Private Iron Lucia

[Isabeau]

Felucia​

Finally. Having been crammed in a small but fast little ship for way too long, the two Mandalorians finally arrived at their destination. Although the ship they had acquired had a crammed interior and was uglier than most, it excelled at what they needed, a discrete craft which could let them slip in and out quickly. Quickly hopping out of the ship, Isabeau stretched her arms, legs and back, letting Zephyr deal with turning it off and whatever else he wanted to do in there.

The two Mandalorians had met rather recently in a bar on Wayland. Having failed rather utterly at making a good first impression, Isabeau was clearly not quite as impressed with the man as she could have been. Still, he had been involved in the fighting, and she could respect that. Besides, her being able to participate in the mission was all thanks to him. While she didn't like him, he was making good progress on escaping her ire and lingering distaste.

Having removed all unnecessary clothes in respect of the heat, Isabeau only wore her armour on top of a body glove with little else there but a belt to attach her weapons to. It was a fortunate choice of clothes as the uncomfortable warmth and humidity created a rather unpleasant environment to be in, certainly having been much worse if not dressed appropriately. Bringing out her rifle, Isabeau carried it casually, one hand holding the grip and the other the barrel. They were far from home and in hostile territory - it was best to be prepared, to say the least.

"If I would've had any self-respect, I'd have come to a nicer planet" she said, hiding the fact that she was amazed by the wondrous nature and awe-inspiring landscape around them. She had never seen anything like it before and was actually grateful for being able to experience it. Pity, that it laid so deep within Sith territory or else, it might have been a nice spot for a vacation.

They had landed in the middle of a sprawling 'forest', covered by colourful flora native to the planet, far away from any form of civilisation. "The outpost is in that direction" she said, pointing towards an elevated mound in the distance, seemingly with a large tree-like plant sprawling all over it, dwarfing any ship or person going near it. "Do you think that operative of yours has any guards taking leisurely strolls out here in the marches?" she asked, already certain that they would have to go through both one and two scuffles before reaching their destination

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

Despite the fact their relationship didn't extend beyond a drunken bar fight, Zephyr had begrudgingly offered Isabeau to accompany him on his next job to try and make amends for how he had wronged her as he had never meant any harm... at least not initially until she initiated the fight. He didn't hold a grudge against her, though it was hard to read how she felt about him. Still, they would need to work together if they were to succeed so they would have to learn to overcome their differences to form a cohesive unit.

Once they landed, Zephyr flicked off a few switches until the engine stopped and they were enveloped by nothing but the quiet humming of Felucian birds. He attached the jetpack to his back, opting for manoeuvrability in the current terrain rather than fire power and joined Isabeau a few moments later. When she mentioned self-respect, he slowly turned his head to look at her, saying nothing but leaving it to her imagination what his expression conveyed. He was aware of his poor choice of words but he wasn't about to apologise to her for them as he had meant well.

"I don't know but we're about to find out." He replied as a rustle in the foliage ahead drew his attention, causing him to draw a blaster and point it in the direction of the movement. However, the intruder soon revealed itself to be a bird so he relaxed and continued towards the outpost, into the denser forest. He was on edge being in Sith territory as if the faction were alerted of their presence then the likelihood of them leaving Felucia was slim.

Aside from being in enemy territory, being on Felucia in armour was deeply uncomfortable as the climate was not in their favour. The armour did exceptionally well at keeping body heat in but not so much the heat and humidity from outside out. It wouldn't be long before they grew hot and sticky and even with helmets on the sweet, sickly smell of the local flora was prevalent but Zephyr had worked in challenging circumstances before and he wasn't about to let circumstances get the better of him so he continued without so much as a word to Isabeau - He was used to working alone, not making conversation.

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

He was not very talkative now, was he? Last time they had met, he didn't fear sharing his thoughts, but apparently, things were different now. "You know nothing, Zephyr" she thought whilst taking a few steps, just to see around some of the humongous plants and get a better grasp of the surroundings. Both Mandalorians shot to attention, however, as something could be heard nearby, Zephyr drawing his blaster pistol, and Isabeau aiming and priming his rifle. If they didn't have to be quiet, she would more than likely have shot the bird for what it did to them, but this was a time for restraint. Lowering her weapon again, she continued walking about - they would need to return here, it was probably better to have a good grasp of their surroundings.

