Port Kasiya
It wasn’t long after Cassandra returned to the Taldryan homeworld that things were already different. The first thing she had done was attend to the fallen, caskets lining the conference hall of the Taldryan Tower.
Each had a Taldryan flag draped over them, with a wreath and a picture of them on an easel behind it. The flag for some of them was different - the ones that were from the Republic had the white and gold flag of the Taldryan Republic, while those who were with the Traditionalists had the older Taldryan flag on theirs. It was something she had decided to do herself, as a respectful gesture to honor them.
The hardest for her, was the caskets of her four closest friends who were a part of the Traditionalist forces - friends she known for many years, from when she had first arrived on Ostara.
She had already hated leaving them behind in the now former Taldryan city of Caleria, now rebranded as a Traditionalist city-state alongside Ostara. She had intended to reunite with them at some point, and was happy she was able to do so…but wished it had been under differently circumstances.
They died under her watchful eye, trying to help guard her as she fought with the vanguard forces in the Ethereal Realm.
It was without a doubt, to her, a naive decision. But, her efforts and accomplishments saw her recognized as a war hero by the Brotherhood.
But…did she truly deserve it? She had never been at war before, and sure she had seen people die…but never had she lead people to their deaths. Much less her best friends.
They had relied on her…and she had failed. And she was celebrated for it.
The next day, she left the confines of the tower and made her way to the Ektrosis Waterfront where she sat quietly on the river’s edge. She watched as the water slowly flowed towards the bay, listening to the soft sounds it made. The sounds of the wind, the birds, the leaves on the trees blowing.
Even with an occasional glance at the golden status of her predecessor, the first Supreme Chancellor and Lord First Appius Wight.
With a sigh, she wished he were there for guidance…or something. This was a side if things she had ever expected to see, much less feel.
At the foot of the golden statue a figure in a familiar white armour stood there and looked up at the statue.
“I wished I could remember what happened… so that I could get back to you, riduur” she whispered to the wind as tears slowly rolled down her cheeks.
She didn’t care, her helmet would hide it, though her sagged shoulders would betray her.
Her eyes briefly shot up, glancing a leaf that entered her upper range of vision as it fell from a nearby tree.
It was something she was not overly used to, even for the season. Caleria had thermal and alchemy-enhanced plants and trees that persisted through the winter seasons.
Slowly it floated around with the wind, as if it were trying to avoid touching the ground. Slowly it made it closer and closer to the water before it made it just barely. It then turned and turned as it began to move downstream.
Such an odd thing to distract her, it truly was. Even a small chuckle escaped her lips as she crossed her arms and placed them on top of her now pulled up knees.
It…was nice to have a peaceful break before the routines picked up once again a little over a week from now. Meetings with the Admiralty Board at their new headquarters, diplomatic meetings with Zxyl and other Traditionalist leaders, and senate meetings one after the other with different committees.
That drove her right back to dread, as all they did was complain and complain, with some of the Republicans constantly standing around and damning the Brotherhood.
She did, however, in that moment take note of the woman over by the statue of the Lord First. Noting that something was wrong, though she was unsure as to what given she did not want to mentally intrude on her thoughts, she slowly stood up and began making her way over towards her.
Once she got near her, she stopped about ten feet away.
“Excuse me,” Cassandra said, her hands clapsed together in front of her, “Is everything alright?”
Ankira turned to face the voice next to her. “Yeah… everything is fine. I just miss him a lot.”
She tried her best to will her new sight to give a better form to the woman next to her and sighted when it didn’t really work.
A body went flying past both woman, unleashing the most guttural screech as it rolled across the floor.
The Human, stodgy and fat-faced, slowly returned to his feet staggering back until he was pressed against the statue.
“GET that frakker away from me!” The Human screamed.
Slow, methodical footsteps approached.
“If you did not wish the consequences of your actions, then you should not have commited to the crimes you have overseen,” Anders had his arms behind his back, taking notice of Lady Second and Ankira. “Good afternoon, ladies. I do apologise for the interruption. This one is annoyingly stubborn for a Collective scout.”
In a reflex Ankira pulled her Westars and pointed at both of them before realising that one of them sounded familiar and pointed them both at the Human.
“Odd way of joining a conversation, Anders.”
“I assure ypu, it was completely unintentional. Now…” Anders stepped closer to the Human. “You have nowhere to run.”
