The Akurian Queen

That was what he needed to hear. None of this stoic for-want-of-sympathy nonsense while they waited like fattened nunas before the slaughter.

He slid to his haunches, testing the filthy floor with a finger to see if they could write on it. Not really.

"I'm all ears, soldier."

It could be stupid and impossible, but they were taking all suggestions. Whatever they picked, they probably only had one shot.

It was comforting in a way, that Dage and Kori had started in on a plan. It was also rather expected. Expected as well was Dan's reaction. She knew that the man was not one to sit about waiting on death to come calling, and she watched out of her peripheral vision as he ran a finger across the floor.

Dage as well moved from the cot, crouching beside the General.

"It ain't nothin' fancy, but we are gonna need s'Il in better shape than she is now," Dage gave a look over his shoulder to the Jedi, offering her a conspiratorial wink.

"It'll make it easier to fool them into thinking she ain't the only one with powers."

Dan started getting a notion of Dage's plan.

"Put up a front, make them divide their attention. I like that."

He looked to s'Il, frowning.

"Of course, there's getting to that point. Even if I knew what they shot her full of, I'd have to know how to break through it."

Dan approached his Jedi companion, kneeling over her. Suddenly he slapped her face lightly.

"Lok. Lok!"

There was only a brief moment of inactivity as her mind registered the fact that Dan had given her face a gentle slap. It was such a shock that even if she'd not been drugged her reaction would've been the same. Of course in the next fraction of a second she surged forward clumsily, her limbs still functioning sluggishly.

"Here," she intoned, as if back at the Temple.

Her perch, now a precarious one, was dependent solely on Dan, and as if suddenly aware that she was indeed not back on Coruscant, the Lupine gave a shiver.

"I'm cold," she whispered.

His jacket was off in an instant, and with Dage's help, they eased the Lupine up and helped to work her into it. Hopefully feeling warm would break the hold of whatever was in her. Still, they didn't have much time.

Holding her firmly by the shoulders, the rebel leader spoke with urgency.

"I need you. Eyes on me. Talk to me about something."

"You don't need me," was her only reply.

The immediate warmth provided by Dan's uniform jacket was welcome, though fleeting all the same due to their surroundings.

"Is your survival so dependent upon some stretched-thin Jedi padawan... "

It was the first time - and in the presence of anyone but herself even - that she relegated herself to anything but a student.

"The transmundane in this situation is immaterial."

Her hands came up, each going to frame her companion's face in an initially fierce grip that melted into the contours of his craggy features.

Her single eye locked hazily with his as she conveyed through visual stimuli what her voice could not.

And yet through it all; through the drugs that she'd been given, the thought still remained and raged in her mind.

"...he took your ring... "

Why does it matter was on the tip of his tongue, but quickly banished. His hold on her never wavered.

"I know."

It was a symbol to him, obviously, but he wondered why she brought it up. Was it something she was now giving thought to?

"I'll get it back, but I need you, Lok. We're all in this. You're gonna have to fight this thing inside you. I need you to reach out and feel. Reach out and see."

With her hands still on his face, s'Il locked eyes with him as she registered his words.

Reach out and see.

"Reach out and see," she echoed with a whisper as her eye shifted, her line of sight moving past Dan and to the far wall. She inhaled, drawing deep from the cold air and letting it seep in and throughout her being. Her overtaxed metabolism settled a small bit, allowing her thoughts to reorder themselves into more coherence.

An even voice, though quiet, finally emerged.

"I am here."

She exhaled.

"I am here."

Dan couldn't know for sure, save for the implicit trust he had in her and that look in her eye that possibly only he could see.

He smiled, giving her shoulder a squeeze.

"There you are."

Glancing back to Dage, he gave a nod. Lok was back with them.

"Alright, let's hear it out."

He tossed his attention back to the door fleetingly, to make sure no trouble was headed their way.

"Nothing grand," Dage began, sidling in close and keeping his voice low.

"Just something to get 'em wond'ring and catch 'em off guard."

The Lupine angled her head, blinking slowly as she halfway looked at Dage. Years of fighting alongside him and Kori gave her a keen understanding of the way he thought, and s'Il had a healthy notion of what was on his mind.

"Rhen Var."

Dage grinned wolfishly.

"Exactly," he gave a conspiratorial look to Dan, "You up to playing the part of an undercover Jedi again?"

Dan gave his best mocking 'mind trick' finger wave, trying it on for the audience.

"A little something like that, isn't it?"

A flash of a confident grin, and he looked to Lok.

"Can you follow my cues?"

It had been a while since they'd done something this stupid, but back then the odds were pretty awful as well.

A hint of her old unimpressed smile returned, barely visible but still there all the same.

"I am able."

Her hands moved to pull the edges of his jacket closed in the hopes of preserving body heat.

"Please... do not act like some... " she paused, using the moment to not only search for the correct words but to inwardly settle a small bit more.

"... some side-show act," she gave him a warning glance, "As you did last time."

"That's the trick to every good magic trick and every good con though, isn't it? Make them look where you want them to look."

Dan laughed, which was a punctuated huff in light of the otherwise seriousness around them. Dage likewise enjoyed the moment.

"Alright, I won't be such a ham. Just make sure it's convincing. You ready to get on your feet?"

"No."

It was said with conviction, and the Jedi resituated herself on the small cot, leaning back against the wall once more as her gaze went to the sound of approaching footsteps coming closer. Through half-lidded eyes she watched as a stormtrooper appeared.

Without a word three small wrapped packages were tossed through the bars in the general direction of Dan.

For his part, Dage managed to snatch one from the air before it hit the ground.

"Much obliged, friend," he grinned, hefting the small package in a mock salute.

