"Indeed, my warrior, you did all you possibly could. The fact remains, however, that the future will bring what destiny decrees it shall bring. I can only hope your wisdom has reached my sister, and that she heeds the truth of your words. She is in enough pain now as it is."

Somewhere deep inside her, the Beast raised his head with a questioning growl, wondering as to her apparent about-face in how she felt toward Galen JhinDarr Danner. Truly there was nothing untoward forcing her to think thus, was there?

Seeking into her psyche, and not finding, he laid his head quietly between his massive paws again, curled protectively around the brilliant mote he so jealously guarded. Graysith seemed to relax even further as her inner Beast quieted, and gave Recinis's shoulder another loving squeeze.

"Galen will be all right, my love," she repeated, rising on tiptoe to whisper into his ear. "Come, let us retire together, and spend these last quiet hours as we should, for on the morrow we must depart, and even the All cannot assure me that we will be entirely successful in our mission."

With those words she reached up to cup his face and draw it down that his lips would meet hers in a lingering kiss. Then, snuggling into his side, she let her feet return them in the direction they had only just begun, guiding him back with her to the rooms she now considered to belong to them both.

--------------------

"It scares me to have her taken from here too, love," he whispered quietly. Then he simply stayed where he was, remaining a silent and steady support.

[ 09-06-2002 11:16 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Terrin Danner ]

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They soon arived in there room, each went about there own tasks in quietness.

recinis located his sword and staff, and placed them gently in place, along with his black shirt, and pants, which he was planning on exchanging his robes for in the morning.

He then laid down quietly on the bed, and wrapped his arms lovingly around graysiths waist, drawing her near to him, so they might snuggle warmly together in the soft folds of the sith bed, allowing all tension, and thoughts of there mission float away as the silky sheets carressed there skin with its wonderus softness, which seemed all to impossible.

Recinis then came in as close as he could to her, whispering lightly in her ear before kissing her softly. "i love you Graysith... Nothing will seperate us, your daughter will be retrieved."

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2 hours later...

Lo-Ban awoke in a cold sweat... THE SAME DAMN DREAM YET AGAIN, already forgotten, once again...

No matter how firm and calm a demeanor she had maintained the night before in the face of Galen's episode, the fact remained that her sister's despair had cut her to the core. She was all too keenly aware of the responsibility she had over JhinDarra's well-being; indeed, the tiny infant placed a burden upon her shoulders disproportionate in size to that of her own. Yet another quiet sigh heaved from her breast as she thought of the perils which more than likely were to come.

Did she really think that Dark Lord Roan didn't already know that they would surely attempt this? How successful was she in her attempt to fool herself into believing that he would not try to jeopardize their quest?

Yet another sigh provided the answer to those questions, and she rolled onto her side, now letting her eyes shift and take refuge in the sleeping form of her love. Worried though she was, she couldn't help but smile a tiny bit, and reached out a finger to lightly trace a line down the middle of his face, beginning at his forehead and finishing by playing gently upon his lips. She allowed her mind to finally shift, to take refuge in his strength, one utterly commanding and completely natural and not lessened a whit in slumber.

Unlike most, my love is not vulnerable as he sleeps, the thought caressed her mind. And thus it is because of his strength, that I must truly believe the words he spoke to me last night.

We will never be parted. And we shall retrieve my daughter.

This he has stated. And this I must believe....

With that deep realization a semblance of relief came to her; now the sigh she uttered was not one of borderline despair, but one of a body spiralling down into peace. She let her eyelids droop then and, snuggling closely to the body of her love, her arm moving to drape across his chest, she finally lost herself for the last few hours of night in a slumber which though short, was deep.

--------------------

Graysith lay quietly sleeping, one arm hung over his chest lightly, he smiled a bit as he watched her sleep, he didnt want to wake her up, but he knew he must...
he sighed to himself, they could spare a little time, he had a feeling they had time left.
with that thought he snuggled a little closer the graysith, letting his own eyes close again in quiet comfort.

after some time, he again opened his eyes, and his gaze falling onto his sleeping love, he sighed again... It was time.

