Mission to the Unknown

[Marian J'onzz]

Somewhere...on Kilia IV

"You are being completely unreasonable! I should be able to go if I want to."

Doctor J'onzz, of Kilian nobility and fame looked over his spectacles at his daughter and her current tantrum. She had laid waste to multiple expensive gowns that were becoming of a woman of her stature and age, leaving remnants of fine silk and ribbons in nothing less than shreds. He said nothing, however, letting the tirade continue as it had numerous times before. Eventually she would tire, he suspected.

"And furthermore, this entire planet is a death trap! Why can't we leave? Why can't we go places?"

The longer her father remained silent the more resolved to being completely furious Marian became. Her hands were placed squarely on her hips, shoulders straightened and pushed back just slightly, she felt important.

"And what if I were to just run away, hmm? What would all your rules and such say about that?"

All Doctor J'onzz offered in exchange was a small laugh, nothing more than a passing "heh" as he considered the concept of his daughter, his seemingly impulsive of idea yet short on action daughter, running away. It was nothing short of ludicrous. The paperwork in front of him was far more grounded in reality and deserving his attention.

The girl rounded on her father again.

"I'll do it, you know. I really really will."

The ability of the father to completely block out the daughter had been perfected over the years and for a moment, one blissful moment as far as he was concerned, there was silence. Yet that silence was filled with fidgeting, and lip biting, and general a huff that couldn't really let it be peaceful before a final...

"Fine!"

... was shouted at the old man and the young woman spun on her heel, headed for her bed chambers for a change of wardrobe before she would go to the space docks. Her escape from what she considered a retched existence was there waiting. Not exactly waiting for her mind you, well... he was... he just didn't know it yet.

[J'onn Scarlet]

Elsewhere...

J'onn scrubbed a hand through rebellious hair, and let out a sigh. His frustration was hard to quantify, or to qualify: this offworld jaunt was practically routine, and that was exactly the problem. A thousand years ago, settlers from the Galactic Republic had arrived on Kilia IV, and had promptly been forgotten about. Contact was lost, and the Kilians lived in peaceful seclusion, oblivious and uncaring of the universe beyond the limits of their own star system.

At least, most of them were. As with every society, there were a rebellious few who swam against the tide, rallying against the preconcieved notions of their roles in society. J'onn Scarlet was one of those people.

J'onn was one of the Kilian Rangers: Force adept warriors who served the nobility, nominally as the guardians of peace and justice. Unfortunately for preconceptions, he found himself in the service of the J'onzz estate, answering to the whim and whimsy of the infamous Doctor J'onzz.

Unlike most Kilians, the good Doctor had an appetite for knowledge, and eagerly explored the galaxy at large. Reluctantly at first, J'onn had found him dragged along on those exploits and adventures, but had ultimately resigned to his fate. There were times even when he enjoyed his journeys into the starry beyond; but at the beginning of every adventure, he always left Kilia IV with reluctance, unsure of whether or not he would safely return.

Today was one such beginning, but this journey was different from most. The station of Doctor J'onzz had increased in recent months, and his responsibilities prevented him from making those frivilous journeys out into the unknown. Rather than settle down to a more sensible lifestyle however, the Doctor chose instead to live vicariously through J'onn, sending the ranger out into the galaxy in his stead, alone.

The sigh was repeated as J'onn tugged his duster jacket over his shoulders, and slung the duffel of his most essential belongings over his shoulder. "Just a quick trip to catch the headlines," he muttered under his breath, echoing the instructions of Doctor J'onzz from earlier that day.

He shook his head. "It's never that simple," he grumbled as he stepped out into the corridor, almost instantly colliding with the equally distracted Lady Marian.

[Marian J'onzz]

"Hey! Watch where you're stepping you... J'onn!"

Marian went from ready to threaten to kill to extreme joy faster than it took the average person to blink. She hadn't been to the docks before, and so, didn't know where the Ranger's ship exactly was stationed when it wasn't flying about the galaxy. On top of not knowing exactly what it looked like, this presented a bit of a problem of using it as her get-away vehicle. But as luck would have it, she ran smack into the Captain and thus stood smiling up at him as her arms moved behind her back so that her hands could clasp together as she took up a seemingly innocent stance.

"Just the man I wanted to see."

She rocked back on her heels slightly, attempting to ignore the fact that she was dressed like a commoner rather than one of noble birthright. It was something the Ranger was bound to notice right away, if not point out. It was sadly something that while Marian was overly aware of, she figured if she didn't think about it, then maybe J'onn wouldn't notice.

"So..." Marian took the tiny pause to peer around the man, as if she expected to see his ship waiting just beyond him. "...where you off to?"

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn's eyes narrowed. "I'm headed out-system, on an errand for your father," he answered slowly, folding his arms across his chest in as disapproving a manner as his restricted, bag-laiden shoulder would permit. Lady Marian was, by virtue of birth at least, a member of the noble household he was honour-bound to serve, though her attire hardly reflected her social standing.

Were J'onn in a particularly generous and diplomatic mood, he would have described her as Dressed for Rellio: a planet on which he had experienced a particularly memorable encounter with - and then discovered a rather unfortunate allergy to - a lovely young Bothan woman. Certain quarters of the planet had been renowned for their women of loose morals and ill repute. Alas, J'onn was far from being in such an accomodating mood; and thus his reaction was less poetic.

"Does your father know you're skulking about the streets dressed like a common harlot?" he asked, tone scolding and judgemental. He held up a hand, stopping her before she could speak. "Of course he doesn't," he answered himself with high, shaking his head. "Knowing your father, he'd have shot you with a stun rifle and tied you to a chair if he saw you walking around like that."

Brow furrowing heavily, J'onn ran his fingers searched out an ornate chain fastened to his clothing, and followed it into his pocket to retrieve an equally ornate, antique pocket chrono. Clicking the latch, he glanced down at the display. "I don't have time for this," he muttered, mind processing the time.

With a practiced flourish of the chain, he twirled the chrono around and flicked it back into his pocket, hand delving into another to retrieve his comlink. "I'm going to summon an escort to take you home," he informed her, eyes returning to their disapproving gaze. "This is no place for a young lady like yourself to be wandering alone."

[Marian J'onzz]

One thing was very clear to Marian at that moment, if she was going to think of something it would have to be done quickly and executed even quicker.

"You never have the time." She spoke with a hint of pitiful accusation that wasn't quite inaccurate.

Ever since she was a little girl Marian had ventured from her father's estate to the outer courtyards of the nearby barracks belonging to the Kilian Rangers, sometimes doing nothing than watching the squires as they were paired off in their sparring. Usually however she was there to find, and usually to attempt to talk to the one who stood before her now. It was the only times she could even attempt to, since whenever J'onn was around her father it only ever meant they were leaving the planet shortly and at times like that neither one of them had time for her and her curiosities about what was beyond their home.

A quick huff of air was released as Marian attempted to straighten herself up to a respectable mannerism once more.

"For your information, Captain, my father sent me here to join you. Since he no longer is able to attend these journeys himself, he decided that I was old enough to now go in his stead."

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn didn't have enough forehead for his eyebrow to rise high enough in response to that. He had known of her father for most of his life; certainly for all of hers; and had, over the last decade or so in his service, come to know Doctor J'onzz fairly well. In all that time, the Doctor had been nothing short of painfully over protective of his daughter, to an excessive degree. Had she been born a son, her father would no doubt have had her training alongside the Rangers for exactly this sort of eventuality. But Lady Marian was, well, a Lady, and her blatant lie was simply absurd.

He sighed, shaking his head. "I don't have time for this," he said again, barely a trace of patience in his voice.

[Marian J'onzz]

Even before Marian had tossed the idea out there she knew it wasn't probably going to work, but you couldn't exactly fault her for at least trying. It was time for one last desperation attempt.

"If I was a boy you'd let me. Hell, we both know I'd have ended up your squire. That's the only reason, isn't it? I'm supposed to be proper and get married to some pompous ass I don't love... but even that hasn't happend yet. And we both know why. He's stupidly over protective and doesn't think anyone is good enough."

Her hands found their way back to her hips as she eyed the Ranger, stepping so that she constantly was between him and his ability to leave.

"Why are you helping him, J'onn? You wouldn't have let anyone hold you back when you were my age, you went off with my father when you probably were supposed to remain here to do the really boring stuff like keep watch of a town that will never be attacked. Why can't I do the same?"

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn met her gaze with one of equal strength, his eyes as cool and unwavering as iron. Her words carried weight, granted: it was true that gender - among the nobility at least - carried an unprecedented amount of weight within their society, and while she might have been trained to nurture her sensitivity to the Force had she been born to any other family, the Ranger barracks were, in her father's own words, No place for a daughter of mine.

