to hear much of anything after Shard has asked her about her goals. "What is my goal? The Jedi took everything from me. They took my family before I ever knew them. They took the only father I have ever known. A man that had raised me my whole life, and finally helped me find my true self. They took everything! And I will take everything from them. You want to know my goal? My goal is the complete eradication of the Jedi Order." A single tear ran down her cheek, but her face showed the hatred and bitterness she felt towards the Jedi. The black aura began to swarm around her once more. "They will suffer for everything they have done. They claim to be the protectors....Yet they forced my parents into hiding! They killed my real father even after he surrendered! And they took the life of the only man that had ever shown me any love, the only person that had ever cared, the man that raised me as his own."

She tried to keep them in, but was untrained in closing her mind in this sort of emotional state. Flashes of images would appear. Shandari rushing into a large cave. The Echani from the first vision laying lifeless on the floor. Bodies of Jedi laying everywhere. Shandari making the first vocal sound ever. A loud and piercing wail of pure sorrow. The last words her master ever spoke before life finally left him for good. "Goodbye, my daughter...." The Rilan woman laying over his body, tears running down her cheeks. Finally it focused on one scene. A sound nearby stirred her from her sorrow, and her face contorted in rage. One of the bodies had managed to move to a sitting position. She recognized the man as one of the council members from the Jedi Temple. She rose, igniting her own blade as she neared him. He looked up at her in shock. "But... it can't be. He and his apprentice killed you..." The look of shock was permenantly etched onto his face as the teal saber carved through his neck, the head rolling away. But she did not stop there. Shandari slashed the corpse over and over again in her grief and rage until it was nothing more then a bleeding pile of bits of flesh.

Shandari's expression suddenly changed. She had not intended to show Shard any of that. Quickly she retracted from his mind, pulling her hood tighter around her face. Her deepest sorrows, her weakest moment, she had just revealed it to a complete stranger. What's worse, she had done it without intending to, because she had lost control of her emotions. The Rilan took a deep breath once more, calming herself, the swirling aura steadying, but she was not able to look the man in the eyes once more, not after that. She had always been taught to never show weakness, and she had just shown her greatest weakness of all.

[Karl the Unfettered]

((OOC: I had never though Shard would be in a situation like this, so if he's a little out of character, forgive me.))

For a second, Shard was disappointed. Another one blinded by hatred, he thought to himself. I swear, people with eyes see less than I do. His first instinct was to rebuke Shandari, for revealing too much and showing weakness, but he squashed that quickly; that was how one treated a youngling or a student, and the Rilan was a master in her own right. Granted she still had much to learn, but who didn't? No, this called for a careful and respectful approach, but he had to tread lightly or else it would spin out of control for either of them.

"You... were never properly trained in telepathy, I take it," he began carefully, placing a hand on her shoulder and leading her back down the hall. There was a largely unused training room nearby, where they could find relative privacy, and he suspected such would be necessary. "The past, if left unresolved, can haunt us, and eventually consume us. Events can echo, resonate, and those echoes can build to catastrophic proportions if one doesn't take action."

They reached the room, and Shard closed the door behind them. "I cannot say I know how you feel; I did not see my master fall in battle, I killed him myself in cold blood, then raped his student and made her my own." He showed her an image of a sensuous Zabrak in tight black leather; it was the same Zabrak female from before, but this time clearly fallen to Darkness. "Valda is her name. She is ready to step out on her own, and soon I will take a new student from the younger initiates of the Temple." He turned to face Shandari. "You will, as well, given your power and your skill. It is a great responsibility, teaching a student; not many are up to it, something they don't discover until it is too late."

He stopped, and seemed to realize what he had said. "Ahh, please forgive me, I was lecturing and this isn't the time for lectures." He shook his head and chuckled at himself. He hadn't spoken this way with someone else in a long time, and the intimacy of such contact was unfamiliar. But not, in this case, unwelcome.

"Anyway, are you familiar with the Echani? Specifically, their martial traditions?" To suddenly ask about fighting styles might have seemed off, but he had a point. "It is said that one cannot truly know another person until they have fought each other; combat is an art to them, a means of communication where no lies or falsehoods are possible. When you fight, they believe, you lay everything bare before your opponent; they take duels extremely seriously because of that."

