Private Flightless Bird

[Evelyn Shaw]

This is Captain Hargrave, of the ship 'Firebird'. We've sustained serious damage from an unknown party, highly suspected to be pirates or scavengers. We're currently leaking fuel and running on fumes. If there's anyone out there hearing this, please follow these coordinates. We should be exiting hyperspace within Outer Planets Alliance territory.

...

This is Captain Hargrave...
​

It had been the good captain's second-to-last good act. The final one being pushing Evie out of the cockpit, sealing it before an explosion tore a hole into space. He had just managed to get the message out to the OPA, in hopes that someone out there would be able to pick it up. It was a risky gambit, but the options were limited but that wasn't exactly something new for the smuggling lifestyle.

Evelyn Shaw was now the last living member of the Firebird crew.

She hopped over some debris heading towards the Medbay, it's current resident being the crew's latest package. Sitting haphazardly in the small Medbay was a portable Bacta tank, its protective shielding opened, allowing a clear view of its occupant. A small creature, its fur a dull white; almost grey, rested peacefully within. Evie wasn't even sure if it was a he or she, just that it was roughly the size of a Kowakian monkey-lizard...only less ugly looking.

"Don't worry, we'll...I'll get you out of this."

A flash of guilt crossed Evelyn's eyes as she stared down at the creature. No. Now is not the time to dwell.

There was no doubt in Evie's mind that she was going to have company soon. Firebird had been thrown out of hyperspace soon after the explosion, and was now drifting aimlessly through space. It wouldn't be long before their attackers would catch up. Departing from the Medbay, Evie made a beeline for the cargo hold, the largest open space on the ship. If she was going to get out of this with her freedom still intact, she'd need some space.

Eyes scanning around, Evelyn grabbed her metal staff, grasping it between her hands before finding a spot. She settled down in the middle, kneeling until she was on her haunches. Facing the doorway, Evie placed her staff down and began to meditate.

And just as she had estimated, not five minutes later their attackers; a large scavenger ship, exited hyperspace above the Firebird.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Though there was no lack of employers that would take her on far more exciting jobs Amea chose to sign on with a Find-and-Rescue team. After the last few weeks and their hectic workload it felt like a good idea to do something a bit more laid back. It was rare that people ever survived out there, and these missions more often than not more about finding the ships that are attacked and claiming them for OPA-aligned salvagers. As such the equipment aboard was made for speed as opposed to actual work.

The distress signal they had picked up was quite final, and yet the ship that appeared before the crew as they left hyperspace wasn’t quite as broken apart as one would have expected. Some of the lights still seemed to be on with more of them coming in and out of view as the ship seemed to slowly spin away from wherever it had come from.

“That should be it.” The captain of Amea’s crew said.

“No kidding.” Amea followed up and leaned forward in her seat as if to get a better view.

The shuttle began to head in the direction of the attacked ship. Some of the crew asked about attackers, yet like a jinx out of hell the question was answered no sooner than it came to light. The entire cockpit turned to glare at Garry who let out an awkward chuckle before they all turned their attention back to the new arrival.

“Ninety-to-one odds they are not just the salvage crew.” Amea said and looked over at the captain.

“No doubt.” He replied. “Taking us in slow, trying to stay off their sensors. This just got a lot more complicated, but if we can get our beacon on there first…”

“Good old first-lick strat. Smart.” Garry nodded rather self-assured in the back.

“Shut up, Garry.” The Duros captain answered back without missing a beat.

“Yes, father.” The kid quietly bowed his head in embarrassment and looked out the window at the towering ship right above the Firebird.

The duros let out a sigh and turned back towards his human adoptive son.

“... Sorry, son. Didn’t mean to—”

“Yeah, I know dad.”

Evelyn Shaw​

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

She couldn't focus like before, her usual focal point in the engine room was now gone. Just sputtering machinery of whatever was left barely functioning. The only constant she could centralize on, was the soft whirling of the malfunctioning astromech trying to keep the ship together.

Evie was effectively blind to anything outside of the ship. With no working cockpit, she had no knowledge of their pursuers already looming over them. And feth knows if any of the Firebird's sensors were functioning.

