Before - Legends "Preservation" OCs, Yoda, Qui-Gon--Updated 7/7 Thanks for the Nominations!! [hugs]

That was sweet. At least he's trying. I would imagine that love would be almost foreign to them, at least showing it in a way that Matris would appreciate.

Good job.

 

Great updates! I keep getting behind! This moving stuff is really cutting into my fan fic time.

Loved it!

 

Darth RL keeps stuffing his helmet up my a---uuhhh, tail too. Worry not! Thanks for taking the time to read and comment despite the time crunch!

I agree, it would be very hard for someone to learn how to love after doing his best not to for 40+ years... Thanks for reading!

Thanks very much for reading in any case, Master! My moving heavy crap officially starts today. We took posession of our house on Monday, yesterday was a busy holiday, and so now I get to move some of our junk to the new place this afternoon. Yaaaaaay. /sarcasm off

Thanks again for reading, y'all! Another update should hit tomorrow mornin!

 

She left before he woke up again, the next morning. Wilch was a little frustrated by that, since he had pushed his sore body out of bed not long after dawn in hopes of seeing her. Today he felt stronger than he had in a very long time. Limbs stretched more easily and even the tiniest amount of muscle was starting to be visible underneath his speckled white and red skin. His healing was extraordinary progress for the average human, but just another day of healing for a Jedi, well in tune with his body.

With a lot of credit due the Force, Wilch was healing nicely. Now if he could just get his skin to pick a color so he wouldn?t look like he was suffering from an acute case of Jawa pox?

Wilch spent the next couple of hours repeating exercises, similar to his activities of the day before. Despite the pain, he didn?t lessen his concentration and gave each exercise every bit of energy he could muster. After he was finished, he dragged himself back into the shower so he wouldn?t stink for his meeting with the Mrlssi girl.

He poked his head outside to see how high the sun was, then gave a little start realizing he didn?t have a whole lot of time. Wilch commed an eatery that seemed close by and placed an order big enough for three, including meat, fruit, vegetables and starches of various kinds. Then he added in a stranger request.

?And what?? the confused Bith on the other end asked incredulously.

?Balls. Toy balls, smash balls, inflatable balls, all kinds. There?s a good tip in it for you and your delivery person.?

There was much eye-rolling, but he answered in a tone that left little doubt that they would try. Vesuun would probably be proud of him for trying to bribe a specific result out of someone. After all, in business, money talked.

Over an hour later, the same Bith that Wilch had talked to over the com previously had pulled up in what was obviously a fleet speeder with a large cubical storage unit in back. Bright colors and a stylistic meal on a plate decorated the high sides of the enclosed delivery vehicle. The color combination slathered over the speeder was painfully eye-popping to the human visual spectrum. Wilch didn?t think that a dark blue, a light yellow, and vibrant pink quite went together in those swirled designs. The eatery?s name, ?Frlgis?? was almost unreadable with the bizarre way their letters angled. The green nerf steak displayed on the plate didn?t really give him much hope for their food being edible, either. The sentient had come through on his special order though. On the ground behind him dragged a big bag containing balls of many colors, in every size and shape that were popular these days.

Wilch was pleased, though the amount of credits he tipped the Bith would have probably irritated Matris. After getting paid, the Bith realized he was sitting on a gold mine, so the abrupt change in attitude from bored impatience to formal deference was understandable. He left with a polite wave and very honest, ?Please let me know if there?s anything else you desire. My name is Hujik, ask for me specifically!?

As the speeder raced off, Wilch sampled some of the cuisine. It wasn?t bad, but it had a way to go before anyone could call it good, either. He hoped the little Mrlssi didn?t have a refined palate. After separating the food into two bags, one large one to maintain him through the day, another smaller one to offer to her, he loaded up a few balls into his hovercar, leaving a good dozen in a disorganized pile on his bed.

Wanting to stay on Matris? good side, he wrote a quick note telling her where he was going back and drew a sketchy map, though he put a P.S. underneath it asking her not to find him unless it was an emergency.

Realizing he was going to be late, Wilch pushed the hoverchair to its limits. The repulsorlifts whined and there were a few turns he took that threatened to spill him onto the hard ground. He was getting better, but his muscles weren?t well enough to handle the rigors of crazed driving.

When he finally reached the meeti

 

What a beautiful post...such vivid descriptions! I love to read stories by authors who can paint a story with words and you have done just that. Well done!