He leaned in to her, and gave her a gentle kiss on the cheek, and then, even more gently, shook her sleeping form, to awaken her, and waited that way untill finaly her violet eyes were revealed, and peered questioningly into his own emerald orbs.

"I fear it is time..." he said quietly to her, before placing a loving kiss on her lips.
He then stood, and got dressed in his shirt, and pants, strapping his weapons on before his gaze fell to his robes, which had been placed in a piece of sith technology he had discovered, that had washed them. They lay folded neatly in the strang tray, and he gathered them up, considering them.

after a moments hesitation he placed the robes over his clothing, covering all traces of his weapons. The folds of the robes made it appear as though he were fully unarmed, yet with a simple flick of the clothing, he could have easy access either weapon.

He then turned, to see if graysith had risen yet...

--------------------

Her eyes opened to find Recinis's pair directly in front of her's. A small smile came to her lips as, after making certain that she was fully awake, he then leaned in further to kiss the final dregs of sleep from her being. That smile widened, and she stretched her hands forward to grasp him and bring him down to her again, when the fact that instead of yielding he instead drew reluctantly away, preparing himself for what lay ahead, snapped her roughly into the reality of the moment.

Now the smile lessened and she sighed, sitting up quickly and swinging her legs off the side of the bed. Getting smoothly to her feet, she padded to the wardrobe from which she had drawn the greeny-golden robe of a noble Sith lady, and reached inside. She drew out her black practice doba, and quickly donned it.

Then she went back to the bed, standing beside it just as Recinis finished attiring himself and turned to look her way. She smiled at him, although that smile wasn't as bright as normal; though he looked innocent enough, she was well aware of the weaponry hidden beneath the silken folds of his cloak.

She swallowed, blinking quickly as she drew in a breath with that realization.

Fates be with us, but let us hope these weapons will not have to be put to use....

Now shaking her head to flick that thought into the recesses of her own mind, she took a step forward, holding her hands out to her love. His hands were strong and warm as she took them up in hers, holding them for a moment before raising his sword hand to her lips to kiss its palm. Her violet eyes fell into his, and lay there for several seconds, but seconds in which an eternity came hand-in-hand.

"Strength and sureness be with you, Recinis," she at last murmured quietly. Then she dropped his hands and turned away, walking now to the door, letting him now don the mantle of the warrior in her wake even as she took on that of the goyen once again.

--------------------

he was not sure where this mission would take them...but he was prepared.

--------------------

Lord Aelvedaar, whom she at least expected to have run into by now, was nowhere to be seen. Neither were Shayla or the Danner family; her frown deepened again with the thought that she might have to physically take their daughter from them. Integral to this mission though the child was, she still found herself dragging her feet when it came to having to act against her sister.

The little car came to a quiet halt then, its hatch whooshing open to disgorge them on the perimeter of the immense spaceport. It lay before them in all its alien splendor... completely devoid of life.

Graysith now could not keep the frown upon her face from deepening as she went up to the warship and gained entry to it. There her physical senses affirmed what the All had already told her: there was no one yet aboard. As she turned to descend to the tarmac once again, her eyes fell on something laying like a shadow over the back of the navigator's seat, something which drew her to it like a magnet. The frown on her face loosened up a bit to see it was her signature cloak, laying where someone had carefully placed it when Maladius had taken her from this very ship. It seemed to stare accusingly at her, wondering at her absence.

She donned it then, luxuriating in its folds, running her hands over the runes embroidered upon its yoke, her fingers relaying their import directly into her mind. Then, feeling all of herself again, the Chosen Daughter of the Sith left the confines of the warship, descending the gangway to stand at its base, to there await the arrival of the others who were yet to come.

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"Have you any weapons? I do feel safer with something to protect the baby from harm... a last resort, so to speak..."

