Forsaken Lands

[Vala'drella]

The journey from Chiss space to Usk (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/Usk_(planet)) had taken weeks and several pit stops for refuel. Vala'drella didn't understand why her owner was adamant on taking care of her dirty deeds and illicit exchanges so far on the other end of the galaxy. She found it ridiculous, especially with so many systems containing shady areas. Who was she to argue though? As much as she could recognize how Senator Virt'idair'gaingou had allowed her to be educated despite being a slave, it still was what the young brunette was: kriffin owned property. She hated that. It would be so easy to disappear at some point, never come back and go live her own life. She could do that and she would very well survive.

The problem was that she couldn't bring herself to leave her adoptive mother behind. Kerana was the only family she had ever had and she wouldn't be alive if the Rattataki, already a slave for some rich Chiss, hadn't found her aboard some drifting ship in Chiss space. Their first owner had let them become mother and daughter but life hadn't let them gain freedom, only change owners down the line. It made Vala'drella sick, but she wasn't ready to forsake her only family to become free from her chains. She knew how much of a vicious circle it was and that in a way she was choosing to remain a slave, but until the day she found a way to take Kerana with her, she would play by the rules and continue to be errand girl outside of Chiss borders.

The near-Human (http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c68/Aruna7/Vala%20Forsaken%20Lands_zpsvrdwkvie.jpg) sighed as she climbed down the boarding ramp of her freighter, Ace Kite. She had named it as such, a crappy pun on the S-K System (http://starwars.wikia.com/wiki/S-K_system) where she had been discovered as a baby, but it was all she had could come up with that kind of resonated with her, besides all the Chiss stuff she had lived through while growing up.

The moment she saw the surroundings of the abandonned settlement she got why Usk was basically an abandonned planet. Calling it a no-man's land would be a compliment. Grabbing her binoculars, she checked the perimeter out of habit.

[Vala'drella]

At least this place was so dead that the risk of natural predators was minimal. That was good because she had had to do deliveries to locations filled with the craziest animals willing to turn her into a bloody snack. Right now, she just wanted the deal to be over and done with, so she could enjoy time alone on her ship again. Sure thing, she was glad to get away from Chiss space, so she wasn't a total alien in the rest of the galaxy, and she could also pretend she wasn't a slave. Wishful thinking they called it, she had heard.

Shrugging, she put the binoculars away when she saw a small trunk speeder made its way to where she was. Should be her contact. She had the credits to cover for this exchange, as well as some gems to add to the money these pirates would make in the deal. She had her boarding ramp lowered down and her hand on her blaster.

She hadn't done this type of things for a few years without having gone into nasty trouble with morons thinking they could just outsmart and outpower her. She was cautious.

[Vala'drella]

Three people emerged from the speeder truck, one that looked human and two Twi'leks. She didn't move from where she was, staring at the trio, trying to get a feel of what she was dealing with. It was the middle of nowhere, so it was both good so if there was blood, nobody would care, but it might also inspire said blood to be spilled if they wanted to double cross her. She wasn't going to let that happen if they had such stupid ideas in mind.

"You Vala?" One of the Twi'leks asked in a thick accent.

"Yeah. You have the merchandise?" She replied at once, having no interest in small talk.

"Only if you have the money," he snarled.

"Show me the goods and then you'll see your money." She retorted, unfazed by their failed attempt at impressing her.

[Hawkins Grime]

The sound of the speeder bike was heard from the distance in such an arid, lonely place that it was a moment before anyone could see the source of it. The bike slipped out of the ruins and headed directly for them. It stopped a somewhat respectable distance away for an interloper, just beside a large enough rock that could be used for cover, as the guarded reaction of the trio indicated it was no party member of theirs. The person that dismounted was a lanky Mandolorian who pulled a long rifle from his bag, holding it in one hand, pointed up and against his shoulder as he sauntered towards them. His armor was a green-almost-black and it had dark red and white tribal markings that almost seemed to make the armor blend into the darkness of the evening better rather than highlight anything, drawing the eyes away from things rather than to them. His helmet was conventional for a Mandolorian but for one side having a large scar along the top left.