Then the ship suddenly shook as a tractor beam grabbed ahold of it, pausing for a moment before the gravitational force began dragging it towards the larger vessel. It was honestly a miracle the Firebird didn't crumble apart from just being pulled, but it managed to remain in one piece even after being roughly deposited down into a hangar.

And here I was thinking I'd never be back on this ship...

It wasn't long before Evie began to hear three distinctive sets of boots, walking up the ramp with caution.

"Ah good, looks like we managed to get one of them as they fled." Anne. "Is she dead?" Silence, then a single blaster shot. "Is now." It took all the restraint Evie had to not just stand up and kick their arses. "Spread out, we've still got two unaccounted for."

The Echani listened carefully as the different footsteps began to differ in their noise, getting louder or quieter. First finding the cockpit was locked, just as the engine room was also sealed. Then a pair of boots got extremely close, and Evie barely kept herself from inhaling sharply.

"Got a live one!"

A rush of boots immediately followed, as the other two made their way to the cargo hold. Evie was on edge now, waiting (and hoping) they'd get closer before she could spring into attack.

"Wait! What if she's a Jedi?" A pause, and even without looking Evie could practically feel the look of exasperation sent the man's way.

"What even gives you the impression she's a-" The sound of a palm hitting one's face echoed across the open room. "You do realize Jedi aren't the only ones who meditate, right?"

"I'm just saying..."

"Maybe she's a Sith?"

"Nah, she doesn't have any of that weird creepy chit they have with their face and skin."

"Clearly you've never seen a Sith then, eight out of ten times they look like they walked out of a Super Model show on the Holonet."

"Enough! Just restrain her before she wakes."

That was all Evie needed to finally make a move. She pushed herself from her seated position and lunged towards the trio, a hand swinging down to scoop up the metal staff as she passed over it.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

The tractor beam kicked into gear, yet no additional sensor readings could be found on the radar. They hadn’t planned on anyone being around. Amea looked at Captain Skydancer and then back out the viewport again.

“We go fast, we push the button-” Amea said and started to get excited.

“-and then we call the coast guard, yeah.” Skydancer finished the sentence for her with a frown. “We are not equipped to take them on.”

“Besides, they probably have a whole army of men in there.” Garry added.

“They do, but we will have the paperwork, and we’ve called for the Coastguard, and we’ve parked our ship aboard their ship.” Amea said and spun her seat around to get a look at the kid and his friend that had sat behind her. “If they blow the ship up, there is enough salvage on this other ship to get you a new one, not to mention the contractual pay from the OPA.”

“Assuming they don’t just blow us up.” Captain Skydancer added with yet another, deeper frown. “This is a big gamble, Virou.”

“Well, it’s either that or letting the crew on the Firebird face execution.” Amea said and spun back around in her seat to punch in the flight path. Given the lack of opposition she knew that they were in agreement, even if it was reluctant. “Good. We stay close to the ship. If they blow us up, they blow up their salvage.”

The captain shook his head and went with the plan.

“This is Amea Virou of the Squealing Shrieker, Outer Planet Alliance Salvage Division.” She spoke into a microphone and transmitted it over to the illegal salvage crew. “We have already laid a claim to this piece of salvage before you entered the system,” She pushed the button and with it a probe was launched that latched onto the side of the Firebird with a loud thonk. “Be aware that our co-ordinates are being transmitted to HQ as we speak. Allow us to board, and we can resolve this without either party getting hurt.”

“... Blow us up on the other hand, and I can guarantee you’ll find yourself banned from any worthwhile shadowport this side of the galaxy.”

A moment passed. Enough time that it was fair to assume, the people on the other end were either shitting their pants or throwing a tantrum.

“This is Aleksandr of the KIV-2983. We know you’re full of it, but we’ll hear you out. Our weapons are standing down, for now. You may land next to the empty vessel.

“It’s not empty.” Amea whispered back to the rest of the crew. “Thank you, Aleks. We’ll see you momentarily. Get your alibis together and until then, have a good day.”