 

You did a great job with the scene. I liked how you were able to show Wilch helping the girl and her friends. I especially liked the way the sounds drove off the humans. Reminds me of Obi-Wan on Tatooine!

Wonderful.

 

Thanks very much! I fretted over this segment for a while because I didn't think I was doing an adequate job of conveying the story along in a consistant manner.

Again, thank you! I am greatly appreciative of your praise and loyalty to the story, both yours and your Padawan's! I borrowed the idea from Episode 4 to have the sounds drive the poachers off, you keyed in to that right away.

And, to WHOEVER it was who nominated Preservation for best underrated story, or nominating me for best new author I thank you whole heartedly for the vote of confidence and thoughtfulness! Whether I win or not, I feel blessed and appreciated to be recognized this way! THANK YOU!

 

Time went by quickly. A whole week passed with very little change. Matris and Plort were both so busy maintaining the food collecting droids or gathering the ripening comestibles that they had little time to spare. They both felt guilty for leaving Wilch at home to suffer alone, but Wilch felt equally guilty for not pitching in to help them, now that he was feeling better. His body had a long way to go before it was fully healed, but he could move around with minimal pain. After his last trip to the hospital?s physiotherapy ward, he gave back the hoverchair. He was strong enough to walk wherever he wanted to, now.

And where he wanted to be was with Windy. Every day, what time he didn?t spend at home exercising his poor muscles back to peak condition, he spent walking between the buildings where he had met the Mrlssi girl last. Every day before he headed back home, just before sunset, he left another bag of food and clean water in a secluded corner where her keen eyes would be sure to see it.

It pleased Wilch that the bag had been taken, but for that whole week he saw no other signs of the girl and that was more disappointing than he wanted to admit. He had hoped that he might see her again during that time, but he never did.

On the eight day, he saw a Frglis Foods bag right where he had left his offering the evening before. He almost fell into a deep despair, then, for he had invested a lot of hope in the little Force sensitive girl. He couldn?t stop the tear from sliding down his cheek as he approached it, afraid to see uneaten edibles. His mind painted a picture that he didn?t want to see?that she had left to get on with her life with her rawwk friends. It was a hard debate in his mind as he contemplated whether or not to leave the bag of food he brought with him today in exchange for the one she left behind.

But as he picked up the bag, he realized that the food was gone. In its place was some ferrocrete debris to hold the bag down, and the blue ball that he had seen the girl playing with that first day. Wilch lifted the ball and hugged it to his chest, as if it were the little Mrlssi girl herself.

Silly old fool, what are you doing? She?s not your daughter!

Before he could continue his sappy inner monologue though, he was tackled roughly from behind. Small hands with amazingly strong, yet gentle talons grabbed at the blue sphere, wrestling it away before he could realize what was going on.

When he turned around, Windy held the ball with a grin of victory on her face, then turned so that her back was to him, dramatically covering the ball with both claws sending a defiant ?come and get it? look at him.

?Windy!? he shouted gleefully, running over to her and throwing his hands around her very small, slender frame, embracing her as well as the ball. Wilch realized she probably didn?t want the hug, she just wanted him to play the game and try and take the ball from her, but he was enjoying hugging her too much. Finally she elbowed him rather roughly, knocking him to the ground, igniting his torso into a blazing surge of pain.

He had healed, but he hadn?t healed that much. Wilch coughed, trying desperately to get his breath back while the Mrlssi girl looked on with concern. Wilch fought to get the pain under control for several moments before finally succeeding. As he breathed hard, she looked at him, confused. She offered him the ball with one outstretched hand and he waved a hand and shook his head.

?No thank you. I?m all right, just give me a minute to catch my breath. I am not well,? he said, realizing that she had no idea what he meant.

She looked at him with even more puzzlement.

Wilch took a deep breath, unsure of how to explain it to her without reliving the event again. Not able to come up with a better answer, he projected his memory of being engulfed, of the orange flames consuming him and the pain.

Windy recoiled, touching him gently as if making sure wasn?t still on fire.

Wilch lifted his shirt, showing her the scars and wi

 

The poor little thing. She must have been so unhappy when her friends left. But I can understand them leaving. It was too dangerous.

It's cute that Wilch is teaching Windy to talk. Their telepathic talk is certainly a help in that.