Looking at the ship they had arrived in, Isabeau considered whether or not they should try to camouflage the ship or not - or rather, whether she should camouflage it or not, seeing as Zephyr had walked off without a word. "Wait up" she said, entering a light jog to catch up with him, deciding that the shrubbery was thick enough to hide the ship unless someone got exceptionally near in which case provisional camouflage wouldn't be of much use.

The path to the mound they were walking to was far from simple, filled with dense vegetation, uneven ground and at times, march terrain, bound to make any sock which wasn't properly protected wet. Agile and used to scouting on ahead, Isabeau moved a few meters ahead of Zephyr, making it easy for him to follow in her footsteps for a workable path. While she would normally have made use of her vibroblade to remove things that got in her way, the young Mandalorian did not want to leave a trail and consequently make it easier for whatever guards were patrolling the area to get suspicious.

After quite a bit of travelling, the two reached what seemed like a clearing. Colourful plants and moss surrounded them, but a centrally located rock was there - it was dry and almost free of plants except for a few purple ones. Hopping up on it, Isabeau took off her helmet "Pollen?" she said, looking on the small particles which laid spread across her helmet and armour. Looking up, she could see what seemed like a soft 'rain' of the little things, forming a cloud shifting from yellow to pink above them. Looking up, she smiled brightly, amazed by its beauty. "Want to take a break? Maybe some of these things are edible" she said, not having brought any food but a couple of emergency energy bars.

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

Although he didn't say it and tried not to show it, he was embarrassed about how he had portrayed himself on the night of the bar fight. He wanted to make amends with Isabeau but didn't explicitly tell her so offering her to accompany him on the job was his way of apologising. At least she would get credits and a good fight she wouldn't have otherwise had, though his embarrassment and years of solitude made him less inclined to converse with her.

Used to working alone, Zephyr didn't wait for Isabeau and relied on her to keep up but didn't say anything when she moved ahead of him to lead the way. She was sensibly laying out a path for them to follow which was helpful and he had no reason not to trust her judgement yet. For now, he would have to remain on foot as the sound of a jetpack wasn't exactly inconspicuous and could draw attention to the pair so he decided on it being a last resort.

"Looks like it." Zephyr replied, looking up to see what Isabeau was looking at before taking his own helmet off to get a better look, brushing back the strands of hair that stuck to his forehead with sweat. "I... wouldn't eat anything if I were you." He warned her. "You don't want to poison yourself." He told her as he placed his helmet on the ground and handed her the bottle of water he had brought with him, after taking a swig himself, intending to dispose of it before they got into a fight.

Unusually, he seemed to have lost all motivation to continue with the mission and sat on the ground beside his helmet as though they'd come out for a picnic. His attention turned to the purple flowers which he began gently running his fingers over, as though contemplating. "It's really... nice here." Zephyr thought aloud. He lay down on his back and looked up at the colourful cloud above them, seemingly docile.

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

An annoyed look shot towards him as he recommended against eating the local flora. She took a deep breath, getting an intense smell of the aroma, probably produced by the heavy pollen "The Knight of self-respect is back at it again, isn't he?" she thought, ready to share her thoughts with him. Raising a finger towards him, Isabeau opened her mouth to speak - but no words escaped her as she had a most dramatic change of mind. "Yes, thank you for warning me, ori'vod" she said with a sweet voice and pleasant smile. Taking a step closer, she took the bottle and had a sip before handing it back "Thanks for looking after me" she replied with a sincere tone, apparently abundantly grateful to him.

While there might be a select few whom she would treat this way normally, Zephyr was most definitely not one of them. Still, feeling that this was just right, Isabeau smiled softly as she looked upon him but was slightly puzzled when she saw him get down as he took the idea of a break one step further than she had imagined. Shaking her head, the young Mandalorian put away her blaster rifle and got down to lay on the rock too. Snuggling in close to him, even slipping in between his torso and arm to rest her head on it, she concurred "It is really, really nice here" Looking up at him, the girl brushed away another strain of hair from his forehead before letting out a satisfied sigh. "Where would I be if you hadn't protected me against that creep?" she asked, voice filled with admiration as she thought back on the events of the night in the bar.

