The Short Fic Weekly Challenge Thread!

[Magdalane]

Ereiniel, yet another example of people seeing only what they want or expect to see. So many things hide in plain sight! Excellent story!

[Ereiniel]

Striges: Excellent portrayal of Zhorrid. She really creeps me out in some ways, and I did start out disliking her greatly, but

 

when she told me that story from her childhood about voice lessons (the one you mentioned in a separate post), I began to sympathize with her, because I realized where her mental instability had come from. It made me hate Darth Jadus all the more.

 

 

Tatile: Interesting take on the nature of the Force! I never thought about it that way, but it does make sense now that you mention it. I wonder, then, what Lord Vizloch would say to (JK Hoth spoiler)

 

Jedi Leeha Narezz and her idea that droids can use the Force.

 

 

Mags: Aww, that was lovely! It's so sweet to see how Magdalane takes such good care of her baby sister and the man who loves her. And it's very touching to watch Corso gradually break down the walls Miriah has built around herself.

 

Kabe: That was a beautiful story, and perfectly timed for Halloween. I loved seeing both JK and IA elements in the same story, and your take on how the Killik collective psyche works.

[iamthehoyden]

Worlds Colliding

The Advocate of House Girard

Varenne. BH Alderaan spoilers (lots of 'em). 2,600 words.

 

BH Alderaan is, without a doubt, one of my very favorite questlines, and I love how you wove your bh's backstory into the missions.

[Irrissa]

Prompt: Disguises

Character – Cielle Bounty Hunter. No spoilers

 

“I feel ridiculous” Cielle scowled at mirror. The image that scowled back at her was a tall rangy woman, dressed in an outfit that looked to be made of only string and some sheer material in strategic spots. “This isn't going to work, I don't have anywhere in this outfit to put a weapon. “

 

Torian was trying not to stare. Gault was openly grinning at her. Mako was circling around her trying to figure out where she could put some kind of weapon.

 

“Nope” she said, “Find another way” She turned and stalked out of the room in a manner totally at odds with the outfit she was wearing.

 

Mako turned to Torian and Gault. “You guys could help instead of gawking at her. The best place to snag this bounty is at that cantina in Anchorhead. And the most unobtrusive way is by being disguised as a dancer. After that business with that Mandalorian squad there recently,they won't let her near the place in armor. And the money is just too good to pass up.”

 

Torian finally stopped blushing and his face was returning to normal color. Gault was looking thoughtful at the mention of money. Mako made a face at both of them and went off to research alternative dancer outfits.

 

***

“Here, see if you like this better. I did a bunch of research for other types of outfits on the Holonet and came up with this one” She laid a pair of very short shorts and a midriff baring top with some sleek knee high boots.” There is a hidden knife sheath in each boot and a very small holster in the cleavage of the top for a very small blaster”

 

Cielle put the outfit on and sighed. “I suppose this is a little better, lets see what the guys think.”

 

Cielle walked gingerly into the cargo hold where Gault was totally fleecing Torian in a game of Pazak. The heels on her boots changed her normal walk into sauntering hip swaying movement. Gault spotted her first and all the cards fell out of his hands (and his sleeves) as his mouth dropped open.

 

“Ha!! I knew you were cheating you shabir” Noticing the look on Gault's face Torian turned to face the door and proceeded to drop his own cards. “Wow! I knew choosing you over Commander Fett was a good idea”

 

It was Cielle's turn to blush. “At least I have weapons now. Lets go”

 

***

Cielle stood at the bar while Vosca the owner of the cantina reviewed the rules for his dancers. Mako had coached her to speak softly,instead of her normal direct tone,and to really say as little as possible. She had already set up the contract over the net with the owner so Cielle would just have to report in. Mako had told her when she had sent the holoimage of Cielle the owner fell all over himself to hire her as a dancer.

 

Vosca pointed at a pillar across the room and instructed her to stand there and dance. Trying not to roll her eyes,she headed over, stepped up on the pillar and made an attempt to mimic the other dancers in the room.