"Nobody move. Anyone moves and..."

He pointed upwards with his free hand. Above them, in the night sky, a dull thing passed far up in the atmosphere in lazy loops. A star ship of some kind. A predator just waiting for prey to shoot out from beneath them.

"... that will ensure none of you leave alive."

[Vala'drella]

Sweet.... More guests to the party. Just what I needed.

Vala looked at the newcomer and didn't really care about his looks. She was more interested in the ship looming above and how it would affect her kriffin escape, because she bet she'd need it.

She noted how the trio who thought they knew best gave her cover between the armored guy and her ship. She didn't move and stared at the exchange that followed.

"So what? You really think yourself tougher because you might destroy the loot you're expecting to find? Smart ass who's just too lazy to do work."

Oh, Vala bet the Twi'lek would regret saying that.

[Hawkins Grime]

"Your move then."

The movement was practiced, rehearsed, drilled. It was the kind of action that someone who'd seen a fight, a war, and had pulled a trigger for the first time and then to a point of confidence could execute. The lanky Mandolorian's rifle came forward before the trio could react, as if they had expected him to persist in small talk. It was in his free hand, braced, as he continued to walk, and then a red lance of energy caught the Twi'lek in the leg. It sheered the leg off with the force and intensity of the round.

As if in response to the round firing off, a bulky shuttle-like speeder simultaneously came in at speed, arriving at the side of the woman and the three. The shuttle door was open, revealing an orange droid, industrial model, that appeared to have dried blood caked into its plates. It stepped out and behind it was a thing that looked like the demonic nightmare version of the lanky Mandolorian's armor.

A hot wind began to blow from the direction of the armored fiend. When it spoke, its voice was projected, augmented from the mask. The voice itself sounded like whatever was inside had swallowed razor blades for breakfast this morning.

"Apex predators... kill what they want. Take what they want... Do not move. Or die."

[Vala'drella]

Vala hadn't moved since the newcomer had arrived. She was still standing at the bottom of her boarding ramp, but hadn't made an hasty run aboard her craft. With a ship flying over them, it would make little sense. She had a bad feeling about this crap but she hadn't survived to her early twenties, without learning a few tricks, after being despised as a slave in Chiss territory and running dangerous errands across the galaxy.

She was taking everything in, analyzing options and right now her best one was to stay quiet. If the idiots wanted to be bantha fodder, so be it. She wouldn't cry over it. She needed to get her mission done, but so far it didn't look so promising, but it wasn't the first time she found herself in ugly settings like this one.

The droid appearing didn't look much, at least to her. She saw the others look un-at-ease, but putting on a show as this man had done so far, including with a "scary looking" droid, didn't impress her so much. Yet, he seemed remotely organized, so she would give him that so far, until she had seen what he or his mechanicaly toy could do.

The other Twi'lek threw himself behind his human companion and shot at the droid, which Vala believed would be dumb move, but these three didn't look so bright in the first place.

[Hawkins Grime]

The bolt glanced off the droid's armor plating, leaving a scorch mark with a heated scar. It continued to trudge forward, unopposed as three more lasers slid off the armor and into the night sky. The droid was growling a low, reverberating sound, not bothering to pick up the pace at all.

The lanky Mandolorian had all but disappeared.

==========

The elevator was transparent and had suffered heavily from the incoming fire but CENSORED stood behind it confidently. One man huddled at his feet as they descended. A speeder flew by, raking the elevator and the windows to either side of it with blaster fire from the men with the rifles and pistols in the open back.

"Get down, will you?"

CENSORED sneered at the coward by his feet.

"Get up, won't you?"

The discharge within the elevator went unnoticed in the abandoned skyscraper. No one was allowed to be a bystander in this life.

==========

The armored fiend approached behind, a rasping noise made with each step that was only made more apparent when the vents built into the back of the armor released like a bellows. The hot wind began to press harder, like a tornado was about to touch down out of nowhere. The laser bolts continued. The human and the twi'lek had shuffled back to their speeder, using it for cover. The long strides of the droid put it within reach of the speeder and its clamp-like fists reached to the front of the speeder. The droid's motions were not a calculated effort at this point. It seemed energized at the prospect of something, almost primal. It pushed the speeder with ease. The twi'lek leapt to the side and out of the way. The human was not so lucky as the speeder collided with him and he fell beneath it.