Lo-Ban waited for a reply...

Shayla frowned, and sat up, still gazing into the dark depths of his eyes. "I have to go, and you know that. And you'll be needed here, so you can use the talents which you possess."

He sighed and nodded, sitting up himself as Shayla wandered over to the Sith equivelent of a fresher and got ready to head out, donning her black jumpsuit and violet cloak. Then, returning to Erik's side a moment, Shayla kissed him one last time, wrapping her arms about his neck. She leaned back a bit, and whispered, "I love you, my husband to be. Don't get into too much trouble while I am away."

"I love you too," he said. "And as for trouble...can't garantee I won't get into any of that..." he kidded.

She smiled, allowing him one final kiss, then she left him, heading for the Sith spaceport where she found and boarded the Sith warship to find Graysith, Recinis, and Loban already waiting.

--------------------

--------------------

It was morning.

He looked down into the bright blue eyes of little JhinDarra for a long moment, wishing to just stay right in this moment and forget about what lay ahead in the very near future. Then, he turned his stormy blues into to Galen's eyes. He knew he didn't have to say a word; she already had realized it was time.

So, rather than bother with formalities regarding what time of day it in fact was and where they needed to be heading, Terrin simply drew both Galen and Darra up and into his embrace, remaining there with them both for one long moment. Then he turned and headed for the Sith spaceport, his grip about Galen tightening in support, his heart aching with the knowledge of what they were about to have to do.

[ 09-07-2002 11:26 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Terrin Danner ]

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Oh Darra, how can I do this? How can I let you go? Why you...? Why did I ever have to bring you into the world anyway? How can you bear the destiny all these people keep saying is in front of you? Will this be the first of many times you will be taken from your daddy and me, hopefully to be returned safely once again? Or will there come a time you will just simply be taken altogether...

I pressed her tiny body more closely to me, snuggling her, shooting all the love I had for her into every pore of her skin that she would remember me. I didn't care if to some the movement and my thoughts might appear a touch on the melodramatic side; it was how I felt, and Khaandon knows my gut instincts had a penchant for being correct.

You haven't even eaten yet! Now my thoughts shied away from their former direction, simply unwilling to go there any longer. I positively crushed Darra to me. How will they take care of you? Did they bring a bottle? Did they bring clothing for you, and tiny toys, and....

Those thoughts crashed to an abrupt halt with the simultaneous realization that, silly, your sister could easily provide her with whatever it is she needs... and the fact that somehow we had gone through the tunnel leading to the transportation center and had travelled the distance to the spaceport without me being aware of it. My head jerked away from Darra and I tried to swallow the steadily growing knot in my throat, that I could send it screaming down to join the even bigger one in my stomach.

Ch'arlingua stretched before me, somehow seeming to laugh, taking up my footsteps as we continued on toward our destined meeting place and making them ring in my ears. It was almost as if the place were making a point about something, one I refused to listen to.

Finally we came to a halt. There she stood ahead of us, dressed in the cloak she wore the day she-- dressed in that cloak of rune-encrypted smoke she liked to wear, a small smile on her face, that weird thing on her forehead glowing like some ungodly and fiery ember, and behind her...

...behind her was the most magnificent ship I had ever laid eyes on.

My heart brightened just a smidgeon as I took in the lines of the ship --or at least tried to, it was that difficult to really discern --whose awesome strength simply slammed into me almost on an instinctive level.

Surely no harm will come to my baby inside such a magnificent vessel, with the company she will be keeping...

...now has to keep.

I gave Darra another hug, tilting my head to give her one final kiss on her shining little forehead. I peered down into her gigantic eyes, soaking up the sight of her one last time. Then, the act being the hardest thing I ever did in my entire life, I simply held her out to my sister. She gave me a steady look, but one which arrowed into the very depths of my soul, then accepted Darra and likewise cuddled her in the folds of her cloak.