“Vosca!” Came a voice from near her “I think your new dancer is a little stiff, I think I know a way to loosen her up” he said suggestively.

 

Looking at the speaker, Cielle recognized her bounty. He strolled over where she was and pulled her off the pillar to him. Faster than he could blink she had her little blaster out and pointed at the middle of his head.

 

“Cielle!!!” came Gault's panicked voice” We have to take this one alive”

 

“Haar'chak” she sighed, and punched the guy. As the guy slumped unconscious, Torian stepped in and slung the guy over his shoulder. Gault just shrugged at the owner. The other patrons turned back to their business as the trio walked out the door with their prize.

 

They arrived at the residence in the middle of a large moisture vapor farm with their still unconscious burden and dropped on the middle of the dusty floor.

 

“Here you are ma'am, your bounty as requested” said Cielle.

 

“Perfect” said the woman as she toe'd the man with her boot” I told him I would put a bounty out on him if he went to town and started hanging out at the cantinas again. Having one of the dancers take him out in front of everyone should embarrass him enough to not show his face again. Worth every credit” She grinned at Cielle as she handed her the pay for the job. Cielle counted back half the credits to the woman. “It was actually kinda fun, though I will never try to pass as a dancer again”

 

 

 

 

Edited October 30, 2012 by Irrissa
bad spelling :(

[bright_ephemera]

Prompt: Disguises

Character – Cielle Bounty Hunter. No spoilers

 

Gault spotted her first and all the cards fell out of his hands (and his sleeves) as his mouth dropped open.

 

 

 

This image made me so happy. The way you people talk about Gault makes me really eager to meet him.

[Adwynyth]

prompt: Disguises

character – cielle bounty hunter. No spoilers

 

“i feel ridiculous” cielle scowled at mirror. The image that scowled back at her was a tall rangy woman, dressed in an outfit that looked to be made of only string and some sheer material in strategic spots. “this isn't going to work, i don't have anywhere in this outfit to put a weapon. “

 

torian was trying not to stare. Gault was openly grinning at her. Mako was circling around her trying to figure out where she could put some kind of weapon.

 

“nope” she said, “find another way” she turned and stalked out of the room in a manner totally at odds with the outfit she was wearing.

 

Mako turned to torian and gault. “you guys could help instead of gawking at her. The best place to snag this bounty is at that cantina in anchorhead. And the most unobtrusive way is by being disguised as a dancer. After that business with that mandalorian squad there recently,they won't let her near the place in armor. And the money is just too good to pass up.”

 

torian finally stopped blushing and his face was returning to normal color. Gault was looking thoughtful at the mention of money. Mako made a face at both of them and went off to research alternative dancer outfits.

 

***

“here, see if you like this better. I did a bunch of research for other types of outfits on the holonet and came up with this one” she laid a pair of very short shorts and a midriff baring top with some sleek knee high boots.” there is a hidden knife sheath in each boot and a very small holster in the cleavage of the top for a very small blaster”

 

cielle put the outfit on and sighed. “i suppose this is a little better, lets see what the guys think.”

 

cielle walked gingerly into the cargo hold where gault was totally fleecing torian in a game of pazak. The heels on her boots changed her normal walk into sauntering hip swaying movement. Gault spotted her first and all the cards fell out of his hands (and his sleeves) as his mouth dropped open.

 

“ha!! I knew you were cheating you shabir” noticing the look on gault's face torian turned to face the door and proceeded to drop his own cards. “wow! I knew choosing you over commander fett was a good idea”

 

it was cielle's turn to blush. “at least i have weapons now. Lets go”

 

***

cielle stood at the bar while vosca the owner of the cantina reviewed the rules for his dancers. Mako had coached her to speak softly,instead of her normal direct tone,and to really say as little as possible. She had already set up the contract over the net with the owner so cielle would just have to report in. Mako had told her when she had sent the holoimage of cielle the owner fell all over himself to hire her as a dancer.

 

Vosca pointed at a pillar across the room and instructed her to stand there and dance. Trying not to roll her eyes,she headed over, stepped up on the pillar and made an attempt to mimic the other dancers in the room.

