EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Julan payed very close attention to every word that Janius said about his parents, and his childhood in general. He repeated each part of his story in his mind to try and commit it all to memory. He had a feeling that he was going to be needing all of this information fairly soon.

"So my grandparents were very important, then? Just like you are. And the maid and butler and everyone was like your, um, family?" Julan said, referring to the servants by the same word he sometimes used int he place of "pack" whenever they were in a town or city. He did not actually know what a maid, butler, or governor was, but he guessed that they were not related to him by blood.

As the group made their way over the bridge and across the canal, Julan started paying more attention to the city around him, asking questions about it instead. He figured that he probably knew everything he needed for what he had in mind.

---

Ahnasha looked towards the door, though Lorag was long gone by that point. "I don't think it's his legacy he's bothered with. Don't know if he actually even cares about his legacy. It's probably the here and now that is getting to him. He's getting older and can't do the things he used to do. I guess that would bother anyone, especially someone who is so dependent on his body. It might be that Orcish pride, wanting to find a 'good death' and everything. Or maybe he is just worried about disappointing us?"

Her eyes still lingering on the door, Ahnasha gave Fendros a pat on the shoulder. "He did say he wanted to talk to us all, though. Later, at least. Maybe with all of us there together, we'll be able to talk some sense in to him. In the meantime, I think I'd like to be filled in on everything that happened with that Thalmor. All I know so far is that Areldril isn't exactly a prisoner, and Lunise looked like someone stabbed her childhood pet to death with a rusty knife."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

I think we can skip to after nightfall after the conversation with Janius, unless you have anything else specific in the city that you wanted to play out him showing to the others.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Julan was resigned to being silent for a short while, though that did not mean he was happy about his father's refusal for him to be able to see his grandparents. Instead, his mind was distracted with all of the possible arguments he could think of as for why he should be able to see them. Though, at the same time, he was also afraid to bring up any of the arguments in his mind. He easily recognized his father's tone, so it made him hesitant to irritate him any further.

As Janius was describing his home and childhood, another idea came to Julan's mind, but it was not something that he could bring up at the moment, not in the presence of his parents. He would have to wait until later, likely that night. He would just have to make sure that he could speak to Rhazii privately. In the meantime, Julan thought of some questions that would probably not make his father angry. He took a few moments to look up at the house, which was a bit larger than he had been expecting. He guessed that his father was an important person even before he became a lycan.

"Okay, so I know I can't meet them, but...can I at least know what my grandparents are like? What are their names? Why do they live in such a big house?" Julan asked.

---

Lorag did not respond immediately. He turned around and walked sluggishly back to the weapon racks to hang up his sword and shield. The thoughts going through his mind had been there for a while, but his conversation with Meesei and his fight with Fendros had only strengthened them. As much as he did not like it, he knew the decision he was going to make. When he walked back over to Fendros and Ahnasha, he gave a brief nod.

"Yeah, I've got somethin' to say, but not now. We'll talk later, when everyone else is back here." He answered, not so much as waiting for a response before he started to walk out of the door.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Julan did not seem to be completely accepting all of Janius' reasoning. He looked up at him skeptically. "But no one can beat you, so surely we're safe? You're the strongest people in the world. That's why our, um...group is in charge of everything." He argued. Since they were walking into the city proper, he knew not to mention anything about lycanthropy. That was a lesson that had been driven into both he and Rhazii since they were old enough to understand it.

Kaleeth chuckled. "We're not in charge of everything, Julan. Just our own kind. The world is a very big place, and even though our home is big and important to us, we're just a small part of it. It's good to be careful."

While still unsatisfied, Julan cared more about the next topic than staying on the current one. "Well...still, I was really wanting to meet my grandparents. Are you sure we can't go see them? Even for a minute? If they think you're dead, don't you want them to know you're alive?"

Kaleeth tried to join in helping to dissuade him. "It's not that simple, Julan. It would just be best for them not to know about him."

"That's not fair." Julan said, crossing his arms. "I mean...that's lying, right? Lying by not telling them you're okay. You said I'm only ever supposed to lie about what I am and nothing else. If I'm not allowed to lie to you, then why do you get to lie to your parents?"