Laying there with him for a while, peaceful and happy, she kept thinking of the night she spoke of earlier. Zephyr's attacks against the other guy flashed by, just as memories of how he had flung her at another Mandalorian. The warm and sweet feelings she had soon had started to fade and in their place came a creeping sense of fear. Thinking about it, she was in an extremely disadvantageous position, already laying their in his grasp. With her eyes already betraying how she felt, Isabeau slowly reached around him with an arms sneaking to his holster. Unless prevented, she would turn his blaster to stun mode with a tick, at least taking care to ensure that he wouldn't be quite as deadly as he could have been.

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

Zephyr's gaze fell on Isabeau when she spoke and he returned her smile then replied sluggishly. "I don't want you getting hurt." He told her in a concerned tone, as though he really cared for her beyond what he should've cared for someone he had known mere days. He took the bottle back and placed it on the ground but it immediately fell over. "Oops..." He said quietly, not particularly bothered. It didn't feel weird talking to Isabeau like he was, nor for her to talk to him in the same way, though he still felt the quiet pangs of embarrassment from the bar that night.

When she joined him laying down, he rolled his head to the side to look at her beside him with an absent-minded smile. "Nooo... Don't say that. You're more than capable of defending yourself. I just... wanted... to help." He trailed off as if he was losing his train of thought which became apparent when his gaze followed a flock of birds in the sky rather than their conversation. Once they had gone, he looked back at Isabeau. "But I didn't do it very well... Sorry." The words slipped out, unsure why he felt compelled to tell her this but nothing was stopping him from doing so.

Both seemed to have forgotten their purpose of being here as neither had the motivation to move from where they were. "Look!" He said with excitement as he pointed at nothing in the sky with his free hand, clearly believing something to be there. He was far too focused on all the sights and smells around them to pay attention to what Isabeau was doing, at one point laughing at nothing. All knowledge of them being in enemy territory seemingly left his mind as he felt completely at ease until he focused on the young woman beside him - Could she be trusted?

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

Despite his sweet words, Isabeau practically shivered where she laid, obviously fearful for anyone who paid proper attention. At least his blaster was put on stun mode now and slowly, she used her hand right by his side to set the other one to stun too. Relaxing and assuming a more comfortable position, the girl tried to not think about how frightening he was but failed rather miserably.

As soon as his arm shot up, pointing at something which she clearly didn't see, Isabeau was startled, rolling over his arm to quickly get away from him, hoping to soon be out of his reach. Once having made the way over the speed bump that was his arm, her hands grabbed whatever was nearby before getting up to her feet. Looking down at him, she found herself holding a flash grenade in one hand |a water bottle| and a sleep dart |a small flower| in the other.

"Stay down!" she roared, holding the sleep dart up, threatening to throw it. Eyes fixed on him, she slowly backed away, alert as a prowling puma until she slipped on the water spill he had caused earlier. "It's a trap!" she thought as she scrambled to get back up on her feet "I should've listened to Rogrir! Mercy is for the weak!" she screamed, hurling the flash grenade at his face with all her might before turning away, waiting for it to go off.

Soon, she decided that staying and finishing him off was too risky. Instead, she threw the sleep arrow at him, grabbed his helmet which he had set down earlier and started running. Mumbling in Mando'a, she said "A Mandalorian wears their armour" as she equipped his helmet, mismatching hard with her own armour, not giving a second thought about using her own helmet which hung by her belt. After only a couple hundred meters, she suddenly tripped over something. Turning around whilst still on the ground, she saw a conveniently located sword |a stick| on the ground and hurried to pick it up. She would perhaps need to defend herself, and two swords were certainly better than one.

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

Despite being able to feel Isabeau moving, Zephyr was unconcerned as he didn't feel threatened by her so his focus remained attuned to the scenery, though he idly leaned his head against hers before pointing to an area of interest. She suddenly lurched from his grip and at first he did nothing but remained in the same position and stared after her, confused.

Zephyr pushed himself into a sitting position, paying no attention to her warning and when he saw what she was holding he looked at her with wide eyes, realising the severity of the situation. She had been trying to lull him into a false sense of security all along and as soon as she launched a projectile his way, Zephyr rolled over and behind the rock for cover before realising the grenade hadn't gone off and jumping back to his feet.