“vosca!” came a voice from near her “i think your new dancer is a little stiff, i think i know a way to loosen her up” he said suggestively.

 

Looking at the speaker, cielle recognized her bounty. He strolled over where she was and pulled her off the pillar to him. Faster than he could blink she had her little blaster out and pointed at the middle of his head.

 

“cielle!!!” came gault's panicked voice” we have to take this one alive”

 

“haar'chak” she sighed, and punched the guy. As the guy slumped unconscious, torian stepped in and slung the guy over his shoulder. Gault just shrugged at the owner. The other patrons turned back to their business as the trio walked out the door with their prize.

 

They arrived at the residence in the middle of a large moisture vapor farm with their still unconscious burden and dropped on the middle of the dusty floor.

 

“here you are ma'am, your bounty as requested” said cielle.

 

“perfect” said the woman as she toe'd the man with her boot” i told him i would put a bounty out on him if he went to town and started hanging out at the cantinas again. Having one of the dancers take him out in front of everyone should embarrass him enough to not show his face again. Worth every credit” she grinned at cielle as she handed her the pay for the job. Cielle counted back half the credits to the woman. “it was actually kinda fun, though i will never try to pass as a dancer again”

 

 

 

 

 

love it!

[Tatile]

Prompt: Disguises

Character – Cielle Bounty Hunter. No spoilers

 

Haha, I think he deserved that

[Magdalane]

Poetic justice, Irissa! Loved it! (and we all want to read your bh story, too!)

[Tatile]

Disguises

 

 

 

"Sleeper 307, report in."

 

Rochester rolled his shoulders, trying to relax whilst keeping his back straight and settle into a parade rest. He recited the times and movements of the ship, of Captain Gorse and a few key passengers. There had been no notable incidents, though Gorse had shared a tipple of brandy with a diplomat and her very pretty daughter. He knew that these were not the details that Minder 41:12 wanted; he could feel her impatience, even over the Holonet.

 

"Sleeper, what of Lord Naught? Has he given any details?"

 

Rochester swallowed hard and attempted to steady his nerves.

 

"No, Minder 41:12, Lord Naught has given no indication of any attempts to contact the Republic, the Jedi Order or anyone outside of Imperial Space. In fact, I might add," He took a deep breath and shifted, fidgeting. "Lord Naught has very little contact with anyone within the Empire. Lord Vizloch-"

 

"We are aware of Lord Vizloch's movements, Sleeper," Rochester nodded, wondering which of the servants on the estate had been employed to spy on his mother. Perhaps they all had or maybe they were just courteous informers, being paid for their trouble. "You will be contacted, Sleeper." Minder 41:12 cut the connection. He stood there for a few moments, his eyes adjusting to the sudden darkness. At length, he sat on the edge of the bed and buried his face in his hands.

 

It was never supposed to be this hard.

 

 

 

At some point I might actually write something of length or note. Until then, randomness!

Edited October 30, 2012 by Tatile

[Magdalane]

Wow, he can't even relax around his own home! Poor Rochester! Tatile, your randomness is more organized than most people's intended stories

[bright_ephemera]

I have been struggling this week. I think I'll try Disguises: In Which Niselle Contributes to Cultural Knowledge. 600 words, no spoilers.

 

 

 

Niselle looked up at the intricately carved stone door. The twin lamps Talos had set up on either side burned with a bright steady light that picked out circles in an otherwise absolute blackness. The air smelled of dust and things long forgotten.

 

"Why do I let you do this to me, Talos?"

 

"You volunteered, my lord. If you'd rather go home and do something safer…" His voice did the adorable shading-toward-disappointment thing. "I would understand."

 

"No, no. We've come this far. And I must say, the terentatek was a refreshing diversion. Nalenne will be dying of jealousy."

 

"If she's jealous of that little fight, imagine how she'll feel when we breach this tomb."

 

"…Are you expecting a larger-than-terentatek fight?"