As an outsider looking in on the traditions of the nobility, J'onn couldn't help but agree about the double standards of it all. He knew Marian; knew how capable she was, and how much potential she had to be everything she attested to be, if given the proper training and support. That her father prevented her - overprotective ever since he'd lost his beloved wife, Marian's mother - seemed unfair beyond words, given how regularly he placed his own life on the line. But that was as far as he was permitted to go: honour bound to serve Doctor J'onzz and his house, there was no way he could ever vocalise his disagreement, no matter how much he wanted to let Marian know that he was on her side.

Resignation slumped his shoulders - alas, not resignation to her protests, but to his own responsibilities. "Even if you were born a boy," he said, voice strained and reluctant, "You would still be expected to follow the instructions of your father." His eyes fell from contact with hers. "Just as I am."

[Marian J'onzz]

It wasn't just his words that allowed her to know he wasn't going to budge on the decision, it was the way it was said and the way he seemed to almost find defeat in that neither of them could go against what their lives had put before them.

"I don't want to leave forever... just this one time." It was a moot point, but Marian couldn't help but say it anyway even as her own body language seemed to slump just slightly.

A deep breath left the young woman. "Go on, then. I've wasted enough of your time."

[J'onn Scarlet]

Even though he knew he'd done the right thing - or rather, even though he knew he'd done his duty, as a servant of Kilia and of Marian's father - he couldn't help the feeling of crushing despair as he caught a glimpse of that utter disappointment in her eyes. He'd heard that, somewhere out in the galaxy, there was a vengeful cluster of black holes known as the Maw; and on worlds such as Tatooine, there were fearsome creatures called Sarlaac who devoured anything that stumbled into their weighting jaws; and yet, the worst terrors of the galaxy could not compare to the crushing pit of guilt that had formed where J'onn's chest used to be.

His eyes rose, braving a glimpse into hers once again, hoping that there was the slightest chance to rekindle a glimmer of the fondness and affection she'd always had for her father's favourite Ranger. He offered the faintest of smiles. "You always did come to see us off when we left; to remind us to come home safely," he recalled, voice gentle.

His brow tugged, conflicted. "Do I at least get a goodbye hug from my favourite heiress?"

[Marian J'onzz]

Marian wanted nothing more in that moment than to respond with the cruel silence her father had perfected when it came to denying her something. But she also knew that placing that sort of blame on the Ranger was juvenile and unwarranted.

She attempted to hold the cool resolved look of hurt for just long enough to get her point completely across before she stepped forward and wrapped her arms around the man like she had done countless times before.

"It comes with a price though. I get to actually watch you depart. If I can't go with you, I want to at least see your ship." She wasn't exactly in a position to be bargaining, and going against her father's refusal to even allow her to go to the docks seemed like a small offense at that point. Something was going to go her way.

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn sighed, the slightest of smiles tugging at his impression. "Fine," he said, battling it off his face, eyebrows rising high above his eyes as he tried to look at least remotely commanding. "You can watch. But then you stay, until the escort arrives to collect you."

There was no Alright? No Is that understood? There was no room for flexibility. No room disagreement. For once, he decided, she would do what she was bloody well told, even if he had to carry her to the gantry and nail her there, just to make sure.

He held her gaze for a moment longer, before finally glancing away, hands retrieving the chrono from his pocket. He winced as his mind processed the time; far closer to his allocated lauch window than he was comfortable with. He glanced over his shoulder, eyes settling on his ship; he backpedalled a few places, gesturing towards an arbetrary spot on the ground. "Stand here. Stay here. You hear?" he rattled off, rapid fire, not waiting around for a response. His pace quickened, not quite a run, but not far off; he glanced back: "Stay!" he insisted, voice echoing through the docks, before he finally disappeared from view behind a parked freighter.

[Harmony]

Her eyes were closed, and her body motionless; so motionless in fact that her chest remained perfectly still, no breaths moving through it. Even the microscopic motions of blood pulsing through the vessels beneath her skin had ceased. To an unknowing observer, she appeared dead.

Such an assessment was incorrect, of course. Being dead implied that one had been alive in the first place; any appearence of such from her was a falsehood, incorporated into her design and programming by creators who wanted to conjure the illusion of a living, breathing woman. Since she had fallen under the ownership of Doctor J'onzz she had chosen to cease most of those superfluous functions, unless absolutely necessary.

Though she appeared idle, her core processor was far from it: Harmony was deep in conversation with the main computer of the YKL-37R Nova Courier on board which she sat. She often found herself feeling she had more in common with the ship than she did with the organic passengers who travelled aboard her: their respective operating systems both worked far faster than human comprehension; they were both able to comprehend and communicate in various highly efficient base code languages; neither required sleep; and, perhaps most obvious to outside perception, both bore the name of the same woman: Lady Harmony J'onzz.

Through their wireless interlink, the Eye of Harmony informed the human replica droid that the external controls for the main hatch had been activated, and that the hatch had subsequently been opened. Calculations regarding internal air pressure, and the alterations in the chemical composition of the ship's atmosphere were forwarded to her operating system. She filed them away as low priority, though flagged them for possible later retrieval should she feel the need to provoke an emotional response from J'onn Scarlet: his reactions to her constant provision of data and facts seemed to provide amusement to Doctor J'onzz, and the vestages of her human replica programming informed her that this was a good thing.

The Eye of Harmony provided telemetry from its internal sensors, and Harmony's external features mimicked a frown at the presence of only one biosign approaching the cockpit. She turned, allowing her ocular sensors to identify the individual in question. Facial analysis led to the activation of appropriate memory engrams. "Welcome aboard, Captain Sc-"

[J'onn Scarlet]

"J'onn," the Ranger interrupted, holding up a hand to silence the droid.

Apparently as some vestage of her programming - J'onn dreaded to think what it was exactly that Harmony's builders had intended for the admittedly attractive droid when they'd constructed her - she had a habit of referring to the Doctor and he in a very formal manner. While his master seemed to enjoy being referred to as Doctor J'onzz, J'onn had always been a little uncomfortable with being addressed in the same manner himself.

He had, of course, informed the droid of this on numerous occasions, but it apparently hadn't sunk into her programming as yet. His eyes narrowed as he dumped himself down into the pilot's seat, a sigh escaping him. It wouldn't surprise him if the infernal contraption did it just to annoy him.

[Harmony]

"Welcome aboard, Captain," Harmony countered, her replica programming informing her with the necessary vocal perameters and intonation to stress the last word in a manner that, her programming informed her, would minimise the probability of protest from her owner.

Devoid of genuine emotions, she took no pleasure from doing so: it merely seemed logical to stress the nature of their relationship, and remind him that she was a droid, and not the human woman she appeared externally to be. She had observed that the interactions between the Captain and certain females tended to differ from his interactions with males. Doctor J'onzz had described it as 'heroic', and had explained that J'onn Scarlet was the kind of individual who would put his life on the line to save another, even if they were a stranger he had just met; particularly if there was a 'damsel in distress' involved. Given her combat programming, physical strength, and the fact that she was far less likely to die in many of the situations that the Captain willingly threw himself into, it seemed wise to ensure that he did not start thinking of her as another damsel in need of his heroism.

She glanced briefly in his direction. "Your arrival is several minutes later than originally you originally stated," she informed him, tone completely neutral.

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn scowled in her direction, venting a little of his frustration by jabbing at the console controls a little harder than was necessary. Doctor J'onzz assured him that while the droid was programmed to replicate human behaviour, those protocols were no longer active, and as a result she did not posess the ability to display emotions. The Ranger didn't believe it for a second: for something emotionless, she sure did a damn good job of appearing smug.

"I was delayed," he revealed, as much information as he was prepared to offer.

Having learned from past experience, he ran a quick diagnostic of the ship's readiness, checking what systems Harmony had already primed and powered up, in preparation for their departure. Many a time he'd requested she bring something or other online, only to have her 'emotionlessly' inform him that she had already done so. As he expected, all that was required was for him to power up the repulsorlifts, and fire up the main engines.

That annoyed him intensely. I like flipping switches, he grumbled, internally.

In defiance, he reached for the hyperdrive controls, and disabled main power, before flicking it back on again. Reset to zero, the indicator that informed him of the power up progress for the device began to slowly climb. By the time they reached orbit, it would be ready to engage; but at least he'd done something with regards to prepping the ship.

