Post by Praenuntius on Sept 9, 2011 17:10:12 GMT -5
Ranah:
Ummmgh."
The sound of debris falling from a container into a much larger one filled the area, fortunately there wasn't another house nearby for a good mile or two. Out there it was all farm-land, arid and dust ridden now, the sounds that echoed out were the sounds of the Resol hard at work cleaning out the old family homesite.
There was much to be cleaned at the vandalized and trashed building. The structure was sound, but everything within was wasted. A far shadow from anything it once was. Ranah wasn't completely along, outside an engineering droid was zipping around the outside of the structure replacing the broken windows.
There was so much to do there to get the old place back into livable shape, not to mention it gave her something to focus on while Zev was off being well.. Zev. She'd come across some things here and there, items from her family's past, if it was worth salvage she'd drop it into the square container box tucked up against the wall, but there wasn't much. Anything of value had long since been picked through, but it was Ranah's family, so no one better than she to go through it all.
She had to admit some of it left her a bit emotional, she'd not spent much time there since the Vong Wars, Now she was back, and it was time to make things right at home.
Zev:
Strength and honor. Two simple words. The phrase itself could relate to a great deal of people, but here on Mandalore it took on a meaning and life of its own. The birthplace of the Mandalorian culture; the most fearsome warrior civilization in the entire galaxy, strength and honor are its core tenants, without them they lose their unique status. The word Mandalorian was indeed universal, was it no surprise that in one way or another a Mandalorian had served as the basis for both the Republic and the Galactic Empire militaries?
Mandalore had served as the turning point in the Vong war. Mandalorian’s stood stalwart and stoic in the face of overwhelming odds. Finally, years after that devastating day the planet was starting to shed its crimson shell. Spots of green and blue where already beginning to sift back onto the planet’s surface. Zev had been busy convening the council of tribal elders, checking in on the restoration project, surveying the work in Keldabe. As usual Ranah and Zev’s schedule kept them apart save for the time they both shrugged out of their armor and into bed, exhausted and full of stress.
Duty clad and honor bound to be strict to keep the responsibility that leadership thrust upon them, they made the decisions people couldn’t or refused to. It was no surprise when Zev had managed to squeeze a few hours out of his schedule that Ranah was at the estate. The high pitched whine of his speeder announced his arrival. Descending as he throttled back, Zev would hop off of the speeder with his usual athletic grace. Leaving the speeder perched beside the crumbling gate he walked towards the mansion proper.
The bright orange HUD alerted him to the life form he was looking for. He didn’t need to say anything, no doubt her suit had already registered the heat signature of his bike as it approached. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. This red sand had to go an unfair pox upon the land. Boots crackling with each step he contemplated what he would find.
Ranah:
Zev had no sooner stepped through the gate than set off the proximity sensors recently installed there. Ranah was, of course, immediately notified of the trespasser, from a still yet to be installed window of the compound a little red dot appeared and floated across Zev's crimson chest, after a moment it disappeared and a half armored Ranah appeared in the doorway. She'd stripped away most of her upper body armor and helmet, her jump suit peeled down to her waist and tanktop revealed beneath it. She tilted her head slightly and slung her rifle over her shoulder, smirking a little as she focused on Zev.
"I wonder if I'll always welcome you home with a laser scope." she sneered at him, slouching against the doorframe and giving a small glimpse around, one small paused look towards the growing pile of debris and garbage she'd piled up outside.
"Managed to get most of this place emptied out today." she commented, certainly looking the part of a woman who'd worked her armored ass off all day.
Zev:
Zev had yet to see the manse in all their time spent on Mandalore. Taking his scrutinizing eye to every aspect of the building, he noted the firm but cracked foundation. The Mandaloiran aesthetics applied to the structure; it looked more like a bunker than a place you would call home. Bringing his armored gauntlets up as he spied the laser from the dust as it filtered through the beam, “Whoa whoa, friendly.”
When Ranah emerged from the shadowy doorway he wasn’t at all expecting what he would find. The grin was there. Concealed by the reflecting crimson battle suit he wore. Lowering his hands he took a few steps forward before stopping, cocking his head to the right and shrugging those broad shoulders of his. “Certainly couldn’t complain. Gotta spice up the sex life somehow, right?”
He followed her gaze over towards the debris she had cleared out. Nodding his head he looked back to her, “Impressive. Need a couple more hands? I could use a tour.” Gods did she look absolutely radiant. Taking a second to click off his helmet he observed her with his own stormy hues, taking the few remaining steps to join her. Ranah may have been working all day, little smudges blemishing her otherwise alluring image.
Zev couldn’t resist as he wrapped that thick muscular arm around her slender waist and pulled her into a bruising kiss. Yeah he could come home to this every night, rifle included.
Ranah:
Ranah's eyes focused on Zev's as he popped his helmet from his head and approached her. She didn't move, and kept that smug sly look filtered across her lips as she saw his look. Her shoulder pushed from the door frame, righting herself as she was seized by the powerful Mandalorian and pulled into a kiss. Her dirty hand gripped Zev's jaw, smudging it some as she forced herself up against him, a display of sheer aggressive behavior even in the most passionate of moments before she shoved him back, smirking.
"Definitely with a rifle." she commented with a grin before she spun about, moving back inside. She'd point out the rooms as she passed, or rather what they had been in the past. They all were expansively empty and in need of cleaning now. A few repairs here and there, it was a basic shell, but noticeably cooler than outside, being beneath the surface Mandalore's soil acted as a heat sink, helping to cool the building even without the basics of power.
At the end of the main corridor through the center of the building was a grand hall. The same she'd been sitting in at the start of her Federation troubles. The massive stone fireplace at the far end, four alcoves, two on each side meant to contain armored statues, pegs driven into the walls that had at one time supported a massive weapons collection. In one of the Alcoves the rest of Ranah's armor was stacked, it was a grand meeting hall, she foresaw many of Mandalore's meetings taking place here once again.