 

"I have no idea what to expect, my lord," Talos said cheerfully. "Now. You'll need to hold this orb aloft and declare yourself as Romma Bai, Lord of the Six Houses, Holder of the Twin Lamps, Pillar of the Northern Way."

 

"And that will open this door."

 

"Probably," said Talos. "I can't figure how else it would open. If anyone can do it, a Sith masquerading as its original occupant can. Any defenses probably won't activate against the true owner. Probably. So! Any time you're willing to start, my lord."

 

Niselle drew herself to her full height and assumed her better-than-her-sister imperiousness. Holding forth the heavy electrum orb Talos had given her, she proclaimed "I am Romma Bai, Lord of the Six Houses, Holder of the Twin Lamps, um."

 

"Pillar of the Northern Way!" Talos stage-whispered.

 

"Pillar of the Northern Way! Open before me, door!" A thought occurred to her as she spoke. She quickly shuffled backwards far enough to be out of the swing radius if the door opened outwards. The doors, however, split along previously-invisible seams and withdrew wholly into the walls, floor, and ceiling.

 

"Fascinating," murmured Talos. "That particular architectural conceit didn't attain widespread popularity until centuries later."

 

Niselle picked up one of the lamps and headed further in. The chamber was vast and still and heavy with the feeling of things more forgotten than dead. It was studded with stone pedestals of varying sizes, ornamented with gleaming metal embellishments amidst various urns and caskets.

 

"Jackpot," purred Niselle.

 

"Amazing!" cried Talos. "This layout is simply – there are extraordinarily few surviving sites that used this ritual pattern. I – could I request more light, my lord?"

 

Niselle smiled. "Absolutely." She spread her hands wide and summoned a leaping arc of Force lightning, burning it as brightly as she could, harshly illuminating the great chamber with dancing purple-white light. "Enjoy."

 

Talos darted from pedestal to pedestal, observing, exclaiming, cataloguing in his datapad. Not touching anything yet, though he would be back around to collect items of interest once he had an idea of what was going on. Niselle just maintained the Force light and enjoyed his bubbling enthusiasm. Talos Drellik was just about the only thing that moved Niselle to anything approaching constructive activity. It was worth it to see his nerd colors fly.

 

She sensed a dark presence behind her. "Pretender," rasped a strange voice. "Your intrusion will be punish–"

 

"Shut up," hissed Niselle, "my boy's not done here." She turned and tossed most of her Force lightning stream in the direction of the ghost, seizing, freezing, twisting, and burning it into smoke. Then she turned back to maintain the light source properly.

 

Talos peeked around from a particularly tall pedestal. "My lord? Did you say something?"

 

"No," she told him, pointing her off hand to idly zap a second restless guard that was creeping up from the side. "Carry on."

 

 

 

Notes:

Seriously, Talos is the only thing that convinced Nis to go LS. Ever. God he is so cute. *fangirl*

 

A Sith ally would be unbelievably useful for this work. First, to get clearances for sacred sites; second, to help deal with deadly tomb defenses; third, because hey, sometimes things are locked in ways only Force users can deal with.

 

Edited October 30, 2012 by bright_ephemera

[irishfino]

Prompt: Worlds Collide

Characters: Ald and Captain Malavai Quinn

 

Say My Name

 

 

 

Ald was beyond happy being bestowed a new crew member who was tastefully attractive without being a giant blue pile of sarcasm. It wasn’t that he hated Vette, but she was poor company for an up and coming Sith Lord such as himself. The officer, however, was perfect. Unquestioning, loyal, and he had a nice bum. Ald wondered briefly if he should dress as an Imperial officer to show off his bum. The thought followed him to the bridge where he was briefly greeted by said officer’s bum before the stiff man turned around and slipped into parade rest.

 

“My Lord, there is something I wish to discuss with you,” Malavai Quinn announced as the aforementioned Lord entered the bridge.

 

“There’s something I’d like to discuss with you, as well, Captain,” Ald said kindly.

 

“After you, my Lord.”

 

“I prefer to be called Ald.”

 

“Out of the question, my Lord,” the Captain replied stiffly and quickly.