The stormtrooper gave no reaction save for turning on his heal and disappearing back down the narrow corridor.

"I know a last meal when I see one. Force knows I've seen plenty since I started running with you two."

Dan unwrapped the first one he picked up, spent a moment to inspect it, and passed it on to Lok. Maybe after a bite to eat she'd have her strength.

"Last meal? Nah. They haven't yet pulled out all the stops yet. When you get ice cream, that's when you know your number's been pulled."

Dan unwrapped his own parcel and frowned.

"I'd actually kinda like some ice cream."

Holding the ration bar, s'Il made a pained face. Apparently the Empire ordered their rations from the same supplier that the rebels did; or, more likely the rebels just stole the Imperial stocks. Either way she found herself staring at the same meal that she'd stared at when they'd first been sent off into this mess.

"I'm not hungry," came the quick reply as the 'food' was dropped into her lap. She even dusted her fingers to remove any leftovers that might've stuck to her skin.

She caught the look that Dan sent her way, but chose to ignore it in favor of staring through the bars of their cell.

Ten minutes later found her still staring, the ration bar untouched in her lap.

Twenty minutes later the unmistakeable sound of a body being dragged across the ground reached her ears, and the Lupine tested the air as two stormtroopers hefted Kori's frame through the cell door, neatly dropping him in a pile.

"Hospitality a dyin' art, ain't it boys," Dage slid over to his battered friend as the door was shut.

For his part, Kori gave a grunt as he rolled to his side, spitting a small stream of blood through split lips. With one eye already swollen, an ugly cut along his cheeck, and a bruise at his temple, it was apparent that he'd gotten the short straw. He winked at Dan, gave a cough, and spit again.

"H'llo Sweet'art. Didja miss me?"

"Looks like they improved your looks."

With a sympathetic look, Dan passed the ration Lok had refused over to the man. He likewise didn't feel much like eating.

"We're in a jam here, but we've got a plan. We're gonna put the old con on again, and try to give our captors something to think about in terms of their Jedi problems."

They eased Kori up to a sitting position.

"I'm not expecting you to run a marathon, but we need you sooner than later."

"Good news, that."

Kori picked at his bar, not entirely sure he truly wanted to eat. He gave a lazy look to s'Il, waving it at her.

"Ain't hungry then, ya crazy witchlady?"

For her part, s'Il hmphed a silent chuckle.

"I am not hungry for that."

Kori snorted. Like Dage, he was lean and hardened from years on the run and many meals that often consisted of less than what he now held up in his hand. His black, disheveled hair fell into his face, and he swept a hand up to push his wild mane behind one ear.

"Y'got problems, then. This right 'ere issa king's meal."

"I am sorry that I missed your coronation."

With a cheeky, albeit bloody grin, the rebel took a bite.

"Your loss then," he got out between mouthfulls.

"We ain't goin' nowheres till mornin', so make yerselves comfy."

Half-scooting towards a wall that he could relax against, Kori settled himself beside Dage while giving the other man a pat to the knee.

"It's you'n me tonight, Sugar," and with a casual, offhand look to Dan and s'Il, he went on.

"You two jus' keep it down, eh? T'morrow's a big day an' we all need our beauty sleep."

"You the most of us, so you'd better pack it in toot sweet."

Dan turned to Lok and tended to her, making sure she eased down and was comfortable in his jacket. Finding a spot that wasn't so drafty, Dan led Lok to it and they both bedded down, ever-wary of the door and what trouble may come from it.

Reluctantly, he went to sleep.

* * *

The first thing she was aware of was the biting cold. It seeped into ever pore of her being, chilling to the bone. Even through the jacket that she'd been bundled in, s'Il felt her body shiver despite all efforts to control her movements. Even Dan's closeness did not help, and as her awareness grew, she could tell that he too was not immune to the temperature of their cell.

The second thing that the Lupine was aware of was clarity. Her restless sleep had replenished most of her lost functions, and with relief the young Jedi stretched out with her mind as if being set free.

Of course in the following seconds she had precious little time to gather any sort of mental bearing as the cell door banged open.

A river of white flooded through the doorway, descending upon the four with steadfast intent. Kori and Dage offered as much resistance as they were able, though it was a shortlived battle as both were pulled roughly to their feet and strongarmed against the wall. For her part, she at least had the presence of mind enough to feign her drug-induced haze from the day before, and she felt gloved hands grab both her arms. In desperation s'Il grasped a handful of Dan's shirt, frantic to keep from being separated.

He'd slept fitfully along with her, struggling keep exposure to the cold at minimum. His joints ached with the exhaustion of sleep that was mostly denied, and numbed still by the bite in the air. Still, when the shock of activity roused him awake, adrenaline warmed him the rest of the way and he shoved at the guard nearest him, which prompted a baton to be rammed into his midsection.

Doubled over in a heap, Dan heaved, providing little further resistance as a pair of hands horse-collared him to his feet and shoved him roughly onward.

He didn't say a word to Lok or his other companions. There wasn't anything that needed to be said yet.

She was dead weight, making her 'escorts' drag her from the cell and down the corridor. With her head hung low and her disheveled hair spilling into her face, the Lupine kept her eyes closed. It was for the best.

She heard a door whisk open, and in the next instant a blast of cold air assaulted her. Unconsciously her body jerked in defense against the sting of the morning breeze, and in retaliation she was given a none-too-gentle shake.

They were out in the open now. For as little protection from the elements that their prison had offered, it was still better than the raw cold that came from direct exposure. In the distance she could hear marching boots over hard-packed snow. It was not a comforting sound, and the Jedi gave a furtive glance upward through tawny strands of hair.