He searched the ground for his helmet but upon realising it was missing he sprinted after the other Mandalorian, growing angry and fearful, though he couldn't explain why. No longer competent enough to identify his own weapons, Zephyr reached for a stick on the ground, admiring it momentarily before rejoining the chase until he came face to helmet with Isabeau.

Once close enough, Zephyr would attempt to plant his foot firmly on Isabeau's abdomen to hold her in place while pointing the stick at her. "I have to admit. You almost fooled me." He told her while looking at his vambraces to try and figure out which function could help him best before settling on a tranquilliser dart, though it was really the whipcord thrower. He shot it towards her and only managed to entangle part of her arm in whipcord, though he didn't recognise that either and thinking the situation had been stabilised, backed away.

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

Looking at, perhaps even admiring her new blade, Isabeau was caught by surprise as Zephyr planted a boot on her abdomen, causing considerable pain and making it exceptionally hard for her to move. Struggling under the pressure, she let out an angry "Auretyc auretii!" (Traitorous traitor) before slashing at his leg with her (stick) sword. Despite having aimed in between the plates by the knee, Zephyr seemed to have an additional layer of protection as he neither lost a leg nor started bleeding and falling down onto the ground.

Her second swing was directed at his arms, but before it could connect, he shot his whipcord at her, making it tie around her arm before stepping off of her. Breathing in deeply, Isabeau started to recover whilst simultaneously aborting her attack. Perhaps he had some honour after all - why else would he just have spared her like that? Quickly bouncing back up to her feet again, Isabeau spinned the stick in her hands whilst assuming a ready position. "Face me" she said, speaking in Mando'a, apparently prepared to fight.

"I tried to run, but you wouldn't let me." Rushing forth, she commenced a swing against him but stopped half-way in, transitioning it into a thrust towards his abdominal area. If he managed to defend, she would utilise her high agility and quickly move around him, hoping to be fast enough to throw a swing at his arm and as if that was not enough, she activated her jetpack, propelling herself behind him to his other side where a quick follow-up attack was made and then an overhead strike as she moved infront of him once more. The series of attacks came at a quick succession and from all directions. What she had not thought about was that the whipcord had now been brought all around him, sticking to his armour and most likely gluing his arms against his torso.

Seeing the fruits of her work, Isabeau chuckled under his helmet. "No one binds me like an animal" she snarled before sending her sword into the cord. Unfortunately for her, the stick was way to blunt to even come close to cutting it off, causing her to rephrase "You're the one who's bound now" she continued, tugging lightly on the rope tangled around her arm to show that she was in command of the situation.

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

When Isabeau called him a traitor, it only made him angrier and so he increased the pressure on her abdomen. He felt something hit his leg and looked down at it. It looked like a blade but he gave a perplexed look as it didn't seem to be doing any damage. "<I'm not the traitor. You started this.>" He replied in Mando'a. She continued to attempt to attack him but to no avail, to both of their surprise. Zephyr watched as the blade hit him, flinching in response though there was no pain or damage.

He was clearly surprised when she got back on her feet, having thought he'd knocked her unconscious, and now it seemed his melee skills would be put to the test. "Run?" He questioned before scoffing. "That's sweet." He jested before deflecting her attack, though he was too sluggish to repel her attacks from behind and rather took the hits with no retaliation as his left wrist was still connected to the whipcord and he didn't have nearly enough wits about him to plan an attack. He tried to grab her arm but she was moving so quickly that she had gone by the time his arm had reached where she had been.

Before long, he couldn't do anything at all as she had managed to tangle him in his own whipcord which only made him angrier. He turned in the opposite direction in attempt to release himself somehow. After a considerable amount of wriggling, he freed one arm and tugged on the whipcord in attempt to bring Isabeau closer to him so he could take her down. Once close enough, he would attempt to grab her by the arm, throwing his body weight into hers to knock her over and pin her down.

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

He had made her squirm under his boot heel, but no more. Zephyr was now entangled in his own whipcord and turned his back against her. Although she was confused by his action, she smirked. Naturally, Isabeau was not just going to stand there and watch as he untangled himself, instead, she started running, making another lap around him, using short bursts with the jetpack to make it go faster. This time, she held her arm low, making sure that he would have whipcord wrapped around his legs too.