Evelyn Shaw

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

Evie charged forwards, staff held horizontally as she slammed into the three men. The one in the middle was sent backwards, through the doorway and into the wall opposite. And those beside him were stopped short, backs slamming into the wall on either side of the doorway. She brought her staff up to the left scavenger first, slamming the end into his face, then pivoting the other point into the right man's stomach.

He let out a pained groan, followed up a much more excruciating yell as Evie shifted her weight to one side and slammed the staff up into his chin.

She heard a familiar crackle of electricity, as the man pulled out a pair of stun cuffs. The Echani twisted around in one movement, jabbing her staff forwards, twirling it around so it would snag around the chains. And in a momentary mistake, of refusing to let go of the cuffs, the man was pulled towards Evie where he got a firm boot right to the groin.

It was dirty, but these were also the lot that had killed her crew, her family.

Was it these three specifically? Maybe not. But they were part of the gang as a whole.

"Don't mo-" The other man had managed to regain enough composure, enough so to draw out his blaster pistol. But Evie was running on adrenaline, and she didn't think twice lunging towards him. A shot rang off, but the Echani had whipped her staff around and knocked the weapon off course. She brought a fist to the man's stomach first, then quickly wrapped her free arm around the man's gun arm and struggled. A quick stomp of the foot, and Evie gained the upper hand, twisting the man's body and forcing him to aim elsewhere.

The third scavenger, who had been knocked out of the room had finally managed to get back on his feet. Only to get a blaster shot to the leg as Evie forced the other to shoot.

"Feth you, bi-" An elbow to the guy shut him up real quick. She untangled herself and swung low with a leg sweep. The man was sent on a crash course with the floor, head slamming into on impact. But as he tried to get up, Evie brought her staff down with a sharp crack sending the man's head recoiling into the metal again. There was no time to waste in the Echani's mind, as she quickly stepped out of the cargo hold to deal with the last man. He was still prone against the wall, clutching at his now wounded leg. All he got was a quick look up before seeing a knee slam into his face, knocking him out cold.

Evie let out a heavy breath, staring down at the unconscious man before she walked away. She entered the more open area, and immediately noticed the portable bacta tank was half way out of the Medbay's door. Looked like one of the men had been in the process of moving it when he got called over. The Echani muttered something under her breath, quickly pushing the tank back into the Medbay and locking the room after.

It was only then, that Evie heard the sound of another ship landing down. What the feth was happening now?

She strode back to the cargo hold again, remembering that one of the three scavengers was still conscious, albeit very winded. He was still grounded, clutching at his jewels and groaning in pain. Useless, and unable to do anything as Evie turned the tables and slammed the stun cuffs around his wrists, tying them behind his back.

"How many did Aleksandr send?" Getting no answer, Evie kicked the man in the ribs. "How. Many?"

"Three! He...he only sent us three down to check on the ship."

Which meant there were probably a good number more waiting outside of the ship now. This...was going to be tricky.

Evie took a moment to organize her thoughts, trying to think up a plan of action. Realizing she had several messy strands of hair in her face now, the Echani reached into one of her pockets and pulled out a small band. Really should've done this before I even meditated. After she made a quick attempt to tie her hair up, Evie grabbed the now discarded blaster pistol.

"I will shoot you in the legs if you try anything. So get moving."

Not like the man could walk very easily right now anyway, still wincing in pain as he moved. But it was the best Evie could do right now. Staff on her back, pistol in hand as she forced the scavenger ahead towards the Firebird's ramp.

With absolutely no idea what she was about to walk into.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

“Oh yeah, and-” Amea gently slapped Captain Skydancer on the shoulder as she spun around to leave the ship. “You guys stay here.

“What? No!” Garry exclaimed. “It’s suicide.”

“We’ve technically already passed that threshold.” She offered the kid as she spun around and took the last few backwards steps out of the cockpit, her arms spread with a careless shrug. “Besides, we’ll need an escape route if this goes according to plan. Hell, we’re gonna need one either way, so…”

And with that she turned away to descend the ramp, the captain and his kid hissing at her as she went. Stepping out she found herself face to face with a whole bunch of blasters. Men behind cover, some out in the open as if they expected someone more armed or aware of what they were doing. And there was Amea, eyes set on each person pointing their guns at her, analyzing the situation.