She spied the base's commanding officer, Durrin, and another squad of stormtroopers in formation behind him.

The chill of the morning air was instantly forgotten as she recognized their manner of execution rising up behind the Imperial and his soldiers in the form of four single posts, and she felt her stomach sink into a tangle of knots.

"Well at least they're pragmatic."

Dan groused as he was being frog-marched to his death.

"A good old fashioned firing squad. Iconic, and economical. All we need now are a few stims for the condemned."

A few shared glances between Kori and Dage, and he narrowed his eyes against the blinding snow at the silhouettes beyond the gunmen.

"Least we're gonna see it comin'," Kori was as honest as ever in the face of his impending execution.

For her part s'Il only let out a tired groan.

"Y'know Dan," Dage made it a point to be as uncooperative as he possibly could be, which yielded only rougher treatment as a baton was jabbed into his side. The blonde winced, his body instinctively shying away from the blow.

"Now might be a good time t'ask your mule-stubborn girl again."

A ways off, he watched. State executions - even this far from the Core, were still enjoyable in their own way if one knew how best to deal with the realities of what was about to happen. Torik had no dog in this fight. Beholden to the credits that now populated his accounts, he enjoyed the comfort of an early morning Corellian whiskey coupled with a fine-cut Mimban. From behind the heady, spice-scented haze, he grinned in self-satisfaction as his eyes never strayed from the group of four being brought out into the courtyard.

Dan winced. Then again, it was now or eternity. She probably wasn't gonna get any less stubborn as a ghost.

"Lok, ring or not, I don't give a damn. Marry me."

It was low enough to be out of earshot of Beirhannon and any of the Imperial goons, but Dage and Kori no doubt heard. Might as well have friends to witness.

Inwardly she grimaced, giving a rough shake of her head as she was pulled up the shallow steps onto the low platform. Through the cold, she at least managed to add a croaked voice to her displeasure.

"No."

Kori and Dage however felt likewise, and their voices rose in chorus to call out to the Imperial commander.

"Oi! You with the black uniform!"

"Needin' some officiatin' over here!"

As the two rebels were themselves wrested upward, they craned their necks in the direction of Commander Durrin who - with a somewhat tired expression - stared back.

As Kori was manhandled toward one of the posts, Dage took over.

"Got us a happy couple what needs marryin'-"

"I'm th'best man!" Kori was able to chime in, which left Dage with only one other option. It was one he happily embraced with a care-free grin.

"... an' I'm th'maid o' honor!"

The comic relief was, for once, a distraction. Dan looked fully at the love of his life.

"You mean to tell me there isn't an ounce of regret in you? You're willing to take that to your grave? With the way we feel about each other?"

There wasn't much time left. If he died, that was one thing. Not hearing a yes before that was another.

Propped against one of the posts, she remained motionless as binders were fitted to her wrists. Stubbornly the Lupine stared ahead, a pained scowl marring her features. Kori and Dage continued their heckling even as they too were fitted with binders.

"Stop asking me. This is not something I wish to discuss right now. And frankly, I would think that you wouldn't want to discuss it right now, either."

Her jaw set, and she shifted her wrists in the binders she now so grumpily wore.

"Considering the circumstances and all of that."

Commander Durrin moved up to stand on the platform, and pulling out a box of stims, removed one for himself before offering Kori and Dage the same. Cheerily they accepted.

The Imperial moved on to Dan, holding the box out with one of the stims extended.

The Rebel commander took the stim offered, and waited for it to be lit. The Imperial moved on, again giving them a little breathing room.

"Some other time you'd rather talk about it?"

Dan laughed a bit, the stim in his mouth shaking from the act of doing so. Stubborn heiffer to the end, she was. And worst of all, he loved that. The stormtroopers waited for the order, like aloof statues bearing only passing witness to this very personal moment.

"This is the part in the sabacc round where you lay all your cards on the table, so that's what I'm doing."

He glanced back at s'Il, as they both stood ready to die.

"Marry me."

Another smile and a shrug.

"You'd deny a dying man's last wish?"

"I... "

"Answer the man, girl." Durrin's voice was impatient. This entire encounter was turning into nothing but a farce, and he was already unhappy about the paperwork he would have to draft.

Screwing her face into an angry scowl, the Lupine turned a very nearly venomous glare to Dan.

"Fine. Yes, I'll marry you."

From the moment the two rebels had begun shouting at Durrin, Torik stepped out to make his way toward the platform, and he reached the periphery just as the Jedi gave her answer. He smiled at the grudging acceptance she'd allowed.

He lifted his glass to Dan in a congratulatory, yet mocking salute.

The smile on Dan's face might otherwise be permanent if not for the wrinkles that tried to betray it. He caught the mocking salute from Beirhannon out of his periphery, but paid it no mind. He'd take a mocking salutation at face value, because not even a blaster bolt would undo this.

"I'll be yours forever, Loklorien s'Ilancy."

All that remained was for Dan and Lok to write that forever.

Durrin drew from his stim, gave a hmph, and turned to regard the Jedi woman for a moment. She appeared docile enough despite her vocalizations, and the Imperial gave it no more thought as his eyes went to Dan.

"I'd ask if you had a ring, but something tells me not to expect that much from you."

Another pull from the stim.

"Nevertheless. Ignoring the fact that I've never done this before, I'll foregoe the normal flowery language and feel-good beginnings.

"Do you like her."

"Most days, sure."

Dan watched the changeable pout on Lok's lips warm somewhat, and looked back at the Imperial officer.

"But I love her every day, and love trumps whatever hand gets dealt."