Somehow, he managed to free himself or at least an arm which she thought was quite disappointing. Although stationary with his mobility highly restricted, Zephyr probably did what was the smartest in his current situation and tugged at the cord which bound them together. With a low "hmpf", Isabeau stumbled towards him and with a second pull, she was close enough for him to reach and within moments, she could feel a strong grip around her arm.

Then all of a sudden, she flew back as he tackled her. Dunking hard into the ground upon her fall, Isabeau watched in horror as her former ally dropped himself on top of her. Feeling pain all over as well as her air getting knocked out of her, the girl whined in pained little noises. With eyes tearing up, she looked up at her oppressor through the T-visor, weakly trying to push him off as she struggled to breathe properly. Although he only had a single arm to keep balance with, shoving off someone as big as Zephyr was no small task and with his heavy armour, it would be even harder. Still, if he tried to do anything other with his one available arm than to keep balance, she would be able to push him off. If it went on for too long, she would be able to recover enough strength to bring up her (stick) sword and hold it against is throat and breathlessly whisper "Surrender". If he did indeed get off of her before that, she would spend a few moments recovering before approaching him to make the same gesture and demand.

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

It was a fight against time to untangle himself before Isabeau could tangle him up more, but it became clear who would win as he made little progress while Isabeau had managed to trap his legs in the whipcord. He knew he had to take advantage of the fact that Isabeau was entangled in the other end of the whipcord as he couldn't seem to figure out how to detach it from his end.

Once she was underneath him, he almost began to feel sympathy for her and her attempts to free herself. He looked conflicted on how to react next, knowing that he was in control of the situation now, but as his understanding of the situation returned then so did his unwillingness to engage in a fight against Isabeau. They were away from the peculiar looking plants now and their effects had begun wearing off, though the confusion remained present for now.

Zephyr felt as though he was coming off of a high and back into the real world, or so he imagined. While everything didn't appear completely normal, his emotions had begun to mellow out and became more reasonable. As he moved to get off Isabeau, she pushed him off and threatened him, though he showed no fear as he could now recognise her weapon as a stick. He still tried to reason with her anyhow, in attempt to get her to understand the situation.

"Isabeau, wait." He warned her. "I don't want to hurt you." He told her, almost sounding confused. Slowly, he moved a hand to his right vambrace to release the whipcord that bound them together. He wasn't entirely comprehensive of the situation himself but he knew Isabeau wasn't his enemy.

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

Having pushed him off, she took two deep breaths before quickly rolling to get back up to her feet and extended her (stick) sword to point at his throat, continuing until the blade actually touched against his skin. Giving credit where credit is due, Isabeau did recognise that he didn't budge as he refused to even cede a single step to her like most people would when someone pushed a sword against their throat.

Having been eager to get her helmet off and to breath in a few deep breaths of the pollen, the young Mandalorian was still affected by their properties. Still, her intentions had never been to hurt him and when he asked her to wait, she stood still, nevertheless holding a blade by his throat that could end his life in a mere millisecond if she so desired. "And I don't want to hurt you either, vod." she said with a confrontational tone. Continuing, she spoke with authority, pronouncing every single word clearly "Just get down on your knees and I'll bring you back to your Alor."

Eyeing him intently she prepared to stick the sword right into him as he moved his vambrace to his other hand - but instead of doing something rash, he simply released it. Her eyes suddenly looked very confused as she couldn't see what advantage that could possibly bring. They were still bound together, seeing as a rather substantial part of the whipcord was wrapped around him and then latched onto her.

If he hadn't gotten down on his knees when first requested to, she would now send a very sudden kick which might take him by surprise. Directing it to his side and seeing as his legs were bound together, she figured that it would be hard for him to keep balance and stand upright.

Walking towards the now kneeling Mandalorian, she would pick up the end of the whipcord he detached and quickly wrap it round his free arm and tape it to his torso. It was far from stable and with enough force he could probably just pull the arm away, but momentarily, it would be stuck "You should've stayed down" she said.