Darra didn't squirm or kick or make a peep. She just turned those uncanny eyes of hers up into her aunt's face, and seemed to study her. At length a tiny noise erupted from her lips in a bubble of spit; then she looked once more at me, closed her eyes, and lay quiet in Graysith's arms.

She nodded as I stepped back more closely into Terrin's embrace, opened her mouth to say something... then closed it. It was as if no words could possibly express the depth of feelings now crashing around within this spaceport, easily filling it with hopes and fears, anguish and... and something I was beginning to recognize as love.

Then she nodded once again, and made a motion that Terrin and I step back. She then gave us a slight bow, turned, and glided up the gangway to the warship. At its head she paused, turning to send a final look directly into my eyes before then continuing on and disappearing within the bowels of the craft. Its hatched slammed closed with a silence of deafening proportions.

We took her at her word then, Terrin and I, and moved back a bit, our arms around each other. From a safety distance of perhaps 40 meters we stood and watched, as quite suddenly something we couldn't see but could feel in our very cells thrummed, as though someone had taken up the very air to play a deep bass song upon it.

The Sith warship disappeared with the tiniest of "pops," leaving Terrin and I alone with the majesty of a spaceport filled with exotic and alien splendor, but a splendor which was suddenly reduced to ashes in my eyes.

[ 09-08-2002 11:46 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Galen ]

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[ 09-08-2002 11:56 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Graysith ]

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For a long while after the Sith ship departed all Terrin could do was hold Galen closely to himself as he suddenly became aware, only to the barest of his surprise, of a small but significant pain in his heart. Here he'd made an alliance for the ultimate protection of Galen and little JhinDarra, and yet she was again being taken away from them.

Strong she was...but when was she just going to be able to be a kid? some errant thought suddenly came forward. Between missions? And how many more times would they have to simply trust the life of their daughter to the Sith and step back while she was taken away?

Something else in Terrin's mind responded with a You already have entrusted her life to them...

...but then, you never thought that they'd risk her life like this, now did you?

Terrin swallowed back a lump in his throat, refusing to give in to the feelings raging within him. As he'd admitted to himself the evening before, he did trust the Sith to do everything in their power to protect Darra.

But would that be enough?

Terrin pulled away from that thought, not wanting to analyze it too closely. He had to believe it would be enough. But he was going to be damn sure they were ready should--Fates may it not even ever be so!--they need a recovery mission. He'd promised Galen that she and Darra would always come first, and Terrin wasn't about to go back on his word, even if their daughter was in the quite capable hands of Graysith and company. He wouldn't sit lithley by while everyone else continued to do their work and not do his. He was supposed to be a Sith strategist; well strategize he would. That began with making sure his daughter and all who accompanied her were brought back here successfully, and continued with beginning to form plans for what they would do to face Lord Roan.

That decided, Terrin looked down into the most saddened pair of big brown eyes he'd ever seen in his life. His own eyes swam with emotion; he wasn't sure if there was a word he could speak to even reassure.

"She'll...she'll be taken good care of," was the only thing he could manage to whisper at the moment. The only thing he could think of to say with complete honesty. And yet, one final rejoinder managed to present itself along with the knowledge that, although adopted daughter she might be, Terrin viewed little JhinDarra as his very own flesh and blood; as his daughter. And with that understanding came keen awareness of the responsibility he had freely and unhesitantly accepted in taking on the role as her Daddy. "I'm going to make sure she gets back here safely, love."

This seemed like a rather grandiose claim, but Terrin was dead serious and very much in control of his senses. "We need to make sure we have some plans secure," he added, making the former statement seem much more realistic. "The Sith will do everything they can to make sure our daughter returns safely, and we're going to do everything we can here to make sure of that as well."

He quieted at that, gazing into Galen's brown eyes, still holding her closely to himself. Then he seemed to suddenly realize they were still standing in the spaceport. He looked about himself a bit, then returned his gaze into Galen's eyes. Without another word, he drew her to his side, and together they began to depart from the spaceport altogether.