 

“If it makes you feel better,” Ald murmured as he shifted and crossed his arms, “you can call me Lord Ald.”

 

“The furthest I will go is Lord Aldrdinar. It is proper and shows respect.”

 

“You’re not even saying it right. It’s All-dir-dee-narh.”

 

“Your file says it is pronounced All-der-de-narh.”

 

“I know how to pronounce my own name!” Ald huffed.

 

“Even Darth Baras pronounces it the way the file says,” the Captain replied stiffly.

 

“I pronounce it differently.”

 

“You can’t just change how your name is pronounced whenever you feel like it.”

 

“I’m Sith, I do what I want.”

 

“You’re confusing.”

 

“Are you arguing with me, Captain?”

 

The Captain started and shifted uncomfortably. “I wouldn’t dream of it, my Lord.”

 

“Good. Now, what did you wish to discuss?”

 

“I need to requisition new pants, my Lord. These are a bit tight in personal areas,” the Captain said stiffly.

 

“Do I need to sign something?”

 

The Captain produced a datapad from his magic uniform pockets and handed it to Ald. With a few taps and a beep, Quinn’s new pants were on their way.

 

“Thank you for attending to this matter, my Lord,” the Captain said gratefully. He gave Ald a small bow then moved to turn back to his duties.

 

“Anything for you, Captain,” Ald said quietly as he left the bridge.

 

The Captain’s ear twitched as he picked up his Lord’s last words to him before his departure. He was definitely different from the other Sith Lords he had served. He wasn’t sure that was a good thing.

 

 

 

 

Notes:

 

 

Quinn's bum is always a "dat a*s" moment for me. Dat a*s.

 

Edited October 30, 2012 by irishfino

[Tatile]

Prompt: Worlds Collide

Characters: Ald and Captain Malavai Quinn

 

Say My Name

 

 

 

Hehehe.

 

Hehehehe.

 

I'd really like to see how their relationship evolved, if you know what I mean

[LogicLoup]

@hoyden - Oh man. The mission coordinator for that tasking is in desperate need of a thorough explanation of the difference between military Special Ops and intelligence Covert Ops. This almost has me sympathising with Sgt. Grumpykins. Almost. *prepares to be stoned as a heretic by angry Aric fangirls*

 

@bright - Nalenne and Niselle are both so delightfully amoral. Talos is adorkable and Godera... oh Godera. You need a new hobby.

 

@Striges - Being disguised as oneself is really the big thematic thread that ties the Agent story together, and having Sha'ra'zaed bounce between her pandering-to-Zhorrid face and her pals-with-Kaliyo face encapsulates it beautifully.

 

@Ereiniel - Revel in the silliness. Always revel. Khem in ladies' formalwear is brilliant enough all on its own, but the bikini... perfect! His head-roommate is the best troll ever. Over in Varenne-land, watching the BH play the Girards is always fun; discovering that Varenne was an unrecognised member of the House all along was just wonderful.

 

@Tatile - FOR SCIENCE! I love Vizloch's empirical approach to the Force, and her very Socratic teaching style here. And poor Rochester, caught between duty and devotion. Intelligence really has a gift for ruining people's lives.

 

@Magdalane - Oh, Miriah... *hugs* Mags makes a wonderful big sister.

 

@kabe - Kiliks! Cautionary tales! The ethics of Joining! Cultural depth! KILIKS!

 

@irish - It's a seldom-discussed but universally-appreciated fact that uniforms can make anyone's bum look good... apparently at the expense of some comfort in the *ahem* personal area. Oh, the sacrifices we make... *snicker*

[LogicLoup]

This was supposed to be a brief digression... things got a bit away from me.

 

Title: Field Trip

Prompt: Worlds Colliding

Characters: Zhara Sindri (JK) and Maneera Sindri (Smug)

Timeline: 5 BTC, 6 months after Installing Windows

Spoilers: none

 

 

This is going to be the best day ever, Zhara scribbles in her journal as she and her Master wait in the admissions line. The conference with the Green Jedi FINALLY wrapped up yesterday, and our transport back home to Coruscant doesn’t leave till after dinner, so today— She closes the book around her stylus and gravely holds out one hand to be stamped, nodding a greeting to the woman in the ticket booth. —Master Andren is taking me to the Axial Park Zoo!