He walked to the center of the room, and stood at the edge of the central sparring ring. "Perhaps you and I might spar, briefly? If nothing else it would help you to relax; I have often found a match against a skilled opponent to be quite refreshing, and one against an opponent of more skill to be instructive at the same time."

[Hotel]

Shandari was about ready to leave, sure she had turned the man against her in her one moment of weakness, only to stop when she felt his hand on her shoulder. Shandari turned to him as Shard spoke to her. Not fully knowing why, she let him lead her out of the hall into the training room. He seemed wise beyond his age, and she carefully took the words about the past to heart, knowing he was right. She had been struggling about her past for seven years now. She thought she had conquered it, but yet here it arose again.

Her eyes followed the man as he closed the door. He showed her the Zabrak woman once more, and she nodded. Soon he was talking about teaching, and for the first time, Shandari thought about what it would be like to have a student. Her a true master, with an apprentice? Could she actually do it? She had no doubt in her own ability, but to watch over another, and to teach them, that was something entirely different. She knew she would face it when it happened though, and she would either succeed or fail in it, the outcome already decided for her somehow, and she could not change it, whatever it may be.

A very light smile touched her lips. She had not spoken like this with someone in years. In a way it was comforting. Her master had almost always spoken like this with her. And here this man was, doing the same thing. She did not understand his reasoning behind it, or why he continued to even speak with her. Her former Jedi Master would have rebuked her for showing such weakness. Yet here this man was, helping her, just like her master would have. It was not something she was accustomed to, yet she coud not deny herself that she did find it somewhat pleasing.

Shandari remained on the other end of the sparring ring as Shard walked across. Know of the Echani? A smile touched her lips once more as she slid her robe off, revealing the soft cloth underneath, shaped for easy maneuverability. As she did this, her large wings unfurled behind her. She stretched them out to their fullest extend, gave them one flap, and rested them at her sides. Shandari then removed her sabers, setting them ontop of her robes. The Rilan woman then crouched into a position easiy recognisable from the first tier of Echani Martial Arts, though with her wings positioned as if extra limbs. Did she know of the Echani....

[Karl the Unfettered]

"I see that you do," Shard said with an approving nod, as he shrugged out of his cloak. "If you don't mind I will speak aloud for the moment, the better to concentrate." With that he retracted his focus from Shandari's mind, and made his preparations. He removed his two lightsabers, having left his rapier and pistol with his armor, and set them atop his cloak. Then he slid his outer tunic off, revealing a skintight short-sleeved shirt of the same hue as his other clothes.

"This will be an introductory round, in a sense," he continued aloud, facing Shandari again and bowing. "No Force powers, no tricks, no advanced techniques; just basic attacks and defenses." From a pocket he removed a small band, attaching the ends to his glasses so they wouldn't fall off during the fight, then he assumed a defensive stance from the first tier of Echani arts.

Shandari wouldn't know, but Shard was incredibly skilled in unarmed combat, knowing the third and final tier of Echani fighting; perhaps he hadn't mastered it, but he made up for that with his other skills. Naturally as a former Jedi Knight he was skilled in Broken Gate, which made use of joint locks and disabling attacks, but was also considered a master of Teras Kasi, a form developed by anti-Jedi survivors of the planet Bunduki. Supposedly it had been created specifically to combat the Jedi and their talents, which had attracted Shard to it in the first place.

But for now, none of that mattered. For now it was a basic fight, so that they could come to know one another. "Your move, my dear," he allowed, seguing into a defensive posture.

[Hotel]

Shandari watched as he two removed his robe and weapons. She nodded at his conditions, expecting them as such. She watched while he did something with his glasses and crouched into a defensive stance, asking her to make the first move. She smiled again. Time to test this man.

Quick as a flash, Shandari was striking out with her palm towards his chest. Not waiting to see if she made contact, the quick Rilan lashed out with a sweepkick, and hoped that if the first strike missed, the second one combined with her speed would catch him before he had a chance to counter.

Spinning out of the swift kick onto her hands, Shandari was now upside down, using her hands to support herself. She brought her foot down hard, not entirely expecting her opponent to still be there, but hoping that even if he wasnt, she could still us the momentum to return to her feet and get into a defensive position before he could respond with an attack of his own.

[Karl the Unfettered]

She's fast, Shard thought approvingly as Shandari launched her first attack, an open palm to his chest. Against anyone less skilled than he it would have landed perfectly, knocking their breath out and them off-balance for a follow-up or two. The Miraluka, though, wasn't just any fighter; really it was Shandari who was being tested in this fight.

