Private Bad Blood

[Mia Monroe]

There was a beauty in hindsight, when you jetted out into the night without a thought, driven by madness, until your fuel ran out. Mia was exhausted, her heart and soul were heavy, and she'd been hiking all night, tracking a path back to the Iron fortress north of Keldabe. The sun crested the horizon and made the journey that much worse, beneath her helmet her lips were parched.

She could have called for a lift, there were a dozen scouts roaming the wastes, reporting back to Keldabe, one would have found her. Hell she was certain if she activated her beacon, Ijaat or Elise would have come to find her themselves. Mia wasn't entirely she why she didn't. Perhaps because she still felt the psychotic episode at the fringes of her mind, lurking, waiting for a moment to draw her into it again. Or maybe she was punishing herself.

A rumbling reached her ears, she turned to see dust rising on the horizon, her HUD tracked movement within the dust cloud. A ship.

"Rooks." she muttered to herself.

If she was lucky they'd ignore her.

But when had Mia ever been lucky.

Korso Rook

 

[Korso Rook]

There was a beauty in foresight, when you could see a new horizon beyond Mandalore's blasted wastes. Korso was exhausted, although he still held member of his clan's broken helm lost to the reptavian beast now lashed to their hull it had been a glorious hunt worthy of saga. Behind him dawn's last stars twinkled like fading embers, but he would never look back.

He could have given the order to launch the whistling birds. Their people were scattered across the stars, old bonds of fellowship sundered. Beskar steel more precious than ever. Korso wasn't entirely sure why he didn't. Perhaps because he still felt some connection to the old ways somewhere beneath his bloodlust. Or maybe he just liked a challenge.

A horn rasied to his lips, its ragged cry pierced howling winds. Dust settled in the langskib's wake.

"Protectors." he growled under his breath.

Korso's axe buried itself in trinitite.

Glass melted under the chieftain's rockets when he landed moments later.

"Lost, little nite owl?" Rook glared down at her through a cracked visor, "Or have you come to settle old scores?"

Mia Monroe

 

[Mia Monroe]

Mia stopped walking, hung her head and let out a sigh as the horn cut through the early morning air calling the ships to a halt. Definitely not lucky. Straightening at the sound of the jet pack coming to greet her she'd turned to face him as he landed.

"Korso." she greeted coldly she folded her arms. "Believe me, I'd love nothing more than to stain the ground with your blood, but I haven't the energy. Nor do I think it would achieve anything, except maybe granting me the smallest moment of joy."

She glanced past him at the beast tied to his hull. "A good hunt. How many did you lose?"

Korso Rook

 

[Korso Rook]

Korso tossed the broken helm at her feet. Its clan signet matched his own. Not much could scar pure beskar steel but after decades of war and Imperial occupation the wastes were now home to megafauna which thrived in such extreme conditions. Mutated by radiation or alchemy and molded into killing machines.

"He died well."

Not much of a eulogy.

"Brave maybe to attempt the crossing," Rook decided at length, "But now you are too weak. It would not be a noble kill."

He shook his head and turned to give a hand signal. If she was sent out here to spy for Ijaat, the armorer had a strange sense of humor.

"No witchcraft. If you sail with us, I expect you to hunt. Or take your chances on reaching Keldabe before that whelp's mother tracks us."

Mia Monroe

 

[Mia Monroe]

Mia bent down to pick them helmet up, fingers trailing the deep scores in the beskar. Her heart sunk even deeper, every day they were uncovering more and more that had been twisted by the civil war and Carnifex's mining. Manda'yaim was weeping and despite Ijaat's many reassurances and the ease of being able to pin the fault on their ancient enemies, Mia could not help but bear the responsibility on her own soul.

"Nu kyr'adyc, shi taab'echaaj'la" she said softly.

A sigh escaped her lips. She contemplated telling him that she actually had no intention of attempting the crossing, that her ending up here was merely an accident, but that would draw far too many questions from a man who already hated her.

"I will respect your request. I'd rather not get eaten today."

She stepped forward, handing him back the helmet. "Vor entye."

Korso Rook

 

[Korso Rook]

Korso took the broken mask. He held its gaze before looking back up with new resolve.