---

Lorag stopped in his tracks, immediately signaling the end of the bout. For a few moments, he remained still as he closed his eyes and let out a long sigh. Fendros would not have a hard time seeing that he looked defeated, in more ways than one. This was not the first time that he had lost a duel. With as many training matches as he had with Fendros over the years, he was bound to lose some of them, even when performing at his absolute best. However, this time he had saw his loss coming well ahead of time, relatively speaking. His shield had been in position to parry Fendros' strike. The blade had passed just over its rim, so it would not have taken much just to push it out of the way. He had identified that in his mind, but he had been too slow. He had started to try to deflect the blade just after Fendros' strike found its mark. He had reacted too slowly and made a mistake. It was a small mistake, but in a fight, that was all it took to lose.

From the sidelines, Ahnasha tried to insert some encouragement. "That was a close one, definitely. You really put on a show."

"Yeah, it was." Lorag responded, but his tone did not place him in a good mood.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Since they were starting from the castle, the closest destination for Janius to show them was the city's upper class housing. Granted, even the wealthy of Bravil did not have homes that were as large or valuable as those of nobles in other cities. Regardless of their own, personal wealth, it was simply not worth investing too much gold into property in the city, as its criminal element made such investments risky. Even Julan had seen more impressive buildings in some other places that they had visited, but that did not stop him from being curious.

"What's so rough about the city?" Julan asked as he looked around at the tall, wooden buildings."It's just a bunch of people and buildings. Why would that be deadly? It's like home, but with wooden houses instead of stone and metal. And a sky. Anyways, are we going to go meet my grandparents soon?"

---

Fendros' aggressive attack landed quite close to its mark, a hit only being avoided by a last-second adjustment on Lorag's part. It was a closer call than Lorag was used to, which prompted an even more aggressive retaliation from him. Using his shield, Lorag pushed back hard against Fendros, though Fendros was able to keep his footing enough to retain his balance.

With a bit of distance now between them, Lorag took a moment to just watch Fendros' stance and movement in order to figure out how he was going to attack. He looked for even a slight weakness to exploit, but unlike lesser opponents, Fendros was not just going to give him an opening. He would have to try and make one himself.

Lorag stepped just within reach of Fendros and shouted as he swung, repeatedly and aggressively, at each of the vulnerable points in Fendros' own armor. He parried with his shield when needed, but mostly focused on overwhelming him with his attacks. However, even with as precise and forceful as Lorag's strikes were, he was still struggling to land a hit that would end the bout, and to protect himself from counter attacks. The normal tricks he had to quickly win duels were not working, and he was in danger of slowing down from fatigue brought on by his aggression.

The duel had attracted a crowd in the form of the guards that had been training before they came in, being that they were quickly able to tell that it was a duel between two skilled opponents. Lorag's fighting style obviously had roots in his legion training, but he had evolved his style into something unique over the decades. The guardsmen could not predict what he was going to do next, though Fendros was, of course, much more familiar with him.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Smiling, Kaleeth gave Janius a quick kiss. "Okay, I'll go get Julan. Rhazii will probably want to come too, but that's fine. I'll be back in a few minutes."

Since the children were in the barracks, it did not take Kaleeth long to go retrieve them. They had been told not to stray from the barracks to prevent them from accidentally getting into trouble while in the barracks. They were not normally so restrictive of them, but Meesei did not want to risk any mishaps with their beast spirits while in the middle of an Imperial stronghold. Rhazii in particular, being on the edge of sixteen, was at the age where he was becoming rather mature, but was also still inexperienced with an impetuous beast spirit. It was a potentially dangerous combination. Julan, at least, was completely aware that his beast was difficult to control. With Rhazii unlikely to want to be left alone in the barracks, Kaleeth brought both of them back to Janius with her.

The group was all dressed appropriately for the city. While Kaleeth had arrived in her armor, she did not want to wander the city in Dwarven metal. Though, her distaste for dresses prompted her to choose a pair of leather trousers and a simple cloth tunic. She was no proper Imperial lady, but she was not entirely out of place, especially in a city like Bravil. "So, where is the first place our guide is taking us?" Kaleeth asked as they approached.

When in armor, it took more than just a strike to end a duel in training for them. Since a sword would do next to nothing if struck against plate across most of the body, one of them would have to land a meaningful strike that would be damaging in a real fight for a bout to end. Lorag was not wearing his helmet, so his head was vulnerable, though neither of them tended to aim for strikes to the head in training for safety. Even a blunted weapon could be dangerous if accidentally swung with too much force. More likely would be a well-placed strike to the joints, or even a disabling grapple.

