#ct7236 ait

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

Kyiari hurries through the halls to Thorns office. What had been intended to be a five minute check had turned into a fifteen minute conversation with 3 masters. She'd had to stop and get directions. It had been too long since she'd been able to visit her friend. She finally reaches the office and knocks on the frame. She looks much the same as last time Thorn had seen her. The biggest difference in appearance is the string of beads she'd had worn behind her earcones every previous time they'd seen each other is gone. Inside the office she could see her friend and a younger trooper curled up in a comfortable armchair. This must be the person Thorn wanted her to help. "Good afternoon Commander Thorn, it's good to see you again after so long." She kept her voice low so as not to startle either.

Thorn looks up from his work to see the General. His face lights up impossibly at her appearance.

"Comm-General", he jumps up to greet her with an enthusiastic handshake, "Congratulations on the promotion. I'm very happy for you, Sir. Please, can I offer you something? A piece of candy? Water? I have caff, too, if you'd like that instead", he offers, totally forgetting that Ait is sleeping and he should probably be quiet.

Ait startles at the loud voice, arms flailing out already searching for their armor. “Wazzit? Zap? What’s the situation?” Ait mumbles, managing to retrieve their vambraces, the only pieces of armor close enough to their chair. They obviously aren’t fully awake yet, but is quickly waking up and acting on training based instinct to be ready for any potential combat situation.

@phoenix1760

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

“Nice to meet you too, Thorn,” Ait replies, shaking Thorn’s hand, “Thank you for helping me.”

"Would you... like to be trained in your abilities?", Thorn more suggets than really asks. He knows Jedi. He trusts some of them with his life. And thus with that of his vode, too. There is nothing easier than to call up Commander Lasana and ask for advice or help even.

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

“That’s it! That’s my name!” Ait says, a beaming smile on their face, “It just feels right where ones I’ve heard before just haven’t been right. Thank you!” They wrap their arms around Thorn, giving him a tight hug. “What’s your name?”

"I'm Thorn", he smiles back brightly and offers Ait a hand, "Nice to meet you Ait."

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

Loss of control in an emotionally overwhelming environment, that one sounded familiar. Kyiari nodds along as Ait talks, resting a fist gently against her chin. “And considering the worry about your brothers on Kamino, even if the Order was able to use our influence to protect you, that doesn’t remove the danger they’d face when word got back. I will train you, Ait. I can teach you a few things, if you want me to. But I do need to make sure you understand that I can’t train you to be a Jedi. I can teach you better control, I can help you refine the skills you already have so you don’t hurt someone accidentally or lose control in most situations. I can teach you how to use the Force to aid you more deliberately. I can even teach you the philosophy behind why Jedi train the way we do. But the council hasn’t allowed an adult to become a padawan since before the Ruusan Reformation. That may not be something you even wanted, but I just want to be as straightforward and honest with you as I can be.

"Well, technically, if I may", Thorn throws in cautiously, "He is, in fact, 9 years old, which makes him, by Natborn standards, still an infant."

“I would gladly learn what you have to teach me, especially if it helps me protect my vode and those working and fighting alongside me,” Ait continues, looking interested while nodding to Thorn, “Though Thorn is right about my age, I’ve never even dreamed about becoming a Jedi. I’ve barely wrapped my mind around being force sensitive All I want is to be able to control my abilities and use them to protect my vode and those I’ve sworn to protect. The best way to do that is to learn control to keep it hidden from any natborns that would report me and others like me to the Kaminoans. I just want to keep everyone safe.”

Thorn doesn't agree with them. Since Ait is working in the Senate they might be in more danger than what either the Jedi or the Clone realize. He wants Ait to go and leave the Coruscant Guard. It is their best chance to stay alive.

@phoenix1760

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

Kyiari looks at Ait while he talks, trying to give him her complete attention. This is important. She only looks down for a moment after he’s done speaking. At least there was some trust in Master Ti. Not turning to her was a concept she didn’t fully grasp, but the reasons were clear and she reminds herself that their life had been so different, she couldn’t judge the decision. The soldiers under her command had told her a few stories. It no longer surprised her when new troopers arrived believing they could trust no one but their brothers. “The only one you knew that had the abilities. That must have been desperately lonely. I can’t even imagine coming into my abilities without being surrounded by others who had the same and understood. I can understand the necessity. It was more risk than any of you were willing to take. Something must have happened recently though, for you to decide to have the Commander contact me. Have your abilities shifted in some way? Have you been able to do new things recently? When did you learn of your abilities? Also is there a specific time during your training that the kaminoans seem to push at for Force abilities or do they not seem to do that, just from your experience?”