It was a surprising amount of exposed honesty to an enemy at death's door, that was for sure. Maybe the threat of imminent demise made it easier to put into words.

Durrin gave a mild snort.

"Truer words never've been spoken," he grunted before quickly going on.

"Alright then, you love her. Will you take her as yours, and keep her for all time through sickness and health and until death do you part?"

The irony was at least not lost on the Imperial, as the slight grin on his features showed.

The bleak humor in the ad-hoc oath at least tugged at the corners of his mouth. Dan simply nodded.

"I do."

Durrin then shifted his attention to the Lupine.

"And you? Do you like him? Love? And whatever you want to say of him before witnesses."

This was at least a curious bit of last request before an execution. Despite any practical notion to simply get on with it, he felt strangely compelled to see this meager request through. They weren't barbarians, after all.

"I like him when he's not pestering me," the Jedi grumbled out, though at least her expression was a shade warmer than the weather.

Angling her head to afford Dan a look, she went on.

"He's always been with me through everything... "

One last pang of memory, a glimpse of Zem standing in the lift at the Temple during their escape from the Purge and reaching a hand out to her. And then he was gone, swept away on the biting Akurian wind to be replaced by Dan. He'd not left, and had stayed at her side through all they'd gone through. Dan, who'd given her shelter and comfort, warmth and closeness.

The Lupine gave a ghostly smile.

"I love him."

It was enough for Durrin, and the Imperial nodded.

"Very well. You both love each other. You've declared that love before witnesses, and I am confident that the both of you will find happiness in the short time you have left. Does anyone object to these two coming together?"

A look to Kori and Dage only returned wide, carefree smiles, and a mocking look back to the firing squad yielded not a word. He turned back.

"Then on my authority, I declare you to be man and wife," his eyes went to Dan.

"You may kiss your bride in the afterlife."

And without another word, Commander Durrin turned on his heel and made his way down off the platform.

Another salute - this time with the Mimban - and Torik finished off the dregs of his morning drink. He gave a smug grin to the four rebels as they stood, waiting for the sound of blaster rifles.

Another puff of his cigar, and he took a few steps back as Durrin stepped from the platform.

It seemed that both he and the rebel commander would get what they wanted; Dan his yes, and Torik the prospect of credits for the ring still safely tucked away in its' box, nestled safely within the inner pocket of his overcoat.

It was time.

Dan looked ahead, staring down the line of troopers who would be their executioners.

"No regrets."

It was as much a testamonial statement as it was an imperative to his comrades. His left arm reached out, finding the right hand of the woman adjacent to him. Their hands clasped.

"Ready..."

In that embrace at the edge of oblivion, his index finger tapped against her hand three times.

"...aim...."

His sign was acted upon without hesitation, and s'Il closed her eyes, her head bowed as her awareness stretched out with invisible fingers. So many bodies, and only one chance... only one option presented itself and her mind focused with singular precision.

Drawing inward, the Lupine channeled the Force through her body, pulling like a galeforce wind. With ethereal hands she reached out to feel each contour and edge of the blasters pointed their way, and tightening her hold, s'Il wrenched each weapon from the grips that held them.

The carbines skittered across the platform with the sound of clattering metal, and before they could come to a rest she pushed out once more, and Durrin was slung back with enough force to lift him from his feet. His only saving grace was Beirhannon, who only managed to move a fraction of a step before the Imperial crashed into him, sending both men to the ground.

It happened all at once, in such a fluid demonstration of the force that defied every attempt the Imperials had made to nullify Lok. Her determination was indefatigable.

Still, they didn't have time to rest on their laurels. Still bound to their posts, if they weren't freed in the next moments this would be a short act of defiance. Just as this crossed Dan's minds, their bindings fell free to the snow below them.

Nobody needed to be told what to do from that moment. They all went for the blasters at their feet.

"Follow my lead, Lok..."

Dage made eye contact with the Jedi, then turned to a rising stormtrooper and extended a hand. He had no idea what would come of it, but he'd act the part to make them all question exactly how many Jedi they'd actually caught.

She knew well enough what he expected, and the young Jedi returned in kind. Though she'd dropped to her knees, s'Il rared back up with a blaster in her hands while at the same time lashing out with the Force.

The stormtrooper that Dage had lifted his hand to was sent tumbling back in spectacular fashion to crash some distance away into a small snow drift.

Eye scanning the Imperials, s'Il hefted her weapon up to her shoulder, sighted down the barrel, and let off a burst of blasterfire meant to keep the white tide at bay.

He didn't miss a beat, and moved in unison with Kori advance under cover of Lok's staccato gunshots. Diving behind a snow berm, the Rebel leader and his comrade quickly recovered, opening up with a heavy volley from another angle. Kori winged one of the troopers, giving them further incentive to abandon their out-in-the-open positions as executioners and get in the fight. Even that was plenty of time to give to Lok and Dage.

Still firing, Dan turned to his newlywed wife, making a sharp gesture for the two of them to follow under their covering fire.

He had a healthy notion that something would go down. Durrin's insistence on caging the lot together for the night only allowed them to put their heads together, and now the Imperials were getting their reward for such a folly.

A rough shove sent Durrin's body away, and both men scrambled up before heading quickly for the cover they both knew they'd need.

"I ain't gonna say I told y'so," he growled out, sending a quick look to his ruined cigar, "... but I sure damn well think you'd better start rethinkin' your policy of cagin' prisoners together b'fore you plan on executin' them."

Durrin only glared, and Torik gave him a pat on the back that turned into an unexpected push, sending the Imperial sprawling out from behind the cover they shared.

"Remember next time to use your brain."

A sneer, and Beirhannon shuffled back, dodging his way piece-meal across the base's landscape on a trajectory that would take him as far away from this fight as possible.

