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  1. In Memory of LAJ_FETT: Please share your remembrances and condolences HERE

Before - Legends "Legends of the Force"(epic drama with OCs), book 1, 32 Chapters, FIN

Discussion in 'Fan Fiction- Before, Saga, and Beyond' started by AzureAngel2, Jan 7, 2016.

  1. AzureAngel2

    AzureAngel2 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 14, 2005
    @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha , @Darth_Furio & @earlybird-obi-wan, when you worry so much about Heulwen, then I need to update again:

    (still Chapter 29!)

    ********************************************************************

    While trusted fovea centralis agents get gotten my hunting gear from my room, Grianán does something weird to re-write the security protocol of the star ship. Luçien never leaves his property unprotected. I am not sure though what she has done to break through his defences. Her Force powers are unknown territory to me. The ordeal has visibly drained a lot of strength from her. On wobbly legs she comes outside again, rivers of cold sweat draining from her lean body.

    “I can come with you,” Grianán suggests, but my stern face silences her.

    I can only stand as guarantee for one additional life in the desert. And it is not hers. Of late she is not healthy. She reeks of death.

    “My the Force be with you. Always,” she whispers, kissing me shyly on both cheeks.

    Wordlessly, I take my wooden spear from one of the returning agents and my leather bag from another. I am not good at saying good-bye. Never was.

    Suddenly, Éleos stands directly in front of me. I hate his materializing trick. It has nothing to do with a warriors honour. Only a lousy assassin would abuse the Force like that.

    The young man is in turmoil. “Isa, you do not need to do this on your own”, he pleads.

    “You always have been a hopeless optimist, my sweet boy. Stay that way! The universe needs beacons of light and hope like you.” I turned my back to him, but I hear him taking in some air for new arguments. “Don´t! I am the native. It is my call only. I will not drag a dreamy paladin of the Force behind me.”

    “But you are banished,” Éleos points out desperately.

    “Then it will be the more fun for me to return and have a vendetta with Luçien about this errant of mine.”

    “I will not allow him to harm you in any way.”

    I gaze at the spear in my hands. “Éleos, Luçien has every right to have a duel to the death with me. I will not run from him. Especially not after your mother put me in charge here. My life has not been my own since then, but this decision is.”

    Without looking back I make it inside the ship and lock me in.

    To get accustomed with the controls is easy. The secret service has taught me, their monarch, how to be a reasonable pilot. All the unnerving sun hours spent in the flight simulator have not been in vain. I know each button and every switch.

    While the ship engines roar, Daná appears on the platform. Her hair and her clothing are still a mess. A concerned Boreas Kyrene tails behind her, followed by three of the royal paladin. I am air-borne before she can gain access.

    She will never forgive me, of this I was sure, but I rather live with her scorn than letting down Heulwen. The flight control of Amnion had fired at her, when she had entered their airspace. With burning engines she had made it until the direct neighbour planet, Sapuruh. There her trail had ended.

    ********************************************************************

    The star dune underneath me is smooth as a sand surface can be. It tells me no tale of a space craft crash. Nor of a little girl that has been mortally wounded. Yet there is something amiss with this spot in the dune sea.

    My nostrils tickle intensely.

    Following this undeniable impulse I sink down on my knees. Then I carefully take in the air around me.

    Sand.

    Blood.

    Salt.

    Stone.

    Animal fur.

    The desert winds.

    All those smells are pointing towards something that is familiar to me. To a scent that had been imprinted on my own skin once.

    In the vague light of the twin moons my eyes narrow.

    A nomad tribe has found the crash site. Its members had taken Heulwen with them.

    My hands turn into fists.

    The bohémienne gather everything that they find in the dune sea. Alive, the little girl will be of more use to them.

    I throw back my head and hiss.

    Heulwen, picked up by Wanderers of the Night. A dangerous challenge.

    “Please do not die on me, belle!” I whisper into the chill desert night.

    One of my vision stirs inside my mind, pushes its way to the surface.

    The woman called Shmi has died due to exhaustion, her injuries and lack of water. She has completely failed the trials of becoming a new member of the tribe that abducted her.