From the corner of her eye she could see a strangely out of uniform woman lead a man down the ramp of the Firebird. Her brow rose for a second before she finally glanced back at the men that pointed their guns at her.

“I see.” She said and flashed a grin. “It wasn’t quite salvage yet, huh?”

From behind a few crates, the heavy footfalls of a man could be heard. Not visible yet, but heavy enough for each step to thud with a certain dullness to them. He was armored. Aleks was armored. That was just great.

“Not sure why you would bother taking him out of the ship to execute him though,” Amea said and looked at Evelyn. “It’s usually easier to sell your story if there isn’t blood all over the floors, y’know.”

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

Well...this is certainly interesting...

Evelyn was expecting to find several weapons aimed at her, but what she wasn't anticipating was for them all to be pointed elsewhere, then to her, then split between both women as the group seemed to collectively split themselves between them.

And of course, Aleksandr was standing there in his armour, trying to give off an air of authority.

"He's much more useful as a shield." Evie glanced over at Amea as she spoke, but her attention was firmly on the armed group before them.

"So the little thief survived, aye?" Aleksandr crossed his armoured arms together, demonstrating he had little care for defending himself. Why wouldn't he? He had a whole little gang of men ready to fire at his command.

"Dunno what you're talking about 'Sandr. We had a perfectly legitimate trade with you. It was you who decided to murder my crew."

"Everyone is just full of it today, aren't they?" He looked over at Amea for a moment, then turned back to Evelyn. "Don't play coy with me, woman. You stole something we were holding, something very particular."

"Still don't know what you're referring to. Never took anything that wasn't agreed on between both parties. Whatever this thing is, is beyond me." Now Evelyn was just being a smartass about it.

Aleksandr just shook his head.

"Whatever. We'll just take it back after you're both dead." He unfolded his arms, turning on his heel and started to walk away. "Men, ready your weap-"

"You still don't get it, do you?"

He let out an annoyed growl, turning around slightly to look back at the Echani.

"We were already at the hangar by the time your guys jumped us. That never struck you as rather odd? A bit too easy for us?" Even with the helmet on, Evie could tell Aleksandr was grinding his teeth together. "You've got some rats amongst your lil crew."

It was all a load of bantha crap, but Evie was tugging on two particular strings.

One - Aleksandr was a very proud man, believed he ran a tight ship and could never do wrong.

Two - Their business had the potential for a high concentration of paranoia. Plenty of small time thugs willing to do a little backstabbing for a higher pay and a leg up in the competition.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

They knew each other. Amea looked at the captain and then the echani. It wasn’t exactly what she had been expecting, but perhaps she should have. It was said after all that most murders were committed by someone close to the victim. Although given the palpable tension between the two it was probably fair to assume that the echani and the captain weren’t on good terms.

Threats and truths about murder and such generally were some goods signs of that.

The woman spoke and Amea raised her brows for a second before she jumped aboard.

“Hey, so that’s who it was?” She said and raised her arms wide in a shrug and stepped forward. The guns were cocked and she promptly stopped, arms raised by her head still. “Would Mister Humabarine please,” Amea said and pointed two fingers at the people and lowered her hand. “Please step out and announce yourself.”

She turned her hand back and forth and with it, the gambit was right back on. The turret of Captain Skydancer’s ship poked out from its little hidey hole to point straight at the crowd.

“Before the turbolasers take out all of you.”

One of the men raised his blaster towards her yet again. Amea's voice went low, her throat emanating a deep chuckle as the shadows around her eyes darkened. She leaned towards the man,

“You take that shot and it will be the last thing any of you do."

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

In the years that Evie had been a smuggler, she had learned to never trust anyone you didn't know. The only trust was that of your crew; your family. It wasn't exactly uncommon advice, the type of thing your parents told you as a kid.

Don't speak to strangers! Be careful who you speak to on the HoloNet, yadda yadda yadda...

But even in the smuggler business, someone with a reputation for being 'good', could just as easily stab you in the back if it would provide them with a higher profit. At some point the paranoia and cynicism just melds together.