Only this time, it would be Zev who would lead it, and not a Vrei.
She turned to him at the thought, a small grin rising. "I have use for your hands, and then I have use for the rest of you." she tilted her head, deviant to the end.
"Maybe you can take a look at the geothermal generator and see what you can do with it. Wouldn't start up, of course it hasn't been used in about a decade." she commented.
Zev:
Without even taking notice of the smudge she had smeared across his face, Zev took the shove in stride and balanced himself on the edge of the step. Moving back up the platform with a smug look on his face, he did his best to pay attention to every detail and room she pointed out. Nodding his head every time Ranah would point out an important feature, Zev continued on in relative silence. The homestead felt lively despite its empty rooms. The mighty Vrei clan had lived here. Apparent from their clan markings and the defensive mind that had clearly designed every room with the intention of repelling intruders, there was no mistaking the heritage of this homestead.
In some ways it reminded Zev of his own lost home back on Concord Dawn. While quaint and small in comparison he remembered it fondly. Moving up beside Ranah, helmet tucked neatly under his left arm, he placed his right causally around her midsection. Having already turned into his waiting arm she would find his dark smoky eyes drinking in the grand hall. The fireplace caught and held his attention. Clearly the room was designed around the fireplace and the light that would spill from it. Zev could never guess what the alcoves had once held, but he knew a place of power when he saw it. The pegs where curious considering the racks where gone, but judging by the outline left by the dust, he could make out clearly what this room was meant to convey.
Even the cool currents of air seemed to swirl around here adding quite the zeal to the grand hall. Catching her eyes as he probed down an adjoining corridor his face perked up. The grin she gave him was matched with his trickster like smirk. “Mm,” he mused following the tilt of her head with his eyes.
“But I only said you could use my hands.” He let her go then taking a few strides into the great hall. Its potency weighing on his shoulders with each step he held his head high. He may not be a Vrei or even a true Mandalorian, but he had it where it counted and just like he couldn’t fail the people who had given him their trust, he wouldn’t fail Ranah or the Vrei name. Strength and honor. Leaning down, he added his helmet to the pile of Ranah’s armor and then began working off the upper pieces from his torso.
Standing back up, as was usual with Zev, he wore only a white v-neck t-shirt, proudly displaying the curly obsidian strands of hair that grew along his chest. Coming up behind Ranah again, cooler now he stopped beside her and nodded to his left, “I’ll see you when I’m done.”
Zev couldn’t remember the last time he had worked with a geothermal generator. More than likely power containment systems had broken down. Loss of containment, meant loss of power, Zev could only hope it was that easy of a fix. The sounds of his grunting and metallic clanks and veiled curses in the many foreign tongues he knew began to fill the immediate hallways around the sub-level room.
Roughly forty-nine minutes later the generator once again began supplying the Vrei homestead with power.
Ranah:
ne might be surprised the sheer volume of dust that could build up in a space over the period of ten years. It certainly surprised Ranah when the power shunted into the ventilation system of the homestead and sent massive billows of it into every room. If Zev's curses and clunkings had been heard from below, he certainly heard a slew of them from upstairs in that moment along with coughing and a few items clattering onto the floor followed by more.
Should he appear above his subterranean room he'd find the entire upper level flooded in a haze. It only was ironic that the droids had just finished installing the last of the windows so it was all well contained inside.
Moments later the system shut down just as Ranah arrived to the central control panel. A flashing alert message displaying proudly CHANGE FILTER. There was of course a choice uttered phrase afterward.
A few taps on the panel had the roof vents opening, beginning to thin out the cloud as well as a few lighting fixtures built into the floor and ceiling illuminated. Some blew in a billow of sparks and went out, but many of them held, gradually illuminating the building, even if it was still a bit hazy to see.
Zev:
he power was back on. With it came another host of problems. As the vents whirred back to life in a vain attempt to circulate and filter the air, it stirred all the dust that had lain dormant over the years. A thick blanket covered even the sub-levels so Zev was equally cursing and coughing through the thick haze that filled the entire complex. Banging his head multiple times on the generator as he struggled to get out from beneath it, he soon realized his mistake as he stood up.
The cloud was thicker. Coughing and sputtering he covered his mouth with his forearm and swung the other fruitlessly trying to disperse the opaque wall of motes. After a few minutes of fumbling around the dark he made it to the corridor and the steps that led to the upper levels. Lights flickered on. Some fizzled out but there was enough to see his way. Forearm still over his mouth he would emerge once again into the grand hall where he had left Ranah.
Covered from head to two in a thick coat of orangish red dust he shook his entire body. Metal plates clanking together from the violent contusions as a nebula of the coarse stuff concealed his form for a few brief seconds before being sucked up through the vents. Lowering his arm, he gulped down the air and actually laughed. “Hope this won’t ruin dinner.”
The place still needed a lot of work. He looked around with his murky silver hues, the dust was clearing and with a little cleaning the rest of it would be gone. “I’ll go reprogram the droids to get rid of all this dust.” A few hours together was turning into too little time.
Ranah:
Zev would find Ranah in the great hall, perched on the hearth of the massive fireplace, looking none too pleased. It would take a few minutes longer before the room would clear, when it did she looked at her red-tinted husband and smirked, pushing herself up she approached him, pausing just before him she tossed her arms up and around his shoulders, leaning there as she looked to his stormy eyes.
"Guess that means I'll have to go hunt dinner." she smirked, lingering with him as she tilted her head and grinned.
"Reminds me of when we first met. Back before Warriors, we use to do this stuff all the time." she commented, grinning larger.