The human was drug underneath the speeder and continued to slide along the ground, drug by some unseen force until he stopped short of the woman standing at her ramp. The human groaned, stunned, looking up at her half in shock.

The twi'lek gained his footing only for a brief moment before he was lifted in the air, as if by his throat, dropping his weapon, his light blue hands going to his neck, as if to remove the hand around it. The armored figure approached. His gauntlet stretched out. He stopped just before the flailing twi'lek, then his helmet turned, with burning green eyes, looking at the woman.

"Why... aren't you running?"

The droid had turned to consider her slowly, its shoulders hunched, one fist buried into the ground as it was contemplating charging. The orange eyes set deep into its face seemed to burn within an otherwise featureless face.

[Vala'drella]

Growing up in a foreign environment where her adoptive mother and herself were blatant aliens to the Chiss surrounding them had taught a lot to Vala. She still didn't know who she was, where she came from. She was a slave, raised by another slave, a Rattattaki warrior protecting one Chiss noble after the other, depending on who had owned her. The young woman had learned how to fight but also to keep quiet and observe to learn more. Betraying her emotions was also something she had learned not to do from a young age. The Chiss were such a stoic civilization that she had had to learn to blend in as much as she could, which was very little.

Maybe she should have run away screaming with all that was happening around her, but she didn't see why she should do that. She was aware she could die, but begging for her life was something she had never done before and wasn't about to start doing today. She didn't care about the people around her, her contacts, dead or likely to be soon. She had come here for business, not to feel compelled to mourn some strangers.

When asked why she wasn't running, she narrowed her eyes at the approaching figure. "Running is for cowards," she replied honestly and simply.

"You haven't killed me yet, so maybe you won't. And if you do, I'd rather stare at death than turn my back on it."

[Hawkins Grime]

The lanky Mandolorian appeared seemingly right beside her and the man on the ground. He was already kneeling beside the man on the ground who was still struggling to get up. A long knife slid from the sheath on his thigh as his gloved hand pressed down over the man's face. The Mandolorian seemed to pause for a moment, as if sensing something in the man's panic, or maybe relishing it, before he pressed the knife to the soft flesh of the human's throat and pressed down and pulled. The blood shot out in a spurt before it spilt across the ground from the initial release of pressure. The Mandolorian wiped the blade on the corpse before standing, looking towards the woman as well.

The twi'lek was thrown to the ground violently at the feet of the droid. The man in the armor was no longer interested in the morsels but much more so in the woman suddenly. The droid wasted no time though, one arm taking a full swing before pulverizing the torso of the twi'lek into the ground. Then again with it's other fist. Then again. And again.

The needless massacre behind Hawkins Grime went unnoticed as he approached the woman at the ship.

==========

The man in the bed gasped for a life that was fleeing through the wound in his chest quickly. CENSORED stood with one foot on the bed, both hands on the hilt of his ruby red blade. The black satin sheets of mirrorflax quickly became stained and soaked through with the man's blood. The body beside him stirred slowly. The woman looked at him from the bed, as if she were waking from a dream, or thought she was waking in some kind of nightmare. Her eyes only widened a bit though, and that drew a sincere smile from CENSORED, as she merely sat up a bit more, one of her hands pulling at the blood damp sheets.

"No screams? No cries for help? No tears for the man you've shared a bed with?"

He saw it then, that defiance, a fire behind her eyes, that had been smoldering there for years. Her hand gripped the bloody sheets with white knuckles, squeezing more blood from it.

"Why scream or cry when I've just been granted freedom?"

==========

Hawkins Grime stood before her now. His armor heaved with breathing, the arms and legs slithered with mechanical musculature beneath the ornate plates. The heat was oppressive and he was obviously the source at this point. His cape shifted behind him in the hot wind. His clawed gauntlets closed and opened slowly as if he itched to make use of them.

"Indulge me then... brave girl. Explain your being here. So young... and so alone..."