[ 09-09-2002 12:03 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Mara1Jade ]

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The entirety of the known universe was somehow condensed into a timeframe easily encompassed by that simple syllable, wrapping itself into the tiniest of motes to then unexpectedly subject itself, for once, to my whim. I didn't let a hint of this get past the trapdoor of my mind, instead staying close to Terrin's side and moving across the tarmac with him, pretending to let him lead me back into Phrinnchatka...

...where he can start making plans with his Sith buddies!

I nearly faltered as that thought raised its head to announce its outrage, but managed by sheer dint of effort to keep my manner calm, my face clamped as though by a vise in an expression of anguish. Whatever I had within me to answer as any form of logic seemed to be dwindling with every step we took; instead my rage only grew more heated, my determination more fierce.

I don't give a worrt's bumpy hide if this Aelvedaar is the head-nek Sith around here! My inner voice announced to my heart, happily finding correlation there. And I don't care about Graysith, either.

That inner voice quieted a bit at that thought, raising a figurative finger as if seeking my attention regarding that particular subject... I ignored it completely, and just concentrated more fiercely instead:

They have no right -- NO RIGHT IN ALL THE UNIVERSE! -- to up and just USE my child like she was merely a hydrospanner or something! She was a BABY, and has RIGHTS TO BE ONE... just like she has the right to have her Momma with her.

It was suddenly as if I had transformed myself into a Twi'lek dancer, so apparently choreographed were the steps now laid out before me. Out of the corner of my eye I saw just what it was that we were now passing by...

...and before Terrin could realize what I did, I had ducked out of his embrace and fled to the Sith fighter which was parked there practically begging to be taken. My hand slammed on the hatch controls even as I heard the approach of Terrin's pounding feet....

C'mon, C'MON! The man has long legs...!

...and with precision timing it opened, lazily extending a gangway, and allowed me entry just as he was practically within an arm's reach of me. I slammed the emergency hatch closed, and the gangway was snipped off like an umbilical cord. It fell at Terrin's feet, causing him to leap back to avoid being hit. A heartbeat passed... and then the eerie not-quite-metal of the ship vibrated as Terrin began pounding on it.

I ignored him completely, instead firing up the engines with a flick of the oddly encrypted runes on the navboard, hoping he had the sense to leap back. I sure as there was Treasure on Roon was not going to open the hatch to make sure he was out of harm's way....

Then the little ship blasted off the tarmac, heading away, the sky through which it soared blank and sere with the canopy of rock arching overhead. My altitudinal vector was up, the azimuth merely out... and I prayed to Khaandon that the Sith Lord still in Phrinnchatka would wake up and drop that damned shield before I found myself smeared from here through a month of Sundays....

Of course it didn't happen that way.

Again my very essence thrummed as, in less than a blink of an eye, the little ship quite suddenly found itself back in its docking bay, its engines idling in preparation of turning itself off for the count. The nonchalance with which that Sith Lord had so effortlessly reached out and placed me back in square one made me shiver with a strangely growing unease...

...and a rage which completely overtook my senses.

I leapt to my feet, slamming both fists down on the navboard. "Aelvedaar!!" I screamed, flinging my head back and letting the name rip out from my throat. "Let me go!!!"

Now I paused for breath, waiting to hear the death of the engines, waiting for the hatch to open. Neither event occurred. The little ship just sat there, waiting.

As though he were waiting as well.

Now I drew in a deep breath, climbed up on my battle-steed called love, protected by the armor of justice.

"You will let me go, Lord Aelvedaar," I continued through gritted teeth. And although my voice was lowered, it was positively shaking. "You will.

"Or are we that much a prisoner of your designs?"

I didn't know what he was thinking. I could scarcely think myself. All I knew was that I simply had to get to Darra before something awful happened to her, and that I'd do whatever it took to do that even if it meant I would kill myself in the process. The chances of that happening were pretty good, actually, considering the rate I was going....