    I have no right taking revenge should a similar fate have befallen Heulwen. The rules of the desert are harsh, but I knew too well why they had to be obeyed.

    With clenched teeth I start walking.

    ********************************************************************


    (To be continued!)
     
  2. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    At least Isabeau knows where she is. But :eek: it feels like time is precious especially when joined together with parallels to Shmi's experience. [face_worried]
     
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  3. DarthUncle

    DarthUncle Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Mar 20, 2005
    Well, that turned quickly!

    I feel that Isabeau relished this need/excuse to return to her planet of origin; but maybe she's a bit too eager? If it wasn't such a cliche, I'd say I had a bad feeling about this! [face_plain] But I am looking forward to discovering what happens. And whether Isa makes it back in time to make sure Dana has a good wedding in the end [face_good_luck]:amidala:
     
  4. Darth_Furio

    Darth_Furio Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Apr 17, 2008
    Everyone needs to exert energy once in a while, it looks like Isa is about to kick some tail. [face_mischief]
     
  5. pronker

    pronker Force Ghost star 4

    Registered:
    Jan 28, 2007
    Epically enjoyable! I especially liked Éleos.=D=
     
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  6. earlybird-obi-wan

    earlybird-obi-wan Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Aug 21, 2006
    Isa is busy
     
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  7. AzureAngel2

    AzureAngel2 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 14, 2005
    @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha: The survival of the fittest is the major rule the desert nomads live by. The weak have no chance.


    @DarthUncle: Mega spoiler! Your feelings serve you right! As usual.


    @Darth_Furio: This is why I go to the gym.


    @pronker: A new reader! Wow! Feel very welcome!


    @earlybird-obi-wan: Me, too in RL at present. So I won´t be on until next weekend, where I will go to the musicals on Saturday and will have the belated birthday party of my husband & me on Sunday.

    Okay, here we go, before my mom serves lunch:

    (Still Chapter 29)

    ********************************************************************

    High above me and out of reach hangs a blue pearl with greenish dots in the star sprinkled sky: Draconis. Home world of the royal serpent-spawn that has altered my life in so many ways during my exile.

    I smile to myself, even though a thing starts setting me apart from my race.

    There is just one direction in the desert: forward. The Lidérc do not look back. But their former masters, the reptile blooded Ophidea, do. I have lived too long among them and have adopted too many of their habits.

    The young teenage girl that I once have been had hated children with all her might. The serail had been so cramped with them. They had been such a nuisance to me. If it would have been up to me, I would have gotten rid of them in one single night. For Heulwen though I am prepared to give all that will be demanded of me by the laws of retribution.

    My hand clutches tighter around the handle of my spear.

    How the damaged ship has made it as far as my home planet Sapuhru remains a miracle still. I suppose that the Force indeed has been with Heulwen, but as usual it has worked in very inconvenient ways.

    Comte Alezan Ankou has forbidden me, the fallen step-daughter, ever to come back. My life is therefore forfeit since I started acting against the taboo.

    In addition, I have stolen the star ferry of my step-brother to get here. And Luçien will not take this double insult lightly.

    “So be it.” I straighten my back. Then I start quoting the war cry of the tribe Riwalan.

    “Through power, I gain victory.
    Through victory my chains are broken.”


    Pondering on these words for some calm heart-beats, I add sentences I once had yelled at Éleos.

    “Peace is a lie. There is only passion.
    Through passion, you gain strength.
    Through strength, you gain power.
    Through power, I gain victory.
    Through victory my chains are broken.”


    I will not die on my lonely mission out here.

    I will win.

    I will get Heulwen or pieces of her back to Draconis.

    This world has once been home to me. It reliefs me that the desert winds still sing their songs in my veins. There is no way that I will fail this.

    One of my future visions has shown me that I will drown at the end of my life. Therefore I will survive my mission out here.

    ********************************************************************

    (To be continued!)
     
  8. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Superb resolve and bittersweet homecoming
     
  9. Darth_Furio

    Darth_Furio Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Apr 17, 2008
    That Sith Code. Darkness rises...? Will light meet it?
     