Ait’s eyes widened slightly as he listened to all of the General’s questions. Deciding to start with the last question, Ait took a breath before answering. “I never noticed any specific tests surrounding force abilities, sir. I don’t think the Kaminoans know enough to test for force sensitivity. Force sensitivity was known as something the Jedi had, and when we learned about the Jedi was when I realized what was happening.”

Ait grinned slightly at her. “Needless to say I had a bit of an existential freak out.”

Their grin quickly slid off their face. “I’ve had some trouble in the Senate. The amount of emotion in the building can be very overwhelming, especially those directed at myself and my vode. I also slipped up today and caught a blaster one of my vode dropped where a Senator or other natborn could have seen. I was able regain control until the end of my shift, but once I got to a safe place, I lost control again and unintentionally reorganized some of the maintenance closet. I don’t want to get any of my vode in trouble by losing control where a natborn superior officers Senator could see.”

[ I cant add anything to this. Thorn is just a witness. ]

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

Kyiari gestures to the chair Ait had been in, “Please sit, I doubt this will be any kind of a formal conversation.” She takes a breath, gathering her thoughts “So before I ask my questions, and I’m sure you have many as well. I’d like to apologize on behalf of the Order. We failed you. You should have started basic level training in control soon after Master Ti reached Kamino and the fact that you didn’t, that’s on us. Do you know if you are the only trooper who is Force Sensitive?

Thorn wants to answer, but he holds himself back. This is not his turn to say anything. He will just watch and learn as much as he can. If he can even learn anything from just an interrogation.

“Sir, I’ve never met anyone else like me before, and I’ve only learned today that there are other trooper’s like me,” Ait sits down, perched on the edge of their seat. “And there are many good reasons why General Ti wasn’t able to know about any of us on Kamino. We all learn basic shielding techniques anyway as part of our standard training because many of us work alongside or end up fighting against Force Sensitives. I’m sure others like me also end up developing those shields on their own. The main reason I kept quiet is because if the Kaminoans found out about my abilities, my being defective, I wouldn’t have made it off of Kamino. If they found out, I wouldn’t be here, and the vode on Kamino would have more against them for being found defective. Testing would occur to discover how to prevent this from occurring, and more vode regardless of if they are actually Force sensitive would be in danger. On Kamino, we keep quiet to keep each other safe and alive, General. It’s not that we don’t trust General Ti, we do. She has done so much good on Kamino, but you never know who could overhear and report someone to the Kaminoans.”

@phoenix1760

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

Kyiari blinks and pauses for a moment, before taking the water from Thorn and draining the glass quickly and dragging a hand across her face “of course, of course I’ll help” She mutters, as she waves a hand, pulling a spare chair over with the Force and drops onto it. “Force sensitive clones, how did we all miss this?” She takes a breath, before straightening and looks at Thorn and Ait. “It’s good to meet you, Ait, I can likely teach you a few things… I have several questions"

Ait glances at Thorn, shifting on their feet slightly. “It’s good to meet you too, Sir. I will answer any questions to the best of my ability, but I’m not sure how many answers I’ll have,” They speak softly, meeting her eyes for a moment before looking away to scan the office again now that they were fully awake.

Thorn takes the glass patiently and sits down by his desk to watch the talk from a safe distance. He doesn't want to leave in case Ait needs him to jump in.

@phoenix1760

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

“Thank you,” Ait mumbles, almost burrowing into the soft blanket. There is a small smile on their face as they finally succumb totally to their exhaustion. Their eyes close and they quickly fall asleep.

Thorn smiles at the view, happy to know he's mabaged to calm another of his young brothers.

When he's done composing the message to Kyiari he sidles over and makes sure again that Ait is well covered and warm in his space. "Sleep well, I will wake you up if needed."

@jedikyiari [ this is your call. You can come around in my inbox now. ]

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

Ait grinned, accepting a bright purple candy that changes from sour to sweet as you eat it. They turned their bright smile on Thorn, “Thank you ori’vod!”