Harmony shot him a look that, had she posessed emotions, would probably have qualified as quizzical. Dialling up the repulsorlift power and lofting the ship a few bobbing meters above the ground, J'onn flashed a victorious grin in reply. His hands fell to the thrust controls, and he twitched his eyebrows with mischief. "Geronimo," he muttered, playfully, before throwing the lever fully forward, and letting the force of acceleration hurl him back into his seat.

[Harmony]

Harmony's exposure to sentient beings was admittedly limited; but it did allow her to categorically decide that J'onn Scarlet was the most confusing and illogical individual she had ever met. By her perceptions, his emotions were incredibly unstable, drifting from frustrated irritation to borderline psychosis in mere moments, with no obviously comprehensible cause for the shift. His command of language was incredibly problematic as well, relying far too heavily on metaphors and turns of phrase for her liking, which made him something of an enigma to her.

His use of the word Geronimo puzzled her, as well. She briefly established a wireless link with the library computer that contained exabytes of data on the cultural histories and languages of various races that Doctor J'onzz had visited and studied over the decades, but she found no reference to the world. Based on it's usage, she surmised it translated roughly to prepare for sudden accelleration, and added it accordingly to her internal linguistical database.

She watched passively through the viewport as the colour intensity of the sky faded from blue to black, in accordance with the thinning of the atmosphere outside the craft, and the corresponding reduction in solar light refraction. Stars began to appear, resolving into fixed points rather than twinking shapes as the atmospheric distortion of their light waves also reduced. She linked with the navicomputer, her operating system identifying the names that corresponded with many of the stars she was seeing, as well as running the necessary calculations for their impending jump to hyperspace.

Almost exactly at the moment expected - J'onn Scarlet always allowed approximately 11.3 seconds to observe the stars after clearing the atmosphere of Kilia IV before requesting hyperspace coordinates - the Captain turned in her direction, and opened his mouth as if to speak. He hesitated however, and glanced down at the primed navicomputer console. A scowl was cast in her direction, and without a word he triggered the control that would activate the hyperdrive.

The view outside the viewport changed to the familiar rotating tunnel of hyperspace. With no aspects of the ship's operation requiring her immediate attention, she rose from the navigator's seat, and turned towards the cockpit hatch, preparing to conform with her secondary role amongst the crew. "I intend to see if Doctor J'onzz requires tea," she informed the Captain. "Do you require a beverage as well?"

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn was so absorbed with the joy of flying, and the frustration of flying with Harmony as a copilot, that it took a moment or two for her question to properly process. "Not for me, thank you," was his immediate response; the droid was almost out through the hatch before a frown flashed across his brow, and he spun in his seat to face her.

"Doctor J'onzz?" he asked, clearly puzzled. He regarded Harmony with narrowed eyes - it struck him briefly that he spent an undue amount of time with his eyes narrowed lately, and wondered idly if there might be any potential side-effects to that in the long term. Now however was hardly the time to dwell on that.

"Doctor J'onzz isn't coming with us on this trip, Harmony. He had to remain on Kilia IV."

[Harmony]

Harmony cocked her head to the side, reflecting his puzzlement. "Curious," she stated. "That being the case, two whom does the additional bio signature on internal sensors belong?"

The question had barely left her lips before the Captain's eyes snapped wide, and he leapt from his chair, sprinting past her into the main corridor. He made to lunge for the the nearest hatch, into the bowels of the ship, but hesitated, shooting a questioning look in Harmony's direction, eyes wide and frantic.

"Starboard escape pod," she explained, calmly, remaining stationary in the hatch as J'onn hurled himself through the door, and sprinted across the ship.

Despite the over-enthusiastic pace of the Captain, Harmony still only arrived a moment or so after he had managed to open the escape pod doors: partly by virtue of her swift but controlled pace; and partly thanks to a good amount of fumbling of the door controls on the Ranger's part. She peered into the escape module, eyes appraising the individual contained within. "I am afraid," she stated, cognative processor running the same facial analysis she had used to recognise J'onn Scarlet earlier, "I am unfamiliar with this human."

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn straightened, rising to his full - relatively impressive - height, arms folding sternly across his chest. "I, however," he informed Harmony, his features arranging themselves into a glare, "Am very familiar with this human."

One of those people who posessed a highly expressive face, J'onn could display extremes of any emotion. There were times where he looked mirthful to the brink of insanity; others where he looked utterly confused, or sometimes stern and annoyed. Very rarely did genuine anger show on his features, but at that moment it did. His brows knit tightly together, lips drawn into a thin line as his eyes - wide - glared with all the intensity of a million burning suns. His voice, when it finally escaped, cut through the air like a razor.

"Lady Marian J'onzz," he growled, all the sympathy and familiarity from earlier completely vanished. "What the hell are you doing on my ship?"

[Marian J'onzz]

"...going on an adventure?" All innocence that could be derived from a single statement was poured forth as the girl sat there, even offering the tiniest of waves.

It occurred to Marian at that moment that she really hadn't thought all this out. In fact, she didn't even have a change of clothing with her. Of course J'onn was going to be angry with her. Though it also was quickly becoming apparent that in all the years she had known the Ranger, she had never seen him angry. And the fact she was at the fault of it seemed to twist her insides into one big knot.

"Look! I mean, you said that you couldn't let me come along and this way you aren't letting me come along, I just kinda volunteered for it this way. And-"

She suddenly noticed the woman standing in the doorway. Even if she had spoken first, it didn't quite register with her and now suddenly there she was.

"...who is she?"

The sudden change in topic must have been a defense mechanism of some sort.

[J'onn Scarlet]

Despite her efforts to deflect and distract, J'onn wasn't having any of it. "Don't try to change the subject," he snapped, his angry stance unflinching. For a moment, J'onn was glad that his arms were folded: being wrapped around his bicep, his hand was prevented from clenching into a fist.

He tried to maintain his anger longer, but after a few more moments it collapsed, his shoulders slumping. His eyebrows slumped downwards too; the glare had faded away, leaving nothing but disappointment in his eyes. "I asked you to stay," he said, the same emotions tugging at his voice.

He shook his head and sighed, turning his eyes away from her, staring back out into the corridor. "This is Harmony," he stated, answering her earlier question, "My copilot." He rounded on her, trying to be stern and angry again, but the disappointment took hold again, jaw clenching closed in upset. He couldn't even bring himself to look at Marian again, and so turned his attention to Harmony instead.

"Watch her," he instructed. "Make sure she doesn't leave this pod. I have to go -" He sighed. "I have to go tell her father. He's probably worried sick."

One fleeting glance was cast into the pod and then, without another word, he disappeared from sight.

[Marian J'onzz]

Well planned or not, what was happening was far from even her wildest imaginings of how this all would go down. In her mind J'onn would reluctantly agree to letting her stay, and together they would contacted her father who after seeing she was safe with the Ranger, would decide that one trip away from the planet wasn't going to hurt anything. That was how it was supposed to go. Not this. Not with her feeling like every bond she had ever created with the Captain suddenly going to hell in an irreparable mess.

"J'onn, wait!" The words leaped from her almost as fast as she was able to get to her feet.

Her new grand plan of chasing after the Ranger and making him see her way was brought to a sudden and surprising halt as Harmony did exactly as instructed, blocking the girl's way and proving impassable.

A look of mixed confusion and shock as to how she wasn't able to push past the blond woman crossed her features, the rather blank stare she got in return was somewhat creepy. Nothing left to do but call out and hope she could still be heard.

"Please! I'm not a child anymore, you can't just keep treating me like one. I'm sorry I didn't ask you properly, I should have contacted you before you were rushed to leave like that and I probably should have stayed put but..."

But what...? There really weren't any good reasons for it all. And the fact that she felt like her home had become nothing but a pretty cage wasn't something she could really get across without sounding somehow ungrateful for all her father had given her.

"...at least let me talk with him?"

[J'onn Scarlet]

I'm not. You can't. I didn't. I should. I'm sorry.

All words, and J'onn let them bounce off him as such. Once again her petty, selfish, infantile attitude had landed her in trouble, and no amount of excuses of malformed attempts at apology were going to redeem her; not as far as J'onn was concerned, at least. Until she grasped the true gravity of the situation, nothing she said would shake J'onn's disappointment.

Worse, he felt betrayed. He didn't care that she'd snuck aboard. He didn't care that she'd defied her father. He agreed that she deserved the same rights as a son would have, and that maybe Doctor J'onzz was being unfair, and that one ride on a routine news-gathering trip out into the galaxy wasn't so risky. After all, she'd have one of Kilia's finest Rangers protecting her every step of the way.