"Forgot how good you look when you're filthy." she commented, stealing a kiss from him and lingering with it for a moment before she pried herself back and away.
"Get the droids programmed and then meet me at the back entrance." she grinned deviantly. "Do you like your Striile old or young?" she tilted her head, questioning.
Zev:
Running his calloused fingers through his wavy charcoal hair, he remained where he was until Ranah wrapped her arms around his neck, looping them over his broad shoulders. Instinctively he closed his arms about her waist, fingers clasping at the small of her back while she leaned into him. Supporting that lean his visage warped into a mischievous grin.
“You always where the better hunter,” the coy smirk said it wasn’t true. Was there anything even to hunt yet? Tilting his head the opposite direction he let the grin fade away as he stared into that golden scrutiny. When was the last time he had been filthy? Shoulders gave a slow roll, answering his silent question.
“I always was good at fixin things and,” he chuckled lightly remembering, “You where always good at breaking them.” Kiss stolen, savoring it just as she did. Fingers broke easily enough, arms falling away to fold across his chest while she pulled away from him. That was before she left. Before this war started and made something else of him.
Just as he was turning to leave, he stopped and cast an appraising look. “Young. Don’t tell me…” He swung his feet back around, head tilted to the side in confusion, brow perked. “How do you?” Striile had been extinct he thought, another causality of the Vong war.
Ranah:
Ranah hefted her rifle onto her shoulder, slung there by the strap as she paused at the door, glimpsing back to Zev with a smirk, "You always did like 'em young." she sneered a little bit before pushing herself on through and out. She was heading, on foot, off towards the rocky cliffside at the right side of the property. The estate had been built atop a high plateau with a perfect strategic view of all around for miles. The cliffsides were where all kinds of creatures had burrowed and found caverns to form a lair.
Striile were not extinct, though they had grown far more scrawny than in times of the past. A result of the food-chain's demise. Even so, there were always something for them to eat, even each other. It was a Strille eat Striile world out there.
Ranah made her way along, moving her rifle from her shoulder to position as she began to hunt, using the Force to reach out and feel for lifeforms other than her own, any unique signatures in the Force.
Zev:
“Easier to break and train” he jeered back. “And look, you still left.” Apparently he hadn’t broken her like she had him. Such was life he decided as she left him there. Rubbing his hands together he looked back at the fireplace. Concocting a plan in his head he turned away from it and began rounding up the cleaning droids and reprogramming them to remove the dust. The little droids skittered to and fro and in their wake the red filament disintegrated.
Leaving them too it, he wandered the complex. Managing to find the utility room he rustled through what little Ranah had supplied it with. Finding the filter he was looking for, he set about changing that, which in turn began to churn the air once again. This time there was no red smog to choke upon.
Now it was time to work on the fire the hearth would have by the time Ranah got back. Wandering outside he began gathering the needed supplies, wood that was unusable, tinder that would catch the flame from his gauntlet. Stacking it all neatly within the fireplace, he started a fire easily enough, which soon swelled into a roaring crackling thing. Stacking a few more pieces some feet away from the fireplace he stood back and marveled at it.
Ranah:
As Ranah began to search there came an odd sensation as if she were sensing a part of herself, but not exactly, and so damn near by. Her face showed her confusion as she focused in on this anomaly in the Force, it even had it's own Force signature. Her focus would soon be broken as a Striile scurried up and over a rock and down behind it. Ranah moved into pursuit, though still not putting the thought out of her mind fully. As she crept forward she could see the six-legged creature pacing back and forth, it was young-ish. Probably not as young as Zev would've liked but a meal was a meal.
She aimed and squeezed the trigger, an eruption of stone and fragments roared out, a few bounced off her body, nothing big, nothing damaging. When the dust and smoke particles faded she slid down,finding the charred remains of the striile she'd been hunting. It was indeed scrawny, malnourished, but it'd be enough for the two of them. She picked it up by it's whip-like tail and proceeded to sling it over her shoulder as she worked to climb back up the cliffside.
Ranah had grown up here, playing in the cliffs and caverns, she knew her way around and the right way to head back up, what seemed like random steps had her back to the top in half the time. She continued on, leaving a trail of her bootprints through the reddened soil. A trail which led to the rear of the compound. All the while an unsettled, uneasy thought filled her mind, what if.
Zev:
Laboring away the little droids were nearly done with the cleaning he had set them too by the time he had a table set up, complete with chairs and a skinning knife. Hopefully she would find a supple young Striile, but he was getting his hopes up. It would most likely be scrawny, the meat tough and stringy. Still food was food as he took in the surrounding vista he saw Ranah’s shadowy figure cutting through the rocks with what appeared to be dinner.
She had gotten better he mused to himself. Moving away from the newly placed window pane and back into the great hall, making sure everything was proper; he wasn’t at all used to being a house wife. Water? Would he want water he asked himself?
In the end he said to hell with it and met her in the rear entrance to the complex. Opening the door he emerged, still covered in soot. “Looks like you found dinner, I’ve got everything set up inside.”
Ranah:
Ranah tossed the corpse from her shoulder onto the wooden table set up there with a thud. She smirked some and glimpsed towards Zev as she leaned to him, giving him the briefest of kisses before she commented, " Maybe I'll just leave you at home with the kids." she commented, extending her hand to Zev's waist she pulled his blade from it's sheathe and turned back to the striile and began to skin it. She had no problems gutting an animal, slicing off the meats that would become dinner. Getting blood and bits all over her bare hands, up her wrists. And the smell. Well. Striile were known to make a grown man cringe at the potency.
Ranah was proficient, if one knew her family better, they'd see the Imperial efficiency in her from her grandmother, though even that had been diluted over the last two generations. No doubt the third would be even less and more Mandalorian.