 

“Here you are,” Master Andren says, handing her a small holocamera and a map of the zoo. “Where shall we go first?”

 

Zhara tucks the map and her journal into her bag and, taking Master Andren by the hand, sets off on a winding, undirected path through the zoo. She gushes at the baby veractyls, makes faces at the bormu, tries to count the vaapad’s tentacles. She reads the exhibit plaques and informs Master Andren of what she learns there — “and they stay so still while they’re sleeping that the dew collects on their backs, and that’s what they have to drink in the morning. When can we go to Tatooine?” She takes pictures of the animals as she bounces from habitat to habitat, watching each new collection of creatures with eager wonder.

 

When they reach the aviary, Zhara stops. There’s an older girl standing there, staring up at a small flock of flutterplumes. Zhara’s pretty sure the girl isn’t Jedi — she didn’t come with the delegation from Coruscant, and she’s not wearing the green robes of a Corellian — so they can’t possibly have met before, but still, there’s something weirdly familiar about her, something buried way down deep under the pain and exhaustion that hang on the girl like a shroud. She’s skinny, under her baggy, grubby clothes; the lines of her face are sharp, like her bones are knives waiting to cut through the skin. Her eyes, glassy and unfocused, are ringed by scars and dark circles.

 

Zhara tugs gently at Master Andren’s sleeve, dragging him away from the aviary girl. “Could I have my lunch now, please?” she asks, careful to keep her voice low so she’s not overheard.

 

Master Andren reaches into the messenger bag slung over his shoulder and draws out a tidy, cloth-wrapped bundle. “Are you sure? It’s still early.” Then he catches sight of the girl, and something strange flickers across his face as he settles the parcel into Zhara’s hands. It takes her a moment to puzzle out what that look means; she’s never seen him surprised like this.

 

“Master? Is something wrong?”

 

“Hm? No, not at all.” He pulls his attention away from the girl and gives Zhara his ‘You can do it, Padawan’ smile. “I’ll just be over there if you need me.” He points toward a nearby bench, out of earshot but within sight of the girl, then goes to sit down.

 

When Zhara returns to the flutterplumes, the girl is still there, staring up at the birds with undisguised longing. “They’re very pretty,” Zhara announces as she begins to unwrap her lunch. There’s a saltnut butter and jelly sandwich on top, cut into four precise little triangles. She takes one triangle and sets the rest on the narrow ledge between herself and the girl.

 

The girl turns toward Zhara, looking down at her in puzzlement. The reaction is quick but the movement is clumsy and sluggish. “They don’t belong here,” the girl mutters bitterly, turning back to watch as one of the flutterplumes suddenly takes wing, flying up and up and up, only to collide with the force field at the top of the enclosure. “They should be at home.”

 

Zhara leans forward to read the sign. “Their mother wasn’t able to care for them properly.” She nudges the sandwich along the ledge, toward the girl. “The zoo people had to raise them from chicks, so they wouldn’t know how to take care of themselves now. Where else can they go?”

 

A squabble breaks out in the upper branches of one of the fake plastic trees as a pair of flutterplumes tug something small and furry between them. “They’re ruined now,” the older girl snarls. “They’d’ve been better off with their real family.” The smaller of the two ’plumes stalls into an ungraceful dive, dragging its bigger sibling down through the branches with it. The big one lets go of their contested prize, and the small one pulls up sharply. It clacks its beak with a call like laughter before gulping down its meal. The girl snickers, a smirk softening her angry features. “Sorry, kid,” she says to Zhara, her voice gentler now. “It’s not your fault.”

 

“That’s okay,” Zhara replies, pushing the sandwich over a little bit more, till it bumps against the side of the girl’s hand as she leans against the railing.