But that didn't matter now: not since she'd abused his trust. He'd asked her to stay. She'd agreed, and he'd taken her at her word. That word now meant nothing; and for someone he had known and care about for so much of his life to have done that? Whether she knew it or not, he cared for her like he would a member of his own family. Whenever she'd strayed, or visited relatives, gone off on her little adventures across the planet, or any other time when she thought she was alone and free of her father's protection, J'onn had seldom been far behind, secretly keeping her safe.

He felt a fool for using such a melodramatic term, but 'betrayed' was definately how he felt.

Too resigned to do more, and reluctant to step onto the ship's holo-comm platform, he instead prepped a video link to Kilia IV; prefaced it with the text 'I found her', and then bounced the feed down to the terminal in the escape pod. This was between Marian and her father; and he had no desire to find himself anywhere between.

[Marian J'onzz]

As the comm panel came to life in the pod behind her she looked over her shoulder at it first, waiting for the blue holographic light to take shape. Another glance was cast back to the woman standing in the doorway and Marian's eyes narrowed a bit, but before she could ask the woman to move, or turn away, or close the door, or anything, a voice echoed from the comm that instantly demanded her attention.

"Marian, would you care to explain all this to me?" Her father's tone of voice made it very clear that what he meant was more along the lines of What the hell were you thinking?, but as always Doctor J'onzz seemed to possesses infinite calm, even more so when he was covering just how upset he was.

While the words Not really formed in her head as she turned to face the image of her father, Marian held her tongue until she managed to get her thoughts together.

"I've made a really bad decision, apparently."

"I would say so." The words came out with a horrid edge that made her flinch just slightly and were followed by a silence that weighed more than perhaps the planet she had just left behind.

Marian took a deep breath before slowly, carefully, breaking the silence.

"It was stupid of me... but, I just felt trapped. I've been feeling trapped. You always got to go on these wonderful trips that I just had to hear about and... I just wanted to see what it's like... For once."

"There's a reason you haven't been allowed to go, Marian. The wilds of space are dangerous. The peace we have on our planet does not exist out there. Do you realize how worried I have been?"

"But I'm with J'onn..."

"And you've placed a terrible burden on him. The simple fact that he isn't the one speaking to me now tells me more about his mindset than anything you say will. I'm willing to wager that if he knew you had been at the docks that he would have sent you home."

"He tried to..."

"And you did not listen to him? I'm rather shocked by that. But considering this foolishness you have in your head, I suppose I should not be. You've completely disappointed the both of us."

They both fell silent again, the holo-image of the Doctor obscuring the tiny nuances in his facial expressions that Marian usually used to detect just how angry he was.

"I just..." She spoke softly, eyes downcast as she decided on the worst. "I just wanted to live a little..."

Her words seemed to injure the man somewhat, his expression fading from steely anger. "Have I truly been so hard on you?"

"You don't let me go anywhere, papa... I always have to convince you to just go on vacation with my aunt."

The Doctor fell silent again and Marian softly continued.

"I know that you're worried about me, and you just want to protect me... you've been this way ever since Mom died... but I'm not an idiot, I can take care of myself."

The softened expression from her father moved to one that obviously didn't find her statement to be exactly as accurate as she wished it was.

"Ok, so, right now might not be the best example of that. But I was desperate. You need to let me do things... I know this may be a bit of a stretch for a first time, but I'm safe. Honest."

Marian wasn't sure if it was the holo-comm to blame for the fact her father became completely unreadable in that moment, but she was certain that she saw his shoulders rise and fall in a deep sigh.

"Please..."

Doctor J'onzz took another deep breath, this time audible over the comm before he finally spoke. "I worry about you, Marian. You're all I have left. You remind me of your mother, too much in some ways. She had a rather rebellious streak in her as well and it was part of the reason I loved her."

Daughter and father looked at one another through the holo-comm, exchanging more than words could really say. Marian was the first to look away, preparing to say that she would ask J'onn to make the escape shuttle take her back home so that he wouldn't have to ruin his entire trip on her anymore than she had already done... but it was her father that managed to speak first.

"You will need to ask J'onn. And I mean, honestly ask him. You are on his ship and it is he that you have wronged this day more than anyone else. If he allows you to stay, you may do so. If he does not wish to have the extra burden of keeping watch on you while he is on this mission, then you are to come straight home. Understood?"

She was undeniably shocked and a small smile crept to her lips before her head began to nod. "Yes, father."

"Good. Now go and ask. I'm staying on the line, have him transfer the call back to where he is, I need to know whether to expect you for dinner or not, after all."

[Harmony]

Having no real concept of the emotional need for privacy, Harmony had, as instructed, been watching Marian intently. Given the name, and the references she made to what Harmony identified as a hologram of Doctor J'onzz, the droid determined that this must be the daughter she'd heard so many passing references to. Given her understanding of Kilian law, that meant - by proxy - this young human fell into the category of individuals she was required to obey. Based on the exchange between Doctor J'onzz and she, it was highly likely she would need to determine the location of J'onn Scarlet.

Cocking her head to one side ever so slightly, she accessed the wireless link with the ship's computer, and - identifying the bio sign in the starboard escape pod as belonging to Lady Marian - determined that J'onn Scarlet was still in the cockpit, as expected. She turned to Marian, and gave her an appraising look. "The Captain is currently located in the cockpit. Do you require directions, Lady Marian?"

[Marian J'onzz]

While she wanted to pretend that the woman hadn't overheard everything, the very fact she had was moderately embarrassing. Marian was torn between telling the woman her help wasn't necessary... and realizing that it really was. A small sigh left her as she came to the conclusion that she had perhaps gotten under the skin of enough individuals today. There was no need to have the co-pilot think she was a spoiled child like J'onn very well may have at that moment.

"Yes, thank you."

The strangely detached way that the woman led her down the corridor to where the cockpit somehow added to Marian's unease regarding the situation and she thanked the odd woman once more before turning to face where J'onn sat in the pilot's chair with his back to her.

"He said I should ask you." She instantly regretted the words.

"What I mean is..." Her right arm raised somewhat to rest cross over her chest and place her hand on the upper part of her left arm, rubbing the back of it slightly.

Finally a deep breath left her. "J'onn, I'm sorry. I know I broke your trust and... I shouldn't have. I should have stayed where you told me to..." She sighed again. "I asked him to let me stay...he said it was up to you, because it's your ship. If you really don't want me here, I'll go."

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn's face was hard to read. His eyes were narrow, regarding her with mild suspicion, his arms were defensive across his chest, and he slumped low in the pilot's seat; but his anger, or sadness, disappointment, frustration; any of those things were, if there, well hidden.

"What I want is irrelevant." His tone was as guarded and emotionally spartan as his pose; there was none of the affection and softness that there had been earlier: just bland, matter-of-fact tones. "What I need is people I can trust."

He stared at her, scrutinising her intently. Something had shifted ever so slightly in her pose, but not by much: she was perhaps surprised by her father's decision, but ultimately she had got her way. Marian was used to that; not exactly spoiled per say, but given her confidence, attitude, and status, people seldom had the strength of character to say no to her and stick to their guns.

On Kilia, she got away with it; and those times she didn't, J'onn was there to protect her: back home, there were few things more formidable than he. The broader galaxy was another matter entirely, however. Even on the safer worlds there were thugs and crooks and mercenaries who wouldn't take kindly to her brash actions; and while J'onn could take care of himself, would he be able to take care of himself and her, when her disobedience kicked in?

A fragment of memory formed. "At the docks, you said that if you'd been born a boy, you probably would have been squired to me. Is that what you would have wanted?"

[Marian J'onzz]

It seemed like a bit of an odd question to her at that very moment. The one thing he had said stuck in her mind like a dagger though: "What I need is people I can trust." It twisted in her, freshly aware that she had just broken any semblance of trust he had in her. Asking for him to reconsider was perhaps too big of a thing at that moment and yet...there she was doing it.

So it came back to answering the question he had given her, to which she already knew the answer. She'd known the answer long ago.

"I can't think of anyone better, of course I would have wanted it."

[J'onn Scarlet]

His lips were still drawn into a tight line. "I have no time for tourists," he said, slowly; his tone had changed, words taking on an added air of significance. "You want to see the galaxy. As my squire, you could travel the galaxy with me; not as my charge, but as my companion. My assistant."

But a squire is more than just a ward; more than just an apprentice. You would be my aide; my page. You'd help to operate and repair my ship; run what errands I asked you to. You'd have follow my every order, without hesitation, or debate."

His gaze pierced through her, the scrutiny intense. "More than that, though, you would take the first steps to becoming a Ranger yourself. These journeys for me are not about glory or adventure; it is my duty, to your father, to continue the work that he began. Above all, I am a guardian of Kilia; a defender of it's people; and a servant of the nobles; and of your father."