They eat the candy, their face twisting slightly at the harsh sourness of the candy before they got used to the flavor.

“She sounds like she’d be a good friend to the Vode. I’m excited to meet her.”

"I will let her know right away, here, this will keep you nice and comfy", Thorn takes the blanket that's been resting on the backrest of the armchair and spreads it over Ait tuching him in nicely. "Here you go."

Then he sits down at his desk and starts composing the mail to his friend.

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

“Thank you,” Ait mumbles as they start to somewhat clumsily take off their armor, their limbs moving sluggishly as the drop in adrenaline left them feeling groggy. “A Jedi Commander really owes you a favor? How did you meet her?” They finally remove the last of their armor and almost collapse into the plush armchair, a small squeak escaping as they are almost swallowed by the comfortable cushions and pillows.

Thorn holds a cady jar out filled with colorful lollipops. "Here. Have one. It will make you feel better", he offers with a smile.

The sun that shines through the big window behind Thorn's desk is a bit blinding but where it's rays hit Ait's legs they feel comfortably warm.

"I met her down in the underground when I was still responsible for the prison. We were on a search patrol for an escaped prisoner and ran into her. And... I handled a pricarious situation for her later. There was a man who was mistreating some of her subordinates heavily - I let some things slide when an unfortunate accident happened..."

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

“That sounds really nice,” Ait says, yawning slightly, “I will, thanks. I think I need a small nap after this afternoon. Who’s your friend?”

Thorn helps Ait up on their feet and leads them out of the maintenance closet over to his office. "Her name is Kyiari Lasana. She is a Commander from the front, A Jedi Commander. She still owes me a favor from a couple of years ago and has, aside from that, always been pro clones. I'm willing to bet that she'll help you out."

He puffs out the pillows on his armchair and offers the place to Ait. "Here. This should be fine. If you feel more comfortable that way you are welcome to take off you armor, I know it's not all cuddly and comfortable most of the time."

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

“I just got off my last shift for the day,” Ait replies, “I have a shift in the prison from 0500 to 1100 in the mornings, and I have an afternoon shift from 1300 to 1800 on Senate patrol. I think command is trying to see where my squad works best. I heard we’re going to have a street patrol in a few rotations.l

"It's normal to rotate. We found that squads who stay in one place for a too long time period are more prone to slipups. Especially rookies move a lot until they find a place where they feel most comfortable in to protect them. Would you like to come to my office with me? I have a big armchair there with a couple of pillows and a blanket. You can cuddle yourself in while I call a friend of mine to come and see you."

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

“That would be great, especially for helping me not to accidentally do something in front of Senate staff,” Ait says, voice considering and full of awe at the possibility, “But how would that be possible? We don’t know any other vode like me. A Jedi wouldn’t take the time to train me, would they? And wouldn’t that put other vode, especially vode on Kamino, at risk?” Their brow furrows in worry at the thought of endangering any kih’vod’e.

"I know people. How much time do you hahe right now?", he asks and lifts Ait's armored hand to look at their chrono. It might unlikely to find Kyiari at the temple right now, but maybe the Jedi should know still that there are clones like Ait.

[its-commander-thorn-yall]

"Alls wells soldier, take your time." Kyiari calls to the suddenly woken trooper as she turns her attention back to Thorn with a big smile. "Thank you, Commander, It's been a change, I'm just glad I passed my trials. Some water would be wonderful. I had saber training with the initiates for the past few hours." She turns partially to look at the trooper grabbing at his armor. "I would love to sit and catch up, however your message said I was needed and it would be rude to ignore your guest."

"Oh, yes of course", Thorn nods and turns back to pour Kyiari a cup of fresh, cool water. "C-General", he stumbles a bit over the new title, "Please meet Ait. They are a trooper under my commmando. Ait, this is Jedi General Kyiari Lasana. She understands more of what is going on with you and I hoped-", he turns back to Kyiari, "He got the magic Jedi power. And I would like you to teach him." He holds out the cup to her.

Ait stands hurriedly to attention, stumbling slightly before saluting the General in front of them. They fall into a stiff parade rest, but a slight tremor can be seen running through their body.

@phoenix1760