Not This Again

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Theed Hospital.

Her walk was without restraint, hurried and in one direction. Home. Everything looked overly sterile throughout the white walled space. Clean and smooth, with rounded edges, and yet so alien looking. Her strut was without care of the growing stares in her direction, three men flanking her in uniformed garb, each armed and dangerous. Even when it hurt to walk, piercing pains lighting up her entire body all at once with random steps, she continued quickly on. They all looked astonished, astonished to see her. Of all people. And though she normally held a reformed smile in the company of the public, now she was composed in total monotone, detached from the act of royalty for the time being. Doors slid open as she walked up to them so as to not stop her momentum. There, in the doorway ahead of her was the droid, Kink. It's silver plating looked as though it had just been pressure washed, and even though it had no facial expression, it seemed happy to see Xenia.

<<Are you sure you should be leav-->>
"Kink, not now," Xenia warned.
<<Yes, I understand... but m'lady, the doctors suggested another full day-->>

She didn't respond with words. Instead, her open palm wrapped around the droids face and she pushed it backwards until metal plating came against the synthetic material of the walls. It's small grunts were obviously hints of surprise, but Xenia payed them no attention. Each of the armed men walked past the baffled droid, passing so closely by that it had to try and back up further so as not to collide with them. It was night when the last set of doors finally parted, revealing a waiting shuttle. Xenia, her men, and the droid boarded, and it sped off, clearly the vessel of a well funded service.

<<Oh dear... what is it now...>>

Chommell Secor;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

The travel back home had consumed the rest of the night. Despite the whizzing speed of her transportation, the hours continued to roll by. Most of them were spent in a dreary daze, close to sleep but more of a half way point. She no longer wore the attire of a bounty hunter, this was much more civilian. A dress, loose and without much shape. It flowed with fine fabrics, made from thin silks which billowed elegantly as she walked. Cutting off short, most of her legs were visible, and her shoes were stylish heals. She had taken them off for the shuttle ride, how she hated the feeling over long amounts of seated time. When the shuttle did finally arrive, and the door slid open slowly, she sort of shook her head and tumbled on out. The light had started to come up over the far off hills. This time, her walk was no as relentless, but she wasted no time in getting inside.

The building-- buildings were huge. A series of massive columns and spires, far away from most cities and political centers. While she was caught up in the life of an heiress, she had no taste for it beyond cover. Before entering the establishment she turned to face the three men who accompanied her. "I'll not be needing you, go home." Each gave her the same look, all at once. Something between shock and disbelief, as well as skepticism. Xenia clearly had something else on her mind, looked past the men and into the scenery as she shoo'd them away. "Yes, I'll be fine, thank you for your concern," she lowered her hands and began to turn. The oldest of the three asked if she was sure, she nodded while turning, and closed the door behind her when she left.

<<M'lady, what's gotten into you...?>>
"Kink, shut up or I'll deactivate you."
<<Yes of course.>>
"Kail... Kail..."

But she was almost whispering his name...
He was following her...

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

The Grass Plains
South of Lake Paonga, Naboo

Kail Ragnar stood in the shadow of one of the many Elder statues, buried by years of geographical change across Naboo. This was one located in the middle of nowhere. To his South, the mighty Lake Paonga flowed gently and to his left he could just about see the tiny towers of the Theed Royal Palace, but it as a speck on the far horizon made clearer by the gorgeous day the planet was basking in.

The old Rodian ship rested a good few clicks back in the forest beside the river. It could stay there and rot for all he cared. This wasn’t his ship, or his territory, or his idea of wasting his days. But he was a mercenary with a target, and the target was in the luxurious house straight ahead of him.

Xenia, the bounty hunter, had been taken to a Coruscant hospital and Kail had kept his eye on her and her accomplice, lover – whatever – as they fled from the hangar where he nearly lost his life. From the hospital there, she had been transferred to Theed on Naboo, and now she had come home. It had taken patience to keep on her, but with her open com-link, it hadn’t been hard to pin-point her visually and via open frequencies.

He now stood armed with his KX-60 and SSX blasters and a head full of questions, and a seething anger towards the one who felt she could uproot him, lock him up and then abandon him when the going got tough. She was in over her head, and she needed to remember who she was up against.

Staring at the house in the distance, reaching to the heavens, it reeked of royalty or those with too much money to think straight, Kail breathed steadily as he composed himself to make the move forward. If his position was compromised, so be it. He would demand a meeting with Xenia and he could take it from there. A cold heart, with those cold eyes, would be enough to disarm her initially with words.

If not, he had secrecy on his side and it would be only a matter of time before she came out to venture amongst the green fields and small lakes to think, reflect and forget. But Kail would be waiting for her to ensure she didn’t forget the man she thought she could toy with and leave in the dust.