Not one to rest on the heels of hisslight of hand and its' victory, was quick to make his way to where Dan and Kori were. He knew the safest bet when he saw it, and with his two fellow rebels laying cover fire, the blonde knew his chances weren't any better.

s'Il on the other hand.

The young Lupine caught the sudden expulsion of the Imperial commander from his cover, and her eye tracked away from Dan to watch as Beirhannon slunk away, moving from shield to shield. It caused a determined scowl to creep across her face, and without thought she moved quickly.

Her trajectory took her on a distinct path away from Dan, and s'Il ducked behind a supplies crate as the first volleys of return fire found their way to her position.

"What are you doing?!"

Dan shouted though he was sure she couldn't hear him over the din. He swept fire across the approach she was taking, keeping heads down to hopefully buy her some time.

"Dage, Kori, cover me!"

"We're not sticking around to take holos, sir!"

He was already over the berm in a sprint.

"I just married the damn woman I'm not gonna let her do something stupid and get herself killed!"

Her focus was on a singular body, now ducking behind cover on a path to essential freedom and the safety offered by a ship. With precious little time to make any sort of lengthy decisions, s'Il darted outward once more. She was mindful enough at least to be aware of the cover fire sent her direction, and for that she was thankful.

Beirhannon, so intent on his escape, either did not see her or chose to ignore her stuttering advance. Either way he used his time wisely and continued to dodge his way to safety.

The Lupine doggedly kept on however, even in the face of the growing return fire being spread in both her direction and that of her companions.

A furtive look back showed a grave sight, and the Lupine scowled.

"What are you doing??!"

The same words he'd yelled at her - though unheard - were sent back his way. Whether he heard her own mirrored question or not was not anything she chose to dwell on, and darting forward once more to slide behind the protection of a generator s'Il waited for a few moments before moving on.

Beirhannon was nearing the small area of the encampment that sheltered his ship, and the Lupine knew that her time was exponentially short.

On last look to make sure her intended path was largely blastershot free, and the Jedi burst from her cover to sprint across the open ground on a direct line to the smuggler.

His ruined Mimban was tossed aside as he ran, and Torik gave an angry growl as he muscled his way past a gaggle of stormtroopers hurrying to the action. He didn't bother looking behind him at what may or may not've been happening... his own hide was at stake, and the smuggler was keen to keep it in one piece.

Keeping low, Beirhannon ventured a quick look behind him, and his scowl deepened at the sight of the Jedi woman doggedly tailing him. And of course, some distance behind her, was Dan.

No way he was beating that woman in a foot race. That just wasn't happening. Still, he could be of some help. Kori and Dage were dutifully covering the advance, peppering the regrouping stormtrooper positions as he hopped from cover to cover. A lucky bounce outside and he caught one of the troopers in the flank, stitching him with a blaster shot that blew through the trooper's armor in a shower of sparks. That got a bit too much attention and he had to duck behind a supply crate that was suddenly raked with return fire. Still, it was heat that was now off Lok, allowing her to go exactly where Dan figured she'd be headed.

Of course now, he was stuck, with Kori and Dage still keeping pressure on the troopers to prevent them from moving, but without a real opening to follow the Jedi. Hunkered down, Dan glanced at the aurrebesh stenciling on one of the crates, which was labeled "grenades"...

...and a few seconds later, one such appropriated party favor was rolling through the snow beneath two troopers on the far berm.

The sound of an explosion rocked her senses, but aside from a slight skip in her step, s'Il persisted in her chase. She dodged behind and past a tarp-covered mountain of cargo crates, her feet digging into the hard-packed snow as she propelled herself into a manic sprint. She drew from the Force with steadfast determination, and as Beirhannon took his first step onto the boarding ramp, the Lupine shifted her grip on the rifle she still carried. One hand grabbed at the barrel, and swinging it back, she launched herself into the air.

He had only enough to wheel about on his heel as the sight of the Jedi woman filled his view, her rifle cocked back like a club intent on connecting with his face.

Torik allowed his body to fall backwards, one hand lifting quickly into the inside of his overcoat to pull out the small holdout he kept in a shoulder holster. He knew it wouldn't stop her, but he hoped that it would at least slow her down.

Even as her weapon came around in a vicious swing, he lifted his firearm and sighted quickly down its' short barrel.

He fired in the same moment that the stock made contact with his shoulder.

The explosion gave Dan enough time to close the distance. Kori and Dage were also quick to notice the change in momentum, quickly moving to close the distance so they could continue to cover the assault. They paused momentarily at the same cache Dan had previously ducked behind so they could replenish the depleted tibanna cartridges in their rifles. Dan, in the meantime had picked up a full head of steam, and was nearly upon Lok and Beirhannon when he heard the shot. He drew up for a shot, but Lok's back was to him, covering anything decent he had on the mercenary.

Fueled by adrenaline, s'Il barely felt the searing sting of the bolt that clipped her side, and in a near-rage she slung the rifle from her white-knuckled grip on the backswing, opting to reach down with both hands to grasp Beirhannon by the collars of his heavy coat. She heaved up and out, sending the smuggler the rest of the way up the ramp and into the ship to crash against an inner bulkhead.

Shoulders heaving, the Lupine hunched low for only a moment before bounding up after her prey.

He hit the bulkhead square, and with a sharp exhalation, Torik slid to the decking. His blaster was raised once more, but with only one shot left he had to make it count.

There was no real fear in him, but stalwart resolve.

Even as the Jedi advanced, he gave a hurried yell to the faithful little R2 unit that never strayed from the ship.

"Ell-ee! Get us off the ground!"