 

The girl finally gets the hint and takes a piece, looking at it with a bemused smile that doesn’t touch her steel-grey eyes. “Thanks, kid,” she murmurs around a mouthful of sandwich — a cautious, polite nibble at first, followed by a ravenous chomp that takes out the rest of the triangle. She swallows, reaches for another triangle that vanishes just as quickly as the first.

 

“You’re welcome.” Zhara takes out the little box of milk and stabs in the straw. She sets the drink box beside the dwindling sandwich, then holds out her hand. “Nice to meet you. My name’s Zhara Sindri.”

 

The girl wears the same look of shocked recognition that had crossed Master Andren’s face earlier. “I... I’m—”

 

Before the girl can introduce herself properly, she’s shoulder-checked by a burly yellow Twi’lek, jowls dangling from his cheeks like a second set of flabby little lekku. The girl stumbles and the man reaches out to steady her, one hand wrapped around her wrist, the other hooked over her hip. Zhara takes a step back. She’s not afraid, exactly, but something about this is wrong in a way she can’t quite define. She looks back over her shoulder; Master Andren is standing up and has a hand on the hilt of his lightsaber.

 

“Watch it,” the girl snaps at the Twi’lek as she regains her footing. She sounds the way she looks, all sharp and brittle.

 

The Twi’lek lets go of her wrist and reaches into an inner pocket on her battered jacket, pulling out a plastic-wrapped package that only just barely fits into his big, meaty hand. “Tell your boss it’s been a pleasure doing business with him.” The hand on the girl’s hip slides down into her back pocket and squeezes. “And with you.”

 

The girl manages a smile, but it makes her look like a prowling nexu. “Not in public and not for free, Jax. Usual time, usual place, usual rates.”

 

“Careful, pretty thing,” the Twi’lek chuckles. “Wouldn’t want the good doctor to find out about your side job, now would you?” He pulls his hand from her pocket. “See you tonight, Nera.” Still laughing, he wanders away and is soon lost in the crowd.

 

The girl falls apart in bits and pieces. First the nexu smile fades, then she slumps to half-lean half-sit on the ledge, then she covers her face with her hands. Zhara stands statue-still, frozen in confused indecision. Master Andren is standing right behind Zhara now, a hand reassuringly weighty on her shoulder, but his attention is fixed on the girl. On Nera. “Let me help,” he says, his voice quiet and pleading.

 

Nera’s head snaps up suddenly, and she gives the two Jedi a withering glare. “I don’t need your help. There’s nothing more you can take from me.” With a last look of pity and longing at the flutterplumes, she storms off.

 

When Zhara turns to look up at Master Andren, he’s watching the flutterplumes, too; his jaw twitches with the effort of holding his center. “I’m sorry,” she hears him whisper. “I’m so sorry.” She doesn’t ask who the apology is for.

 

Edited January 1, 2013 by LogicLoup

[iamthehoyden]

@hoyden - Oh man. The mission coordinator for that tasking is in desperate need of a thorough explanation of the difference between military Special Ops and intelligence Covert Ops. This almost has me sympathising with Sgt. Grumpykins. Almost. *prepares to be stoned as a heretic by angry Aric fangirls*

Aric fangirl here, but no stoning. I like the nickname actually lol. He is a very grumpy man. But when he's sweet, he's very sweet!

 

Looking forward to seeing more of your writing!

[bright_ephemera]

Mags, I neglected to mention that your lovely Magdalane-being-adorably-protective story marks the 500th story in this thread! I crunched some numbers for you all to enjoy

 

Among the first 500 stories, 31 authors are represented. A solid 119 of those stories involve kissing. Our favorite non-companion NPC is General Garza with seven appearances; Darth Ravage has five and Lord Zash has four.

 

Our most prolific authors:

bright_ephemera with *coughcoughkindofashamedtoadmit*

kabeone with 43

iamthehoyden with 40

Morgani and Striges tied with 39

Tatile and Magdalane tied with 37

 

 

The genders of our story protagonists, counted by story rather than by protagonist-character:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg522/bright_ephemera/Misc%20SWTOR/genders_500stories.png

 

 

Classes we write about:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg522/bright_ephemera/Misc%20SWTOR/classes_500stories.png

 

 

Companions we write about:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg522/bright_ephemera/Misc%20SWTOR/500_companions_full.png

 

 

Bonus! Companions we write about, ranked and with some commentary:

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg522/bright_ephemera/Misc%20SWTOR/500_companions_ranked_numbered.png

 

 

Keep on writing!