The Mandolorian was looking from her to him, as if intrigued himself as to why Grime was even bothering.

[Vala'drella]

The first time she had witnessed death that she could remember was when she had been a mere toddler. Someone had attacked her first owner and her adoptive mother had saved his life, losing a hand in the event. Vala remembered the blood splattering and the screams and the violence. She remembered how her Rattataki guardian had told her to be brave and that every day life prevailed over death, that it was enemy's blood that got shed, was a victory, a gift. She had also told her that she had to live her life at the best she could, because one never knew when her days would end.

She gave no attention to the massacre unfolding behind the armored figure before her. She felt he was the one in charge and calling shots. He was the one speaking to her so she would answer.

"I'm the errand girl, sir," she replied politely but without fear. "These three were supposed to deliver goods for my employer."

[Hawkins Grime]

The face within the face within helm strained it's rictus grin where no one could see it but the groan of pain that involuntarily came from the armored man sounded like metal grating on metal.

"Who is your... master then?"

One metal boot fell and rested against the lip of the ramp to her ship, standing that close now. The green eyes set into the helmet burned with an intensity as if the coming storm was barely contained within them.

The Mandolorian's patience had run thin and he stormed off towards the speeder. The twi'lek with one leg shifted slightly, obviously still alive for the time being. The Mandolorian said something to the droid which then lumbered over and made jelly out of the green skinned corpse. The Mandolorian opened the speeder and began to rummage through it, inspecting the contents.

[Vala'drella]

If it wasn't for her adoptive mother, Vala would have never played by the Chiss rule and ever returned to her master after her first errand. Yet, she didn't want to give up on her guardian. In a way, the Rattataki bodyguard had tried to hint at Vala just running for her life, but the younger woman had never crossed that line.

It was ironic because she didn't fear for her own death, but she didn't want to cause trouble to her adoptive mother, who never left their owner's side back in Chiss space.

She held the vibrant green gaze staring at her, as if straight into her soul. It was somewhat less piercing than the countless crimson stares she had got since she was a little girl.

"My master is Senator Virt'idair'gaingou from the Chiss Ascendancy."

[Hawkins Grime]

The chest of the armor heaved, as if the armored thing had made the gesture out of contemplation.

"Chiss Ascendancy. What does he want with these things? How much was he willing to pay? Since I now own them."

==========

"Why did I bother negotiating with that group of dead beats? Because I had the time."

She shook her head at his answer.

"You just like playing with your food before you eat it, that's all."

CENSORED grinned, showing his teeth, shrugging and shaking his head.

"And? Some things will never change."

[Vala'drella]

"She was willing to pay fifty thousand for the crate of liquors and the paintings," Vala replied in a tone that indicated she had gone through such things before and was rather used to it, even when her life was on the line.

Her owner had interest in non Chiss cultures and some technology, which could serve her devious plans to take down a foe or two when the time was right.

"If these deads did what they were supposed to, there should be a smaller secure crate with the bottles that hides two small electronic listening device ready to be used," she added, because if he went through them and found the other crate, her lies would have been stupid. "It was worth a twenty thousand extra if it was there."

[Hawkins Grime]

The Mandolorian came around from the back of the speeder, holding the small crate between both hands. The metal fiend looked to the Mandolorian before turning back to the woman.

"What stops me from making the deal, downloading your credits and then ending you as well? ... A chained pet, so willingly chained. You are not afraid of me... you've been chained well. Too well."

His shoulders rolled back, taking another step forward, one armored hand reaching out for her throat.

[Vala'drella]

Vala didn't move, still staring. The faintest of smirks eventually curved her lips.

"You've asked questions instead of shooting first. I've answered. Common courtesy, so don't start assuming why I do what I do."

Her tone was calm, unimpressed. She had seen people toy with their pawns too many times before to think so high of people so quickly.

"If you want to kill me, go ahead. Do it. You have tactical superiority and back ups. Just spare me the theatrics."

[Hawkins Grime]

His metal fingers, uncomfortably warm but not burning yet, closed around her throat. His high-horned helm shook slowly.

"Now who's assuming? This isn't about theatrics."