With meat in one hand, blade in the other she wiped it off on the leg of her jumpsuit and extended it back to Zev before heading on in. Her little trek would end up by the roaring fire Zev had built, her lips curled to a small grin as she glimpsed towards him before fishing out a few metal poles from her backpack she'd brought, skewering the meat through them she propped them near the fire to cook and turned back to Zev.
"Well. While that cooks, it appears I need a shower." she smirked, glimpsing down the wreck that was herself. "Water comes from a reservoir inside the mountain. Filtration system should take care of any poisons in it." she commented, giving him a nod, perhaps sensing the thoughts lingering in Zev's mind. She was always too damn good at knowing what her mate was thinking, she turned from him, heading towards the nearest bathroom with shower stall.
Zev:
Zev helped Ranah with the carcass. The smell was a pungent stink. Infiltrating the pleasant aroma the droids had left behind in the wake of the dust. Smelling far worse in the Vong war he gritted through it without comment. A sinister grin appeared, “I don’t think the Mandalorian people would like that idea.” Zev was no stranger to skinning and butchering an animal. As she unsheathed the blade about his waist he took a step back and held the Striile.
Her Imperial efficiency wasn’t missed, but then again this wasn’t the first time he had witnessed her butcher an animal. Removing the organs, careful not to break anything that might spoil the meat, he got his arms just as stained in the red filth of the Striile. Tidying up the table as she stole away with the meat she had prepared, he wasn’t surprised to see that the meat would be tough and stringy.
Noticing her grin he shook his head, completely oblivious to the reason she kept glimpsing at him and grinning. “I don’t think I like that idea either.” He had a hunch it would be the both of them. Watching her place the meat over the roaring fire, he mused himself with the thought of a family. “You would make a good mother Ranah.” He commented quietly, standing behind her as she placed the last slab of meat over the fire.
When she got up he would follow, the soles of his feet thudding along the floor with each step taken. Nodding to her suggestion of water, he could think of the genius of that. Their own water supply complete with filtering system. At the notion of a shower his stormy eyes perked up. Looking over each of his hands, the blood had even coated itself on his forearms; he took up right after her. “I could use one as well.”
Ranah:
It would be a long shower the two took, and it simply wasn't due to the fact that they were dirty, but that they were dirty. When it was over with the two of them had been cleaned up and were lounging by the fireplace gnawing off the meat that had been cooked in front of it. It wasn't the best meal they'd ever had, but they were Mandalorians, and neither of them were complaining.
Ranah's side was resting against Zev's side, conversing about things, and what they would do to the compound, Ranah explained the purpose of the alcoves built in, how they once held the grand suits of Vrei warriors of the past. Trophies of the last Vrei Mand'alor. Soon a new generation of trophies would decorate the Vrei hall, trophies of the New Mand'alor, Zev Khandrr, and of the first ever Resol of Mandalore.
What once started as the remnant of a once proud name would turn into a legacy that would forever change Mandalore.
Zev:
Zev let Ranah doing most of the talking. After all this was her family’s estate. She knew more about it than he did. Vrei was a proud name. He would do it proud; there was no room for failure, not with someone like Ranah. Filling in the technical details he looked around at the alcoves now knowing their purpose. Just as he had expected the room was a place of power. A place designed specifically to awe and cow any who entered.
The smooth arches that weaved back and forth over the grand hall leant the sensation of a heavy burden. Whoever the architect had been certainly knew how to erect a room to a certain feel. Zev liked it from where they were sitting, conversing over their tough meat. Despite the stringy, leather like texture it truly was a Mandalorian meal. Feeling refreshed after the shower his first thing had been to get a pitcher of water for the both of them.
Pouring himself another glass, having finished off his meat he leaned back with a sigh, pulling the glass to his lips, gulping the water done hungrily. The few hours he had spared himself turned into several. There was a military to run and a restoration project to oversee. Zev couldn’t be bothered to get up. The Mandalorian people had survived without him before, they would survive one night.
“That was a fine meal. Thank you.”
Ranah:
Ranah chuckled slightly and finished off the strip she'd had, once she had she lay her cheek against Zev's shoulder, closing her eyes for a moment she just reflected in on everything. In the years since she'd been home, she'd never thought to see the place being restored, she'd never thought that one day she'd have a husband sitting in the grand hall of her family discussing how they'd finish it. Everything Zev and Ranah were, was a collaboration. Both of them, on the important things, never acted without the other. Perhaps it was why their style of government was working so well.
"Mm.." she lightly commented, opening her eyes and glimpsing up towards Zev's cleaned face. "Someone's gotta take care of you while you take care of everyone else." she commented.
Zev:
Ranah and Zev hadn’t always been a team. Ranah had always been a loner, Zev more of a follower who eventually budded into a leader. Just how they managed now was a true testament to the person ordeals they had dealt with on their own. Zev admired it secretly; it was nice having someone who wasn’t afraid to voice an opinion even if it was contrary. Zev tried to surround himself with the best advisors, A’den, Obdurade, but even they couldn’t constantly take time away from their duties.
Being a leader was a game of decisions. An often fatal game and while Zev could visualize the overall picture it was the details he sometimes had trouble locating. Fine details that could mean the difference between life and death, looking out over the grand hall with his Mandalorian wife, he wondered how he had lost sight of what living was about.
In those quiet moments with Ranah nestled against him, his arm around her waist, he watched the natural dance of the fire. Zev had never foreseen this. Not with all his intelligence and dreams. Ranah had come back from the far reaches of space, after the long war and acted as though nothing happened. This went to prove the old saying: your best friend will always be willing to pick up where you last left off, no matter the time between.
Turning his ashen eyes back to his wife’s gaze, he shook his head, a grin coming to life across his visage. “And who takes care of you?” Why, he did of course. He took care of everybody, but most importantly of all, his family.
