Public Escape

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra walked through the town, everything unfamiliar to her. She had stowed away on a cargo ship to escape the ruins of the labs that were the only home she'd ever known. Now she was on an unknown planet. She knew she stood out—she was obviously lost, confused, and disoriented. All her life she had been called one thing—Subject 643. She didn't know who she truly was. She knew she was a super soldier, but she also knew she didn't want to fight, so the young Togruta kept her phryk quarterstaff at her back as she continued to walk barefoot through the city. A lone teenager, lost and confused, the perfect target for scum.

 

[Ravenous]

Like a predator stalking its prey, Ravenous stood idly in the crowd his dark armor and eerie mask making him a staple in the open market. Golden eyes locked on Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri with insidious intent, a dark and vengeful spirit hidden just beneath their pupils. He's felt this presence before...he just can't remember from where. Either way, whatever connection he might have to this individual is inconsequential, she was here on Kriselist which meant she was on his turf. Whatever becomes of her now is entirely up to him...

Quickening his pace Ravenous began to advance on the young Togruta his hand outstretched as though to grab her shoulder. "Hey kid...you got a sec?" Ravenous is a practical man, and everything he does is for a reason whether it's a good one or not. Simply put: If he wants to meet someone he's just going to walk up and talk to them regardless of his Mass Murdering status. "This is a dangerous world your trending. You sure you shouldn't be at home with your folks sipping blue milk and fantasizing about the latest pretentious manufactured pop idol?" He's creepy, Ravenous knows that much but it's that innate fear he inspires that drives others to take him seriously.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra turned and looked him in the eye. "The only home I've known was horrible and was destroyed. I have no idea what a 'pop idol' is," she said bluntly, crossing her arms. There is no fear in her stance or tone, as if she has no idea who he is.

 

[Ravenous]

"Destroyed eh?" Ravenous leaned into the girl his glowing eyes meeting her unwavering gaze. This girl might be the first child unmoved by his dark presence which in truth was a stellar feat all on its own. Few in the galaxy could withstand his cold, sharp, ravenous power...and remain unscathed. "Horrible you say? Well, it can't be much worse than the place you've stumbled upon." Ravenous picked himself up his golden gaze falling on an alley adjacent to the pair. "Tell me, child. How do you feel? Dark? Cold? Hot? Pained?" His eyes locked onto the girl his probing, hopefully enough to provide the answers he needs.

Everyone has a base emotion, EVERYONE, and more often than not emotions are all that's needed to enter one's mind. "You may call me Ravenous. The master of villainy, and keeper of arcane knowledge."

Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"Cold. Because of you. Not physically, not emotionally, but it's a feeling. I grew up with that feeling. I'm confused, because I don't know where I am. If you're expecting me to be afraid of you, well, I'm afraid you'll be sorely disappointed." Underneath that confusion, however, was calm. She had no fear as she turned away from him, walking away.

 

[Ravenous]

Hm...fear definitely wasn't her vice, but confusion...maybe that was the portal into the girl's mind. She seemed almost uninterested in the dark Jedi as she turned and walked away from him forcing the man to follow her from a short distance behind. "You my dear lady are on the cesspool known as Kriselist home to the infamous Intrepid Inc." The Man shoved his hands in his pockets as the two rounded a corner into a less than reputable side of town. "So, what's your name kid? I figure I should at least know the name of the person resisting my hunger." His hand twitched at the thought of draining a Force wielder even a nascent one. Could he do it? Would it really be worth the extra struggle that would ensue? Maybe so but Ravenous has learned to think with more than his anger and lust for power.

Harshly the man nudged Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri the golden glow in his eyes dissipating. "Hungry? God knows I am..."

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"Yes, I'm hungry, but I've learned not to trust anyone, least of all one as cold as you." She said, continuing her pace. "As for my name, the only one I've ever known is Subject 643."

 

[Ravenous]

"Well, I suppose your right not to trust me. But how about you trust in your stomach instead?" She introduced herself (sort of) but the name she gave Ravenous was less a name and more of a...designation as if she were a number instead of a person. He should know after all that's how he saw people anyway. "What were you made on an assembly line? Is this horrid home of yours really just a cow factory that got shut down for health violations?" Ravenous jogged to meet the girl's pace once again.

"Kid, if you disassociate with people just because they make you feel cold then you're going to distance yourself from everyone. Believe me, I know." Ravenous waved a reservation book in his hands. "My offer still stands...what do you say? I mean c'mon the restaurant can't be any more dangerous than being outside right?"

Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

"Not an assembly line. Perhaps you've heard of Dr. Veinstein and his experiments." She spat the last word as if it were a bad taste in her mouth. "That's where I lived. The labs were destroyed last week, if I remember correctly. I'm supposed to be a super soldier. I could easily kill you in a hundred different ways in under a minute." Her voice softened. "But I won't. It's against my nature to harm others. Whenever I see someone who needs help, I need to help them." At his offer, she was silent for a minute, reaching out with the Force—although she didn't know it was the Force—to sense if he meant her any harm.

 

[Ravenous]

Ravenous scoffed at Kuxirra's comment. "Your so sure you could kill me? Trust me, kid, I'm way out of your league. It's clear to me you have no idea who or what I am." Then the girl mentioned her inability to harm others intentionally which brought a smile to Ravenous' face. So she's in defiance of her true nature... He mused. That's just what the doctor ordered...Abruptly a warm inquisitive presence breached his min piercing the veil that was his dark psyche. "Mind reading child? Don't toy with me. I can read the intentions of a nascent Force wielder with a knife in my neck." Ravenous stood idle as the warm presence continued to expel his darkness and reach into the recesses of his mind.

