#arkley

“Ark!” an all too familiar voice started before a blue, holographic image followed when Ark put through the call. A woman with a mess of curly hair and scars adorning her face popped up. It was Ixshli. Her tone was overall friendly, but there was something behind it, too. “How busy are you?”

“Why hello to you too,” Ark started. He absently stroked his beard while pondering over the question. “I have nothing of importance planned for the foreseeable future. Why do you ask?” 

“Oh, no reason at all,” Ixsh smiled innocently. Ark knew better than to trust that smile. “Actually, there’s a reason.” And there it was. The Jedi shook his head in good humour, waiting for her to go on. “Why don’t you come and meet me on Coruscant in the Flying Thranta?”

As far as Ark recalled, the Flying Thranta was a relatively remote cantina. He may have grabbed a drink or two there at some point. Ixsh had a tendency to drag him into friendly reunions. “I didn’t expect another round so soon, but I see no harm done.”

“Hey, look now,” Ixsh began to counter. “I’ve told you it’s the irresistible beard,” she’d add with a grin. “But I’ll see you soon!”

With goodbyes exchanged, the call ended. Time to get going.

--

The Flying Thranta was exactly as Ark remembered it. A little bit run down on the outside, while stuffy air lingered in the locale. The clinking of classes, a handful of shady patrons, laughter and the smell of cigarettes combined into a classical scene of the perfect location for smugglers, thirsty individuals and some other criminals. Maybe the occasional bounty hunter. Seeing as Ixsh had been the latter, it was no wonder she frequented the cantina when she had the chance.

Speaking of Ixsh, Ark spotted her as she waved him over. Of course, he had sensed her before seeing her. One of the perks of being Force sensitive. Once having approached, he was instantly greeted with a hug. Some things never changed.

“So what are you having today? That horrible concoction you call a drink?” he asked in a half serious, half joking tone. How Ixsh bore with the Reactor Core, he had no clue.

Ixsh snickered at the remark. “No, no, no. I actualllyyyy...” she started, before peering around inconspicuously. “...Have a surprise for you.” With a nod spared to Ark, she signalled him to follow as she began to make her way toward the backroom.

“A surprise?” Ark repeated. What kind of a surprise prompted a meeting in the back of a cantina? When she so pleased, Ixsh was good at hiding things or twisting words.

The backroom was vacant, spare for the duo that had entered it. Ark didn’t spot anything inside either that could hint toward the surprise. Well, aside from a box placed on top of a table. When Ixsh shut the door behind them, he could tell she was more tense now than she had before. She even bore an awfully neutral expression.

“Alright, not a surprise, really.” She held a small pause, hazel eyes coming to linger on Ark. “You know how I had... or well, have ties with the SIS?”

Oh boy. “Yes.” He fell silent for a brief moment. “I thought you quit?”

Ixsh shook her head. “Not quite. I work on and off.” Upon mentioning that, she slowly trailed toward the box. “I was supposed to meet up with another asset, but he had some... things come in the way.” That was one way of putting someone potentially dying. Or being captured. A small frown formed on Ark’s face before Ixsh continued. “Basically, I needed him to accompany me to a ball. Military kind of. With all that fancy bullshit and politicians sucking off one another kind of deal.”

Spy things were far from Ark’s usual dealings. Why hadn’t she contacted someone else? “Ixsh--” Ark said, and was about to continue, but said woman was on a roll.

“I know, I know. You’re probably thinking ‘why me?’ To be honest, I didn’t consider you initially, but you look like the guy who was supposed to be here and there’s no time to make new documents and disguises.”

Ark’s frown only deepened when disguises was brought up. Military ball and disguises... This was leading to something awfully horrid. “...Ixsh--”

“So I called you since I can trust you and because I need a ticket in,” she finally finished, allowing Ark to finally interject.

“I am not putting on an uniform.” They looked uncomfortable, stuffy and stars knew how the pants would sit. Pulling one on was out of question. “In fact, what in the blazes were you thinking of? I came to have a friendly chat, not-” he gestured toward the box where he supposed the disguises were “-to be dragged off out of my element into some schemes of yours.” He sounded far from pleased, which was understandable.