Ummmgh."
The sound of debris falling from a container into a much larger one filled the area, fortunately there wasn't another house nearby for a good mile or two. Out there it was all farm-land, arid and dust ridden now, the sounds that echoed out were the sounds of the Resol hard at work cleaning out the old family homesite.
There was much to be cleaned at the vandalized and trashed building. The structure was sound, but everything within was wasted. A far shadow from anything it once was. Ranah wasn't completely along, outside an engineering droid was zipping around the outside of the structure replacing the broken windows.
There was so much to do there to get the old place back into livable shape, not to mention it gave her something to focus on while Zev was off being well.. Zev. She'd come across some things here and there, items from her family's past, if it was worth salvage she'd drop it into the square container box tucked up against the wall, but there wasn't much. Anything of value had long since been picked through, but it was Ranah's family, so no one better than she to go through it all.
She had to admit some of it left her a bit emotional, she'd not spent much time there since the Vong Wars, Now she was back, and it was time to make things right at home.
Zev:
Strength and honor. Two simple words. The phrase itself could relate to a great deal of people, but here on Mandalore it took on a meaning and life of its own. The birthplace of the Mandalorian culture; the most fearsome warrior civilization in the entire galaxy, strength and honor are its core tenants, without them they lose their unique status. The word Mandalorian was indeed universal, was it no surprise that in one way or another a Mandalorian had served as the basis for both the Republic and the Galactic Empire militaries?
Mandalore had served as the turning point in the Vong war. Mandalorian’s stood stalwart and stoic in the face of overwhelming odds. Finally, years after that devastating day the planet was starting to shed its crimson shell. Spots of green and blue where already beginning to sift back onto the planet’s surface. Zev had been busy convening the council of tribal elders, checking in on the restoration project, surveying the work in Keldabe. As usual Ranah and Zev’s schedule kept them apart save for the time they both shrugged out of their armor and into bed, exhausted and full of stress.
Duty clad and honor bound to be strict to keep the responsibility that leadership thrust upon them, they made the decisions people couldn’t or refused to. It was no surprise when Zev had managed to squeeze a few hours out of his schedule that Ranah was at the estate. The high pitched whine of his speeder announced his arrival. Descending as he throttled back, Zev would hop off of the speeder with his usual athletic grace. Leaving the speeder perched beside the crumbling gate he walked towards the mansion proper.
The bright orange HUD alerted him to the life form he was looking for. He didn’t need to say anything, no doubt her suit had already registered the heat signature of his bike as it approached. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch. This red sand had to go an unfair pox upon the land. Boots crackling with each step he contemplated what he would find.
Ranah:
Zev had no sooner stepped through the gate than set off the proximity sensors recently installed there. Ranah was, of course, immediately notified of the trespasser, from a still yet to be installed window of the compound a little red dot appeared and floated across Zev's crimson chest, after a moment it disappeared and a half armored Ranah appeared in the doorway. She'd stripped away most of her upper body armor and helmet, her jump suit peeled down to her waist and tanktop revealed beneath it. She tilted her head slightly and slung her rifle over her shoulder, smirking a little as she focused on Zev.
"I wonder if I'll always welcome you home with a laser scope." she sneered at him, slouching against the doorframe and giving a small glimpse around, one small paused look towards the growing pile of debris and garbage she'd piled up outside.
"Managed to get most of this place emptied out today." she commented, certainly looking the part of a woman who'd worked her armored ass off all day.
Zev:
Zev had yet to see the manse in all their time spent on Mandalore. Taking his scrutinizing eye to every aspect of the building, he noted the firm but cracked foundation. The Mandaloiran aesthetics applied to the structure; it looked more like a bunker than a place you would call home. Bringing his armored gauntlets up as he spied the laser from the dust as it filtered through the beam, “Whoa whoa, friendly.”
When Ranah emerged from the shadowy doorway he wasn’t at all expecting what he would find. The grin was there. Concealed by the reflecting crimson battle suit he wore. Lowering his hands he took a few steps forward before stopping, cocking his head to the right and shrugging those broad shoulders of his. “Certainly couldn’t complain. Gotta spice up the sex life somehow, right?”
He followed her gaze over towards the debris she had cleared out. Nodding his head he looked back to her, “Impressive. Need a couple more hands? I could use a tour.” Gods did she look absolutely radiant. Taking a second to click off his helmet he observed her with his own stormy hues, taking the few remaining steps to join her. Ranah may have been working all day, little smudges blemishing her otherwise alluring image.
Zev couldn’t resist as he wrapped that thick muscular arm around her slender waist and pulled her into a bruising kiss. Yeah he could come home to this every night, rifle included.
Ranah:
Ranah's eyes focused on Zev's as he popped his helmet from his head and approached her. She didn't move, and kept that smug sly look filtered across her lips as she saw his look. Her shoulder pushed from the door frame, righting herself as she was seized by the powerful Mandalorian and pulled into a kiss. Her dirty hand gripped Zev's jaw, smudging it some as she forced herself up against him, a display of sheer aggressive behavior even in the most passionate of moments before she shoved him back, smirking.
"Definitely with a rifle." she commented with a grin before she spun about, moving back inside. She'd point out the rooms as she passed, or rather what they had been in the past. They all were expansively empty and in need of cleaning now. A few repairs here and there, it was a basic shell, but noticeably cooler than outside, being beneath the surface Mandalore's soil acted as a heat sink, helping to cool the building even without the basics of power.
At the end of the main corridor through the center of the building was a grand hall. The same she'd been sitting in at the start of her Federation troubles. The massive stone fireplace at the far end, four alcoves, two on each side meant to contain armored statues, pegs driven into the walls that had at one time supported a massive weapons collection. In one of the Alcoves the rest of Ranah's armor was stacked, it was a grand meeting hall, she foresaw many of Mandalore's meetings taking place here once again.