Edited October 31, 2012 by bright_ephemera

[Adwynyth]

Companions we write about: (distilled from chart)

Quinn: (hideously high number)

Everybody else: (not even close)

BAHAHAHAHAA!

 

He's such an awful person, but such a great character.

[Tatile]

Quinn has a wonderful love/hate relationship, doesn't he?

 

Nice to see that the majority of the shorts have female protagonists - good thing I don't hang out in many feminist circles, though, I'd probably be pegged as a gender traitor for writing about my boys so much

 

I fail the Bechdel Test every time. Oh well~

[bright_ephemera]

Nice to see that the majority of the shorts have female protagonists - good thing I don't hang out in many feminist circles, though, I'd probably be pegged as a gender traitor for writing about my boys so much

 

Oh, by all means, continue bailing against the estrogen tide! By my count there are only 20 male original characters who have appeared in three or more stories each, vs. 51(ish, I'm not being very rigorous this morning) female characters.

[LogicLoup]

Quinn has a wonderful love/hate relationship, doesn't he?

 

Nice to see that the majority of the shorts have female protagonists - good thing I don't hang out in many feminist circles, though, I'd probably be pegged as a gender traitor for writing about my boys so much

 

I fail the Bechdel Test every time. Oh well~

 

Sex and the City passes the Bechdel Test, so I have grave doubts about its ability to sort for either narrative quality or feminist merit.

[Tatile]

Sex and the City passes the Bechdel Test, so I have grave doubts about its ability to sort for either narrative quality or feminist merit.

 

I think it's better for the writer to use it to question the reasons behind why their characters interact, rather than to quantify the merit of their interaction from the view of the audience. If you're using it to go "these two ladies only ever talk about men and are the only two ladies in this film and therefore it's bad" you're going to end up awfully disappointed.

[Striges]

(loads of cool statistics)

 

This makes me want to roll a male Jedi consular, just to be contrary. I do have a concept in mind....

 

Nice to see that the majority of the shorts have female protagonists - good thing I don't hang out in many feminist circles, though, I'd probably be pegged as a gender traitor for writing about my boys so much

 

I think the important thing is to make interesting characters, regardless of gender. Your boys pass that test with flying colors.

[bright_ephemera]

Incidentally, there must be a data entry error in my story records, because Excel is listing the possible values in the "protagonist gender" column as Male, Female, Both, and Jorgan.

 

...Not really sure what's going on there.

 

(edit: corrected the companion chart, which had erroneously excluded Blizz (6 features) and Skadge (2 features).)

 

(Edit edit: Added some detailed companion commentary. I'll note it both here and in the original statistics post.)

 

(Also edit edit: Malavai Quinn has more story features than Nadia Grell, Tharan Cedrax, SCORPIO, Skadge, Xalek, Qyzen Fess, Zenith, Ensign Temple, M1-4X, Bowdaar, Guss Tuno, T7-01, Lieutenant Iresso, Gault, Torian, Yuun, Rusk, Blizz, Mako, and Broonmark - that's twenty companions - COMBINED.)

 

 

http://i1242.photobucket.com/albums/gg522/bright_ephemera/Misc%20SWTOR/500_companions_ranked_numbered.png

 

Edited October 31, 2012 by bright_ephemera

[bright_ephemera]

This makes me want to roll a male Jedi consular, just to be contrary. I do have a concept in mind....

 

Doublepost...I have to say, the voice acting on the male Consular is numbingly bland. I guess if he meant to hit serenity he succeeded, but yech. I gave up at level 11 purely because the boredom of hearing him talk had finally given way to profound annoyance. Honestly I would recommend playing female for tolerable voice acting, then headcanoning/writing anything you like.

Edited October 31, 2012 by bright_ephemera