The further she pressed the greater the danger became and the worse her chances at surviving unscathed became. "You can stop now you know. You can exit my mind and travel with me to a nice restaurant on the northside of town...or..." A bleak hungry presence with a crimson hue awakened inside Ravenous. "You can suffer..."

Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra sighed and withdrew. "Fine. I'll come with you, but only because I'm hungry." She said, walking behind him. She shifted her quarterstaff so she could reach it easier in case he pulled a blaster. "Just because I'm eating with you doesn't mean I trust you." A few minutes of walking in silence later, she spoke up. "What's a Force-wielder?"

 

[Ravenous]

"I don't care why you're eating with me. As long as you are." Though he couldn't see her Ravenous could sense her wariness and mistrust...good. Those cautious emotions will serve her well. A few awkward moments later the girl decided to break the silence and with naivety no less. "Well, you see The Force is a cosmic energy field that binds all life together. Because of it, we stay connected to each other and the world around us." To demonstrate Ravenous spun around quickly and outstretched his hand feeling the energy around the girl. There was life in her body, there was skin, then tissue...then arteries. Pressing his index finger to this thumb Ravenous forced his will onto the girl overpowering her body's natural will to live by stopping her blood flow.

The sensation didn't last long before the man relented effectively showing off his prowess. "While the force runs through everybody some people like you and me are attuned to its energies and can thus tap into them." Ravenous started back on his path. "And even then some of us are more attuned than other Force wielders. In fact, if you had better training and had expected that attack your natural force bubble would have activated which would protect you from my intrusion."

The two would finally arrive at a restaurant named Peppers with bright lights and quaint homey decor. Reaching into his cloak Ravenous pulled out a bag of credits a small flick of his wrist enough to toss it to the Togruta. "Sorry Kid. I gotta run. There's three hundred credits in there, buy whatever you want." Jogging down the street Ravenous offered the girl some advice. "Spend it wisely!" Dipping behind a corner Ravenous leaped onto the roof his commlink activated. "You're clear to go...make sure it gets done...or I'll serve your head on the menu next..." Crushing his communicator Ravenous fell into a deep slumber as he allowed his thoughts to run free.

Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra gasped at the sensation, but that was her only reaction. When Ravenous have her the money, she nodded. "Thanks." She approached the restaurant and stepped inside, looking around. She was clearly unfamiliar with this kind of setting, and stayed out of the way as she watched what other customers did.

 

[Kardek Alpha]

Kardek Leaned forward in his seat and glared at the man seated in front of him, His fists clenched tightly as they rested on to table, expressing a sense of dominance in the situation.
"You sure you want to test me? I'm not the kinda guy you should play games with."

The man squirmed slightly as he pretended to not be completely uncomfortable with the situation, bringing his drink to his lips ands gulping it down quickly. He then wiped his face sloppily with his arm and cleared his throat,
"Listen. You did everything just as I had asked. I just... I need a week to get your payment..."

Alpha, the IG-88 Assassin droid seated next to Kardek, made some rather frustrated sounding droid noises.
"I Agree." Kardek said to Alpha without looking away from the man.

"The man looked puzzled, sweat beginning to appear on his forehead as he glanced back and forth at Kardek and Alpha.
"...Agree... about what?" He stammered.

Alpha leaned back in his chair and took a much calmer disposition, never taking his harsh gaze off the man.
"That it would be a shame if you failed to deliver. You have one week."

The man immediately stood up awkwardly, nodding as he grabbed his things,
"Yes yes, I understand! I will have your payment. Thank you... Thank you."

With that the man quickly walked to the exit of the restaurant, leaving Kardek shaking his head as he finished the last of his own drink. Kardek was irritated at not having received his expected pay day, and so he quickly turned to the bar tender and ordered another drink.

"Lets just get out of here Alpha. We have more important things to be doing anyways..." He was saying as his eyes trailed across the room until finally landing on the young Togruta girl. Kardek pauses as he looked at her, recognizing instantly how out of place she appeared to be. His eyes then traveled around the room to see what kind of scum might be interested in taking advantage of the girl. He decided to say a bit longer, just until he could assess her safety and her situation.

Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra watched the people. When Kardek Alpha spoke to the man, she could've sworn she felt fear...but she knew she wasn't afraid. Somehow, she knew this man was afraid. When he got up and left, she sidestepped out of his way and continued watching what everyone did.

 

[Kardek Alpha]

After a couple of minutes had passed, Kardek made eye contact with Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri . He motioned an invitation for her to join him and Alpha at his table with his hand.

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra nodded and made her way over to them. "Thanks," she said, smiling as she said into a seat. "What was that all about? That guy. He seemed pretty scared."

 

[Kardek Alpha]

Kardek cracked half a smile at her comment.

"I did a job for him that he didn't pay me for." Kardek stated as he looked at Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri with slight concern considering she was in such a crummy place with no other company to be seen. "I don't want to hurt him... but if he thinks I do, well..." Kardek motioned to a waiter for a menu, "Then that's the motivation... if you know what I mean." Kardek shifted his position slightly forward and looked intently at Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri , then continued in a quieter tone, "Are you here alone? I don't mean to pry but... This ain't a good town."

 

[Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri]

Kuxirra nodded. "Yes, I'm alone." She sighed. "I have nowhere to go." She shifted her quarterstaff to her lap so it didn't hurt her lek.

 

[Kardek Alpha]

Kardek gave her a slightly confused expression. "Are you in trouble then?" He took a quick drink and put the glass down, again assessing the room. "look... I don't know your story, but I can get you out of here if thats what you need." He slid the menu in her direction. "Hungry?" He asked. "It's on me".

Kardek's concern and curiosity were steadily growing as his conversation with Kuxirra Tano-Bonteri continued.