Hoth: Blood and Ice

Vaylin was never one for crowds, no particular fear, just didn't like the masses of people. Probably because she had a low opinion of people in general.

She had no great fondness of plants.

But it was quiet.

She narrowed her eyes sensing another presence.

Garth wasn't one for parties after a mission, he was more contemplative. And when that mood overtook him, he came here, to the greenest place on this desert of ice.

Oblivious to the woman's identity, he saluted her with his cup of luke warm kaff.

"Ev'nin miss."

Vaylin assumed the gibberish was a greeting and just nodded before going back and looking towards the corner and then said to no one, "Hmmph, you know thing, outlander."

"Ah know a few things." Garth replied, trying to normalise his speech as much as possible.

"Like ah know ah ain't seen you around here over th' last few weeks. Republic or Imperial?" He asks as he approaches cautiously.

"I am not through with you."

Vaylin turned to the man and said, "Repeat yourself, outlander?"

Garth cocks his head at the response.

"Who did you come here with? Which delegation?"

He says as slowly as he can.

"An' instead of outlander, y' can call me Garth, or Captain Thul. What do people call you?"

Someone else didn't like crowds either. Especially not when she didn't feel like facing the others. She didn't agree with aspects of how things went down elsewhere, from what she could piece together about it, but they were partying so they'd had their victory, or whatever it was.

All Layne had was another failure on her hands. She'd set it right to whatever extent she could've... but was that enough?

She needed to walk. Clear her head. Only to hear other people up ahead. Great. No hydroponic fortress of solitude for her.

Garth heard the footsteps of an approaching individual, and turned his head to spot....Lt Ujips confessed and convicted murderer.

His blood went a little cold as he recognized Layne, he hadn't attended the trial, but word had gotten around !- especially among the other military personnel.

He didn't know what to say to her, so just dipped his head in greeting.

Vaylin narrowed her eyes and then gave her full attention to Garth. “Vaylin,” she said, her eyes focused on his.

She received the nod of greeting, and gave one in return. The other woman then focused her attention on Garth and gave him her name. Which in turn drew her attention. Different thoughts swirled around inside of her at that point, and rather than burst into their conversation, she just took a seat nearby and started to think.

Vaylin wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 27, 2022 8:00 am

Vaylin narrowed her eyes and then gave her full attention to Garth. “Vaylin,” she said, her eyes focused on his.

"See, now we're gettin' somewhere, havin' ourselves a dialogue, all civilised like Miss Vaylin." Garth laughed, even as he positioned himself protectively between Layne and Vaylin.

"Now what brings y' here, when there's a perfectly good party goin' on in the commons?" He glances to Layne as he adds.

"Either of you?"

""I came here to avoid dialogue," she responded.

"Hmm... sort of the same," she said when she was being pulled into the conversation by Garth.

Hard to just have conversations with people who look at you as the murderer you are, after all.

"An' din' that work out well." Garth remarked, perhaps a little too sarcastically as he pulled out a datapad.

"But if you'll just explain why I have no record of a Vaylin on the personnel lists for this base, I'll leave ya to yer evening. Rumor has it there's spies about y' see."

Vaylin said nothing to Garth, just narrowing her eyes.

He could get us all killed

"She came in with the others in the afternoon, didn't she? You'd think if there was a problem, someone would've brought it up sooner."

She knew how dangerous Vaylin was of course. And while she had no idea what precisely had happened out there to have her be here, now, she could make some basic assumptions. Beyond the fact that it seemed obvious that someone of her power had no need to act like some common *spy*.

Garth casts a questioning glance at Layne before nodding his head. He might not know how dangerous Vaylin is, but he knows Layne wouldn't break a sweat in taking him out if she chose to.

Garth entered Vaylin's name down in his files, with the notation - vouched for by Layne Hoshin, to be confirmed. He stowed away his datapad and glanced between the women as he muttered to himself and stepped away for a moment as he promised.

"Ye'd think these slave's 'd be more grateful, ah'm sure they had it hard, but some common frakkin manners. Nudi's gonna have me paying off the repair bill for the Turtle for decades after that engagement let alone the recovery costs fer that cannon..."

Mumble mumble mumble...

"Slave?" she said with venom, her eyes becoming slits. The pressure in the room begins to build pressing them both back towards the wall.

Anything not bolted down begins to rattle and shake.

Yep. This is what I was talking about.

"He was probably muttering about the slaves that got rescued," she said, trying her best to ignore or resist the building pressure "Doesn't know who you are."

Garth might not have known who she was, but he recognized the power she wielded.

Who the frakk screened these newcomers, this power is...

Garth shook his head in disbelief as he was pushed back, against his will and despite his feeble attempts at resistance.

"If not...then from where? Who?" Garth forced out the words, inadvertantly validating Layne's position

Vaylin took a moment to breathe and then brushed past them both.

"Wait," she called after her, "Can I... ask you something?"

Garth took the moment to retrieve his datapad once more, this time to snap a photo of this Vaylin woman.

He knew he was outmatched, but the base leadership needed to know about this potential threat.

Layne Hoshin wrote: ↑

Sat Aug 27, 2022 12:57 pm

"Wait," she called after her, "Can I... ask you something?"

"No," as she left.

"I just want..."

...To know if you believe you deserve forgiveness.

It was a question she'd wanted to ask Vaylin, hoping her answer would be yes. The question wasn't really for Vaylin's sake of course; though it might help; but for her own.

But the girl was too caught up in her own whirlwind of instability. There'd be no answer there, would there?

She turned to Garth then, her own eyes narrowing not unlike Vaylin's had.

"Great. Just great."

She kicked over one of the heavy bags of soil for the hydroponics bays. The thud it made was nowhere near as satisfying as she imagined making the whole place shake would feel.