Only this time, it would be Zev who would lead it, and not a Vrei.
She turned to him at the thought, a small grin rising. "I have use for your hands, and then I have use for the rest of you." she tilted her head, deviant to the end.
"Maybe you can take a look at the geothermal generator and see what you can do with it. Wouldn't start up, of course it hasn't been used in about a decade." she commented.
Zev:
Without even taking notice of the smudge she had smeared across his face, Zev took the shove in stride and balanced himself on the edge of the step. Moving back up the platform with a smug look on his face, he did his best to pay attention to every detail and room she pointed out. Nodding his head every time Ranah would point out an important feature, Zev continued on in relative silence. The homestead felt lively despite its empty rooms. The mighty Vrei clan had lived here. Apparent from their clan markings and the defensive mind that had clearly designed every room with the intention of repelling intruders, there was no mistaking the heritage of this homestead.
In some ways it reminded Zev of his own lost home back on Concord Dawn. While quaint and small in comparison he remembered it fondly. Moving up beside Ranah, helmet tucked neatly under his left arm, he placed his right causally around her midsection. Having already turned into his waiting arm she would find his dark smoky eyes drinking in the grand hall. The fireplace caught and held his attention. Clearly the room was designed around the fireplace and the light that would spill from it. Zev could never guess what the alcoves had once held, but he knew a place of power when he saw it. The pegs where curious considering the racks where gone, but judging by the outline left by the dust, he could make out clearly what this room was meant to convey.
Even the cool currents of air seemed to swirl around here adding quite the zeal to the grand hall. Catching her eyes as he probed down an adjoining corridor his face perked up. The grin she gave him was matched with his trickster like smirk. “Mm,” he mused following the tilt of her head with his eyes.
“But I only said you could use my hands.” He let her go then taking a few strides into the great hall. Its potency weighing on his shoulders with each step he held his head high. He may not be a Vrei or even a true Mandalorian, but he had it where it counted and just like he couldn’t fail the people who had given him their trust, he wouldn’t fail Ranah or the Vrei name. Strength and honor. Leaning down, he added his helmet to the pile of Ranah’s armor and then began working off the upper pieces from his torso.
Standing back up, as was usual with Zev, he wore only a white v-neck t-shirt, proudly displaying the curly obsidian strands of hair that grew along his chest. Coming up behind Ranah again, cooler now he stopped beside her and nodded to his left, “I’ll see you when I’m done.”
Zev couldn’t remember the last time he had worked with a geothermal generator. More than likely power containment systems had broken down. Loss of containment, meant loss of power, Zev could only hope it was that easy of a fix. The sounds of his grunting and metallic clanks and veiled curses in the many foreign tongues he knew began to fill the immediate hallways around the sub-level room.
Roughly forty-nine minutes later the generator once again began supplying the Vrei homestead with power.
Ranah:
ne might be surprised the sheer volume of dust that could build up in a space over the period of ten years. It certainly surprised Ranah when the power shunted into the ventilation system of the homestead and sent massive billows of it into every room. If Zev's curses and clunkings had been heard from below, he certainly heard a slew of them from upstairs in that moment along with coughing and a few items clattering onto the floor followed by more.
Should he appear above his subterranean room he'd find the entire upper level flooded in a haze. It only was ironic that the droids had just finished installing the last of the windows so it was all well contained inside.
Moments later the system shut down just as Ranah arrived to the central control panel. A flashing alert message displaying proudly CHANGE FILTER. There was of course a choice uttered phrase afterward.
A few taps on the panel had the roof vents opening, beginning to thin out the cloud as well as a few lighting fixtures built into the floor and ceiling illuminated. Some blew in a billow of sparks and went out, but many of them held, gradually illuminating the building, even if it was still a bit hazy to see.
Zev:
he power was back on. With it came another host of problems. As the vents whirred back to life in a vain attempt to circulate and filter the air, it stirred all the dust that had lain dormant over the years. A thick blanket covered even the sub-levels so Zev was equally cursing and coughing through the thick haze that filled the entire complex. Banging his head multiple times on the generator as he struggled to get out from beneath it, he soon realized his mistake as he stood up.
The cloud was thicker. Coughing and sputtering he covered his mouth with his forearm and swung the other fruitlessly trying to disperse the opaque wall of motes. After a few minutes of fumbling around the dark he made it to the corridor and the steps that led to the upper levels. Lights flickered on. Some fizzled out but there was enough to see his way. Forearm still over his mouth he would emerge once again into the grand hall where he had left Ranah.
Covered from head to two in a thick coat of orangish red dust he shook his entire body. Metal plates clanking together from the violent contusions as a nebula of the coarse stuff concealed his form for a few brief seconds before being sucked up through the vents. Lowering his arm, he gulped down the air and actually laughed. “Hope this won’t ruin dinner.”
The place still needed a lot of work. He looked around with his murky silver hues, the dust was clearing and with a little cleaning the rest of it would be gone. “I’ll go reprogram the droids to get rid of all this dust.” A few hours together was turning into too little time.
Ranah:
Zev would find Ranah in the great hall, perched on the hearth of the massive fireplace, looking none too pleased. It would take a few minutes longer before the room would clear, when it did she looked at her red-tinted husband and smirked, pushing herself up she approached him, pausing just before him she tossed her arms up and around his shoulders, leaning there as she looked to his stormy eyes.
"Guess that means I'll have to go hunt dinner." she smirked, lingering with him as she tilted her head and grinned.
"Reminds me of when we first met. Back before Warriors, we use to do this stuff all the time." she commented, grinning larger.