Her first attack he deflected with his forearm, giving it a slight twist as her palm smacked into him. She ducked and spun into a sweep kick, which he didn't even bother to evade; planting his feet more solidly against the ground he simply took the blow against the side of his shin, something most people didn't expect and that sometimes threw off an opponent's timing and rhythm.

Not this time, though, as immediately she flew into a handstand and kicked down at his head. First mistake, he thought smugly, reaching up to intercept her leg. It was perfectly done, he had her by the ankle and shin, and before she could recover he spun about and heaved her over his shoulder, pressing on the knee and slamming her back first into the mat behind them.

"You have speed," the Miraluka said, letting her go and stepping back. "But you lack raw strength, and your body is light. Most fighters focus on gaining muscle mass, which adds weight in addition to making them stronger." He stepped away again, and deliberately turned his back on her, fists at his side and feet apart.

"Again. Same conditions as before." Now it gets interesting, he thought. How would she react to an opponent with his back turned, a classic position of weakness?

[Hotel]

Shandari thought she had had him. Her foot came down, but it never made contact. Instead the Rilan woman was basically tossed over Shard's shoulder. She landed with a soft thud on her back. He was good. Even with her speed he was good. Shandari stood up and listened to the man as he spoke, nodding. Shard turned his back to her and asked her to attack once more. Shandari took a deep breath and shook her wings, then let it all out with an exhale, centering herself.

Shandari knew that he outmatched her in strength, but she hoped she had the advantage in speed. If she could land her blows in the right spots, she just might at least be able to get him off balance enough to gain the upper hand. Aiming a kick for his lower back, near the base of the spine, she slid onto one hand, the other aiming a chop at the Miraluka's left ankle, knowing that those areas were some of the most vunrable and easy to manipulate.

Knowing the two attacks would make contact simultaniously, Shandari prepared for her next one, bringing her other foot down to the ground and prepared to strike with both palms. She knew this would only be effective if her first two attacks worked, but she was one to take chances, and if it payed off, Shard might be the one on the ground this time.

[Karl the Unfettered]

If Shard had eyes, he would have closed them at this instance; sight was an impediment, and he had learned to get along without it. Both physically and through the Force, thanks to his years of slavery. He didn't like to think of that time in his life, yet he couldn't deny that without them he wouldn't be as he was today, and beneath the misery and pain he had learned a great many valuable lessons.

One of them was that no one was ever perfectly silent; there was always breathing, a rustle of clothing, the friction of air across feathers or what have you. Of course, in this case Shandari wasn't trying to be stealthy, which would have made it easier, but he wanted to feel what she could do in a fight.

He wasn't disappointed, as she hit him in two places simultaneously; the strike to his back knocked him forward, and the one to his ankle sent him to the ground. Or it would have, if he hadn't been ready for just that sort of thing. He used the momentum of the strikes to fall forward, twisting as he did so to catch her next attack and turn it against her once again. Fortunately she had gone with an open-palm strike once again, with both hands this time.

He siezed her wrists, yanking them apart and bringing his foot up into her stomach as he continued falling, taking it on his shoulders and keeping a tight grip on her wrists. He was on the ground, as she had wanted, but shortly it would go against her. With his leg straight up, holding her above him, he brought his knee in and kicked to the side, which would have sent her across the floor if he had let go of her wrists.

Instead, the Rilan once again was slammed downward, and forced onto her back as the Miraluka planted one knee in her stomach and pinned her hands above her head. "Overconfidence," he said quietly, his face about a foot from hers. "You saw a weakness and went for it; an admirable strategy, most of the time." His expression was serious as he twisted her wrists, leaning down a little closer. "But, you must always be mindful of your opponent. Just because I have no eyes, does not mean I cannot see; besides, my ears work just fine."

For a split second he wondered what could happen now, with her helpless beneath him, if they were in a more private place; aboard his ship, for instance. But they weren't, and anyway it was much too early for... that sort of thing. "Again," he said, standing up and moving away. He didn't turn his back this time, but he did relax just a bit. "Use more advanced techniques this time, but still no use of the Force."

