“Where did you get the scar” Saphira whispered to Jersh, her voice filled with an idle curiosity. Jersh didn’t blame her for asking about it… but he shuddered none the less. It was a very sensitive issue, but… Saphira was his other half. He wanted to know everything about her, and perhaps she wanted to know as much about him. To a warrior, scars were almost a pride for the stories they told. Whether gained in valor or defeat, they showed to some degree the struggles the bearer went through to survive in the galaxy. Saphira lightened up the tone with a joke about Doc not wanting them to trash the training room again when Jersh was silent for a moment.

A smile crossed his lips and he thought about it a moment before he decided. As he spoke, he pulled Saphira closer to him, more for emotional comfort than anything. “I…. didn’t always travel alone” He whispered to her as the memories came back to him. “When I was barely a teenager... I had… a partner I met… who was a Mercenary like myself. We… went on many missions together and we grew close. Her name was Alira” He said his voice soft. He felt Saphira tense when she heard it was a woman and he managed to chuckle a little at her reaction. “Relax my dear… We were just barely teenagers… we were just friends…. I thought”

Jersh shuddered visibly and could not bring himself to meet Saphira’s eyes as he concluded. “On a mission…. Apparently…. She was paid to eliminate me on completion…. The next thing I knew her vibroblade was wedged between my shoulder blades… it just barely missed piercing my heart”. He stopped; he did not want to tell her what happened next.... if she saw him as a monster as well… he wouldn’t be able to live with himself anymore. “Then… I killed her…. I cut her traitorous throat open and washed in the blood of my former friend” he said, his voice almost inaudible.