Evie had no idea who the woman was, aside from the fact Aleksandr and his lot seeing her as a potential threat. Which could mean a number of different things.

Belonged to a whole different group of scavengers.

Part of a rival gang to Aleks'.

Or hopefully, in Evelyn's mind at least, she was part of the OPA.

She said nothing as the brunette ran with the gambit she had set up, talking a step towards the armed group. Immediately, the atmosphere in the hangar grew more tense. Evie could feel her current 'shield' twitching uncomfortably. Less so from the pain now, and the realization he was potentially about to be in the middle of a firefight.

"You sneaky lil..." Aleksandr practically growled the words out as he split his attention between Amea and Evelyn. The men behind and around him were starting to shift, some had lowered their weapons slightly, others were looking around with a building sense of doubt. Only for it to be replaced by alarm and fear when the Squealing Shrieker's turret made its appearance.

The man who had raised his blaster at Amea was slightly shaking. Fear evident in his body as he tried to internally debate on his next action. Tension building as she got closer, the sense of danger growing with every second.

Shoot, or not to shoot. That was the question. His fear response was telling him no, but if he didn't he'd be seen as a coward amongst his peers. He was being threatened by someone who wasn't armed. His personal safety over that of others in the gang...

Fortunately the answer wouldn't ultimately fall into his hands.

With practically everyone's attention focused on Amea, Evelyn saw an opportunity. She slipped her blaster pistol from her shield's back and held it steady against his side. Too focused on the tense situation before him, the captive said nothing as the Echani lined up.

Nothing like a little bit of chaos to stir the pot.

Evelyn fired, striking one of Aleksandr's men.

All hell broke loose.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

The situation was tense, everyone held their breath for a moment. Amea stared the man before her down. Yet blaster fire was accompanied by that of a turbolaser impacting against the hangar floor with deadly efficiency. Amea made a break for cover behind a recently displaced crate as the Squaling Shrieker provided cover. Its landing ramp began to raise and with it one of the men made a run for it. Amea extended her hand and threw him back into the crowd, his limp body hitting the ground before Aleksandr with a thud.

The man held his hand to his head to stop the spinning with Aleks reaching down to grab him by the chest to throw him back on his feet and keep firing. There was a pride emanating from the man, yet his men showed little more than fear. It was in their aim, in the way their arms seemed to tremble enough to throw every single shot off-mark.

Freaking out the the kid that Amea had thrown dropped his rifle and began to make a sprint for the back of the ship to seek safety. But his run was cut short by Aleksandr, his blaster leaving a smoking hole where the kid’s stomach had once been.

“Nobody cowers! They’re two people and a ship, just kill them already!” The man bellowed to his crew members. Yet they fell on deaf ears as the ship opened fire yet again to take out another good section of those that hid behind crates.

“Surrender and this ends!” Captain Skydancer’s voice echoed from the speakers of his ship.

“Yeah, the OPA don’t mess around!” Garry exclaimed, gleefully.

“Shut up, Garry.” His father shut him down.

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

"Screw you and the OPA, no one comes on my ship and attacks my men!"

But even Aleksandr wasn't a fool to stand out in the open. He knew his armour wouldn't stand up against a ship's turret. Instead, he kept himself behind some more durable cover, keeping him obscured from the Squealing Shrieker, whereas his men still remained behind crates and such. "Focus your fire on the ship and the Force user!"

Even despite the sudden chaos, it hadn't passed Alek's notice when Amea had knocked one of his men back without even touching him. The armoured leader had dealt with his fair share of them over the years. And the man was currently cursing the lack of effective weaponry.

Aleksander wasn't even focused on Evelyn at this point, who had taken the opportunity to move. Her prisoner had begun to wrestle against his restraints, fully intent on trying to at least break free of her hold. But at this point, he had used up his usefulness to the Echani. So she let him go, unexpectedly so given the man immediately stumbled forwards. But Evie wasn't going to just let him go easily, and thus fired two shots off, one shot to the back of either leg.

One less to deal with.

With that though, Evie opted to run back onto the Firebird, an idea quickly forming in the Echani's mind.