With the plants loosing their effects, the young Mandalorian started to return to her previous stage. Sheathing the sword, Isabeau got down on her own knees and wrapped her arms around her companion in a hug "It's much better if we don't fight" she said, once again proving that she wasn't quite back to normal yet. Driving the point home yet another time, she added "I'll say some nice words to the Alor about you when they're ready to give you a reprimand for trying to kill me"

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

Now aware that the 'blade' Isabeau was holding was only a stick, he did nothing to prevent her from pressing it against his throat, hoping that she would see sense before she took the matter further. Even if she didn't, he doubted it would do much harm before he could prevent it so he showed no fear. When she shared his sentiment of not wanting to hurt him, his shoulders noticeably relaxed but only for a brief moment as she soon mentioned involving his Alor. "What?" He asked as his heart sank.

His focus was on her comment about his Alor rather than her demand so he was taken aback by the kick which knocked him to his knees as he was in no position to maintain adequate balance. "I've stopped trying to fight you! Isabeau, come to your senses!" He urged her, hoping she could come back to some sense of normality. Zephyr felt light-headed from the ordeal as he began adjusting to reality and clearing his body of the pollen that had caused them to act so out of character.

The last thing he wanted was for his Alor to be involved in the situation, or anyone outside of the two of them. Words could be so easily twisted against him and he wanted to ensure that wouldn't happen, especially given his past. It would just be more ammo to be used against him should anyone find out about his true past. He had given up fighting Isabeau, hoping that she would come to understand the situation so he didn't have to diffuse it through violence.

When Isabeau enveloped Zephyr in a hug, he could't reciprocate as his arms were at his side but even if he could, he was too confused to understand why she was even hugging him. "Don't bring my Alor into this, please." He pleaded, clearly uncomfortable with the idea. Zephyr wasn't about to involve Isabeau's Alor in a situation that was down to circumstances and he hoped Isabeau had the self-respect to do the same. "Please." He pleaded again. "Isabeau..." He searched her eyes for any recognition.

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

There she was, arms wrapped around him in an embrace, quietly thinking of what was happening whilst listening to his plea. Slowly, she started questioning why she was hugging him and why the helmet she wore felt so strange. Slowly, her eyes glanced towards the person she was hugging and the question of why she was hugging the knight of self-respect struck her. Frowning, she backed away from him, entering a standing position. Looking down on him, Isabeau shook her head "You're right" she said with a cool voice before reaching for her sword.

"By the stars..." she mumbled as a stick was produced instead of her vibrosword. Tossing it away, she then reached for her actual sword. Thinking of how unfortunate it was that she hadn't installed a photography function in her helmet, not yet realising that she was wearing his, Isabeau prepared to strike. With a precise swing, she cut the vibrocord along the arm that he had never been able to free - the other arm, he'd be able to liberate himself.

Gesturing for him to stand up, she spoke again "What happened? I don't get it" Puzzled, obviously not having been able to figure it out herself, she still thought of the recent events. Smirking, she complimented him whilst cutting off the vibrocord along his legs "It was brave of you to stand up against me when I had a sword to your neck" Trying to stretch, the young Mandalorian immediately stopped after some rather severe pain that lingered from having been squashed by him twice "Maybe there's cause for that self-respect of yours" she continued jokingly, apparently warming up to him after their battle. "But tell me, how did you resist my slashes - I got a few good hits in during the fight"

Sheathing her sword again, Isabeau brought out her rifle to ensure that everything was still as it should be, and then her vambraces. They had a rather intense fight, one that could have messed a number of things up. When she eventually got around to checking on her blaster pistol, her temper soured as she noticed that it was no longer functioning. Bitterly holstering it again, she looked at him - not knowing whether she was unlucky to have her blaster pistol broken or lucky for probably not being broken herself "Next time we fight someone, you should just hop on top of them" she said, in a joking voice with just a hint of annoyance.

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

Thankfully, she seemed to grasp the situation before it deteriorated further as she seemed equally as confused why she was hugging him, judging by her backing away, though it was hard to tell as he couldn't see her facial expressions. However, as she reached for something, Zephyr watched her hand intently but she only produced a stick so he relaxed, only for her to pull out her vibrosword moments later. "Isabeau, no!" He said in a panicked tone but the loosening of the whipcord around his arm made it apparent that she hadn't intended to strike him down. "Oh... Thanks." He told her. Now he was confident that she was free from the grips of whatever had caused them to act out.