A frantic chirping was his only answer, and steadying his aim, Beirhannon watched the woman as she ate up the distance between them. With a hiss of whining hydraulics, the ramp began to pull up even as she loped onward, and grimly the smuggler steeled himself.

At the last moment, he flipped the blaster around, and cocking his arm back in a quick motion, brought the handle around on a path that would send it into her temple.

Or would have, if her own hand hadn't lashed out to catch his wrist in a vice-like grip and bringing his intended action to a sudden halt.

And for the first time in a very long while, Torik Beirhannon found himself rather nervous at his immediate prospects.

Fight or flight is a helluva thing. When you see a ramp raising up and your options are to dig your heels in or to...

"Whoooooaaah..."

Dan caught the ramp on his ribs, hugging a hydraulic pylon awkwardly as he pushed his rifle onto the plating. His legs dangled feebly as he tried to worm his way up from his ungainly purchase, forgetting what was probably a cracked rib thanks to the adrenaline rush pushing him on.

Dage and Kori skidded to a halt, finding the best cover they could, and dishing out fire to the stormtroopers who were now being reinforced. It wasn't exactly the best places for any of them to be.

Pressing into him, s'Il kept his gun arm held to the side for as long as her own muscles would allow. Which, even she knew would not be very long. Despite her own advantages, the distinct possibility still existed that pound for pound Beirhannon would have the greater strength. Drawing on the Force, the Lupine gave a snarl as her free hand lanced out to grasp at his throat. It was a worthwhile yet lost effort, as his own free arm came out to deflect her away.

Even as she pulled back for another strike, she felt the flat of his boot plant solidly upon her chest. Nanoseconds later she was skittering across the deck, propelled by his kick.

Having bought himself at least a small amount of time, Torik heaved himself up to his feet even as he felt the Akurian Queen's repulsors firing up. Ell-ee was at least quick.

Sensing that it would be in his best interests to put as much distance between himself and the two rebels, he broke into a staggered run that sent him around a corner and out of sight.

"Leave that ramp down, Ell-ee! I want to dump this dead weight soon as we're in the air!"

His only answer was a concerned whistle followed by a scattered menagerie of chirps and twirls.

"Aw hells-"

It was all he could get out before the deafening sound of a capital ship's engines roared close overhead.

"Dead weight my a-whoa...!!!"

The sudden yaw of the ship caused Dan to nearly pitch from the gangplank, losing a foot as his hand slipped to the nearest strut on the hydraulics. Nothing like the fear of a freefalling death to propel you. He gritted his teeth and dug in, swinging himself so that his legs cradled the strut opposite and allowed him to make his next move. By then the ship was pitching in the opposite direction, which sent Dan tumbling into the craft and crashing hard into the wal opposite. From his awkward vantage, he managed to see a pair of fresh contrails in the sky that didn't belong to the ship he was on.

No, he knew the scream of those engines.

"It's the Novgorod!"

Thrown angrily into a bulkhead as the ship tipped to one side, s'Il latched onto the most available handhold and held on tightly. Even as the Akurian Queen leveled out she didn't let go, and when it angled to the opposite side, the Lupine felt her body angrily respond to the ship's compensating gravity generators.

Dan crashed into her view, hitting the bulkhead across from her with a force that made even her cringe. His landing looked equal parts painful and utterly graceless, and as the Queen righted herself once more, the Jedi relinquished her death-hold on the strut she'd grasped. Hitting the deck in a crouch, she made quick work of the short amount of time she knew she'd have and surged after Beirhannon.

The steadily increasing reverberation of the engines were enough of a sign that they were picking up speed, and even as she felt the first stages of another bank, she leaned to the side, hands going out to grab a hold of a strut and using it to lever herself forward and around the same corner that the smuggler had disappeared behind.

He was at the small doorway to the bridge when the sound of the Jedi came around the small bend, and bracing himself, he threw up an arm as she lunged at him.

"Ell-ee you get us away from that ship as fast as this crate can manage," he ducked inside, bracing himself as the R2 unit sent the Queen on another tilt, firing the sublights at the same time so that the ship jumped forward like a hungry wampa after a straggling tauntaun. The force of the acceleration sent both Beirhannon and the Jedi tumbling back and to the decking, and for once he didn't feel bad about using a woman to break his fall.

The inertia brought the pair right back to Dan's resting place, only this time he wasn't resting. He'd managed to at least right himself to where he was standing, if only by the graces of the g-forces pressing him against the aft bulkhead. Still, he had leverage, Beirhannon more or less right beneath him, and a rifle in his hands. Not stupid enough to discharge the full battle weapon in a moving ship, he instead slapped the cartridge out, and choked up on the gun barrel like he was about to tee off.

"So about that ring?"

From beneath the smuggler, a slender hand reached up, a small box clutched tightly in its' palm.

Almost completely engulfed by the bulk of Beirhannon, s'Il settled for simply laying still, and despite her wandering hand that'd retrieved the box from the inside pocket of his coat, she knew it'd be best if she stayed put.

"That's my girl."

The smile that parted his face threatened credulity, but it was there nevertheless. He almost forgot they were in a life or death struggle. A moment later the shifting weight brought him back to reality, and he promptly swung for the fences, as it were, sending Beirhannon sprawling across the deck.

Dan tossed the rifle aside, and dropped down to his haunches. Taking the box from s'Il, he opened it, carefully placing the ring on an expecting finger.

"A perfect fit."

So it wasn't any sort of sane wedding at all. Still, if you'd told him it would be this way, Dan would have no cause to say otherwise.

Free of Beirhannon's weight, s'Il wrangled herself upwards even as Dan slid the ring onto her finger. She took only a parting glance at it before rolling to her side, using the movement to help lever herself up to her knees, then feet.