The sneering emphasis he put into that last word hurt the corrupted carcass to even say with such tenacity.

"This is... It's all about chains."

"A'den."

He snarled, looking back at the Mandolorian who still held the box.

"Dala ganar cyare'se. Di'kutla dala be'mircir. Jareor dala."

The Mandolorian shrugged setting the box on the ground with the lid open facing towards the woman. He sounded exasperated and tired.

"Akaan linibar waadas."

"Boss, I agree with the kid on this one. We've got a possible inside line here. You can break chains later."

Grime's fingers trembled at her throat, as if fighting the urge to crush it. The shudder was a visible tremor that ran from his hand and along the length of his arm and to his spine. Hawkins wanted to ignore the fool boy and the voice of his pilot flying the ship above them. His voice was a barely contained whisper.

"Fifty thousand, for all of it, even the device. I want to meet your mistress."

"Boss... This is Chiss-"

His head twitched to the side, killing the link.

[Vala'drella]

For some mysterious reasons, Vala healed well from physical wounds. It had allowed her to hide most of the beatings she had suffered from the Senator's lackeys. She knew it was the same for her Rattattaki guardian. They never spoke of it, because overall they had a good life when it came to their slave condition, but they still were property and behind her stoic and impeccable attitude, their owner was no better than most slave masters. She had some scars from certain events, but violence didn't terrify Vala; she knew it was part of life. What she hated, as she had stated it, was theatrics. If you wanted to do something, whatever it was, do it, don't bother adding dramatic effects. That was pathetic.

She remained silent until the armored figure spoke of an offer. That would prove interesting.

"You won't be able to bring your men and ship to our destination. But you can leave them close to Chiss territory, right outside of the radar's reach from the Senator's hide. I'll take you and no one else aboard my ship. More life signs would be suspicious and wouldn't get you anywhere to meeting my mistress."

She was willing to go with this deal. She had no idea what would happen if they pulled this off, and truth be told, she didn't care what might happen to her owner. She knew that where they would meet would have both her mother and the senator present, so that could offer brilliant opportunities. It was worth a shot.

[Hawkins Grime]

"Gaanaylir."

Hawkins Grime ignored the remark, releasing his gauntlet from around the woman's throat and turning to face the Mandolorian and the droid.

"Load it up. Then get back to the ship. Now."

The droid turned to the speeder, ripping off the hood before reaching in with its grips still dripping blood and entrails, Chroma picked up the crate from inside and carried it over to the woman's ship. The Mandolorian was not as helpful, closing the smaller case with his boot before approaching Grime.

"Aikiyc gaanaylir..."

He stuck his hand out and Grime hesitated at first before reaching out and grasping the forearm of the Mandolorian in return. The Mandolorian dropped the informal salute and then put both hands back on his high power rifle and headed back to where his speeder bike was, still leaving the case on the ground for the woman to pick up.

[Vala'drella]

Vala watched what happened next and didn't make a move to get aboard her ship before her guest was ready to do as well. She wouldn't try to make a run for things but showing good faith wouldn't hurt in this weird situation.

Once they were good to go, she picked the case up and led the way aboard the boarding ramp, placing it in the cargo bay, before locking the hatch. Fidgeting in her pocket, she then produced a credstick and handed it to the armored man. "Here's your payment for the goods."

She then headed straight to the cockpit, and prepared for take off. Once the man joined her, she went through the final procedures and explained what was awaiting them.

"Once we get close enough to system, which will take a while as we're on the other end of the bloody galaxy, I'll send message for meet up. The Senator and her closer security always meet with me in a small depot at the edge of Chiss space." Her mistress didn't like others to know about her dirty little secrets.

[Hawkins Grime]

The woman handed the credstick to Grime who turned and flicked it at Orar in irritation.

"Laandur."

The Mandolorian turned on his heel quickly, gripping his rifle as if he'd almost take the chance but instead caught the stick just in time, glancing at it before looking back at Grime.

"Ret'urcye mhi A'den."

The armored man ignored the boy, his cloak catching the wind as he turned towards the ramp and followed the woman up the boarding ramp and into her ship. Orar watched the ramp go, still listening to e'Drain's string of curses after being muted to the boss.