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  10. Cowgirl Jedi 1701

    Cowgirl Jedi 1701 Force Ghost star 5

    Registered:
    Dec 21, 2016
    I think one of the things that makes Isa so interesting to me is that she is a woman of contrasts. She is a good person with a good heart, but her war mantra is the Sith Code.
     
  11. earlybird-obi-wan

    earlybird-obi-wan Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Aug 21, 2006
    A daughter of the desert with all the harsh code
     
  12. AzureAngel2

    AzureAngel2 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 14, 2005
    @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha : Don´t laugh! I was so busy wrapping up Nagina´s death, that I forgot about Isa running through the desert. Tsk!


    @Darth_Furio: It takes two for a kiss. ;) Ah well, you will see.


    @Cowgirl Jedi 1701: I always have trouble to portrait a good person as good and the evil counterpart just as evil. I like the grey lines in between.

    @earlybird-obi-wan: Jepp! That is a good way to describe Isa indeed.

    Here we go:


    (Still Chapter 29)

    *******************************************************************

    My body remembers the desert. In addition it has been steeled by the cold climate off the Vallum Ventii mountain chain.

    The royal family Tjiehenet spends the darker half of the sun year to celebrate some of the Elfin high feasts in their midwinter castle. Autumns up there is always chilly and rainy, set in a landscape of rough stones and dark forest grounds.

    To see the leaves there change from a dark shape of green to an explosion of red, brown and yellow has never failed to amaze me in the past decades. Usually, I get as crazy as a little kitten when one of those colourful objects flies by, driven by the wind.

    Heulwen has joined me during many occasions. Together we had hunted down autumn leaves. Actually it was more than a silly game between us, it was a test of her grace and her reflexes.

    “You are good, belle, but not as good as the people who caught you. They will see a diamond in the rough. And they will do all to form you to their liking,” I mutter to myself, while carefully storing the rest of my humble meal in my back-pack.

    The desert nights on Sapuhru are actually warmer than the mercy of my people. Out here only the survival of the fittest counts.

    Heulwen is very well accustomed to harsh climate changes. The winter weather of the mountains as well as the humidity of the Mother Jungle do not bother her. The only thing that her little body has trouble with are visits to the Mare Coloris, the colour desert of Draconis. No matter what sun lotion used her delicate Elfin skin gets sun burned rather easily. Due to both parents she is a forest creature.

    I have done my best to train her body as best as I could, but she is not as tough as her aunt Grianán. She bruises too easily.

    Belle, you are of royal blood and you are partly fairy. You must survive this," I curse with a flat voice. “The Midi-chlorians in your body must grant you strength to survive all this. What else are they there for?”

    *******************************************************************

    Three moon nights I search the dune sea, until my natural instincts start telling me to draw closer to the hamada.

    The season of storms is to begin and the stone desert offers more shelter to the flocks of a tribe.

    I have to continue my search for Heulwen in the red, dusty canyons. The hunting grounds there are richer there and to find source water is much more likely.

    In so far I have done my utmost to find the little girl, but the bohémienne who have picked her up are not on foot.

    Judging from the weak animal scents, that I have picked up, the kidnappers travel on their tribal banthas and eopies.

    I smile to myself, imagining what will happen if my beloved step-brother gets his elegant star cruiser back. Smeared with animal pooh from the inside.

    Unfortunately, there are only rancors and horses at the midwinter castle. Neither of them could have been squeezed inside the ship or would have appreciated an inter-planetary journey very much.

    *****************************************************************

    (To be continued!)
     
  13. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Great reminiscing about autumn and experiences with Heulwen -- beautiful details of the rich culture and variety of landscapes.
     
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  14. Darth_Furio

    Darth_Furio Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Apr 17, 2008
    Rancors and horses? I feel bad for the horses. :p
     
  15. earlybird-obi-wan

    earlybird-obi-wan Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Aug 21, 2006
    Me too
     
  16. AzureAngel2

    AzureAngel2 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 14, 2005
    @Darth_Furio, @earlybird-obi-wan, @WarmNyota: This story will continue next weekend because my brother is in a hurry and not very kind. So I have no time left to update right now!
     