"Cin vhetin."

Animal screams on the wind caught his attention. An ill omen. Korso looked up with alarm. He cursed softly, sprinting for the langskib without a glance back to make sure Mia Monroe followed. Ropes were cast down and the mandalorian wrapped one arm up while still clutching the mythosaur axe in his free hand. Hauled onto deck by a meager crew, he wasted no time in giving orders. Jetpacks ignited for only a second so mandalorians could boost themselves into the langskib's rigging.

"How's your aim?"

Rook tossed their guest a phase-pulse blaster. Sails unfurled above them, and he led Mia's gaze up to the shriek-hawk's nest. Scavenged comm antennae towered over a small lookout platform above the tallest canvas. Korso pressed a few controls causing the entire ship to rumble as it came about on a new course. He could hear the beating of leathery reptavian wings.

It was almost on them.

 

[Mia Monroe]

The offer of cin vhetin caught her off guard, but it drove through the fog of her quiet grief and struck her to her core. Ijaat could tell her she was starting with a clean slate till he was blue in the face, but he was biased, he knew her before her crimes, he was a part of her crime. Forgiveness from him, while meaningful did not have the same impact as some who had lived through the wake of it all.

"Cin vhetin." she repeated after a beat, a lump in her throat. Somewhere in the back of her mind, someone gave a sigh of relief. She did not have time to analyse it, to work out what ghost had been left in Ra's wake. He own gaze snapped towards the noise and she followed hot on Korso's heels as he pelted back towards the ship, snagging a second rope and following him up.

The langskib crew worked seamlessly, moving almost before their orders were given. Every crew member knew their place, and Mia would have to find hers quickly. She caught the tossed rifle, a smile spreading beneath her helmet, snagging ammo from another crew member as they passed she gave a tilt of her head. "Good enough."

She lifted the rifle to her shoulder, tracking the first shriek-hawk as it tucked in its wings, and fired. She expected a noise, maybe a shriek of pain, but she did not expect it to evaporate. "Oh, I need one of these." She reloaded, scanning the skies. "Where's the other one?"

Korso Rook

 

[Korso Rook]

Korso's visor tracked ominously empty skies searching for a second shriek hawk while he maneuvered the ungainly langskib over rough terrain. Her sails unfurled catching favorable winds that accelerated them to an unexpectedly high speed. Fusion glass cracked under her bow leaving a scar in the badlands to mark their passage.

"This feels too quiet."

He glimpsed something swoop down seconds before it struck the mast. Everything shook violently enough to send mandalorians tumbling from the rigging who screamed more in surprise than fear. Korso heard a terrible crack before their main sails sagged. Under his boots the deck grew more turbulent.

"Having fun yet, ad'ika?"

Over the screams and rumble Korso's laughter boomed. He sounded like he was truly enjoying himself. Unsteady footing spoiled the aim from intermittent blaster fire which chased the large creature back into dark clouds. Using dead reckoning to orient himself the nomad rally master corrected their course but the closest landmark which might give shelter offered dangers of its own.

"It will come back for another pass! I'm going to try and lose it in that magnetic storm."

Stormy weather surged with deadly electrical charge just over the horizon.

Mia Monroe

 

[Mia Monroe]

Mia tracked the beast with the disruptor, swearing as falling mandalorian's forced her to move. "Chit." it was gone again. Mia shook her head at Korso's laughter. No doubt this was just another Taungsday to him, for Mia though? Well, she'd fought worse, yet there was something about the moment that made everything suddenly simple. Hunter or prey, that was all this came down to. This was a test of her abilities without the force, this was was taking her back to basics, something she had not relied on for a long time.

But she had been Mand'alor the Liberator before she had been a...well, whatever she was now. She staggered, unused to the turbulence. Hand grasping the rails as she followed his gaze to the storm ahead. She resisted the urge to tell him he was insane, though it caused her great physical pain.

"This is your ship, I am a guest. Not for me to question your judgement."

She moved back to the ships centre, taking a knee to steady herself, disruptor settling back into her shoulder, eyes tracking to skies for the shriek hawks reappearance.

Korso Rook