"He knows where in the bloody darkest depths we're going, right?! The bloody Chiss Ascendancy."

"Udesii, besom."

"Stuff it, kid. You want to see something, just wait. An entire people just sitting in the Unknown Sector, waiting. For what? Who knows!? Who knows anything about the Chiss that they don't want us to know?"

"A'den brings his akaan wherever he goes. He has a haa'it."

"Whatever. Just get up here. You too, deathbot."

"EN ROUTE."

==========

Given the close quarters of the ship, Grime removed his helmet to reveal a face that appeared as if it had been sculpted from marble. The face was too perfect and it twitched occasionally across the span of his face. The off white of the skin hue had an almost blue tinge to it, as if there was no blood flow, simply because it was just the next layer of his exoskeleton provided by the witch's Mandolorian technicians and Averre's autistic mastery of machinery. The eyes were still organic, set deep in the face, lined in blackish blood. The ice blue eyes that regarded the woman as they entered the cockpit and she spoke. He stood, refusing to sit, unaware if she actually had other crew aboard the small cutter. The cockpit quickly became warmer with his presence there, not uncomfortably so just yet, but noticeable.

"She... Your mistress trusts you then? As much as anyone trusts... an animal they have leashed?"

[Vala'drella]

She kept going through the pre-flight even as he refused to sit. It was his decision, not hers. The engines roared as she was about to take off.

"She knows I always come back for my mother," Vala reluctantly admitted. "I'm the only one she has that can easily blend in outside of Chiss territory," she added with a wry smirk. "So yeah, she trusts me. The only one who knows my story for having another life sign aboard is bantha dren will be one of her bodyguards, my mother." The Rattataki and the near-human had some little secrets that could serve them in due time and now would be the case for one of them.

She took the freighter off the ground and angled it to soar into the atmosphere.

[Hawkins Grime]

Grime's hand braced himself as he held onto the chair in front of him as the freighter picked up and hit the atmosphere.

"Ah, your anchor. Your mother."

The situation clicked together for Hawkins and he grinned which looked more like he was gritting his teeth while his lips pulled back into a thin sneer, revealing too white teeth set in black gums. Ever since Grime's... ascension from his previous life, he found himself thrust beyond the domain he had only ever known, even as vast as it had seemed back then and had found himself a far more primordial purpose since then. He glanced down at the helm in his hand that he held by one of the long, curved horns.

These Chiss... As another person, the race was not a complete unknown, blue skin, red eyes, rare enough in Hutt space. Grime could not remember a time that he had truly encountered one beyond mere passing. In some ways, what little he had heard of their prejudices, it reminded him of Hutts. He could feel the flesh beneath the exoskeleton quiver as the rage coursed through his body for a moment.

"Guards. Any Force users? What weapons? Tell me about these Chiss. You and your mother like licking their boots for scraps from their tables?"

[Vala'drella]

"Frak off."

Vala was dead serious when she stared at the man. "You want in? Then you stop insulting me."

Without her sending messages and knowing where to go and the access codes she had memorized, he wouldn't get in Chiss territory and the depot. He wouldn't get any information. And it was high time he got that he wasn't the one holding the leash right now. If he wanted to discard her and try his luck against the Senator on his own, she'd laugh from the big void that came after life.

[Hawkins Grime]

His blue eyes locked with hers, the pain lining them hiding the sliver of mad laughter there. So young. That defiance. Grime resisted the shuddering impulse to fight her over anything, nothing. The sharp inhaling sounded like wet wheezing that followed her retort. Grime closed his eyes, the temperature spiking before it settled, even less than before and staying there. This was why Hawkins kept e'Drain and Orar around. The bitterness and rage that festered within the exoskeleton was ill equipped when it came to simple civility. To think that in his past life, he had even been described as charismatic, venomously so. Hawkins breathed out, his artificial tongue pressing against the back of teeth.

"..."

Grime took another moment to settle his ire before speaking again. Prioritizing what he could manage.

"Guards. Force users. Weapons."