I wonder what Matris will say....

 

AH! Finally caught up! That'll teach me to go out of town!

Loved the updates.

Wilch had already felt a great deal of fondness for the girl, and seeing that terribly sad sight only made his heart reach out to her further. He realized Matris probably wouldn?t be thrilled by it, but he didn?t see any other options.

He wiped the tear away from the girl?s eye and reached out his other hand to her. Windy seemed to get the idea and put her warm, scaly hand in his. After gathering up the leftover food and balls he had brought, Wilch lead her home.

 

Again, beautifully done. I've really enjoyed this wonderful character that you've created. Congrats on your noms...such tremendous creativity deserves them!

 

Well, wonder no longer. Matris' response follows! Thanks for reading!

Yeah! Just think of how much stuff I'm going to pile on you when you actually MOVE! Muahahahahahaaaaa! Er...I mean...THANKS for keeping up with it all.

THANKS! I don't mind being an under-appreciated thread because I've got you three readers following me and in IMO, quality is much better than quantity. Since you three are some of the better writers on the boards, I'm honored to have you all in Wilch's camp.

Meanwhile, on with the show!

____________________

During the relatively short walk home, Wilch had projected thoughts of Matris and Plort, trying to share his memories of their friendship with her. As much as he was a part of her family now, so would they be. She was puzzled by the alien features of the Ithorian; his appearance seemed impossibly strange to her, having never seen one before. Quickly using as clear of mental pictures as he could, he explained basic differences, though important similarities between humans, Ithorians, Mrlssi, and a couple other prominent species.

He questioned her about family, picturing other members of Mrlssi society, trying to figure out if she had ever knew her own parents. Her inability to recognize an adult Mrlssi made it likely that she never knew her own family. In return, she showed him her first memories, where she was helpless and being fed by the rawwks. As if fast- forwarding through a holodrama, Wilch watched the rawwks become smaller and smaller compared to her as she grew larger. Within a few months she was able to hunt for her own food, though there were humorous failures at first. Shortly afterwards, she had gone from liability to primary hunter for the little winged mammals.

When they finally reached the door, Wilch found he was surprisingly close in his prediction when he predicted Plort to be sprawled into his comfortable chair and Matris pacing around in the kitchen.

Matris was a lot more supportive than he expected her to be. She welcomed the confused girl with open arms, jabbering to her in warm tones, encouraging and understanding when Windy looked puzzled and frightened, and ignoring the communication difficulties with a smile.

?Slow down, Matris, she?s only been speaking Basic for a few hours!?

?I know that, sweetling, but the best way to learn is to be fully immersed.? She smiled at the Mrlssi and patted her hand. ?You can have this room, young one.?

Wilch was shocked. ?But that?s my room,? he complained.

?Not anymore. You can come sleep in mine.? The way she raised an eyebrow provocatively and the way her hips moved when she walked set off warning bells in Wilch?s mind, cautioning of impure motives.

But today, Wilch was in too good of a mood. And he was strangely aroused by the way she had bent over to start tossing his things over her shoulder.

Windy looked petrified though, so Wilch stood up and rubbed her on the small of her back. ?It?s ok, Windy.?

 

AWWWW! That was beautiful and a great segue into the upcoming sequel. I'll most definitely would like for you to PM me when you start it. Good luck with your move and we'll be waiting for more of Wilch!

 

That was very sweet. I liked how Wilch was able to send her images of the Temple and how hard it would be to become a Padawan. I'm sure she made the right decision. However, she might have been better off at the Temple except that we know what would happen there soon enough.

Great job.

 

Another simply wonderful update!

 

Thanks! So far the weather isn't cooperating. With any luck that tornado will pass us by...stupid Murphy's Law...

Indeed. And those events will be put into play in the next chapter...thingy. Stay tuned!

Thanks!

Thanks very much for reading, all of you! I really appreciate it!

 

Well done, master! I see now why you are the Master and I am only an apprentice

Seriously, the story concept is excellent - it really stands to reason that at least one of all them pesky Jedis should have seen Anakin coming and wanted to something about. Interestingly, it impacts the general saga in an interesting way, and plays on the hubris of the late Republic's Jedi order: the warning signs were out there, but the masters didn't want to heed them for political reasons. I like that!

I also like an author who don't hesitate to immoliate his characters in a plasmafire