Aleksandr was still huddled behind his cover, speaking into his armours built-in commlink.

"Vik, where are the damn hangar defences?"

"Sorry boss, we're still getting insufficient pow-"

"I don't give a chit! Divert power from the hyperdrive if you have to, I want these damn turrets operational!"

Now the KIV-2983 was no military ship, what internal defences it had couldn't match up in the slightest. But it still had a small amount of wall-mounted turrets lining the walls around the hangar. Proof that Aleks had neither the power or the manpower to fully operate a scavenger ship this size.

But just as the wall turrets began to rise to life, one of them exploded into a shower of fire and debris.

"What?!"

The sound of a mechanic whine screeched out across the hangar. One of the Firebird's overhead turrets swung about from its original target, aiming straight towards Aleksandr, who was now directly open to the Firebird's position.

A very audible curse escaped Aleks lips as he quickly raised his arm and activated his shield. A protective barrier sprung out from his forearm, stretching from head to toe like some kind of tower shield.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

“Technically, you attacked us first!” Amea called out to correct Aleks as he grew increasingly frustrated at his losses. Seemed he hadn’t counted on this sort of fortune. Maybe some easy money, destroy a ship here, sell the parts there. Not a full-on assault on his very own ship. Amea could understand the frustration, but that just meant she understood his way of thinking all the more.

Still prideful, still temperamental. Most likely a man who led through fear and success than anything. There were undoubtedly actual rats in his crew. Few ever truly cared to work for a man like him and would usually turn on him the second their luck turned.

And what would you know, today seemed to be that day.

The defenses worked against him, the cargo he had tried to create worked against him too. Hell, there was even a third party in all of this, and Amea relished in being just that: a thorn in the side. She held no respect or goodwill for men like him. He had just murdered his own to scare others into submission. His way of operating was a stark contrast to how she would have liked to think of herself to be as a captain.

Sweeping up to him, Amea pointed her gun at him as the turret fired died down.

“You have the option to surrender and face your death with some dignity before a jury,” Amea said and took a step back in case he tried anything. “Or try something stupid and die here and now like the dog you are.”

“I couldn’t care less which one it is. You’re not leaving this ship a free man either way.”

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

Evelyn's initial plan had been to try and get into the cockpit. However, that was quickly shot down when she realized the door was sealed. Between Hargrave's act of locking it, and the subsequent explosion that followed, it wasn't going to budge.

Not like said plan would've worked well anyway.

She was a decent pilot at best, and that was flying out in the open. Less so in the confined space of the hangar, with the intent of potentially hitting things.

The Firebird was on its last leg, might as well go out in style.

Alas that course of action was made moot. Instead, Evelyn made a dash towards one of the curved hallways, passing by the engine room as she went.

"TC, if you're still functioning in there, please divert any remaining power to the turrets!"

Discarding her staff, Evelyn dashed up the ladder as quickly as she could. Fortunately, she had some experience in how to operate one of these things. Sev had certainly drilled the instructions into her, despite the Echani's adamant refusal to ever actually man a turret. I guess things change when those closest to you die...

She slid into the seat, immediately trying to get the machine online. At first there was nothing, until it began to rumble to life and the various consoles began to light up. Thank you TC, hopefully you'll make it through this.

It was just in time too. Because just as Evelyn gained control of turret movement, the hangar defences began to stir to life. Just as one was about to fire upon Amea's ship, Evelyn squeezed the trigger and blew it up.

The resounding What?! was like music to Evie's ears.

She swung the turret around, aiming it directly towards Aleksandr. There was a moment of hesitation despite having a damn turret aimed at her crew's murderer. Aleks took advantage of that, activating a large shield before himself. But...that proved a mistake, as the Echani's morality took a reverse swing.

Evie wanted to hurt Aleksander. Surely he'd survive this though....right?

