12-07-2017, 02:03 AM
(This post was last modified: 01-03-2018, 12:35 AM by Kelly MacAryn.)
Kelly watched for a moment as Strazio roused the trolls, then turned away and retrieved his staff.
"I should be leaving as well," he said.
Malon frowned. "You're not going to come with us?"
The traveler shook his head, offering a her a thin, personable smile. "As appealing as hitting the road might be, and as much as I'd like to spend time getting to know you all better, I have important goals that need tending to. I've been occupied by one time-dilated crisis or another for the better part of a year, and it's left me far behind schedule."
The shapeshifter was silent for a moment. Another gust of wind billowed through the ravaged pavilion. Malon's first instinct was to try to change Kelly's mind, but in spite of the fact that they'd only just met, in a certain sense she knew him quite well; After all, they had, however briefly, been parts of the same gestalt consciousness, and she owned a duplicate fragment of his memory.
"Well," Malon said, conjuring a rueful grin, "That's a shame. But I guess if you've got other commitments, it can't be helped."
Kelly's lips twitched. "I'm glad you understand." He bowed his head very slightly, little more than a dip of his stubbled chin. "It's been interesting. Take care of yourself, Ma-... aru. And tell Strazio it was... nice to meet him."
The woman nodded acknowledgement, turning her body to sit with her legs dangling off the edge of the battered sofa. She tugged at her dress, adjusting it for comfort in her new position. "I will. And you too! Thanks again for your help!"
The traveler turned to go, avoiding debris as he made his way back towards the forest's edge. "Don't mention it," he called, glancing back over his shoulder. He didn't actually need to - she was still well within range of his higher perceptions - but those little elements of body-language were important. "It was the least I could do."
It really was. Besides, I strongly suspect I'll see her again. The woman is a Prime, and Tearen Wover held her in high regard. Depending on how this all goes, I may find it necessary to call on her and Strazio in the final stages of taking Coruscant.
That will be incredibly dangerous; I can easily see Strazio telling me to go fuck myself, provided I don't run into him before then and establish a stronger bond. If he's back in Darkshire by the next time I visit, that would be ideal... one trip, maximum benefit.
...But if it comes to asking, I think Malon would probably agree to help as-is.
That he was already thinking of ways to use his new acquaintances wasn't a fact Kelly was proud of. Sour memories surged and bubbled, whispering unbidden, a hair's-breadth from the surface. The psychic pushed them down again, leaving a bitter taste of past necessities in his mind. He quickened his pace, boots crunching on broken tile.
Firmly shifting his focus to more imminent concerns, he left the clearing. There was a subtle, sibilant hiss of leaves scraping against denim and cotton, tickling his bare arms as he slipped through a wet curtain of foliage and fibrous green fronds, into the dense undergrowth of the Tangled Green.
"I should be leaving as well," he said.
Malon frowned. "You're not going to come with us?"
The traveler shook his head, offering a her a thin, personable smile. "As appealing as hitting the road might be, and as much as I'd like to spend time getting to know you all better, I have important goals that need tending to. I've been occupied by one time-dilated crisis or another for the better part of a year, and it's left me far behind schedule."
The shapeshifter was silent for a moment. Another gust of wind billowed through the ravaged pavilion. Malon's first instinct was to try to change Kelly's mind, but in spite of the fact that they'd only just met, in a certain sense she knew him quite well; After all, they had, however briefly, been parts of the same gestalt consciousness, and she owned a duplicate fragment of his memory.
"Well," Malon said, conjuring a rueful grin, "That's a shame. But I guess if you've got other commitments, it can't be helped."
Kelly's lips twitched. "I'm glad you understand." He bowed his head very slightly, little more than a dip of his stubbled chin. "It's been interesting. Take care of yourself, Ma-... aru. And tell Strazio it was... nice to meet him."
The woman nodded acknowledgement, turning her body to sit with her legs dangling off the edge of the battered sofa. She tugged at her dress, adjusting it for comfort in her new position. "I will. And you too! Thanks again for your help!"
The traveler turned to go, avoiding debris as he made his way back towards the forest's edge. "Don't mention it," he called, glancing back over his shoulder. He didn't actually need to - she was still well within range of his higher perceptions - but those little elements of body-language were important. "It was the least I could do."
It really was. Besides, I strongly suspect I'll see her again. The woman is a Prime, and Tearen Wover held her in high regard. Depending on how this all goes, I may find it necessary to call on her and Strazio in the final stages of taking Coruscant.
That will be incredibly dangerous; I can easily see Strazio telling me to go fuck myself, provided I don't run into him before then and establish a stronger bond. If he's back in Darkshire by the next time I visit, that would be ideal... one trip, maximum benefit.
...But if it comes to asking, I think Malon would probably agree to help as-is.
That he was already thinking of ways to use his new acquaintances wasn't a fact Kelly was proud of. Sour memories surged and bubbled, whispering unbidden, a hair's-breadth from the surface. The psychic pushed them down again, leaving a bitter taste of past necessities in his mind. He quickened his pace, boots crunching on broken tile.
Firmly shifting his focus to more imminent concerns, he left the clearing. There was a subtle, sibilant hiss of leaves scraping against denim and cotton, tickling his bare arms as he slipped through a wet curtain of foliage and fibrous green fronds, into the dense undergrowth of the Tangled Green.
Quote:Kelly has left the pavilion, the clearing, and the thread.