A sigh escaped from Ixsh. She’d foreseen the reaction. “I initially tracked some low life hunter, but the rabbit hole went deeper than I thought, and now I’m having to deal with some officer who’s potentially selling secrets and funneling resources to the Empire. He rarely shows his face, but he’s coming to the ball. I have one shot at this,” she’d say in return. Never did her gaze falter as she spoke. Clearly, this mission meant a lot for her.

They could have continued to argue. Ark could have walked out at any given moment, too. The topic of doing it  for the greater good of the Republic and aiding its rebuilding phase would have more than likely surfaced as well. It was a mess.

Taking a deep breath, Ark let out a long, long exhale while he rubbed the bridge of his nose, eyes shut. Damn it. Damn it it all. When he reopened his eyes, he accusingly pointed at Ixsh, tone awfully stern. “You owe me. Big time.”

He was grinning broadly when he found Della lounging lazily on her pile of papers, datapads, and assorted souvenirs she had collected from her travels at the main study of the hostel they were currently staying at. When Della saw Arkley, she quickly hustled to give the illusion of studying, even holding the datapad upside down. Arkley couldn’t help but snort in laughter. 

“I am read!” she said hurriedly as her eyes darted back and forth, and her ears stood straight up. 

Yes, yes of course.” Chuckled Arkley, biting his lower lip to keep his laughter contained. He then balanced his box under one arm while adjusting Della’s datapad to its proper position. He beamed brightly, practically brimming like a child on Life Day. 

Della couldn’t help but feel concerned. A very tall, though well-meaning man, was standing with a box full of only who knows what. Her mother warned her about strange men acting oddly with with boxes. Perhaps reading her expression of concern, Arkley tempered his enthusiasm, though only slightly. 

“ Today is going to be a great day! Come. Let’s go to the room, and begin a lesson.” Arkley adopted a persona of a wise and well-versed sage; he was playful about it. Still, a thought flashed in his mind for their safety.

The galaxy was openly hostile towards the likes of him these days, and it had no qualms of selling talented younglings like Della to the Empire like slaves. Della already had an encounter with such vile fiends, though she had still yet to master the articulation required to fully tell her story. Arkley could only surmise from the crude drawings she once made during a night when PTSD suddenly reared its ugly head. 

It had to be torment to be unable to understand and communicate with the boundless changes of the Galaxy. Arkley did his best. He tried to show her the good things: good food, the comedies of the holonet, adorable lothcat videos, and whatever he could find. 

He carefully observed the surroundings in the low-class hostel as Della gathered her study materials. The common area was pretty sparse, and the cleaning droid was busy polishing the floors. It was the middle of the day, when most guests were out being tourists or working. Della stood to confirm that she was ready. In the room, Arkley unpacked the box. There were bamboo sticks, a combat remote, a helmet, a few wooden blocks, and a prized possession: a Holocron. Della regarded the objects with detached interest. These objects were as strange and novel as any other. They must have seemed like toys to her. 

Arkley focused his mind, trying to find the right way to phrase his words. His expression was serious now, and Della sensed that this was going to be an important lesson. Her ears drifted back and she was now anticipating some unknown struggle with worry. Arkley breathed out his own doubts and started his lesson.

“ Do you know the word, energy? Life? Spirit?” Arkley asked. Della considered these words for a moment, her face contorting like a child taking a test. 

“I know life. I am life. You are life. I know energetic? I am energetic. Spirit is inside me? Dead, but life somewhere.” Della struggled finding her way with the words. She understood the definitions, but translating the loose descriptions into specific terms was difficult for her. 

“Yes, I am alive. You are alive. You are energetic, because you have energy. I also have energy. It makes us move. We both have spirits. But there is a connection between the three words.” Arkley felt excited again. This was gonna blow her mind. 

“It is called The Force. It is an energy that connects spirit and life. It is the energy that you and I have. That the birds and plants have. It is how you know a thing is alive. Some of us,” he paused dramatically, reaching his hand towards the holocron and calling it to him. It glided gracefully to him and rested in his palm. “Are called to wield it, just as a painter is-”

“Ah, good trick!” Della piped. 

“T-trick?” Arkley said the word to confirm that he had heard Della correctly. 

