#skyscrapper

“What is it like?” Bode asked after a drink of a particularly bitter beer. It tastes not particularly palatable, yet the remnates of something akin to shoe polish on his tongue reminds him of where he is. Pyloons. A far side of the a galaxy, away from a more refined palette, beer that wasn’t as bitter that those in uniform enjoyed between shifts.

His eyes watched the shift of the partner across from him. The question bringing to attention the little details Bode’s noticed over the short time he’s known Cal Kestis. The Jedi was both trusting and not at all. Closed off points that didn’t open so easily. This question was one of them. One that tight lipped Cal Kestis with a furrowed brow and a scrunched up nose.

Rare, the ability to see the past was, even Jedi didn’t have many who could do it. And it’s what made Cal hard to pin down by others who trailed him. A careless step, and it’s like the Jedi knew something was off. The claims that Cal didn’t do so to people he considered friends was a boon and a point of wariness for Bode. He was careful, he made sure of it. After all, when your opponent had the ability to track you as much as you tracked him, it made keeping a level head all the better. It’s where Bode felt he succeeded where others failed. But it’s also where body found himself looking at the teeth of something he didn’t fully understand. And, try as he might to understand it, Cal continues to be like smoke about the topic.

“Hard to describe in words to a none force sensitives.” Cal said casually, this smile on his face. Deflection, usually works on people, who didn’t understand the force in ways others did. Or who didn’t want to get into a philosophical debate with a Jedi. It was a smile that tried to fend off the wary or skeptical, both of which Bode was not. He knew it was a way for Cal to say ‘I don’t think you’d know what I’m saying’ or ‘do you really want me to pick your brain?’.

Bose grinned casual now too “Enlighten me then Kestis.” He teases lightly, gently poking at the edges of the armor and walls.

Another pause, as Cal seemed thoughtful for a moment. “Well.” A start, taking it slow. “It depends on the object. Or the place. An echo is a point in the force where emotion gathered. It can be anything. But, I’ve found desperation, anger, frustration, and fear to be the strongest ones. They are the clearest, they are… hmmm, brighter…? in my head, allowing me to see in their shoes.”

He hummed looking at his own drink in the metal tank. Bode watched Cal, “You talk like they aren’t all like that.”

A shrug, the rustle of the poncho in the low murmur of the cantina. “It isn’t. Sometimes it’s a powerful feeling over me, giving me insight into that persons mindset. Thoughts that aren’t my own, like still images you see in a Holopicture, capturing the time and place. Yet the edges are blurry, the people move in jagged ways. The words enter, yet the stillness remains uncanny.”

Frowning, Cal took a drink of his own cup. “Other times, it’s really like echoes. A scream, rocks falling, people crying or laughing. I don’t see anything, but I hear them in the space around me. If it’s particularly old, I can’t even make out their words. Like whispers that barely make sense. Maybe if I just listened hard enough, I’d make them out.” A hum “but that’s normal, that’s everyday.”

That sentence caught Bode’s attention. Normal? Everyday? “Thought it only happened when you touch an object?” He tilted his head, curious and confused. His brown eyes met the green ones of Cal’s, and for a moment Bode swore they looked deeper than usual. Akin to when the master’s at the temple were remembering something.

“Like I said, the force is strange, it’s all around you Jetpack.” Cal deflected again, he shifted slightly, his tell tell sign he was uncomfortable to talk about it.

Bode knew he was losing the thread, he pivoted. “Sounds like something that gives you trouble.” He commented to Cal taking a drink of his own. The harsh bitterness back on his tongue. He averted his gaze, licking his lower lip to catch a stray drop.

A small laugh, the edges felt jagged. Cal smiled, eyes closed, “you have no idea.” He slides his hand along the wood grain, the sound of skin against it was soft. Bode saw for a moment Cal seemingly savoring the touch, until they brushed too close to his own hand. A pause, then the fingers moved along the spiral grain again. “It’s nice to touch things again.”

Bode did remember of another like Cal, one who did work that he did back then. The gloves to dampen the force. The sentence had more meaning that he, the casual mercenary, was meant to know.

“But suppose it can’t be helped. Living like me.” Cal joked again his hand sliding back to his side. “I’ll just deal with it as it comes to me as always. Even if I don’t like it.”

That… meant something. Bode just cocked his head to the side. He ran the words in his head over and over again. Could mean Cal’s life on the run, with bounties on his head. Could mean the force echoes and how in some places they weren’t as great as others. But his mind lingered back on the ‘whispers’ Cal spoke of. Deep down, something in his gut shifted. It’s like he knew but didn’t.

“The Force really is strange, Scrapper.” Bode commented as he finished his bitter beer. Cal let out another laugh taking a sip of his own.

“You could say that again.” Cal grinned at him, though it was a friendly smile.. Bode always felt there was more to it than a smile. Jedi, he knew they’d hide a lot, he used to hide a lot too. But the smile of the masters, they were always edging onto something more.

Sometimes secrets remained that. Not even the Empire found them out. As much as it frustrates them. And to some extent it frustrates Bode too. The not knowing was always annoying for someone of his position. He was suppose to find out. He was trained to find out.

Cal both told him everything and nothing at all. Whether the Rouge Knight knew what he was doing or not. Perhaps it was because not even Cal knew everything…? Bode held back a sigh as Cal started to now talk to BD about repairs and cleaning him up. His eyes adverted to the bar, watching the people coming and going. Knowing their conversations, knowing their lives so well, knowing who was close to Cal and who wasn’t.

For a moment his gaze turns back to Cal, and the not knowing feeling settled again. An itch on his gums almost, to bite a response from those pale lips. And a sinking feeling in his chest that he come to know as one thing… Exposure.

Bode just got up saying he was going to get food, asking if Cal wanted anything, and heading to Greez. To chat, to know again, and get some good food over whatever they gave in pale, emotionless, white walls… and maybe he could shake that feeling from his body.