Fendros' strike towards Lorag's shoulder could potentially hit his neck, so he opened by parrying with his shield, then angled his leg for the metal plate to deflect his following strike. Lorag was skilled at keeping himself well protected while minimizing his own movements. Since he had not yet moved his sword arm, he was able to quickly follow up by performing an upwards strike at Fendros' side, attempting to make a cut towards his armpit. Although, Lorag had not acted quite as fast as he knew he could have, so an opponent as skilled as Fendros could react.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth nodded. "I've told him about them, yes. I've told him a few stories from back then. You might be right, but I also wouldn't be surprised if there's someone in the clan that doesn't know they're a 'grandparent.' That would be an interesting meeting, though, between Julan and your parents. I don't care how stubborn or grumpy someone is, how could anyone look into Julan's big eyes on his cute, smiling face and not start smiling too? He just makes everything around him so...positive."

Reaching over to Janius, Kaleeth grabbed his hand and squeezed it lightly. "You know, I think I would enjoy it if you showed me around your hometown. I know you said Bravil isn't the greatest of places, but surely there are some things worth seeing or doing around here? We could go get Julan and have a day in the city as a family." She suggested. Despite Janius' general discomfort, there was one aspect of Kaleeth that had not changed over the years. Even with all of the pain and hardship they had been through in the war, when they were not in danger, she could still practically radiate positivity. There was still the hint of the cheerful young woman that Janius had first met.

Ahnasha shrugged. "It seems like everything is under control, so I doubt there's a rush. I can come watch the fight. Maybe participate."

"Great." Lorag said, though his tone made it seem like he was only half paying attention. There was certainly something else on his mind. Regardless, he was quick to lead the way to the castle's training room, as it was the place right after the kitchen that he had made sure to find shortly after they arrived.

Technically, a place like the training room was only meant to be used by the castle guards, but by this point, word had spread enough through the castle about their new guests that there was no one around who would try to stop them, regardless of what they thought about it. The guards, of course, had no idea who or what the pack actually were, but the fact that they came in with Marod meant that many of them assumed they were Penitus Oculatus or otherwise associated with them. The guards tended to approach them like they would approach a superior officer, which for Ahnasha, did feel a bit strange. She was used to being in a position of authority, but receiving that treatment from Imperial soldiers was odd.

The training room was not empty when they arrived, but Lorag payed little mind to the guards sparring or training with dummies as he grabbed a wooden shield and practice sword from the racks. The weapon was iron, but blunted and lighter than a regular sword. The shield was not particularly high quality and would not be suitable for a real fight, but it was otherwise a normal round shield. Lorag and Fendros had not sparred recently, though they both still trained together regularly. Lorag trained with most members of the pack, and had recently been starting to help train the children in the basics of armed combat. Fendros would know without a doubt that Lorag was still a very experienced and capable warrior, but he also might have noticed that Lorag had been gradually slowing down over the years. Not quite as strong, not quite as quick on his reactions. Lorag had experience, but he had also taught Fendros everything he knew.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth smiled at Janius. "Really? You think you might have a brother or sister you've never met? For that matter, I wonder if I have any living brothers or sisters now? My parents were starting to get older when I left, but mother could have had an egg for some years after I left. It's...strange to think that we could have family we don't even know about."

There were no chairs or benches in the immediate area, but there was a short stone wall surrounding one of the gardens that Kaleeth could use to take a seat. "You know, Julan knows this was your home too. He was talking to me before about wanting to meet his 'other grandparents'. Honestly, I don't know who he sees as his first grandparents. He's never met any of his real grandparents, so he probably just picked someone."

Meanwhile, Ahnasha was just about to get caught up on everything that had transpired in her absence. She already knew that they had captured Areldril, but that he was writing out documents for them instead of being placed in a cell for the night. So, she naturally assumed that something unexpected had taken place. However, when she and Fendros walked into the room the pack had been given in the barracks, they caught was looked like the tail end of a conversation between Meesei and Lorag. They were both sitting on the edge of beds a few feet apart, facing one another. Lorag looked to be serious, even sullen, while Meesei reached out a hand to his shoulder as if to comfort him. Although, it was not but a few seconds later that Lorag let out a sigh, then stood up to walk away.

When Lorag started to pass by the pair, he stopped and gave Fendros a look with a meaning that was hard to pin down. "Say...I don't feel like just sittin' around. Feel like findin' the training room and sparring a while? Maybe show these soft town guards how it's done?"