A look was cast to Beirhannon, but it was obvious that the man was down and out for the count. Apparently Dan's batting swing (or whatever it was that he kept calling it) was still effective enough.

She let out a light cough, one hand going to her side as she began to feel the first stinging pangs of the blastershot.

"Time to go," was all she intoned, her free hand catching Dan's - her husband's - in a vice-like grip and pulling him along toward the still open boarding ramp. She didn't trust Beirhannon's little R2, and with a sigh of minor relief the sight of the ground below looked no more than twenty meters. No easy feat she knew, but she also hoped that the snow would help at least somewhat to cushion the fall.

"You've got to be kidding..."

Maybe twenty meters was just a hop-skip for a Jedi, but snow or not, for normal folks that was the kind of jump that would turn you into a stain on the ground. He very understandably hesitated.

A hand reached out to steady herself in the yawning mouth of the open boarding ramp, and watching the white ground speed by, she shifted her weight as the Queen banked in a turn. Letting go of Dan's hand, she lowered herself into a crouch as her gaze swept past the ramp's hydraulic pylons and as far ahead as an unobstructed view would allow.

Time was short, and the longer they waited, the further from the Imperial camp they were being taken. Not to mention the fact that at any moment Beirhannon's droid may well take them higher.

A windswepted snowdune rose up to cut at least five meters from her initial estimation, and she raised her voice over the sound of the rushing wind.

"Fifteen meters is the best I can get you!"

And without waiting for any objections from Dan, the Lupine grabbed a hold of the front neckline of his shirt. She was moving, almost literally dragging him with her, and with little thought but to get off the Akurian Queen, the Jedi slung him out before her before throwing herself out into the air after him.

"I still don't thiiiiiii....."

The Rebel commander was caught mid statement by the brusque tossing, sent careening out of the ship at breakneck speed. For the relatively small clearance, the fall seemed to take forever. At least that meant he had time to mentally and physically brace for impact, being mindful to tuck so that he could roll with as much grace as he could muster...which wasn't much.

He slammed into the snow, tumbling in a maelstrom of powder as his body exploded in pain. It's still fifteen meters, damn it! With the wind knocked out of him, Dan was a pawn of inertia and gravity, pinweeling down the berm as all he could see around him was a white puff and a spinning world.

Her own tumbling descent down the side of the dune was just as ungainly as his. With just enough time to prepare herself for the impact, the Jedi called out to the Force, drawing it around herself and Dan to at least provide a small amount of cushion upon contact. The powder was at least fresh, and unlike the hard-packed snow in the camp, provided for a softer landing.

Which, to be rather honest, was still a rough and jarring affair.

At least they were free of the Queen, but now their problems were up, down, and all around as each tumbled down the snowbank.

The ground thankfully leveled out however, and as both rebels rolled to a stop, s'Il came to rest on her back. She stared up at the clear blue sky for only so long as her body allowed before bringing the harsh reality of her battered state to painful light.

She winced, feeling the sting of her blastershot acutely, and pressing a hand into the scorchmark, the Lupine turned her head only slightly, a searching gaze sweeping over the snow for any sight of Dan's body.

Half-buried in a drift, it took a significant effort for Dan to break free, which he did with a flailing of limbs and growling of curses. Once un-buried, he lay prone for a moment.

"I think I broke something."

After three tries, he finally succeeded in sitting up, the relief at seeing Lok more or less within walking distance buoying his spirits. Confirming that she was alive, he again fell on his back.

"Kori? Dage?"

"Still alive I imagine," she managed to croak out.

Which, if Novgorod had made her appearance over the camp as the telltale roar of her engines had foretold, both Kori and Dage would've been sitting rather prettily.

Of course that was back at the Imperial camp and not wherever Dan and s'Il had made their inglorious exit from the Akurian Queen. Which could be anywhere.

Rolling to her side, the Lupine lifted herself up to her hands and knees to crawl closer to where Dan sat.

The sensory-dulling narcotic adrenaline ebbed away, and it was clear that the source of Dan's discomfort was a clearly broken left arm, which he now cradled to prevent the shooting pains of cracked bone against flesh. He gave Lok a funny look.

"Not quite the honeymoon I was looking for, kiddo."

He was now unarmed, figuratively and nearly literally. Relying on her for saving their hides if trouble did blow their way, Dan tried to find a creative way to his feet without feeling like dying.

Shuffle-crawling her way to his side, the Lupine settled herself as comfortably as possible beside him. She had no idea what he was talking of in terms of a 'honeymoon', and the look on her face said as much.

Still though, they'd escaped relatively in one piece; though those pieces were in places broken. His cradled arm didn't escape her notice, and the Lupine made a regretful face.

"I'm not a healer," her voice was low, and the apologetic tone unmistakeable.

"I never asked you to be."

Weighed down again, Dan dropped to the ground adjacent to his new bride.

"If that was Novgorod, rescue can't be too far off. I'm tired."

Suddenly a feeling of contentedness fell amongst them. They'd survived, after all. Survived and were married. They'd take all the dings and dents suffered through this day, and they'd have many more to come.

Dan eased onto his back, a strong sense of sleep coming over him. No-doubt Lok had to feel some of that too.

It was as if his words triggered her own exhaustion. Brought about by a fitful night of rest on a cold cell floor, her body seemed to sag beneath its' own weight, and the Lupine kept herself propped upright only long enough to look down at Dan.