Once his arms were free, he stood up and pulled his legs free from the remaining whipcord before tossing it aside. "I don't know either." He replied with a puzzled look. "Do you think it was something to do with the pollen?" He queried as it was the last thing he remembered seeing before everything got muddled. As much as he wanted to accept her praise, he didn't feel it was right to do so. Zephyr looked unamused as Isabeau poked at him for saying self-respect again, the same look as the first time she had mentioned it, only this time she could see his expression. "There was no sword. It was a stick." He replied. "But you did get some good hits in, I'll give you that." He praised her. If he hadn't just been mocked, he may have smiled at her.

Instead, he took a step towards her and plucked his helmet off of her head. "Yours it there." He pointed at her helmet which was clipped at her side. Noticing her fiddle with her blaster, he took out one of his own and held it in her direction by the barrel so he wasn't aiming at her but making a clear offering. "I don't know why I did that. I would never do that to a vod." He seemed confused in his tone but gave her an apologetic look. "Are you okay?" He asked, hoping he hadn't put an even bigger rift between them.

Once everything was in order, he took the executive decision of continuing and replaced his helmet before leading towards the outpost. "We're close now." He told her, glancing behind him to make sure she was with him, the earlier carelessness seemingly vanished.

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

The pollen? She certainly hoped that it wasn't the cause, considering what a beautiful cloud it had produced. It would be hard to take one of the plants home with her if they had such strong effects on the mind. But perhaps she'd be able to think of something. Shrugging, Isabeau chirped "That, or you forgot to clean your water bottle properly, some of that extra spice still lingering in there, eh?" she stated, sincere in wondering whether that was indeed the case or not.

Clearly, Zephyr was not very amused by her joke about self respect and rightfully so - Isabeau was not amused when he told her about what actions her self respect demanded in the bar the other night either. In her eyes, this was only fair. Squinting, she tried to understand what he was saying "A sticK?" she asked before her eyes wandered down to the stick she discarded earlier "Seems like we were in luck then" Obviously, the job would have been much harder if she had managed to cripple Zephyr with a real sword. Letting out a sigh, she brought up her vambrace, noticing that it might be a good idea to keep pushing.

Zephyr would be met with confused eyes as he removed the helmet from her head. While she would normally have reacted violently to someone trying to separate her from her armour, Isabeau remained calm this time, knowing that something felt off with the helmet already. Besides, who knew what she might have done during the battle. A soft "Oh" escaped her as she saw the colour of the helmet and he pointed out where hers hung. She flashed him an awkward smile before continuing to check on the gear.

Isabeau's eyebrows rose as she looked at his gesture quizzically "I'm fine, it's just a blaster" she said before giving him an appreciative nod for his gesture. Obviously declining it, seeing as she then turned to look towards the mound, she continued "I can probably pick up a working one once we reach the outpost" apparently not too interested in spending credits on buying a new one.

Following his lead, the two then proceeded towards the outpost, avoiding any pollen clouds and other mystical fauna. "Gar serim" |Yes, you're right| she replied with a low voice and started to move more quietly. Seeing as they were in the middle of a massive forest, there were no walls or barricades to be found and the two Mandalorians had discovered why there weren't any guards patrolling the forest the hard way. Eventually founding a larger plant, she let out a low "Give me a boost" whilst signalling that she wanted to get up onto the plant.

Once up, she looked at the compound up ahead. Speaking via the com, she whispered "Two buildings and a freighter, seems like our operative is home. I see one guard on the roof of the larger building, one by its entrance and another one by the ship. Light firearms only." she grew silent for a while before continuing "Someone just exited the ship and went into the small building with an astromech. That might be our gal"

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

The most obvious explanation seemed to be the pollen but when Isabeau mentioned spice, his heart practically jumped for a moment before he rushed in to defend himself. "No. I'm very careful." He replied vaguely, not disputing the fact he may or may not have taken spice, though his response certainly pointed to the fact he had.

"Yeah..." He replied blandly, not disputing her combative abilities. From all that she had displayed, she had proved herself to be a worthy adversary, despite the fact she fought with a stick, he had gained some respect for her because of it. Although he didn't want to admit it, he was lucky the 'sword' had only been a stick as Isabeau could've bested him in the position he was in.