Coruscant Sacked: Aftermath

~|Nar Shaddaa, Veenra|~

~|Day 3, 6th Hour|~

---

At this point, Fa had choices. Several more than she had expected to be presented with. The Sith was stubborn, as many tended to be, so she did not anticipate that she would be able to convince her to be cooperative any time in the next few seconds. So, this was going to have to be a capture and interrogate mission. However, unlike other Sith, Zora was not yet being violently uncooperative. The Twi’lek was certainly willing to fight, and was probably expecting to, but that did not mean that Fa had to start the fight immediately. They were currently in close quarters, which was exactly where Fa wanted to be, but they were also in the middle of a crowded bar. If she could help it, Fa wanted to minimize the risk to civilians. So, Fa had the choice of trying to detain her immediately, or letting her walk away. Of course, it was also mandatory that they not allow her to escape, but in the few moments that Fa had to think, a compromise did come to mind.

With more time, Fa might have been able to come up with something more elaborate, but for now, she reasoned that detaining the Sith just outside the establishment would be less risky to civilians than doing so indoors. Members of her team were at every exit, so there would be someone to ambush her no matter which way she went. When Zora stood up, Fa let out a sigh. “I am not going to stop you from leaving, Zora, but I believe you are making a mistake. The chances of Nyiss learning that you said anything are slim, and even if she did, I will be ending the threat she poses after this. You will be safe. Leave if you wish, but I can give you an offer that no one else will match. I can promise that we will keep the deal; if one does not honor their word, they will quickly find that no one else will be willing to deal with them in the future. It is in the Republic’s best interest to be honest.”

Fa fully expected Zora to deny all of her last ditch attempts at persuasion, so the next step would be to prepare herself to act. She did not make any violent moves just yet, but rather, she was going to wait until Zora had reached an exit. Fa could not pass on any orders to Vebra without immediately alerting Zora, so she would have to trust him to be able to pick up on the situation. As soon as Zora started to walk away without Fa, Vebra would certainly take notice. She had placed Vebra and his men under orders not to allow their target to escape, and she was not changing those orders. Vebra would need to alert their door guards to be ready to make the ambush. Since their mission was to capture her alive, Fa expected that they would try to surprise her by stunning her, perhaps with a concussion device. Fa was carrying a blaster pistol with her, and while she was no marksman, she could set it to stun and fire a few shots at the Twi’lek as she closed the gap. With combined fire from herself, Vebra, and Eyes, along with an ambush at the door, they could stand a chance of disabling her quickly with minimal risk to civilians.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Since it would require some time for Areldril to write out all of the information Meesei would need, and by his requrest, a 'proper table, the group elected to move to Bravil for at least the rest of the day. It was not particularly far, so they did not have to rush to reach the city before nightfall. They first stopped by their camp to get the children, Leaps, and the rest of their belongings, then moved on to the city itself. As usual, Leaps did present some issue. He was now far too large and frightening to be allowed into any major city, but fortunately, Marod was able to "convince" the stable master for the local guard contingent to house the wamasu, at least for the night. Leaps was well-fed, and well-trained, so Meesei did not expect any trouble from him, and he only ended up frightening a single stable hand into fleeing for a while.

In addition to helping to accommodate Leaps, Marod also ensured that they did not strictly need to rent any rooms in an inn if they did not want to. With his Imperial authority, he was able to procure space for them in the castle guard barracks, with few questions asked from the Count. Lunise was also given the option to have a handful of city guards to help watch over Areldril, though it was up to her if she would actually accept that offer. Shortly after arriving, they were able to meet back with Ahnasha as well. Some of Marod's men could keep tracking them for a time, though Lunise would eventually have to decide if it would be better to let them go. They could not keep following them forever.

Although they had been given space in the castle, Kaleeth did not particularly want to spend the rest of the day in the barracks, so she decided to head out into the castle courtyard, insisting on Janius to join her. There was a garden, as well as several statues in the courtyard, which Kaleeth took some time to admire. In the wilds, it was rare to see such a variety of colorful flowers in the same place, especially in Skyrim, so it was something even she could enjoy. However, she did eventually decide to speak up to Janius about a thought that had crossed her mind. "You and your family were from this city, right? It's been a long time; I imagine everything is a lot different than you remember. Say...how old were your parents when you left? Do you think they're still..." She began, her voice trailing off.