The Collective agent pulled out a thermal detonator from his pocket.
“STAY BACK! Or I swear to kriff you, me, and this statue are going bo-”
Snap-Hiss!
Anders was not in a good mood. Before the Human could finish his sentence, the crimson-hue of a lightsaber tore through his wrist. The appendage, along with the thermal detonator, landing at the feet of Ankira and Cassandra.
Ankira narrowed her eyes and aimed at the man’s gut.
“You are lucky it’s only your hand now. Touch it and you will be nothing more than a bloodstain” Ankira hissed at him. “Where did you find this scout?”
“I have been monitoring him for days now, watching his every movement. He’s taken a keen interest in you, Lady Second…”
Anders gave Cassandra a curt nod.
“I do perhaps wonder if the Collective have a stronghold here in the city, given how long he has been here…”
“Really now.” she said as she glared down at him and tapped her chin with her left index finger, her left elbow cupped by her right hand. “And what makes you sure he is with the Collective?”
Zxyl had approached the monument from its front - a short distance away from Ankira, Anders, and Cassandra. He was wearing his armor, like he always was, his usual display of weaponry also present. Weapons were - after all - a part of his religion, so he elected to carry them anywhere and everywhere. The Regent had been watching the white armored Mando'ade from afar for quite some time as she stood at the bottom of the statue, looking at her riduur. Appius Taldrya Wight, a Scion of Taldryan and essentially a brother to the Mandalorian General.
He too had watched the statue for some time, but finally elected to make his presence known. The Mandalorian approached the group from their rear, and took up a position beside Ankira.
“Vod,” he said, in an almost sad tone.
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Cassandra turned her head, noticing the arrival of the Regent; or as she knew him more intimately, the leader of the Traditionalists.
It was strange seeing him in Port Kasiya proper, but she knew there was a connection between him and the former Chancellor.
Based on his singular word directed at the white armored individual; she knew as well, that they were family.
Vod, she thought to herself, That is something I have not heard in a long time…
With a gracious nod of her head and a slight bow of her body, she welcomed him. “It is good to see you again, Zxyl.”
Ankira looked towards her fellow Mandalorian and gave a nod. “Vod,” she replied in return. It felt good to her to have one near who also followed the Resol'nare.
She still had her Westar’s aimed at the scout, who was holding his arm and whimpering before Anders.
Zxyl nodded again, tilting his head to the side a little bit at the Collective dude on the ground… Then to Anders.
“I am pleased that ypu asked, Lady Second,” the smallest smirk appeared on Anders’ face. He wasn’t going to miss an opportunity to show-off when it presented himself.
“The OSI has been tracking persons of interest ever since the Children of Mortis attacked Kasiya. Holomessages, meeting places, what time they use the restroom, etcetera, etcetera. This one was attempting to ferment unrest by forming a small rebellion group, claiming to be doing the ‘good’ work of Rath Oligard. I decided I had seen enough and decoded to confront him personally, leading to this situation right here.”
The Collective dude writhed on the floor, spitting obscenities at the group.
She seemed mildly annoyed by his actions, and knelt down to glare at him with the happiest of smiles.
Suddenly without warning, he froze and stared at her for a moment before he let out a bloodcurtling scream as if he had seen his worst enemy in front of him.
Despite his injuries, even if it caused them to be greater, he tried to move away not even caring. As if his life were in far greater danger by staying put.
“Huh?” Cassandra said innocently, tilting her head some. “Wait, you’re scared of me? Why were you following me then?”
Anders placed a hand on her shoulder. “If I may, Lady Second. I would highly recommend we not make too much more of a scene here in a public area, lest the consequent actions affect your candidacy in the next election.”
“Very well. Do as you need then, Anders. Good work.” she affirmed with a nod and a following shoulder-pat after she stood up.
Ankira looked between the two of them before lowering her Westars and holstering them. What ever trick she played on the man’s mind was beyond her, but the reaction was more then enough for her to know the man wouldn’t try anything… for now.
The man backed up to the statue as Anders’ hand hovered above his head. The Collective grunt gasped, his eyes rolling into the back of his head as he began choking, gargling…
“Relax… this will be over in a moment,” Anders spoke softly, like he wasn’t making his quarry relive his worst nightmares as Anders slipped further into the recesses of his mind.