"Forgot how good you look when you're filthy." she commented, stealing a kiss from him and lingering with it for a moment before she pried herself back and away.
"Get the droids programmed and then meet me at the back entrance." she grinned deviantly. "Do you like your Striile old or young?" she tilted her head, questioning.
Zev:
Running his calloused fingers through his wavy charcoal hair, he remained where he was until Ranah wrapped her arms around his neck, looping them over his broad shoulders. Instinctively he closed his arms about her waist, fingers clasping at the small of her back while she leaned into him. Supporting that lean his visage warped into a mischievous grin.
“You always where the better hunter,” the coy smirk said it wasn’t true. Was there anything even to hunt yet? Tilting his head the opposite direction he let the grin fade away as he stared into that golden scrutiny. When was the last time he had been filthy? Shoulders gave a slow roll, answering his silent question.
“I always was good at fixin things and,” he chuckled lightly remembering, “You where always good at breaking them.” Kiss stolen, savoring it just as she did. Fingers broke easily enough, arms falling away to fold across his chest while she pulled away from him. That was before she left. Before this war started and made something else of him.
Just as he was turning to leave, he stopped and cast an appraising look. “Young. Don’t tell me…” He swung his feet back around, head tilted to the side in confusion, brow perked. “How do you?” Striile had been extinct he thought, another causality of the Vong war.
Ranah:
Ranah hefted her rifle onto her shoulder, slung there by the strap as she paused at the door, glimpsing back to Zev with a smirk, "You always did like 'em young." she sneered a little bit before pushing herself on through and out. She was heading, on foot, off towards the rocky cliffside at the right side of the property. The estate had been built atop a high plateau with a perfect strategic view of all around for miles. The cliffsides were where all kinds of creatures had burrowed and found caverns to form a lair.
Striile were not extinct, though they had grown far more scrawny than in times of the past. A result of the food-chain's demise. Even so, there were always something for them to eat, even each other. It was a Strille eat Striile world out there.
Ranah made her way along, moving her rifle from her shoulder to position as she began to hunt, using the Force to reach out and feel for lifeforms other than her own, any unique signatures in the Force.
Zev:
“Easier to break and train” he jeered back. “And look, you still left.” Apparently he hadn’t broken her like she had him. Such was life he decided as she left him there. Rubbing his hands together he looked back at the fireplace. Concocting a plan in his head he turned away from it and began rounding up the cleaning droids and reprogramming them to remove the dust. The little droids skittered to and fro and in their wake the red filament disintegrated.
Leaving them too it, he wandered the complex. Managing to find the utility room he rustled through what little Ranah had supplied it with. Finding the filter he was looking for, he set about changing that, which in turn began to churn the air once again. This time there was no red smog to choke upon.
Now it was time to work on the fire the hearth would have by the time Ranah got back. Wandering outside he began gathering the needed supplies, wood that was unusable, tinder that would catch the flame from his gauntlet. Stacking it all neatly within the fireplace, he started a fire easily enough, which soon swelled into a roaring crackling thing. Stacking a few more pieces some feet away from the fireplace he stood back and marveled at it.
Ranah:
As Ranah began to search there came an odd sensation as if she were sensing a part of herself, but not exactly, and so damn near by. Her face showed her confusion as she focused in on this anomaly in the Force, it even had it's own Force signature. Her focus would soon be broken as a Striile scurried up and over a rock and down behind it. Ranah moved into pursuit, though still not putting the thought out of her mind fully. As she crept forward she could see the six-legged creature pacing back and forth, it was young-ish. Probably not as young as Zev would've liked but a meal was a meal.
She aimed and squeezed the trigger, an eruption of stone and fragments roared out, a few bounced off her body, nothing big, nothing damaging. When the dust and smoke particles faded she slid down,finding the charred remains of the striile she'd been hunting. It was indeed scrawny, malnourished, but it'd be enough for the two of them. She picked it up by it's whip-like tail and proceeded to sling it over her shoulder as she worked to climb back up the cliffside.
Ranah had grown up here, playing in the cliffs and caverns, she knew her way around and the right way to head back up, what seemed like random steps had her back to the top in half the time. She continued on, leaving a trail of her bootprints through the reddened soil. A trail which led to the rear of the compound. All the while an unsettled, uneasy thought filled her mind, what if.
Zev:
Laboring away the little droids were nearly done with the cleaning he had set them too by the time he had a table set up, complete with chairs and a skinning knife. Hopefully she would find a supple young Striile, but he was getting his hopes up. It would most likely be scrawny, the meat tough and stringy. Still food was food as he took in the surrounding vista he saw Ranah’s shadowy figure cutting through the rocks with what appeared to be dinner.
She had gotten better he mused to himself. Moving away from the newly placed window pane and back into the great hall, making sure everything was proper; he wasn’t at all used to being a house wife. Water? Would he want water he asked himself?
In the end he said to hell with it and met her in the rear entrance to the complex. Opening the door he emerged, still covered in soot. “Looks like you found dinner, I’ve got everything set up inside.”
Ranah:
Ranah tossed the corpse from her shoulder onto the wooden table set up there with a thud. She smirked some and glimpsed towards Zev as she leaned to him, giving him the briefest of kisses before she commented, " Maybe I'll just leave you at home with the kids." she commented, extending her hand to Zev's waist she pulled his blade from it's sheathe and turned back to the striile and began to skin it. She had no problems gutting an animal, slicing off the meats that would become dinner. Getting blood and bits all over her bare hands, up her wrists. And the smell. Well. Striile were known to make a grown man cringe at the potency.
Ranah was proficient, if one knew her family better, they'd see the Imperial efficiency in her from her grandmother, though even that had been diluted over the last two generations. No doubt the third would be even less and more Mandalorian.