A single streak of energy shot across the hangar and slammed directly into Aleks' shield. Anything and anyone that stood within relatively close distance was blasted back. Smoke obscured view until it died down. Nothing but silence followed for a couple minutes, no blaster or turret fire. Just silence as the smoke dispersed. Aleksander had been knocked back several feet, armoured boots had remained firmly planted if the scuffed trail along the floor was anything to go by. His shield was completely gone, his right arm mangled and just hanging limply to his side. Hell, the man's entire right side was scorched, the armour a crispy black. His helmet had taken a hit too, a nasty chunk had been torn out along the right side of his face, exposing freshly scarred flesh.

He still managed a (now visible) glare as Amea moved in, gun aimed and ready to kill if necessary.

"You'll regret this." Surrender it was. Even Aleksandr had the sense to not be self-destructive in the face of his own death.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

“See, you say that,” Amea said and aimed to gun at his exposed face before she pulled the trigger. “But I won’t.”

The rest of the crew witnessed in horror and almost utter confusion as their leader was executed before their very eyes, unarmed and mangled by fire. A heavy silence fell upon the hangar before Amea knelt down to grab the man’s datapad and pocketed it. One of the men looked over at her with panicked green eyes that pushed against a set of distant browns. He was scared, he reeked of remorse, and yet most of all he was struck with an undeniable sense of hesitation.

Amea rose from the ground to speak to the others, her voice expanding into a near-growl towards the others.

“Now let this be a lesson for the rest of you!” She shouted. “I have your boss’ datapad, I have the name of every single person that served him. I know who you are, I know these lanes, and I will know if you commit any further crimes against them, or prey on others.”

“I am giving you the chance. Either you can go home and rethink your lives or you can choose to stay and face the same fate as your dead friend. Don’t be idiots. The escape pods are yours, but this ship will be seized by the OPA.”

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

Not a single one of Aleks men protested against Amea's declaration. A few glanced over at each other, before they all seemed to simultaneously make a run for it without saying a word to one another. However, one of the men didn't follow suit straight away. Instead he slowly approached Amea, hands raised to indicate he wasn't armed.

He didn't get too close, just enough to grab the woman's attention.

"Aleksandr was a much smaller piece in a larger picture." The guy wasn't nervous, and almost seemed relatively happy to see Aleks dead. "He won't be missed, but it'll still be perceived as a slight." With that said, he immediately turned a complete one-eighty and made for the escape pods deeper into the ship.

"You know, he ain't wrong."

Evelyn piped up as she approached Amea from behind, her eyes seemingly glued to Aleks' body. She had remained in the turret seat, watching with rapt attention as Amea had forced Aleksander into a surrender. It took her by surprise when the woman opted to execute rather than capture. Evie wasn't exactly familiar with how the OPA operated, but she couldn't imagine this was standard protocol.

Not to say she wasn't impressed. And an inner part of her appreciated the fact she had gone that direction.

"Aleksander was part of a larger...I wouldn't call it a gang per se, but more of a larger organization. They work out of a flotilla of ships, ever moving and always at service to the highest bidder."

She looked down at the body for a few moments, before her mood seemed to do a complete reversal and she spun on the spot to face Amea, a smile on her face.

"So you are part of the OPA then?"

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

“Then, if you see them, you can tell them they’re next.” Amea responded to the one that had approached her, seeming almost thankful that Aleksandr’s reign had been put to an end. The mysterious Echani woman came forth and Amea listened to her talk.

It was weird to see her go from real serious to almost jovial in a heartbeat.

“They know of me.” Amea said and slowly turned back around to wave towards the Squealing Shrieker to give them the all-clear. “For the moment, however… Yes.”

The ramp to the ship lowered. Garry and Captain Skydancer began to descend into the hangar and Amea let her attention move over towards the Firebird. With one against her waist and the other covering her mouth her brows sunk in disappointment.

“Usually you could just consider me someone who is more concerned with the welfare of interstellar trade and hyperlanes.” Amea said and turned back towards Evelyn again. “I’ve seen enough of types like this Aleksandr guy to know that he wouldn’t be one to rethink his life decisions in a prison cell. Escape is likely, vengeance once out even more so.”

“He was a problem that was easily fixed with a bullet, hence… Well, this.”

“But that hardly matters. Are you alright? I take it you are the only crew that survived?”

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

A freelancer then?