The strain of his injury was easy enough to see through the deep fatigue lines in his face, and it troubled the one part of her mind that still fought the urge to simply lay beside him. Of course that part grew more quiet as each second ticked by, and it wasn't long before she too burrowed into the snow close to his side. His arm she was mindful of, but still. If they were to survive for any amount of time, they would require the added body heat that one another could provide.

Eyes closing, s'Il felt herself fall away from the world almost instantly.

But sleep didn't seem to come to Loklorien s'Iancy. The cold only seemed to deepen, and a dark fleck in her mind's eye dimmed the blinding snow, bringing her restlessness to a waking dream.

Beside her, Dan still rested. But he seemed somehow beyond reach. Even the previous comfort of Novgorod seemed like an angel that had long-since passed. She felt so alone.

Denied the welcoming embrace of rest, s'Il inwardly winced. She fought the inevitable despite the knowledge that her mind was being invaded so ruthlessly, and raged against the steadily rising presence that permeated her own subconscious.

No.

Her body seemed to curl inward into itself, and the Lupine silently cried out in desperation. Her resistance only allowed the phantasm to manifest with more strength, and unknowingly she burrowed deeper into the percieved protection offered by Dan's body and the snow that surrounded them.

No...

The wind picked up, driving flecks of snow in a blinding screen beyond her grasp. Within that gale, she could almost make out a figure standing just beyond, their silhouette barely distinguishable among the shades of grey.

"Why do you still resist? Hunted, doggedly pursued to the ends of the galaxy as you are?"

The gale seemed to die down. Could she see eyes within that silhouette?

"All you have to do is take what you need to survive."

The stench of the Dark Side assailed her senses, reaching out to her with invisible tendrils of hate and rage. They raked unseen across her mind, clawing and scratching as if trying to find purchase within any minute crack they might find. Stubbornly she refused them, holding each searching talon at bay... but only just barely.

"You are not welcome here," she gasped out. Her own voice seemed so small in comparison to the looming monster. As if her conviction had all but fled.

With little option left to her, the Lupine redoubled her own defenses.

"Leave me."

The response to her demand was the lonely wind. And then the voice spoke.

"If that is what you want. Is it, though?

To be chased down like vermin for the rest of your days, looking over your shoulder and powerless to deal justice to those who have killed everyone you cherish?"

The wind shifted, and the silhouette disappeared, only to reappear closer to her.

"The man you love will die. You know there is only one way to save him."

"Lies."

She had never felt so near yet so far from Dan than she did now, and the reality of it began to erode her already paper-thin resolve. She grimaced, screwing her eyes shut as if willing the apparition to dissolve into the air.

"A Sith lies and knows no other way to speak," she fired back, reluctant to open her eyes for the ever-growing fear that perhaps this time, her tormentor would not leave.

"And a Jedi clings to a hope that inevitably betrays them. A lie is based in truth. It only waits for the truly powerful to transform it."

And at that, the storm lifted, leaving the terrible visage she knew all too well to close the distance between. She could neither move nor retaliate. Her choices were to gaze upon or look away.

"Who have betrayed you, Loklorien s'Ilancy? Who no longer remains by your side? Tell me their names, if you can remember them all."

Her eyes snapped open at his last words, though any rebuttal she had was effectively silenced by the sight of him. Unable to take her broken gaze from his, the Lupine could do nothing but stare. She was transfixed. Those horrid, yellow diseased eyes bored holes into her, and s'Il could do nothing to protect herself.

He drew closer, and still she could not look away.

At least however, her voice found purchase once more, though it was small at best.

"Those who are no longer by my side are gone not for their own wishing," she gasped out.

"They are torn away by the treachery of the Sith."

And yet, his words had found the smallest of cracks within her defenses.

Zem left me...

Every emotion that she had borne in months following his abrupt absence threatened to boil over and spill out.

He laughed, mocking her flimsy defenses.

"Treachery? You think so little of the fallen and departed. Those poor gullible rubes, if only they discovered the Sith!"

He waved his hand dismissively.

"They faced this same choice that you now face. They chose poorly. They paid the price for their lack of vision. Now tell me who else you are content to simply hope for the best over?"

Tears began to form, and yet still she could not look away as he stood over her.

"It is no concern of yours."

An exhaled breath rattled up from her chest to escape her lips, and s'Il finally tore her eye away from the tall figure over her. She looked to Dan's sleeping form, desperate for any measure of shelter from the Dark.

So close, yet so far away...

She had lost Zem. She couldn't lose Dan as well. Looking back up to the Sith, she felt as a single tear rolled down her cheek. Her resolve seemed to harden however, and the Jedi cast as stern an expression as she could muster upwards.

"Leave. Now."

And as if to punctuate her words, the unmistakeable rumble of a capital ship's engines burning atmosphere grew in volume. Novgorod had found them.

The spectre laughed at her demand, fading through the snowy mist as the rest of the world returned to Lok's senses. He was gone. Or was he?

He was gone by the time the Novgorod passed by overhead, and s'Il folded in on herself as she leaned into Dan's body. Her eyes closed, blinking away her tears as she drove the sight of her tormentor from her mind's eye. She focused on warmth, and on keeping Dan from growing too cold.

"Wake up," she whispered, her ears registering the sound of the Novgorod banking for another pass. A quick look up to the ship in the distance, and she made out a small shuttle detaching itself from the larger body of the corvette.

"Wake up," a hand came out to lay against the side of his face as her words were repeated.

Dan's snow-flecked eyelids reluctantly fluttered open, and he grimaced, trying to shift his weight to get comfortable, to no real avail.

His eyes focused on her, though, and he smiled. The shadow that passed over them both also reinforced that smile.

"Good morning."

He was hers and she was his. It certainly was the strangest wedding he'd ever heard of, but he wouldn't change a thing about it.