“Very good trick. Stones touch? Ah- What is the word? They are black stones, they-ah, follow? Follow black stone? One stone in your hand. One stone in square.” Della grabbed Arkley’s hands, trying to find some hidden tool on the gloves. 

“Oh, magnets? No, no Della. Not magnets. The Force.” Arkley chuckled as Della took one glove clean off in her investigation. She grabbed nearby metal trinkets to see if any of them would stick to Arkley’s gloves or the Holocron. Her childish insistence on a gimmick such as magnets amused the Jedi. 

“Can you bed?” Della asked, pointing to the metal framed lump mattresses in the room. Arkley couldn’t help but stifle a humored snort. 

“I have never been interested in that sort of thing” He heavily implied. He knew it would go over Della’s head and her blank stare made his joke even more amusing to him. Della started to point to other objects in the room, demanding that Arkley try to use the “magnets” to move them. 

“Goodness, it’s not magnets! It’s energy! Spirit! Life!” Arkley grinned as he took his glove from Della. She grabbed his bare hand and intently investigated it before regarding Arkley with a sideways shrewd expression. 

“I will learn trick.” She said.

“I know you will.” Arkley replied with a sly smile.

“You teach me, now” she said sternly. Arkley could only shake his head in disbelief at the girl’s streak of pushiness. He held his hands up, as if the request was unreasonable.

“I will! I will! There is much to learn. This is not a trick. It is a teaching, a way of life. Do you understand?” His voice turned serious now. He now felt concerned that he was not coming across clearly enough. There was only so many ways to reduce what he was trying to explain through words. An idea came to him. He moved the beds, in the old fashioned way, to create a clearing. He grabbed the helmet with its opaque blast shield, the combat remote, and one of the bamboo poles. 

“I want you to watch carefully.” he said. Certainly, Della would not be able to explain this away. He set the combat remote to a setting that would be harmless, but still smart, if a stray plasma should strike him. The little machine rose into the air. He lowered the visor, surrounding his eyes in darkness. 

He was tempted by nostalgia. It distracted his mind, overwhelming him with visions of days that were no longer. First, there was joy that was mellow and sweet like the scent of grass in the morning. His youthful glimpses danced around him, followed by days when his first padawan was assigned to him. 

Then, sadness came. The faces of his classmates blurry and yet vivid in color fluttered. The quiet afternoons and childish laughter were echoes in his mind. They were dead now. The younglings, his friends, and the masters.

How much should he have done to save more? How did he not see the signs as they arrived like animals fleeing a fire? It wasn’t right that the teenager before him had to suffer because of the lack of resources to help her. How much faster could she get the language development she needed? The Masters could possibly have seen her mind to get to the bottom of her perplexing past. She had to suffer injustice while the damn sentient-trading ba-

A sharp pain in his leg snapped him back to reality. Arkley could hear Della’s subtle, and skeptical, huff. Della did have help now, she had him, and with the will of the Force would grow into a powerful agent for her people. 

Another sharp pain in his leg. Time to get serious. The next shot was deflected by the bamboo pole he wielded. The remote now fired more quickly, and those were also quickly knocked aside gracefully. This impressed Della, though she tried to hide it. 

“That is an easy trick!” she chirped proudly. 

“Is it now?” Arkley smirked. He removed the helmet. He had a mischievous gleam in his eyes. He smugly placed the helmet over Della’s head, and gave her the bamboo. Her ears folded down comically.

“I can’t see!” Della’s nose twitched as she complained. 

“Good.” Arkley said in her ear before stepping back and setting the remote onto its new target. Della was already trying to see if she could steal a glimpse or a look at her target. Her senses her trying to get the advantage. Her restrained ears kept try to move like radar dishes, her nose wanted to get a scent. She was a girl used to the physical realm and being alert paid off for her in the past.

She squeaked at the the first bolt to strike her. She had tried to dodge with her whole body, completely missing the point of the bamboo. She moved spastically like a deer trying to dance.

“Do not dodge. Face your opponent.” Arkley folded his arms across his chest. His voice was authoritative. 

“That’s haraka.” Della snapped.   