Then with a suddenness that took my breath away, something seemed to blink. The little ship fired up in joyous reply, and took off like fledgling mynocks out hunting for their first meal.

I collapsed in the navigator's seat, letting my breath escape me in a sigh of relief as I realized I was on my way. Moments later we had entered into the K'eel Doban atmosphere proper, where with a flick of the device still hidden lo these many months within my flightsuit, I initiated the Force dampening shield Seus had armed Sorben and I with when we had gone out chasing Darth Desolist and his lackey, Gravin Dark.

In less than a nanosecond, I was invisible to most who used the Force. I could only hope that Lord Roan wouldn't be actively seeking me, thinking I was hiding in fear under the chronotic shield over Phrinnchatka....

But even then, I had another lil plan up my sleeve....

Like my two Sith fighters of old, this one reached out its arms and strove to be free. My heart sang right along with it, my mind leaping back to the days when it was just me and my stolen ship, as mentally dubbing this one -- but of course! -- Jester III, I acquiesed to her wishes and gave her soul wings.

[ 09-08-2002 06:22 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Galen ]

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After a deafeningly long moment, the Sith ship again thrummed to life, suddenly popping out just as the Sith warship with his daughter aboard had done moments before. Terrin scrambled to his feet, his face suddenly covered with fear and anguish and something akin to utter despair, somehow fully aware of where Galen was headed. So not only was his little daughter away from the safety of this city now, his wife was as well. And he was stuck here, unable to do anything to help them, unable to do anything to protect either of them.

No. NO. He could not, and WOULD NOT sit by while this happened. But what in fact was happening? Why had Galen reacted like this?

His mind instinctively flashed back to the evening before. To what she had said and done.

Admit it buster. She was furious that they were using Darra. And though she seemed to be trusting Graysith enough when she'd had to turn Darra over to her, had her doubts simply taken over? Had that long-lived distrust and hatred towards her sister taken hold...?

Terrin froze as another little thought wormed its way into his brain. She doesn't trust you either, buddy. It was you, you said something to cause her to react like this, to make her think that the only way she would ever get Darra back is if she went herself. She doesn't trust you...

Terrin shook his head at those thoughts, slamming that door of his long-forgotten and hopefully now completely defeated self as far behind him as he could. He refused, absolutely refused to think that way. He simply had to believe...

You know that she loves you, and that she trusts you. If she didn't trust you, she would have never agreed to even stay here...

...with the Sith...

Terrin's frown deepened at that, as something that just might be reality slammed home. She trusts you. And just maybe she was beginning to trust the Sith. But to trust the life of her own daughter to the Sith whose trust she hadn't firmly established...?

You told Aelvedaar yourself that this would be difficult for her to do...

Well, maybe she didn't trust them yet. And maybe she was headed to find litle JhinDarra. But now her life was in the most dire of dangers, and simply because she'd be allowed to leave...

Terrin's mind again froze as this seemingly small factor added up to something very important. She'd been allowed to leave.

And Terrin knew very well there was only one way she could have gotten past the protection of this city.

But why? After Aelvedaar had insisted that she stay here til Roan was defeated? After Graysith had reiterated this very fact?

WHAT WAS WRONG WITH THIS PICTURE???

First Darra, and now Galen...

Suddenly too angry to think clearly about anything, Terrin turned on his heel began to head back to the Sith Temple.

Something was very wrong about all of this. The Sith didn't just do something without some sort of purpose, Terrin was sure of that much. They were up to something...

And Terrin aimed to find out exactly what that something was. And, should he not like that something at all, Terrin knew what he was quite ready to do, Alliances be damned.

[ 09-08-2002 11:34 PM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Terrin Danner ]

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"What's wrong?" Shawn asked, truly concerned. Then he noticed something else, and was suddenly very worried. "And where is Galen?"

That particular question seemed to elicit an upwelling of more despair and hurt in Terrin, but Shawn couldn't be sure of the cause of these emotions. So he merely waited to see what Terrin would have to say, when in fact he was ready to say anything at all.