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  17. AzureAngel2

    AzureAngel2 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 14, 2005
    It seems weird to post this while I am deep in the middle of a winter forest, @DarthUncle, @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha, @Kahara, @Darth_Furio, @earlybird-obi-wan, @Darth Gangrenous & @Cowgirl Jedi 1701. But since my elder brother is kindly paying for me to be on-line:


    (Still Chapter 29!)

    *****************************************************************

    Neither my own past on Draconis nor the future of a galaxy far, far away bother me during the next moon nights. There is only me and the desert.

    At daylight I rest inside my self-made shelter, using all the meditation exercises that Grianán has taught me so generously. Those exercises helpe me to keep body and soul together.

    My precious water also stays underneath my skin for I wear the clothing of a typical nomad woman. A light cotton dress with bandages around my limbs underneath keeps my body fluids close.

    My hair is bound together in a tight braid. A half veil covers my head for protection only.

    There is no need to cover the rest of my face. I am not a man who is ordered to do so. The unfiltered smell of blood is meet by me with much more grace and self-control.

    Once I enter the labyrinth of the hamada I continue my journey during the hot desert days, too. The canyons offer enough shelter for me. And finally, travelling North-West, I meet the tribe that has taken what is mine.

    About one mile from their camp-site I find the very reason why they have kidnapped Heulwen. Some desert animals, obviously smaller cousins of the notorious womp rats, have left only some bones of the deceased Lidérc child. I break one of them to judge the age of its owner. The ages and the sex matched. A very unhappy mother must have made a plea to the tribe eldest.

    I put the tiny finger bone down exactly where it had been and speak a prayer for protection.

    It was not that I am afraid of the spirits of the Dead. I am keen on getting the attention of the camp guards.

    “Bons Esprits, faites que ces paroles trouvent accès dans cette âme encore arriérée afin qu'elles l'aident à se rapprocher de Déesse.”

    When I am sure that at least six ears are listening to me, I wander straight into the camp.

    I hold my eyes down, focus on my boots only.

    There are movements and shades.

    Children get hidden out of sight. Heulwen will not be among them yet.

    In the centre of the tent village, I ram my spear deep into the ground.

    “Bohémienne, je suis fille de grans chemins. C´est écrit dans les lignes de ma main.” I am stretching my hands far away from my body while I say so. Gypsy girl, I am the daughter of the cross roads. It is written in the palms of my hands.

    My mother Chaleur had taught me the ancient rimes once. To know them and their accompanying gestures is not only a matter of politeness between the tribes. It is a guarantee for my naked life. City folk does not, will not know.

    Then I close my eyes, also in accordance with the old nomad ritual, and let my head sink backwards with my bare throat unprotected. I bend my back until it hurts, my arms still outstretched.

    *******************************************************************

    (To be continued!)
     
  18. earlybird-obi-wan

    earlybird-obi-wan Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Aug 21, 2006
    to find the bones must be harrowing
     
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  19. DarthUncle

    DarthUncle Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Mar 20, 2005
    I hope to see Isa deal with this less 'aggressive negotiation'-style than Anakin did when his mother was taken by Sand people. But, given Isa has the power of knowledge, and some aquired wisdom, I am sure she can. Will Heulwen want to join her in going back to a life she didn't seem to much care for though?
     
  20. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    I too wonder if Isabeau will have self-restraint and indeed what Heulwen will choose. [face_thinking]
     
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  21. AzureAngel2

    AzureAngel2 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 14, 2005
    @earlybird-obi-wan: Isa does not mind finding bones. As humanoid as she is, never forget she is a feral predetor. The feline blood is strong in her, no matter how much she has learned about countenance in the meantime.

    @DarthUncle: I am afraid, my young ski padawan... ;)... that Heulween is very much knocked out.

    Okay, you call for an update. I shall deliver soon!
     
  22. AzureAngel2

    AzureAngel2 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 14, 2005
    @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha: Heulwen is badly hurt and on the brink of death. Isa will make a choice for her soon.

    Here is the update:

    (Still Chapter 29!)

    ********************************************************************

    It seems to me that aeons pass before a rather smelly female lets her nose hover above my palms. She has the unique stench that high age brings with it.

