Trychon felt a loss of control of the trance he had been trying to hold, but he couldn't help himself. "Haley?"
All he was rewarded with was a whimper of pain. He hoped that it wasn't due to his lapse in concentration, but he attempted to regain some control anyway. "Do you know where you are?"
The cyborg groaned again weakly. "The ground."
The Sith couldn't help but smile slightly at that. It was uncharacteristic for a reply from her. "Very good. Do you remember anything about how you got here?"
He could feel her gaining a bit of strength by the second. Her response showed it as well. "My body is adjusting to cybernetic shock." She rolled to one side as she propped herself up on an elbow and reached with her free arm to rub her own back. "It's a difficult situation, but it's not likely to cause further problems, and it will abate quickly... though not completely until I can get back to base and make some repairs."
Just when Trychon thought she was nearly out of the woods as she suggested, she curled up in pain as though for the first time and fell to the ground again with a shriek. He resisted the urge to reach out to her with his hand and instead increased his attempts to help through the Force. "Cybernetic Shock? Are you forgetting about the blaster wound? You may want to be careful with that arm."
She groaned. It took her a minute to gain the ability to respond again. "No. My systems adjusted to that burn within seconds of receiving it. It's very discomforting, but that is all." She began to regain composure and prop herself off the ground again.
The young Sith hoped he was helping her. "So this shock... you've dealt with it before? You're experienced with it?"
"No. It's always been a risk I knew about, but I've never..." She trailed off as her face tightened in pain.
It became obvious to Trychon that his use of the Force was indeed helping her. His wavering attention span was obviously directly affecting her. He was simultaneously proud and ashamed as he realized that it would have been better for her if she was recovering on her own. He redoubled his efforts and promised himself to try harder not to lose control again.
Within a minute, Haley was doing much better again. It was likely a combination of both her own recovery and his efforts, but he kept the meditation up. "Tell me more. I need to concentrate to help your recovery."
"Well, I was two..." Haley went on to describe the years of changes she went through. They weren't forced on her, but allowing such decisions on a child seemed more than odd to Trychon. He was strangely calmed by listening to her talk, and her demeanor got stroner as time went on. She was recovering, and to the point where he felt comfortable backing off on his efforts to help her. As he did, her discomfort became obvious, but she seemed as though she was through the worst. She was doing well, and she seemed as though she was letting loose on some issues for the first time. She gained confidence in her speach as she went, but she seemed so much more vulnerable than ever before.
The Sith finally let go of his last bit of meditation. Haley let out a bit of a sigh and closed her eyes, but she seemed prepared to handle it.
"I can't imagine that this is where you saw yourself ending up all those years ago." Trychon finally broke his silence.
She paused. "No. I couldn't have imagined the obstacles that stood in my way. As a woman, as a cyborg, many won't accept me as I am." Her speach was becoming more hesitant again, though she was clearly in much less pain than before. She saw the look of concern in her companion's eyes. "I'll... I'll be ok." She spent several minutes attempting to regain her control.
"It's hard. I'm not used to thinking about these things. I'm in no state..." She sniffled and rubbed her nose. "I'm not used to dealing with this. Before, it was as though you weren't just helping my pain, but giving me strength."
"The pain will go away with time. You're doing very well." He assured her.
"It's not just the pain. I'm not used to... my emotions coming out like this." She sniffled again.
Trychon was surprised by the implication he thought he sensed. "The implants control your emotions?" He tried to keep his inquiry fairly level.
"No." She shook her head and wiped her eyes, in a failed attempt to regain her composure. "They help me control them. They keep me level and objective about things. This is overwhelming!" She was near full tears now. "I..."
At a loss for anything else to say, Trychon did his best to calm her. "Shhh.... it's ok. You'll be ok."
"I need to rest." Haley turned and laid her head on his lap. "Tell me about yourself now."
He didn't like opening up to strangers much, but he felt no restraint in opening up to her. It felt good, if he was honest with himself about it. He started off by telling her about his home planet, though he left off how confusing a start he got, appearing seemingly out of nowhere.
She was asleep within minutes, but he continued to talk to her for much longer. Knowing she couldn't really listen any more, he started to tell her things he hadn't discussed in ages. He told her about his first love. He didn't know why he did, but he hadn't even really talked to his brother much about it beyond vague mentions. It was surprizing how relaxed he was with her sleeping on his legs.
Then the Force began to warn him that their time in safety in the cave was running out.
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