"Can you be that?" His question was blunt, though not harsh. "Can you leave the brash, impulsive girl behind, and live up to all that?"

[Marian J'onzz]

From the time when she was little, Marian had practically idolized the Rangers, day dreaming about training to be one and she remembered a short period of time when she had fashioned mock weaponry out of sticks and various other materials and ran about her father's estate pretending to be one. She had been nothing but a child at that time...

At that exact moment, she felt like one again. Marian wanted desperately to say yes and to mean it with all her heart. Though with J'onn's eyes on her, and all she had already botched that day, she felt that all he had said was nothing short of completely unobtainable.

He was asking her to give up not what she was, but who.

She knew he'd see the conflict that was in her, if not be able to tell the entirety of it simply because he knew her.

"Considering you're already not exactly pleased with me I won't insult you further by lying to you, even if it may be the answer I want. I... don't think I can do that."

She didn't let it sit long before she had to follow up, though. If she left it at that, she might as well simply tell her father she was coming home right then.

"But I can learn to."

[J'onn Scarlet]

I can learn.

The sentiment almost brought a smile to J'onn's face, but he managed to maintain his expression of grizzled resignation, just bearly. He let it slip ever so slightly; her honesty and understanding was a reassuring sign that she wasn't merely the spoiled child she'd always been, and that maybe there was hope for her after all, even if it was just a glimmer.

He shifted his attention to Harmony; his eyes remaining on the Kilian noble though his voice clearly addressed the droid. "Run the calculations to alter our course." He finally flashed Marian a hint of his restrained smile. "We're meant to be heading to Voltaire to meet a contact of your father's; but since this is your one and only trip off the planet, I think we can manage to make a sneaky detour."

His eyes sparkled with mischief, as he searched his mind for the most alien world - the most different from Kilia IV - that he could concieve. "How does a trip to Coruscant sound?"

[Marian J'onzz]

And suddenly everything was right again, only better. Deep down Marian understood that she had volunteered for something that wouldn't be easy at times, but for some reason just because it was with J'onn, she knew everything would be alright.

"I think it sounds wonderful!" She couldn't hide the excitement in her voice no matter how hard she may have tried.

Coruscant. The very name brought up images that only reflected what she had seen in her father's library. All she knew for certain was that it was a center of commerce and perhaps the very heart of the Galaxy as far as those not born on Kilia IV were concerned.

If it was only going to be one time that she was able to see anything else in the Galaxy, Coruscant was sure to be a prime example of all that the rest of the known existence had to offer.

"So, what do you need me to do?" Marian offered it in an almost cheeky manner, but somehow was sincere about it as well.

"Oh, and you might want to let my father in on the plan." Her hand motioned towards the comm panel. "He kinda asked to be kept up to speed on what we're up to."

[J'onn Scarlet]

I think you're getting confused over which of us is the irresponsible one, he mused, eyes narrowing at Marian's suggestion about her father. He managed to keep the thought internal however, turning his verbal response to her more direct query.

"What I need you to do," he answered, offering a thin smile that matched the lilt of grumbling sarcasm in his tone, "Is find yourself a change of clothes. It'd be a shame if you were arrested for solicitation on your first trip offworld."

He glanced towards Harmony, a question forming on his lips. "Have you completed the -" He stopped himself, mid-sentence. "What am I saying? Of course you've completed the nav calculations," he muttered, turning himself to face the holo-comm console. "They probably took all of three seconds." He let out a sigh, shaking his head. "Arrange a cabin for Lady Marian, and find her some clothes. preferably something that leaves a little more to the imagination."

His eyes flicked to Marian herself. "Dismissed," he added, enough of an edge in his voice to forstall any kind of comment.

As the women - or woman and womandroid, at least - departed the cockpit, he slumped down in his seat, weighed down by resignation. "What on Kilia have I let myself in for?" he grumbled, running a tired hand across his face. Another sigh escaped, and then he mustered what self control he could, forcing an expression that was at least slightly less murderous onto his face before he hit the control to reopen the comlink with Marian's father.

[Marian J'onzz]

Her mouth had opened to reply to his comment about her attire, but as J'onn dismissed the two women she was forced to shut it and hold whatever little retaliation she had in. Marian figured it probably was for the best, after all, attempting to argue at that point was really just stupid.

As she followed the other woman, Marian began to attempt to figure out exactly what was wrong with her again. The way J'onn spoke to her made it sound like she was a genius or something. But geniuses didn't go about making their way in the galaxy as co-pilots. The Captain's temperament towards her seemed strange as well, familiar and yet short like she annoyed him but was necessary. He could have had any co-pilot he wanted, so why stick with someone who seemed to irritate him somewhat...

Marian's eyes widened just slightly as her mind rolled over the word 'wife'. The idea was pushed out of her head quickly, it just couldn't be. In a full effort to drag her thoughts away from that, she stopped observing the woman and rather, let her eyes linger about the ship. It too was somewhat peculiar, though Marian figured that was more on account of the fact she had never been in any sort of starship before.

"You know, this whole thing looks a lot smaller from the outside..."

[Harmony]

Harmony's expression shifted into a frown, her programming adapting her simulated muscles to convey an outward indication of the logical error she had just processed. She cocked her head to one side, shooting Lady Marian a questioning look.

"That is a somewhat illogical observation," she stated, her tone matter of fact. "Considering merely the thickness of the hull, and no other factors, the internal volume of this craft is clearly smaller than its external volume."

Her eyes narrowed in scrutiny, peering into the young woman's eyes in turn. "Are your ocular units malfunctioning, Lady Marian, or does the error stem from your cognitive perceptors?"

[Marian J'onzz]

The words that came from the woman's mouth were so odd it didn't leave any room to even attempt to be offended. But combined with the general oddness she gave off, one thing became very clear. "Definitely not his wife..."

Of course that didn't quite answer the question of what she was. Marian took a few quick steps to place herself in front of Harmony and looked at her squarely.

"All right then, what are you? Some sort of robot?"

[J'onn Scarlet]

Bah. Mispost. >_<

[Harmony]

Harmony blinked, her software struggling to process the query. It had not occurred to her that Lady Marian might be so malinformed about the situation regarding her father's exploits that Harmony was a relative unknown.

A quick probability calculation highlighted a statistical anomaly; given the years that she had spent involved with the exploits with both J'onn Scarlet and Doctor J'onzz, it would seem logical that some reference was made to her when those stories were recounted. Apparently, that was not the case; she would have to query the Captain as to why, to ensure that there was not a particular Kilian or human custom that her programming was not equipped to comprehend.

"A crude, but accurate summation," she replied, head twitching to one side ever so slightly. "I am a Human Replica Droid. My designation is Harmony."

[Marian J'onzz]

Another one of those moments where she almost said something, but this time it resulted in more awkwardness than annoyance at being shut up. Truth was, Marian had no idea how to respond to that. Droids weren't exactly a new thing, but ones that looked like and walked and talked like people were just... well, the very concept seemed to baffle her.

"Right then..."

The more Marian thought about it, the more she suspected it was just going to make her head hurt to try and figure out just how far someone went when replicating a human when making a droid and what exactly could be the reasons for wanting to do such a thing. Her mind was starting to drift into very, very unnerving thoughts.

"Ok!" She clapped her hands together, as if the sound might drive off the disturbing images. "How about that room?"

[J'onn Scarlet]

Coruscant

The trip to the homeworld of the Galactic Empire took days, tumbling through the swirling chaos of Hyperspace. J'onn had tried his utmost to instill in Marian some understanding of the basic precepts of the Kilian Rangers, but to only limited success.

Unlike J'onn, who had studied the texts and codexes of the order since his infancy, Marian was hampered by the odd memories of what she thought she knew, which kept distracting her from recalling what she actually knew. She kept getting her Shadow Proclamations and her Open Declarations all muddled and backwards; J'onn's only solace was that, being informal as this was, he only have to teach her the basic skills for self defense, and wouldn't have to prepare her for actual Rangership.

Even so, the young woman's dedication was admirable: he had to give her credit for that.

He tugged at the collar of his ankle-length duster, glancing briefly at himself in a mildly reflective surface to ensure that he was radiating the right mix of don't mind me and don't mess with me in his stance and appearence. Satisfied, he turned away; but as his gaze settled on Marian, he hesitated.

"There's something you should know," he said, quietly, almost as if the very information was a priceless artifact that would crumble to dust if they spoke it too loud.

[Marian J'onzz]

"And what's that?"