--------------------

Galen was gone, in terrible danger, and the Sith had let her go.

The conclusion that was running around in Terrin's mind like a runaway ronto paid no heed to common sense. After having to hand over little JhinDarra to Graysith, after so suddenly losing Galen to what might be probable danger as well, Terrin's emotions were too tangled and muddled to be pushed aside for logical reasoning. He couldn't see that maybe, just maybe, he was jumping to conclusions. That he wasn't seeing what Galen had just done objectively, but rather subjectively. That somewhere along the line his final conclusion had possibly gone off track.

"Galen's gone after Darra," Terrin started. Then, after hesitating a moment, he hurried on with his thoughts on that particular matter. "The Sith sorceror let her go...and I believe..."

Terrin paused the barest of moments, shuddering. "I believe he means to use her as bait..."

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Still remaining completely calm, Shawn carefully considered that which Terrin had stated.

Galen had gone after Darra. Which meant she’d had to have been, first and foremost, let out of the shield of Prinn’chatka.

So was Terrin concluding that, because Lord Aelvedaar had let her go, that he was therefore planning on using her as bait?

Shawn frowned. This was faulty logic. Trouble was, Shawn wasn’t too sure Terrin was ready to admit that.

“Have you stopped to consider that maybe he let her go because he considered locking her in this city, where she by her very own actions demonstrated that she did not wish to remain, as somehow cruel?”

Shawn paused at that, waiting to see if any of this would worm its way into Terrin’s brain processes. As an afterthought, he added, “At least give Lord Aelvedaar the benefit of a doubt and talk to him. Jumping to conclusions will not help you out, nor will it help Galen or JhinDarra.”

[ 09-09-2002 01:40 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Shawn Petrolu ]

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Could Shawn be correct? Was Aelvedaar the sort that would, even at Galen's risk, let her go simply because she wanted it that way?

Haven't you had to let her go once before yourself, regardless of what danger she might be headed for, based on what you knew she wanted?

That thought brought all of the other mixed-up thought processes in Terrin's mind to a screeching halt. He closed his eyes in borderline defense, trying to sort through the new possibilities that were now surfacing.

Do you honestly believe you can go before Lord Aelvedaar and demand him to return Galen if she doesn't want to be here? How will that help her to ever develop any trust?

The answer to that was simple enough. It wouldn't. All something of that sort might do is bolster her distrust in all of them even more.

She's gotta gain the trust on her own. And, as much as it scares you, you are going to have to let her go in order for her to ever come to that trust.

But Terrin was utterly horrified to consider what things might occur in order for Galen to come to that trust which she so desperately needed.

He had to know that she would be protected should danger befall her. He had to know that when the time came to prove that she could trust even the Sith that the opportunity would be used to its fullest.

He had to know.

"Ok, fair enough," Terrin finally said quietly, opening his eyes which were swimming with a spectrum of emotions. Then, without further word, Terrin motioned for Shawn to take lead and bring him to the Sith Sorceror, if in fact he could be found at all.

[ 09-09-2002 10:57 AM: Message edited 1 time, lastly by Terrin Danner ]

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In fact, it just might do the complete opposite. And aside from that, it just might take Terrin away from the one thing he could do to protect his wife and child the most: make plans to deal with Lord Roan.

Shawn continued to move along, into the bowels of the Temple where he felt that great entity that was Aelvedaar residing, no doubt watching the unfolding events. As they reached the great double doors of the Sorceror's chambers, Shawn sent out a simple message. Captain Danner has some concerns about the safety of his wife...

...that might be putting it entirely too lightly, but Aelvedaar could no doubt sense Terrin's deep concern...

We wish not to disturb you from your watch, but I think it would put his mind at ease at least somewhat to speak with you...

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With that I draw myself back into silence, now watching the further progress of two ships travelling in two entirely different directions.

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