[Vala'drella]

She didn't look away. She didn't care that he was a kriffin walking heater for whatever reason. Heck, he'd make a fortune for fancy clients on Hoth or in any glacial area. The thought briefly amused her.

She waited for his reply, the ship now away from the planet. Within the next thirty minutes they should be able to enter hyperspace.

"No Force users. The Senator will have her three closest aides, and the security will include my mother, a Rattataki, three Chiss assassins, one Noghri, Irohk. Irohk is older but I've seen him beat well trained Chiss security officers before. The depot itself has a fifteen member crew, most slaves working under three Chiss lieutenants. No external weapons, but a contingent of security droids was delivered the day after I left."

[Hawkins Grime]

Grime moved and sat in the seat beside her, leaning back cautiously.

"So... how are you going to explain... my presence then? What's their... likely reaction?"

==========

"Who's the friend?"

"A friend, tha's all, alright?"

"Well your friend ain't welcome, ya drugged up-"

The small black blade that pressed up into the under meat of the bouncer's jaw was segmented in order to break off in pieces within whatever unfortunate victim fell prey to it.

"Now, now. She just said I was her friend."

CENSORED leaned in, winked, then slammed the knife upwards and snapped off the tip in his throat.

==========

Grime ran a metal hand through his black-blue hair, his armored chest heaving with a sigh that his exoskeleton could not prevent exaggerating.

"How long until we get there?"

[Vala'drella]

"I'll explain the second form aboard the ship by saying that one of the Senator's contacts finally made time to see her," Vala replied matter-of-factly. "She had been asking about this person for months. Said contact is dead but she ignores it. I have kept the charade alive since then. Didn't know when it would come handy." She might have always come back because of her mother who was never allowed to go away from the Senator, but she learned many tricks over the years and had her own secrets and private assets.

"She met the contact in question only once and many years ago, so you play this however you want once we disembark," she added.

"We'll be there in thirty seven hours."

[Hawkins Grime]

Grime sighed, his mouth open at an odd angle for a face before his teeth gritted together again.

"Thirty seven hours...? What are we to do with so much time together?"

He gave her no immediate chance to respond as he stood back up, taking his helmet again and stepping to the back of the cockpit. He glanced at the navcharts and readings before looking back to her. Chiss space. Something about the girl's mannerisms maybe, it was indicative of the Chiss? A practical sense that accepted death as it came. Grime felt an opportunity rising, something he felt was nearly just within his grasp, but as to what, Hawkins assumed he would find out in approximately 37 hours.

[Vala'drella]

"I'm fairly sure you could go out and push to see if we can make it in thirty-six hours instead," Vala replied wryly.

She stayed in the cockpit until they had entered hyperspace, and then she made her way to the galley because she could eat a rancor with how bloody hungry she was.

She knew that he had to keep her alive to make it to their destination, so she didn't bother playing suspicious hostess. With the armor he was wearing, she didn't even know if he could eat like a normal living being, so she didn't offer. If he wanted something, he would ask.

[Hawkins Grime]

Grime did not immediately follow. The flesh inside his armor roiled. The image of her eyes frantically pleading as he crushed the front of her jaw with his hands was one he did not want to immediately dismiss. The vents in his back hissed slightly with another sigh as Grime felt the inside of the exoskeleton compensate for his distraught organics. Hawkins glanced down at his metal fist, closing his eyes; the suit hissing violently as he fought back the rage that waited there in his idle contemplation. The objects embedded within him pulsed off beat to his own heart beat. Not right now.

==========

The metal framed scarecrow stood, stutter stepping to a stable stance.

"Good, good. Standing on your own! The synchronization will take much longer but you're making remarkable process!"

The gurgling and hissing that came from the black dome that encapsulated the head of the walking corpse was just as intelligible as it had begun since the body had regained enough consciousness to bother with any remarks.

"Now, now, Mr. Grime. Practice makes perfect. Your associates paid in full for your recovery. You're going to need quite some time to practice with your current state. Don't stir yourself up, the inner stress will literally tear you apart."

===========

Hawkins stopped outside the galley where she was preparing food.

"Why do you and your mother remain?"