Marian wasn't overly fond of her attire that had been mostly dictated by J'onn, but it did beat the fancy dresses she was used to that always made her feel like she couldn't move properly. But the simple pair of black pants and relatively conservative top could at least be accented by a deep teal waste-length coat and the one article of clothing she had brought with her that she refused to part with: a red scarf that had once belonged to her mother.

She stood behind the Ranger, her eyes catching his through the reflection he stood in front of. J'onn's fussing about his own uniform bringing quite a bit of amusement to her.

"More secrets of the universe?" Marian wiggled her fingers in mimic mystical manner, letting a smile play on her lips as she spoke. As soon as the question was finished she let the silliness drop, returning to a more neutral state yet let the light excitement remain in her eyes.

[J'onn Scarlet]

Were he not so grave and concerned, his laugh would perhaps have been more enthusiastic; instead, it merely escaped as a vague snort through his nose.

"Sort of," he explained slowly, features shifting into a wince. "Mystical, if only in that it concerns the Force."

Memories replayed in J'onn's mind, of his first visit out into the stars. They'd travelled to Coruscant then, too, but it had been a very different place then. They had visited during the height of the Galactic Republic, when peace and democracy - for the most part - kept the galaxy in a period of tranquility, and where Jedi Knights protected and served the peace in much the same way that the Kilian Rangers did so on his own world. They had even had the privilage of meeting and fighting along side some of those Jedi; an honour, and a memory, that J'onn still counted among his greatest.

Their next voyage had come some years later, and they found a galaxy very much changed. The entire Republic had been torn asunder by a civil war, and had now been united under the control of a Galactic Empire: peace had reigned then, yes, but it was far from tranquil - it was a calm that existed only because of the shelter within the iron fist that gripped the galaxy.

Worse, it transpired, the Jedi had somehow found themselves on the wrong side of the conflict, and the Galactic Empire engaged in a ruthless quest to purge not only the survivors, but even the very knowledge of their existance. The Jedi were by now practically a fable: J'onn had not encountered one in twenty years, and that saddened him - he desperately wanted to hear their explanation for how the defenders of the Republic had become the enemies of the Empire.

His eyes turned to Marian. He kept his words simple, but his eyes made it clear that there was far more than what he stated; and that it was too turbulent a subject for him to speak of, at least for now. "The Force," he said slowly, carefully; "Is outlawed here. No matter what, we must not use it: they will execute us out of fear without a moment's hesitation, if they discover that we can wield."

[Marian J'onzz]

All signs of amusement seemed to leave her, instead she looked almost confused, conflicted. The Jedi and their usage of The Force was a well known piece of lore. One of the reasons she had been so excited to even go to Coruscant was the hope of meeting one of those kindred to the Kilian Rangers. She had heard that something horrible had happened to them, but Marian had always assumed it was simply a story being blown out of proportion, that maybe rather than being wiped out and forbidden, those that used The Force as their ally had merely taken part in a large battle and had suffered heavy casualties. The serious tone that J'onn had taken on though told her the truth without going into details: it wasn't just a story. The Purge had really happened.

"That's awful..." The bite of sorrow in her voice let it be known that she wasn't just responding to the fact that they had to hide their abilities. Not that her's were developed enough to actually do anything, and J'onn was more than capable of holding his own without the use of The Force, but the thought that there were others used to that world who had to be in hiding as well...

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn felt the shift in her emotions, and saw the sadness in her eyes. He felt his brows twitch in sympathy, and in regret that he'd burdened her with such knowledge. She was usually such a care-free and joyous spirit; to feel her aura so clouded with sadness made it mirror in himself. He reached out, a hand placed on her shoulder; a thin smile managed to form on his lips. "Don't worry, Lady Marian," he assured, voice as gently confident as his touch. "I'll keep you safe."

He let the sentiment linger before he turned, hand falling away to manipulate the controls for the starboard hatch. He glanced beyond his charge as the ramp slowly descended, eyes settling on Harmony. "Keep an eye on the ship," he instructed, needlessly; the droid's expression implied that she echoed that last sentiment.

A clunk resonated through the deck plates as the ramp landed on the duracrete pad; J'onn descended in confident steps, hopping to the side halfway down to land on the 'crete beside it. He offered a hand to steady Marian, and to help her adjust to Coruscant's gravity and air pressure - a little lighter on both counts than they were used to back home. He bowed a little in respect as he did so, but there was a flash of a cheeky smile in his eyes and on his lips. "Milady."

[Marian J'onzz]

"Oh stop it." It was clear she wasn't exactly serious. The complete reassurance of her saftey, along with J'onn's little display was enough to push the rather somber mood away for the time being.

The change in gravity was instantly noticeable and surprising. Despite it being an overly naive thought to believe that all planets were exactly the same in that aspect, Marian found that when you were actually confronted with the reality it was still a bit jarring.

When the sudden change in the very sensation of walking was overcome, it let Marian stop to have a better look around the bustling starport that was the Eastport Docking Facility and the vast amount of traffic there was about the place. Unlike the small starport she had seen a few times on her home planet, there was no shortage of individuals of all races to be seen. Everywhere she looked was something or someone new.

"Is the entire planet like this?" All in all, Marian was instantly enthralled.

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn had travelled to many worlds, and seen many such starports as the one they wandered through; and while Coruscant itself was too grandiose and magnificent to ever seem mundane, when you had been to the same starport several times, and seen the same sights on too many occasions, it all began to become familiar, and routine.

Marian's presence was like a lens to that, and pierced through his ignorance of the true extent of the wonders he was seeing. Kilia IV was a predominantly human world, and any diversity in races had been diluted or had died out over the thousand years since it had been first colonised. He'd met so many species over the years that he didn't really percieve the external anymore, looking past the superficial to regard the person underneath. It seemed accepting and accomidating for him to do so, but Marian presented the other side of the coin: the sheer wonder at seeing such diversity; the eagerness to learn about other people, other cultures, and other world.

The thought of it brought a smile to J'onn's lips, as he recalled the same emotions in him when Marian's father had first brought him offworld. He didn't inhibit his expression in the slightest, turning it on Lady Marian full force. "No," he said, as his smile became a grin. "The entire planet is better."

He extended his hand to her again; not a gesture of respect this time, but of eager invitation. "Come on: I know a place where we can rent a speeder."

[Marian J'onzz]

Better? Even though Marian was fully aware all she was seeing was the very tip of the iceberg as far as the planet was concerned, she just couldn't even imagine how it could get better.

There was no hesitation in taking J'onn's hand and it was certainly for the best as she no doubt would have gotten lost, or left behind, or just plain distracted. Her eyes simply refused to find a place to linger, as soon as one thing caught her attention it was almost immediately snared by something else. At least, Marian mused, none of it is shiny.

Well, that was, except for the speeders.

[J'onn Scarlet]

They didn't really have speeders on Kilia. Well, they did - they'd been cut off from the rest of the galaxy a thousand years ago, not back in the stone age or anything - but they were mostly landspeeders, using low-powered repulsorlift units in lieu of wheels to evade the various bumps and obstacles on the planet's roads. You could travel most to most places on the planet in those; certainly to most places in the local vacinity, which was all anyone ever really did. For longer-haul trips, people would hop in one of the planet's rarely used starships; there was no in between.

Kilian landspeeders were mostly utilitarian: designed for transporting people and cargo from a to b, without any superfluous flashiness or fancy. Even the starships like the Eye of Harmony were relatively dull and functional. These Coruscanti airspeeders then were something new.

J'onn grinned as Marian's attention became fixated on the craft. "Before you ask," he warned, arms folding loosely across his chest, "No, you can't drive."

[Marian J'onzz]

"Oh that's no fun." Marian couldn't help but keep a bit of a playful smirk on her lips as she managed to pry her sight away from the speeders long enough to cast the look at J'onn. "I think you've gone and lost your sense of adventure."

Without so much as a hint of her intentions the young woman quickly sprinted away from her protector, keeping herself in his line of sight though. "Think you're getting boring in your old age!" An almost childish bout of laughter trailed after her.

The run wasn't to do much but put a bit of distance between her and the Ranger, and put her closer to the speeders which she began to try and figure out which one would be the most fun. If she couldn't drive, well then J'onn better damn well let her pick which one they took.

Her hands remained firmly grasped behind her back to avoid the urge to touch anything. Marian wasn't quite sure how different these speeders actually were, but alien technology wasn't the best thing to be poking about at, never mind the fact their keeper was probably already eying the girl with a nervous air.

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn let out yet another sigh, and shook his head, weaving a broader course through the collection of parked cars to intercept the wary mechanic that was nervously watching Marian. Keeping his movements swift and light, he managed to sneak behind the balding human, before clearing his throat.