“I assume that’s a swear in your language.” Arkley frowned, he was going to have to start making a credit jar for the crude words this girl was picking up. Della mimicked the fighting stance Arkley had just a moment ago. Okay, that was a start. She tried to listen for the sounds of fire, but she couldn’t hit a single plasma. After Arkley had his fill of watching Della fumble his “trick”, he chuckled and walked towards her.

“Now, try to cle-” WHAP. Della had spun around as Arkley spooked her and got a good smack on his left cheek, nearly knocking him down. Thank goodness that wasn’t a lightsaber.

“Ah Jeez! Thanks for not knocking my teeth out, kiddo!” He yelped. That was gonna bruise in the morning. 

“Sorry! Sorry!” Della cried. She blindly spun around, trying to get her bearings. 

“No, no, It’s fine.” Arkley grumbled. He recomposed himself, while his face throbbed and smarted. 

“ You are relying on your senses. Clear your mind. Focus. Be calm. Remember your running practice? Pretend you are running.” Arkley could never forget watching Della run. The way that she instinctively channeled the Force to move through her, making her fluid and quick. Della seemed completely unaware that she had a gift for moving meditation. She had taken for granted that was how running was supposed  to work. 

Della had briefly mentioned outrunning a few of her captors when she first encountered them. If he had understood her correctly, the ones who caught her had hastily fired a stun plasma at the exact opportune moment. But Arkley’s understanding of that moment was fractured at best. 

Della understood part of what he had said. She was quieting down, becoming less twitchy. It was taking a moment for Della to settle herself. She was having doubts. She was trying to figure out the “trick”.

“Just like running.” Arkley said firmly. He silently rooted for her. He knew she could do this. It was all there already, she just needed to make the connection. The next bolt struck her thigh. Della had tried to block it. But she was still relying her on ears. 

“Do not listen for the bolts.” Arkley said. The next plasma that fired was successfully blocked by the bamboo. Arkley wanted to cheer, but he kept himself retrained. She dodged the next one successfully. Such a fast little thing, even faster now that the Force was starting to simmer in her. The other blocks were successful and Arkley now could feel that Della, on a fundamental level, could understand what he was trying to teach her. 

Arkley finally called on the remote to stop. He excitedly removed the helmet off of Della, her ears popping straight up like daisies, and grabbed her in a great wampa hug. He swung her off her feet and spun her around. 

“You did it! I knew you could! Did you feel it? Like when you run? That’s the Force! That’s it! ” He cheered, his face illuminated with joy. 

“That Force? But it is like running!” Della tried to explain what she had felt. 

“Della, it is that peace you have when you run, that concentration, That feeling in your body when you run so fast!” Arkley was not only celebrating Della’s skill with the bamboo, but the relief that she had indeed understood. There was a relief in Arkley.  She was going to learn so much now. The workings of her world were going to become so much clearer. Little by little, she would see. 

“I did good.” It was starting to click with her. She did something special. Something that she had done before when she was training every day after school on the track. She had taken it for granted. She felt that she had suddenly discovered a new way her entire body worked. 

“How about…” Arkley stroked his beard as he raised an eyebrow.  “We celebrate?”

Della lit up and did a little hop. She gave a great gasp of excitement and started chattering in that language of hers. Their dinner outings were always fun and exciting; Arkley had a skill in finding good meals.

“ Ever heard of a burger?” Arkley asked with a gentle smile. Of course, she hadn’t. She gave Arkley a barrage of questions, fluttering back and forth between her native tongue and Basic. When she was like this, it was impossible to understand her. 

“Atanikili! When magnet? Magnets buy? Woounspe-Woh oun spay?” Arkley swore that when Della was this excited, she was running on reactor cores. 

“For the last time, No magnets were there.” Arkley replied in annoyance. Della was going to never shake off this obsession with magnets, he feared. Maybe he should have tried using the wooden blocks. He was cautious about trying objects at the diner, and he was becoming concerned that Della’s excitement would attract the wrong sort of attention. 

    “Be calm. Peace, or we will not go. ” he said sternly. Della quickly nodded and at least stopped chattering off every word that came to mind. The way that she followed him now in comparison to merely months ago was like night and day. 

When they first met, Della was terrified and unyielding to explore the galaxy around her. Everything startled her. It had taken a great deal of effort on Arkley’s part to gain her trust. He regretted none of it. Hopefully, she felt the same. 