    ”C’est écrit dans les lignes de ta main, Marquise Isabeau Riwalan,” comes the raspy answer at last. It is written in the lines of your hand, Marquise Isabeau Riwalan.

    My name is known. I am no stranger to them.

    My eyes snap open to look straight into the weathered face of a half-blood that has known the open desert skies only.

    I have seen this woman many moons ago, when I had been a mere kitten at my mother’s breast. It honours me that the tribe elder remembers my scent. Sinking on my knees before her, I kiss her dusty boots.

    “What can we do for you, daughter of Chaleur?” the crone speaks in Basic all of a sudden.

    My stomach tightens.

    It is a bad sign that she does not stick to our common mother tongue any more. I am not regarded as kin, even though she has greeted me with my birth name. To her I am somebody off-word, an étrange. And yet her tribe stays at distance to us. Nobody attacks me… yet.

    “Dear mother of the Wind Clan”, I start bravely, “I lost my child to the desert.”

    “Your child?” The crone laughs without pleasure. “How can that be, daughter of Chaleur? You are a maiden still, regardless of your age.”

    Blood shoots into my face, thinking of my love affair with Valiant, but I manage to comment dryly. “It was a miracle of the Force.”

    Me mentioning the Force causes a lot of hissing and growling. This comes as no big surprise to me. There are reasons why Luçien tried his best to wipe the desert tribes out. All his talking and reasoning fails against ancient traditions. Midi-chlorians and their owners are not very popular. I have read the brief secret service reports on that subject.

    “Silence!” the tribe leader shouts and the voices around us fall dead silent again. “The Force and its very existance are a true fact. Every religious belief is welcome at our camp-fires as long as it does not bother us or clouds 'The Way' that we have lived by for centuries.”

    My heart makes a little jump. Heulwen might still be alive, due to the tolerance of the tribe leader.

    Before I am aware of it the crone is leaning in once more. Her almond eyes are aflame with a strange stillness. “We heard, daughter of Chaleur, that your mystical Force field allowed you to raise a lot of children over the past moons. Other women are not that blessed as you are. Cherish what you have and return to the snake´s lair. The royal household of Tjiehenet needs its famous nanny still.”

    “My children are grown, all but one.” I pump more air into my chest. “I will not leave without her, if you please.”

    “I do not. The girl that you came for is no more.” The breath of the old woman is as foul as her mood. “You are foolish to insist, daughter of Chaleur. It is against 'The Way'. I thought the regent of Draconis to be wiser.”

    “A woman’s heart knows of the pride and sorrow that a child brings into her life.” I have knelt until now, but now I dare to stand up and face the tribe elder directly. “I cannot break my own heart by leaving behind what is mine. You cannot possibly ask that of me.”

    “Then your heart will not leave this camp, daughter of Chaleur.” The crone makes a disgusted sound and spits fresh blood straight into my face. Then she attacks with full force, not minding her high age.
     
    Last edited: Mar 4, 2018
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  23. WarmNyota_SweetAyesha

    WarmNyota_SweetAyesha Chosen One star 8

    Registered:
    Aug 31, 2004
    Love Isa's strong insistence and courage but then the contest of words becomes a literal one. [face_worried]
    @AzureAngel2 I am constantly amazed at how vividly you paint a scene. I always feel I'm right there in the midst of the action. =D=
     
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  24. AzureAngel2

    AzureAngel2 Chosen One star 6

    Registered:
    Jun 14, 2005
    @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha: As a kindergarten teacher you need to be one with the Living Force, because this is exactly were the children are. The here and now. Each moment at work counts. This has a strong influence on my stories and my paintings.
     
  25. DarthUncle

    DarthUncle Jedi Grand Master star 5

    Registered:
    Mar 20, 2005
    I had half expected Isa to forego the tradition forceably lost to her and just attack before being attacked herself. I guess she either feels nostalgic, or over-confident, because after that elder continued in Basic, it was clear to her this wasn't likely going to be without bloodshed, right?

    As @WarmNyota_SweetAyesha says, you again paint a very vivid scene; Isa the movie would be a great action-adventure trilogy/series :)