"Well, well, Drax: still spying on young ladies, I see."

The poor mechanic nearly leapt out of his skin. He rounded on the man who had snuck up behind him, trying to look as threatening as he could - a visage somewhat undermined by the panic in his eyes. His posture and expression morphed when he clapped sight on the Kilian, however. "J'onn Scarlet, you sneaky bastard!" he said, with a broadening grin, clapping the Ranger enthusiastically on the arm. "What in the seven hells are you doing on Center?"

J'onn shrugged, the irony thick in his voice. "Just running errands, really. Well -" He screwed up his face, bobbing it from side to side in vagueness. "- more of a routine check-in with the galaxy at large. Well -" He scratched at his nose. "- a routine check-in that turned into more of a sight-seeing tour for the young lady over there -"

His voice trailed off, a self-interjection of his own ramble surging through. "- can we borrow a speeder?"

Drax blinked, eyes spinning in his head as he tried to keep up with J'onn's rambling tirade. His voice dropped low, into a conspiratorial whisper. "She one of yours, then?" His eyes darted about him, checking for undesired observers. "You know; from home."

A curt nod came in reply. "New companion," he explained, words clipped and dismissive. He caught sight of a mischevious look blossoming on Drax's face, and killed it with a stern glare. "Not that kind of companion." He hesitated for a moment, reluctant to explain too much. "She's -" He winced. "She's the Doctor's daughter."

Drax's eyes widened, and he glanced over at the redhead with almost reverance. "Little Marian? He actually let her offworld?"

"Not intentionally," J'onn muttered back, but didn't bother to ellaborate. His shoulders threatened to slump; he had to fold his arms across his chest to prevent them. "This is her one and only trip away from home, and I promised I'd show her as much of what's out here as I could; Coruscant seemed like the place to come."

A thoughtful look flashed across Drax's face. "Knowing you, that means you'll go poking around the lower levels, so you won't be wanting anything too flashy -" He hesitated, ammending the statements slightly. "I'm not giving you anything too flashy, because you'll only go and get it stolen, and insurance claims these days are a supernova pain in the backside."

He delved a hand into his pocket, searching for the ignition card that prevented thieves and joyriders from just leaping into his speeders and racing off with them. "Take the DMC-12 - she's over in Berth 16. Not so fancy as to attract attention, but she'll be fast enough to get you out of trouble when you land in it." J'onn looked defensive, but Drax gave him a knowing look. "This isn't my first rodeo, Scarlet; you know nothing ever goes to plan." He placed the card hesitantly into J'onn's palm. "Just try to bring this one back in one piece, okay?"

A hint of mischief flashed in his eyes. "No promises." His expression split into a grin. "Thanks, Drex," he said, backpedalling towards where Marian was still browsing. "I owe you one!"

Wiping the grease from his hands with an oily rag, Drex shook his head and sighed. "You owe me several, Scarlet," he muttered, wandering back towards the speeder he'd been servicing. "And I never learn."

[Marian J'onzz]

As J'onn returned from speaking with the mechanic, Marian's expression turned only slightly sour. "You two aren't going to let me pick one, are you?"

The tiny shred of disappointment felt for that as she followed him over to where their chosen speeder was waiting was fleeting as a group of Nautolans walked passed and Marian was forced, albeit only marginally successfully, to not stare at them. It was enough of a distraction to keep her from pleading to take one of the shiny red speeders they walked by that looked fit enough to consume the dreams of any adolescent (when their mind wasn't otherwise occupied with thoughts of each other, naturally).

When they arrived at Berth 16, the DMC-12 speeder in the spot was so unremarkable if not a bit malformed looking that Marian figured there had to be some sort of mistake, or there was a joke to it.

"You're kidding, right? That thing looks like a piece of junk."

[J'onn Scarlet]

Truer words had never been spoken; not so far today, at least. Even when new, the DMC-12 (http://agnewsmind.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/back_to_the_future_part_ii_large_01.jpg) hadn't even been close the sleek lines of the cheapest airspeeders, let alone the more fashionable models of it's time. Indeed, with it's boxy construction, it looked more like a landspeeder converted for flight than a craft custom built for the task; even the drive units - huge and impressive as they were - looked almost bolted on after the fact.

Of course, if J'onn admitted any of that to Marian, he'd never hear the end of it. Instead, he adjusted his expression into one of mild surprise, and dismissal. "Oh, come on," he countered enthusiastically, rapping knuckles against the durasteel bodywork. "This thing is a classic. Simple, sturdy construction; you could fly through a wall in this thing, and it'd keep on going. And look at this -" He kicked one of the four repulsorlift generators, splayed out from the chassis almost like feet. "Most speeders rely on a single generator to lift them off the ground: this thing has four. Not only is it more stable, you can tweak the repulsor field with much more control. You could crash this through the wall of your father's study back home, spin it on the spot, and fly out through the exact same hole."

His fingers trailed over the body work, wrapping themselves around the release hatch on one of the doors. Pneumatics hissed into action, an entire section of the side of the craft rising slowly upwards. A grin spread across J'onn's face with each degree that the gullwing door opened. "You've got to admit," he challenged, "That is pretty cool."

Scooping the long trail of his coat up beneath his legs, he clambered in through the pilot's side door feet first, dropping heavily into the surprisingly comfortable bucket seat. His hands brushed lightly over the controls, getting a feel for the craft as he glanced around for any labels and indicators as to what everything did. He hesitated for a moment, leaning his head out through the still-open door. "Come on!" he called to Marian, with light-hearted insistance.

[Marian J'onzz]

"Classic... Right." The volume she used was no doubt too quiet for J'onn to actually hear her, but considering she wasn't exactly speaking to anyone in particular, it didn't really matter.

Classic had been her father's way of saying that something wasn't old enough to be considered an antique but given time it would be considered as such, it's age being the only thing keeping it from the 'useless pile of junk' category. But still, Marian did have to agree that J'onn's reasoning was pretty sound. At least, she didn't have enough knowledge to really fight him on it and so she decided against it.

But the way J'onn acted towards the silly thing he was practically smitten. She figured there was more to his adoration of the clunky looking thing that he wasn't letting on, but she'd let him have his fun. He was being kind enough to bring her to this planet rather than some boring place with nothing but sand and... sand... people.

With a smile and a small shake of her head she waited for the hatch to fully open on her side of the speeder before setting herself down into it, looking at all the lights and displays inside. Okay - so it may not have been pretty, but it was getting slightly impressive.

"Could be worse, at least your taste in speeders doesn't match your taste in other things. You can have one ugly obsession, but that's it."

[J'onn Scarlet]

"I like my speeders how I like my travelling companions," he said off-hand, reaching for what could easily be mistaken for a throttle lever, positioned in the gap between their two seats. As he slowly slid the device forward to to the next setting - hover, the label revealed - however, a low hum began to reverberate through the craft, and the DMC-12 gently rose from the ground.

He reached above him, snagged a handle, and haulled the gullwing closed, glancing across at his passenger as he did so, and waited for her to do the same. "Boring and ugly," he continued, finishing his earlier thought. His foot tapped against one of the pedals beneath the dashboard, and the repulsorlift field shifted, yaw motion turning the craft slowly to face in a new direction.

J'onn's hands wrapped around the steering controls. His fingers found two flat, paddle levers, hidden behind the yoke; he clicked the one to the right experimentally, and an indicator on the dashboard - labelled as 'air speed' in Aurebesh - notched up a few digits; despite this however, the craft remained stationary, a glowing light indicating that the air brake was engaged. He held the lever depressed for a fraction of a second; a few more digits scrolled past; quick experimentation with the other lever revealled that it notched the speed in the opposite direction; his mind registered the rate at which acceleration was added by the controls.

"Unfortunately," he added, ammending his comment. He squeezed the throttle lever down hard, the air speed racing higher. "It looks like I'm stuck with you instead." Without another word, his hand fell back to the repulsorlift controls; he slammed the lever forward into 'drive', and was thrown back into his seat as the speeder rocketed forwards.

[Marian J'onzz]

Marian was used to J'onn's teasing, had put up with it basically from the time she was able to walk, but somehow he still managed to get to her. Experience in that area at least let her hide it for the most part. He almost got a response from her before his last words managed to come out and she responded with a small smirk... that instantly vanished as soon as the speeder took off.

There was a brief moment of surprise that faded into genuine enjoyment as Marian turned away from J'onn and looked out the window of the speeder.

"Wait, wait, wait... these things fly here?"