With meat in one hand, blade in the other she wiped it off on the leg of her jumpsuit and extended it back to Zev before heading on in. Her little trek would end up by the roaring fire Zev had built, her lips curled to a small grin as she glimpsed towards him before fishing out a few metal poles from her backpack she'd brought, skewering the meat through them she propped them near the fire to cook and turned back to Zev.
"Well. While that cooks, it appears I need a shower." she smirked, glimpsing down the wreck that was herself. "Water comes from a reservoir inside the mountain. Filtration system should take care of any poisons in it." she commented, giving him a nod, perhaps sensing the thoughts lingering in Zev's mind. She was always too damn good at knowing what her mate was thinking, she turned from him, heading towards the nearest bathroom with shower stall.
Zev:
Zev helped Ranah with the carcass. The smell was a pungent stink. Infiltrating the pleasant aroma the droids had left behind in the wake of the dust. Smelling far worse in the Vong war he gritted through it without comment. A sinister grin appeared, “I don’t think the Mandalorian people would like that idea.” Zev was no stranger to skinning and butchering an animal. As she unsheathed the blade about his waist he took a step back and held the Striile.
Her Imperial efficiency wasn’t missed, but then again this wasn’t the first time he had witnessed her butcher an animal. Removing the organs, careful not to break anything that might spoil the meat, he got his arms just as stained in the red filth of the Striile. Tidying up the table as she stole away with the meat she had prepared, he wasn’t surprised to see that the meat would be tough and stringy.
Noticing her grin he shook his head, completely oblivious to the reason she kept glimpsing at him and grinning. “I don’t think I like that idea either.” He had a hunch it would be the both of them. Watching her place the meat over the roaring fire, he mused himself with the thought of a family. “You would make a good mother Ranah.” He commented quietly, standing behind her as she placed the last slab of meat over the fire.
When she got up he would follow, the soles of his feet thudding along the floor with each step taken. Nodding to her suggestion of water, he could think of the genius of that. Their own water supply complete with filtering system. At the notion of a shower his stormy eyes perked up. Looking over each of his hands, the blood had even coated itself on his forearms; he took up right after her. “I could use one as well.”
Ranah:
It would be a long shower the two took, and it simply wasn't due to the fact that they were dirty, but that they were dirty. When it was over with the two of them had been cleaned up and were lounging by the fireplace gnawing off the meat that had been cooked in front of it. It wasn't the best meal they'd ever had, but they were Mandalorians, and neither of them were complaining.
Ranah's side was resting against Zev's side, conversing about things, and what they would do to the compound, Ranah explained the purpose of the alcoves built in, how they once held the grand suits of Vrei warriors of the past. Trophies of the last Vrei Mand'alor. Soon a new generation of trophies would decorate the Vrei hall, trophies of the New Mand'alor, Zev Khandrr, and of the first ever Resol of Mandalore.
What once started as the remnant of a once proud name would turn into a legacy that would forever change Mandalore.
Zev:
Zev let Ranah doing most of the talking. After all this was her family’s estate. She knew more about it than he did. Vrei was a proud name. He would do it proud; there was no room for failure, not with someone like Ranah. Filling in the technical details he looked around at the alcoves now knowing their purpose. Just as he had expected the room was a place of power. A place designed specifically to awe and cow any who entered.
The smooth arches that weaved back and forth over the grand hall leant the sensation of a heavy burden. Whoever the architect had been certainly knew how to erect a room to a certain feel. Zev liked it from where they were sitting, conversing over their tough meat. Despite the stringy, leather like texture it truly was a Mandalorian meal. Feeling refreshed after the shower his first thing had been to get a pitcher of water for the both of them.
Pouring himself another glass, having finished off his meat he leaned back with a sigh, pulling the glass to his lips, gulping the water done hungrily. The few hours he had spared himself turned into several. There was a military to run and a restoration project to oversee. Zev couldn’t be bothered to get up. The Mandalorian people had survived without him before, they would survive one night.
“That was a fine meal. Thank you.”
Ranah:
Ranah chuckled slightly and finished off the strip she'd had, once she had she lay her cheek against Zev's shoulder, closing her eyes for a moment she just reflected in on everything. In the years since she'd been home, she'd never thought to see the place being restored, she'd never thought that one day she'd have a husband sitting in the grand hall of her family discussing how they'd finish it. Everything Zev and Ranah were, was a collaboration. Both of them, on the important things, never acted without the other. Perhaps it was why their style of government was working so well.
"Mm.." she lightly commented, opening her eyes and glimpsing up towards Zev's cleaned face. "Someone's gotta take care of you while you take care of everyone else." she commented.
Zev:
Ranah and Zev hadn’t always been a team. Ranah had always been a loner, Zev more of a follower who eventually budded into a leader. Just how they managed now was a true testament to the person ordeals they had dealt with on their own. Zev admired it secretly; it was nice having someone who wasn’t afraid to voice an opinion even if it was contrary. Zev tried to surround himself with the best advisors, A’den, Obdurade, but even they couldn’t constantly take time away from their duties.
Being a leader was a game of decisions. An often fatal game and while Zev could visualize the overall picture it was the details he sometimes had trouble locating. Fine details that could mean the difference between life and death, looking out over the grand hall with his Mandalorian wife, he wondered how he had lost sight of what living was about.
In those quiet moments with Ranah nestled against him, his arm around her waist, he watched the natural dance of the fire. Zev had never foreseen this. Not with all his intelligence and dreams. Ranah had come back from the far reaches of space, after the long war and acted as though nothing happened. This went to prove the old saying: your best friend will always be willing to pick up where you last left off, no matter the time between.
Turning his ashen eyes back to his wife’s gaze, he shook his head, a grin coming to life across his visage. “And who takes care of you?” Why, he did of course. He took care of everybody, but most importantly of all, his family.