[Vala'drella]

"She can't leave," Vala replied sternly. She didn't feel like sharing details. If her mother had been able to leave without being one hundred percent sure she'd get killed in the process, because of some sneaky technology, mother and daughter would have already made a run for it, regardless of how the Senator always kept the Rattataki warrior by her side.

"I'm the one going outside Chiss borders," she simply added, in between heartful bites. Gods, she was starving. It amused her how she tended to bring religion and spirituality in all that crap. Frankly, she didn't believe in bloody higher powers but it was just speech habits, really.

"So, interested in Chiss matters, hmm?" She casually answered, not really thinking she'd get an answer. For the little she had gathered about this stranger, he kept his cards to himself.

[Hawkins Grime]

His steel blue eyes slid from the nothing he was examining in the hallway to the woman in the galley. He could feel his wretched core shuddering within the exoskeleton. At times the pain was so pervasive that it seemed to have a detached feeling to it as if he was watching someone else's corpse shiver with it's last throes of life. What did this girl know? Who was she to presume as much of anything about him? Why hadn't Grime just smeared her across the inside of her ship already? The answer to her question answered his last question. He was interested but not to the extent that she likely thought. His interest drove to a depth that surpassed the details and circumstances. Whether it was the Chiss or anyone else, it came down to the principle. Grime released his clenched fist and slid his gaze down to his metal hand, examining the waves of heat that he could barely see exuding from his exoskeleton. Hawkins involuntarily swallowed more black bile into the recycling systems of the exoskeleton before he spoke, his voice slick with it like oil.

"Hm... The Chiss Ascendancy. You can elaborate more upon them then? I know they.. have blue skin with red eyes and while they're hard to catch... they still bleed... and until now that's all I've needed to know."

Hawkins turned to face her, the black liquid rimming his eyes. Silly, little bird.

==========

"I had no idea-"

"No idea what?"

"I should've never..."

"You're right. You should have never."

CENSORED slid his the knife up her throat, his other hand against her forehead, holding it back against the wall before he ripped the knife downwards. It had been the principle of the matter at that point.

[Vala'drella]

The way he asked questions about the Ascendancy was somewhat interesting. She hadn't known how familiar he was given his decision but he didn't seem to be so much informed about them. Maybe it was a ploy though she still answered the question, in between eating with solid appetite.

"They have advanced technology, some similar to the rest of the galaxy, some vastly different. They mostly keep to themselves and having strong interest for other regions and cultures isn't well considered, which is why the Senator has me run errands discreetly. They are a very stoic species. They are convinced of their superiority. Most of them are extremely calculating and they can be good at manipulation. They aren't prone to strong emotional display or gut-inspired decisions as I saw in several other aliens during my travels."

[Hawkins Grime]

Grime tilted his head to the side.

"And you... errand girl, benefit how by allowing an outsider like me an unexpected audience with your... Senator?"

He could see the impact that growing up with the Chiss had on the girl and he found it remotely insufferable, punishable. Not yet. How then was she calculating this scenario? What was her endgame? Grime had an idea, a few enticing hypotheses but it mattered not in many ways but for the principle at stake.

[Vala'drella]

"You have your goals. I have mine," Vala replied cooly. Since she didn't know exactly what he had in mind for this meeting, she didn't have a firmly set course about what she could do once they reached the depot.

Frankly, she had no idea how this would play out. She knew he might kill her as well, but she would make the best of what time she had remaining, whether a few hours or many years.

[Hawkins Grime]

The slick, wet sound, like something slapping against a solid surface was Grime's version of chuckling.

"Fine... then."

The mental image of prying her jaw open with his fingers and seizing her tongue was vividly at the front of his mind, the whispering of patience diminished behind it.

"If free of the Chiss, what would you and your mother do otherwise?"

[Vala'drella]

"We'd leave Chiss space and find places to earn money with our skills." Vala replied in a matter-of-fact tone.

Her mother was an outstanding warrior and could easily find another job as a bodyguard or some kind of mercenary.

"I've spend time in the galaxy enough to make some contacts over the years." She had some aces up her sleeve, but it all boiled down to how her mother's life was tied to the senator's, for they had never been able to find the switch to the dangerous implant in her mother's body.