She had expected the speeder to be lower to the ground, much, much lower. Back home speeders weren't capable of flight and the fact that this older looking piece of... well, it was safe to stay she felt that maybe she had underestimated the DMC-12.

A soft whispered, "wow" left her as they merged into the traffic of the other speeders. Marian allowed her eyes to dart around for a few more moments before she pulled them away from the views back to J'onn.

"So where we headed?"

[J'onn Scarlet]

J'onn grinned as Drax and his speeder rental business disappeared behind them, and the ground disappeared beneath, rapidly transformed into the deep chasms and canyons of Coruscant's city landscape. He didn't look at Marian - he was far too busy trying to concentrate on the complicated task of navigating high-speed traffic in three dimensions - but he could hear her wonder in her voice, and that was enough to stop him from slipping into his default grouchy mood.

He didn't answer her question directly, dropping the DMC-12 into what he hoped was one of the major highways through Coruscant - it'd certainly prove to be an effective way of testing how good he still was at reading the various non-Kilian scripts and languages that the galaxy at large chose to adorn its signs with.

The pace of the traffic beginning to slow in what the locals called a 'traffic jam' - he had no idea what the high density, slow-moving column of airspeeders had to do with fruit conserves, but still - he allowed himself a brief glance in Marian's direction, flipping her question around into one of his own, hoping to test her memory and guage her interests at the same time.

"You tell me where we're headed," he countered, with a shrug. "You've heard all of your father's stories about Coruscant and the Core Worlds - remember some names, pick a landmark, and we'll go there."

[Marian J'onzz]

"Really?" The question came out before she could stop it or even soften the edge of surprise it contained.

She knew better, J'onn typically didn't say anything he didn't mean. Except when he was teasing, but considering all the detail he had put into it...

Marian had to pause for a moment, stop her mind from bouncing around all the possibilities that wanted to come roaring into consciousness. She was already feeling a bit overwhelmed by everything she was seeing, there was no need to try and overload her brain to the point where she would probably say something incredibly stupid if she managed anything past a long drawn out hum of indecision.

"Well, you warned that we had to be careful, so I suppose that puts going and seeing whatever remains of the old Jedi Temple right out." Disappointment tinted the comment. Maybe another time.

The obvious choice out of the way brought about the need to make a more thoughtful decision...which involved recalling far too much foreign geography than Marian cared for.

"Well, we could go see the Senate building, I suppose. That's in the Senate District, which is..." Her voice trailed as she attempted to recall the next bit of information. "Near the Fobosi District, right? And that has the University and the Skydome Botanical Gardens."

Marian had to actually admit to herself that she was modestly impressed she managed to remember all that.

"That sounds like a decent collection of things to see. I'd say we could round out the trip with a decent into the Underworld just for contrast, but I think I'll pass on that one. Don't really need to get mugged on my first trip to the planet."

[J'onn Scarlet]

"Mugged?" J'onn countered. "Pah!"

For all his grumpiness, his reluctance, and his protests to the contrary: despite claiming to hate these kind of adventures into the unknown - or in this case, unfamiliar at the very least - were where he thrived; where he came into his own. He always spoke of how he wanted to go home; how he wanted to settle down in the peace and quiet, and bother with the occasional bit of peacekeeping and law enforcement in the villages around Doctor J'onzz's estate. But peace and quiet turned out to be boring more often than not; and while he grumbled something chronic every time the Doctor dragged him away from it, part of him was always restlessly waiting for that next voyage.

Now that his initial grizzled protest was out of the way, he was actually finding himself beginning to enjoy this little jaunt, and the grin that started to form on his face was hard to contain. He managed to hide it behind a slightly indignant frown. "No one's gonna be mugging you, milady - not when you've got one of the finest Rangers on all of Kilia keeping you safe."

He allowed the grin to flash across his features, before violently swinging the steering controls to the right, diving the DMC-12 down into another lane. "But," he continued, steering to dodge into the relevant part of the flying river of speeders after realising all of the traffic was heading in the opposite direction to him, "You said the Senate District, and your word is my command. So!"

He threw the controls across violently again, and the DMC pulled into a steep bank; pitched so far that it was toppled by gravity, flipping through a full roll before landing back on its repulsorlifts again - a stomach-churning few meters lower - on a direct course towards a tunnel that carved straight through the heart of a building. J'onn's grin broadened further. "Geronimo!" he cried with a wild-eyed glance in Marian's direction, and then punched the speeder's thrusters to full.

[Marian J'onzz]

Despite the moderate sense of terror that was instinctual to falling and spinning and all the sorts of movements in air that a body doesn't even normally believe is capable, Marian couldn't help but find that J'onn's sense of joy was horribly infectious. She had to wonder what she was enjoying more: The fact that she was experiencing all this, or the fact that J'onn was. The Ranger was normally rather stoic, sure she saw him smile and laugh before, but this was above and beyond anything she had witnessed.

She wanted to jokingly point that out to him, but instead said nothing out of fear of ruining the moment. Instead she simply held a grin that matched his own and then shook her head slightly, finding that that particular motion coupled with the motion of the speeder was probably best to end quickly.

"You think everyone else is watching your driving and somehow just knows we're tourists?" It was a playful jab, but one she couldn't help but make.

[J'onn Scarlet]

"Quite frankly, my dear," J'onn countered, once again flashing her his beaming smile and wild eyes, "I don't give a damn."

He swerved hard, the speeder riding up the curved shape of the banked tunnel as he dodged around a craft moving a little too slowly for his liking. Lights raced past, casting odd shadows and silhouettes, and sending them streaking in rapid flux across Marian and J'onn. All around them, the cockpit hummed and thrummed with the various technologies that were - barely, given J'onn's driving - keeping them aloft.

A note of challenge crept into his voice as he extended his reply. "Do you think that everyone else is having this much fun, with their boring, fuddy-duddy, smooth and level flying, eh?"

The maw that opened the tunnel's end into the Coruscanti air loomed ahead, the speeder hungrily eating up the distance towards it. A shadow loomed across it; J'onn almost dismissed it as clouds, before recalling that the forcast he'd checked during landing didn't report one. A dark shape descended: a bulky Corellian Star Shuttle, blocking their intended path.

J'onn glanced at the air speed, and blanched. "Marian?" he muttered. "Please don't throw up."

Jamming his hands and feet into various controls at once, the DMC-12 screamed out of the tunnel, instantly swerving hard to the right, the momentum tipping it steeply up onto the passenger-side door. J'onn strained, fighting to keep himself in his seat; he twisted the steering yoke hard right and slammed the aft thrusters to full, plunging the speeder into a nose dive that presented it's belly to the speeder. The repulsors found contact against the hull and killed their momentum towards the ship, bouncing them away; the motion shallowed their stomach-churning descent, pushing them into what gradually became a wide spiral as J'onn levelled out the controls.

Killing the throttle, he brought the craft to rest, floating in mid air still several hundred meters above the ground. A sheepish glance was tossed in Marian's direction; he cleared his throat, and wrestled to restore his composure. "Sorry about that," he offered, quietly.

[Marian J'onzz]

Surprisingly the feeling in her stomach wasn't one of queasiness, for which Marian was thankful... but it was twisting never-the-less and that combined with the fact it felt as though her heart was making a solid attempt to force its way out of her chest with every beat still left her wide eyed and breathless.

"Can we not do that again...?" The words left almost with a squeak.

It took another few breaths before she could muster up the ability to move and turn to face the Ranger. There was something thrilling about flight, but that, Marian suspected, was just a bit much for a first timer.

"You're completely insane, you know that right? But... we're both alive." She had to nod her head to force the agreement to stick with herself. "So... onward?"

[J'onn Scarlet]

"Sanity is overrated," J'onn challenged with a broad, tooth-flashing grin. For an instant, the stuffy old J'onn was gone, the wild and excited eyes of a man as young as Marian, or maybe younger, staring out of his face instead.

Exciting J'onn vanished an instant later, and boring J'onn returned in his place, offering a curt nod of his head in answer to Marian's question. "Onwards," he agreed. "Upwards." His brow furrowed ever so slightly, searching his brain for other synonyms. For an instant, his memory wandered back to his youth, and the tiresome Old Killian lessons with their relentless grammar and syntax.

"Al-onzii!" he suddenly announced, gunning the throttle into life, and sending the craft charging off into the relentless stream of traffic once again.

He fell silent, weaving the car effortly - and gracefully, if only to avoid Marian spreading the contents of the ration pack she'd eaten back on the ship across the hire-speeder's upholstery - through Coruscant's skylanes. He couldn't help one last passing comment, though.

"You should probably get used to it. It'll be much worse when people are shooting at us."