Finally, Anders let him go.
“There’s a warehouse in the Arroyo District filled with Collective arms and personnel. The plan was to assasinate the Supreme Chancellor, then coerce the Traditionalists into taking power. From there, they attack Taldryan whilst it’s embroiled in civil war to secure victory whilst our forces are distracted and weakened.”
Anders folded his arms across his chest.
“I nominate we deal with this matter post-haste. Lady Second, perhaps your Vice-chancellor’s skills may be of assistance here?”
Warehouse…arms and personnel…
She closed her right hand into a tight fist, already being drawn back to what happened. For what felt like an eternity she was trapped in her own thoughts, but finally let out a slight sigh as she looked up from the ground. “I agree. This is something her expertise would be perfect for, but…make sure she remains safe, that they all do. I don’t want any casualties from this.”
It was a strange verbiage for her. Normally, dispatching assignments was as straightforward as what a military commander would do, but this time there was extreme hesitation in her words. And giving the utmost of concern when there was always trust that they would return.
With that, she turned and slowly made her way back to the riverfront just a few hundred feet nearby.
To those force sensitive, it would be easily discernible that something was up. To those not, little would seem out of the ordinary unless they knew her explicitly.
Zxyl rolled his eyes. Nobody was going to coerce the Traditionalists to do anything. As Cassandra turned and proceeded away, he looked down to Ankira momentarily, waiting for Anders to decide what he was going to do next.
To avoid prying ears, he decided to speak purely in complete Mando'a to his fellow Mandalorian.
“Do you plan on going with the Chiss? If not, I wish to speak to you for a moment.”
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Ankira was surpised the whole question was said in Mando'a, which peaked her interest.
“I think he can go, if he needs help he knows how to contact us. What do you wish to talk about?” she replied in Mando'a
“Okay. Appius Wight,” he stated, looking back up at the statue, “I have my theories about what happened to him, but I do not know for sure. Do you?”
She blinked and looked up at the statue as well. “I wish I knew. Cause if I did I wouldn’t be standing here, but searching for him.” Glancing back towards Zxyl, “what is your theory?”
“He disappeared without a trace, did he not? I believe he’s either hiding somewhere in the Unknown Regions far from our reach, or is locked inside the Ethereal Realm. It’s no secret that Appius is a capable spoonbender for a Mando'ade… and it is possible he may have discovered another pathway. I cannot be certain, but those are my theories. I have spent a long time searching for him using every available research at my disposal, but he has disappeared like a ghost.”
Zxyl sighed and looked down for a moment, before back up at the statue.
“We deserve closure. He owes us that… whenever he is ready. I may have disagreed firmly with his decisions to reform Taldryan into the Republic it has become, but he was still a brother. He always will be.”
Even through all this emotional talk, the Mandalorian General still had no qualms about how hard he had been on his fellow Scion. The Taldrya were supposed to push each other to be better, and those pushes were exponentially increased by Appius’ status as a Mandalorian. The Regent couldn’t help but refuse to deny through all of it, he just missed his friend.
“When I do find him, I swear by the Creed you will be the first to know.”
She couldn’t help but listen to their conversation as she stood nearby at the riverfront. It was known internally that following the senate passing the lack of no confidence vote that he had disappeared, and shortly after the exact same occured to his Vice-Chancellor as well.
Nothing has come of either of them since, save the single lightsaber in her possession. She didnt recall seeing the armor he is known for being in while in the Ethereal Realm, so unless he was in another area away from the Taldryan forces, odds of him being there was low.
She continued to listen intently, and she agreed for sure with his last sentence spoken. Mandalorians were often always family with one another, especially if the clans got along or they bonded with one another individually. It was the way, at least for her old clan.
And she couldn’t help but miss her own at that point.
Ankira sighed softly and nodded, “They found me in the Ethereal Realm, but Appius wasn’t around. I don’t even know how I ended up there the first place. It’s all a mistery what happened before that.”
“We’ll figure it out. That is the most likely suspect, given our bond through the Pomojema Shard,” he turned to see Cassandra standing not too far away, and motioned for Ankira to walk with him so they could continue their conversation in private.
“Vor entye”
She started to turn to walk with Zxyl, “I’m sure you can find those bastards, Anders, else you know how to reach us.”