The Blue Nerfer was the best diner on Coreillia. It had everything: a great menu, 24 hours, sassy wait staff, and good caffe. Della’s nose and ears was already trying to gather as much information as possible. She had once described her homeworld as open and wild. That would explain why her senses were so finely tuned. Perhaps her people were not at the top of the food chain. 

When they were seated, Arkley ordered what would be quite a treat for him and his friend to enjoy. 

“Ark is good teacher.” Della said as she sipped on a glass of water. 

“Thank you.” Arkley replied. 

“Ark teach job?” Della asked. Arkley wasn’t entirely sure what Della meant by her question. He asked her to clarify. She fumbled for words until she found a good enough string of descriptions to explain that she was asking if Arkley taught for a living. 

“Sometimes.” Arkley replied, his eyes already looking around at whoever might start eavesdropping. He didn’t like the idea of having to act so shifty around Della, but she was completely ignorant to galactic culture and politics. 

“Teach me trick again. The first trick. Please?” Della asked sweetly. 

“Not here.” Arkley’s voice dropped to a quieter tone. Della was now confused by his tonal shift. She wasn’t used to him being so serious. The air went quiet between them. The truth hung heavy, clouded and mysterious like a storm. They were blocked by their own limitations. Della’s ignorance, and Arkley did not desire to risk danger to them both in this public place. 

“Della, I will do my best to teach you. Pay attention.” He whispered. Della leaned in, her ears forward and concentrated. 

“ There are people who want to hurt us, because of what I teach. You met them already. They were the people who took you far away from home. They will kill us, if they find us. We must be careful.” Arkley prayed she got what he was saying. He was surprised that she understood every word. 

“Predator.” She growled. Her face also become serious. Yes, in a way. It spoke a great deal about Della’s upbringing. Another puzzle piece about her past. She started to say something, it almost sounded like a poem. “Be fast. Smart. Have many tricks.” she finished. Her eyes locking with Arkley’s. Arkley nodded in response. He was starting to suspect that he had a little rogue on his hands. 

The food arrived. It was a feast. A treat for the eyes. A galactic color nerf burger with the works on it. There were piping hot french fries and onion rings on the side. A beautiful sundae decorated in rainbow and flavors of all sorts; and a refreshing lemon drink garnished with a Coreillia Grapefruit.  Arkley had a modest neapolitan sundae. He had a feeling there would be leftovers to spare from Della. 

Della looked at the food with surprise and awe. Her eyes were larger than her plate and she seemed at a loss for words. 

“Philamayaye” she told Arkley. But she wasn’t sure where to start. 

“Burger.” Arkley pointed at the main course. He mimed grabbed it with two hands and biting into it. Della raised an eyebrow, her ears fixed forward. She carefully grabbed the burger, and took a bite. 

Arkley couldn’t help but lean forward in suspense. Della was having her first bite of good and proper diner food, one that Arkley had personally recommended himself. He wouldn’t blame her if she hated it, but he also couldn’t help but feel a little offended. She was carefully considering her first bite. She swallowed. Then took another bite, this time happily and eagerly. She was positively chowing down now. 

“Slow down, lass, or you’ll give yourself a stomach ache.” Arkley laughed. He started to eat his ice cream. 

“There is so much I want to teach you, and show you about this place. I hope that you’ll learn and be patient with me and yourself as we- Della chew! Slow down! It’s not going anywhere!” Arkley had started to hear Della coughing and wheezing as she was almost literally inhaling her food. He gave her back a firm pat to make sure she wouldn’t start choking. 

Della offered Arkley a bite of her burger. The oozing cheese was slipping out of one side.  Della’s face was already full with another bite of food. 

“Oh no, I’m afraid you’d try to eat my hands if I held onto it for too long. “ Arkley smiled. He took his time eating his meal, occasionally helping himself to a fry or onion ring. His mind wandering to various memories and thoughts.

It was going to be a long road ahead. Arkley didn’t know what his role would be at the end of it. Helping this girl was the right thing to do. It made him feel like he was back with the Order again, before it all went to hell. He felt that he had his proper footing again. 

But all that was a talk for later. For now, he was just a friend sharing a meal with someone who got to act like a normal teenager.