[Hotel]

Shandari smiled. It had worked. He was falling. Now all she needed to do was follow through with the- Her wrists were grabbed and suddenly she was in the air above Shard. Once again he had countered her, using the Rilan's own attacks and momentum against her. She blinked, looking down at him. Soon the foot supporting her moved and she began to fall towards him. Before she landed ontop of him, his foot collided with her and sent her sprawling to the side. Had he not held onto her still she would have been sent flying. Instead Shandari was slammed onto the mat and Shard pinned her under him.

Once more the man commented on her technique. But again, it was not in a derigoratory or scolding manner. He was trying to help her, teach her from her mistakes. She looked up at the man holding her to the floor. Her eyes met his glasses, and she nodded, showing that she understood. Here under him, she felt vunrable, yet strangly she knew the man would not harm her. For some reason she felt.... safe, something she had not felt in years.

Shard released her, and she stood once more. He asked her to use more advanced techniqies. Unfortunatly, her master only taught her the first tier of Echani Martial Arts. But he did help her to put her own unique spin on it. Combining several elements of her saber combat and her wings as extra limbs, she had a unique fighting style all to her own.

She took a deep breath and centered herself once more, exhaling and folding her wings forward against her. This time, she would be more cautious, and hopefully manage to land a proper blow. She rushed him, immediatly sliding to her hands for a hard kick to his side, knowing once more, he would grab it and try to use her momentum against her. This time, she incorperated her strong wings, swinging the one to catch the fist before it could. Knowing she would manage to at least land this blow, as it always seemed to catch everyone offguard the first time, she would use the momentum from her own kick to push off where she had made contant and land, bringing her wings in front of her to block any blows, lauching out with a straightforward kick should she be successful. All this went through her mind as she lauched her first attack, praying it would work.

[Karl the Unfettered]

Again, Shard had to admire the Rilan's speed, as she flew forward and kicked out at his side. Knowing she would be onto his tricks now he made no move to grab at her foot as it careened toward him; rather he feinted a block, allowing her kick to smash full on against him. As expected it hurt, and he was flung sideways, but he kept to his feet, recovered quickly and came back.

This time, he noticed that she had been taught to make use of her wings for close-quarters fighting; her teacher must have been creative. Again she kicked out at him, and he took the blow to his chest; again he stumbled away, keeping to his feet. "Nicely done," he allowed, shaking it off and coming forward again. "Making use of your wings, a clever touch." Without going into any stances he simply came forward, feinting at her head with one hand before slamming his fist hard into her solar plexus; she was light enough he was able to carry on with the attack, lifting her up into the air above him.

"However, your main weakness is still your lack of mass," he told her, before throwing her against the wall. He was on her before she could recover, again seizing her wrists and pinning them above her head. "If this was a real fight against someone who truly wished you harm, you would already be dead," he growled. "Or worse." This close, she could smell his breath; minty, like some sort of mouth wash. What he meant by something worse than death, she could easily imagine.

"Then again, in a real fight you wouldn't be bound by rules." He released her wrists and stepped away again. "In a real fight there are no rules, other than to survive. And optionally to make sure they don't." He faced her again, and grinned. "All talk aside, you did well; I was just better than you.

"Anyway, do you want to go on, or have you other things to do?" He didn't; he had planned to leave the Temple and explore the tombs, or maybe just go out on the wastes for a bit of alone time. Though, he thought that if she wanted to go, he wouldn't mind so much.

[Hotel]

Shandari smiled. She had actually managed to land a proper blow. Following through with her plan, she pushed off of him and landed, using her wings to shiled herself and kick at him again. Again she landed a strong blow, but it wasnt strong enough. He stumbled back, but did not fall. He commented on her technique, but then charged, slamming his hand into her. Shandari flew back and hit the wall. He was quick to follow, and pin her there.

He spoke to her, his voice a growl, and for a moment he had seemed threatening, but she showed no fear. He released her soon after. Shandari rubbed her wrists. After being tugged on and held soo much they were starting to get sore.

Shandari reached down for her sabers, listening as he spoke to her. She had nothing to do. She didn't even know what there was to do around here. After all, she had just arrived out of the blue. She spoke out to him, their minds touching once more. "I have nothing to do. I would not mind accompanying you." Shandari clipped her hilts together, resting the now double bladed curved saber on her belt. Shandari gently and slowly folded her wings against her back, putting her robes on once more. The Rilan woman pulled her hood up once more, a smile touching her lips.