While Isabeau checked her gear, Zephyr took the liberty to check his own and was irritated to find that over half the whipcord had gone, though everything else was in working order. When she refused his blaster, he shrugged and placed it back in the holster. "Suit yourself." He told her, without bitterness. It wasn't as though he was going to let her die anyway and he knew she could defend herself well enough with the arsenal she had so it was more a peace offering than anything.

"I can see why there are no patrols now." He said idly. Once they reached the base of a plant, he held his hands out to offer her the boost she asked for and once he had given it to her, he waited below for her analysis of the situation. "Mhmm." He replied through the comlink intermittently to show he was listening and upon conclusion, he used the jetpack to shoot up to her level. "There's no time to waste then." He declared before launching in the direction of the outpost.

Isabeau

 

[Isabeau]

Smirking, Isabeau watched as he took off, charging towards their enemies with his jetpack. Taking on her helmet, the Morellian hopped down from the plant and started running forwards until she reached a point from which she could see the area relatively clearly. There, she crouched down, brought out her rifle and took aim. Having both of them charge in at once seemed like a risky idea which is why she was now providing him with combat support instead. Looking down her scope, Isabeau identified the guy on the rooftop as the most alert one and fired three carefully aimed shots towards him. Already having seen Zephyr, however, he was quick to hop into cover, right where she wanted him.

With one forced to seek shelter, Isabeau got back up on her feet and started sprinting towards the compound again. Fully aware of the fact that Zephyr probably had to contend with both the guard by the entrance, and the one by the freighter. Having that in mind, she opened fire towards the one by the entrance whilst running, once again forcing another foe in behind cover. Temporarily giving Zephyr a little more breathing room and hopefully keeping their enemies from dealing any damage to him.

Upon arriving at the area, she ignited her jetpack in a brief hop which brought her up to the rooftop of the larger building. With the guard on there just daring to peek up, he immediately fired an inaccurate shot at her. With his attack having missed, Isabeau kicked him, knocking the weapon out of his hands. Keeping calm whilst the guard charged her, the girl quickly dodged to the side as he got close, causing him to both miss his attack and run past her front. Now that he was standing between her and the edge, the Mandalorian tackled him, igniting her jetpack to give her a little boost. Although it was pure luck, her actions did result in this one enemy falling on top of the one who was guarding the entrance, keeping them both out of the fight for just a little longer.

Having stolen the guard's vantage point, Isabeau shot the door controls of the smaller building, ensuring that the operative would have to find an alternate exit before she could reinforce her troops. The Morellian had not killed a single enemy yet and that was not about to change at this instant. Right after disabling the door controls, she disappeared into the larger building after having found a hatch on the rooftop.

Zephyr Kumaara

 

[Zephyr Krayt]

They would reveal themselves at some point anyway and figuring that they were close enough Zephyr chose that moment to reveal himself, though Isabeau could remain covert if she so desired. Alerted to his presence, the guard by the entrance shot at Zephyr but it was easily dodged so he came down towards the man and kicked him firmly in the chest with enough force to knock him a few feet back before he fell over.

The Mandalorian was alerted the presence of another guard by the ping of a blaster bolt deflecting off his armour from behind, the kinetic energy knocking him forwards, though not off his feet. He turned around to face the guard that was advancing on him and hid behind the cover of the corner before peering round and firing three bolts at him, two of them hitting their mark. The sound of blaster fire behind him caused him to whip around and aim towards the sound but he lowered his weapons when he saw it was Isabeau.

With two guards now on the ground in front of him, Zephyr took the liberty of taking them both out of the fight by firing at both of them. These people allied themselves with a group that killed so many Mandalorians; they knew what they were getting into. ::Keep them busy. If they call for reinforcements we're as good as dead.:: He told Isabeau through the comlink.

With the most immediate guards dealt with, Zephyr planted small motion sensors by the entrance and at various points outside the building to alert them of others, then he launched up to the roof to see if there were any more guards to contend with that he'd missed and upon finding none, he followed Isabeau inside the building. Trusting that she would deal with anyone they might come across, he offered his support. "I'll cover you." He told her.

Isabeau