Evelyn hmm'd quietly at Amea's answer. It made sense, not wanting to be completely attached to a group. She only ever knew of the OPA via the stories Captain Hargrave told. And even then he was never really a part of the group either. Formerly of the Coalition, but had split ways some time before that had fractured and reformed.

And now...Evelyn had a much more personal example of why forming bonds were a messy situation. The family she had spent the past several years around were just...gone.

Taken away in one fell swoop.

Because of her mistake.

The guilt was starting to surface again. Now that the anger and desire to hurt had begun to diminish, the guilt was returning.

"Yeah...you're right." The conflict was obvious in her tone. She understood, but was also internally conflicted over the actual death. "I'm fine, just some scrapes and bumps from when they attacked the Firebird, but..."

Your fault.

They're all dead. ​

You got them killed.
​

"Rook stayed behind to give us a chance, so did Anne...but she didn't make it beyond the ramp. The Captain got ejected into space trying to send the distress call out." Her eyes had wandered back over to the Firebird, talking almost aimlessly as she stared. "TC is probably fried now..I-" Evelyn's eyes widened as a realization struck her. "Oh chit, I almost forgot!" And just like that she sprinted towards the Firebird, bounding up the ramp and disappeared into it.

By the time anyone reached her; if they had followed, Evelyn was pushing the portable bacta tank out of the Firebird's medbay. The protective shielding was closed around it now, concealing it's current occupant from view.

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

There was loss in her, it wasn’t hard to notice. She was distant yet present, one foot in the door and the other grounded in reality. The death of Aleksandr was unlikely to have been what caused it, or the woman wouldn’t have approached the scene in the first place. At least that was what Amea would assume. It wasn’t a familiar concept but she had seen it in others. Loved ones who was left cold and alone in the galaxy as thugs had executed their partner before their very eyes. Refugees escaping the horrors of war.

Death left a mark on everyone. It was just a matter of finding out in what way. Amea had hers coming, she reckoned, but until then she would keep pushing to help those that had gone through it once already.

“Woah, hey!” She called out as the Echani woman set off in a run towards her ship. “Hey!”

With a sprint of her own Amea followed until they reached the medbay and a portable bacta tank. Not one to ask the obvious questions of who, why, or when, Amea did the second best thing and asked,

“What do you need with that?” She looked over at Evelyn. “If it’s space you need, we have plenty of it on the Shrieking Squealer.”

 

[Evelyn Shaw]

"Oh, no this is...well." Rather than let her rambling explain, Evelyn stepped around to the other side of the tank and quickly punched something into the small side console. The protective plating hissed before sliding open to reveal the occupant to Amea.

The small creature remained in the same position as before, idle and just barely breathing. One would mistake the latter if you didn't look long enough to see it's chest rise and fall. They were clearly malnourished, but what went unnoticed by Evelyn, but perhaps not Amea, was the fact the small being had a presence.

It was the Force, the Light.

Smothered and barely flickering, but it was there.

A closer 'look' would reveal that the creature, whomever or whatever it was, was intrinsically tied to the Light Side of the Force. But years of torment; physical, mental, spiritually, you name it, had dulled it to a fine point of near non-existence.

The physical ailments were not going to be the only thing needing healing.

"I need to get this little one to a Medical Facility. The tank is just about keeping them alive, it won't do scratch all for actually healing."

Amea Virou​

 

[Amea Virou]

Evelyn Shaw

It was a weird creature. Amea couldn’t help but squint as she looked at the creature in the tank. White, seemingly furred. Two arms, two legs. Certainly very cute, yet put in a very bad position. Showed some form of connection to the force with a sense of ease. A light-side attuned creature? Amea’s hand cupped her chin as she knelt down to get a better look. It was hurt and given the scarring some of the wounds were fairly old.

“It has a presence in the force.” Amea said and looked up at Evelyn. “Have you had anyone attuned to the force check it out?”

She rose to her feet and glanced out the cargo bay. From down the ramp Garry stood and ogled the creature in the tank with a very deep sense of fascination to him.

“Where did it come from?” Amea asked as Garry joined them. “Was this why they shot you out of the sky?”