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

Even after the doors had been closed, she didn't stop moving. High windows with rounded tops, built in the same fashion as the royal palace itself, afire with green domes and beautiful views. But she hated that now, hated how vulnerable the glass of a window felt, how easy it was to see in. Speeding through the rooms she came to a stop at a seemingly random point. The walls, though clean, were not barren, laden with various pictures and designs. Small shelves, too, rested along the spacious passage ways, but she looked only at one. Without much care for the picture she was moving, she tore down the decoration from the wall and rather heavily dropped it to the ground. Nothing broke, and there was a small interface on the wall, a terminal of sorts with limited options. Numbers, from zero through nine lined a pad which didn't stay closed for long. After slashing her code in, the whole section popped open and she withdrew a single gun. A pistol, and nothing like her personal mission equipment, but better than nothing at all. Her previous items had been dropped before entering medical care back on Coruscant, meaning she had lost almost everything aside from her life there. It was the Nubian blaster pistol, all sleek silver with rounded, almost bubbly features.

<<Mistress...-->>
"Xenia, call me Xenia... how many times do I have to--"
<<Forgive me-- Xenia, may I ask wh-->>
"I'll be fine, and I need you on look out, got it?"
<<Look out... from what Xenia?>>
"Kail, um, Ragnar. Familiarize yourself with that target name, I wa--"
<<Your bounty... from Kamino?>>
"Long story Kink, but he was following me... back on Coruscant..."
<<Oh dear...>>

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

The Grass Plains
South of Lake Paonga, Naboo

Kail didn’t falter in his steps as he walked over the grasslands towards the house, looking very much like the Royal Palace in Theed with its décor and grand scale. Whoever this bounty hunter was, she was certainly we connected.

He crouched a little lower the closer he got to the isolated home, passing a small cruiser as he kept his movements quick and precise, planning two steps ahead. Large glass windows were dotted around the various floors of the house and it was quiet. TOO quiet.

Biting his lower lip, he saw no patrols and no security. If this was where Xenia resided, she certainly valued her own independence. Brave, but stupid. He guessed he was at the front of the house looking at the large double doors up a small flight of stairs. Kail waited a few seconds and then dashed forward, over the cruiser, up the stairs and straight to the door.

He was a sitting duck against the pale house, and he wasted no time in grabbing the door handle and turning it quickly to gauge whether it was locked or – it clicked.

Open.

Holding his breath, Kail pulled the door open ajar and looked inside, but saw nothing. Like a shadow, he slipped inside the door and quietly closed it behind him with a soft click as it shut. If someone came into the lobby now from either upstairs or one of the rooms down the long hall, he would be done. Reaching down, he pulled his SSX blaster from his thigh and gripped it tight.

While he wasn’t her to murder, he’d have no trouble using it if pushed.

Kail looked around in one fluid movement of the eyes and took in the expansive and well lit hall he was in, sunlight flooding through the large windows and assorted plush décor and pictures that made the house feel very exquisite. Now, to find the girl.

His heart was beating loudly with the thrill of how close he was, and the danger he could sense. He could hear movement from above but also across from him. Sticking to the windows as best he could, Kail slinked carefully to the right and past a large potted plant, not sure what he would find. He peered around slowly to see another small corridor branching off with an open door on the left where he heard the movement from.

Thud-thud-thud went his heart.

Moving across the hall quickly to hug the wall beside the open door, Kail sidestepped gently to the arch, glancing out the window opposite from him to take in a moment’s more peace from the quiet Naboo countryside, before looking back at the door. Turning around the frame, peeking as if preying on a victim, Kail saw the back of a girl dressed in what looked an exquisite white dress of some sort. She looked beautiful, and filled out very well.

A soft swallow and Kail drew his head back around to the wall, exhaling softly with Xenia on the other side from him.

He turned around the door frame, standing in it, SSX by his side as he looked at her from behind.

”You should really learn to lock your doors, y’know.”


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

He could have been one thousand times more quiet, and she would have still heard him. Not because he was loud, but because her senses spun with hyper activity, detecting even the smallest noises. This time, though, her fear would not get the better of her. Another short code on the dial, and she bent back over to retrieve and place the picture over the terminal. Adjusting it so that it hung straight, she began to compose herself. It was clear that Kail continued to underestimate her, he was now literally walking into her house, guns pointed. There was no doubt it scared her, but that was the source of thrill. She heard the footsteps, quiet as they may be, coming through the kitchen, stopping to make cautious glances. In truth, there was no time to be distracted by anything, the goal was clear here-- survive. After what seemed like an hour of raw anticipation, Kail finally slung himself into view. It felt closer than what Xenia had measured in her head. He was really there, not fifteen feet away. Though her weapon had long since been aimed, you see, she had been ready. Her eyes raised a bit, and she faked an obviously over dramatic face of shock before instantly falling back into a dead glare; a gesture of malevolent, rebellious defiance. When he spoke, she responded as if she had been waiting for him to say just that. As if she had practiced this scene for years, and knew it down to the very last inch.

"Isss thaaat sooo," her head cocked to the side, eyes opened and eye lashes batting.
"Yeah, well, I wanted to show you my place."

As if following the cue, a mechanical noise made its debut from the other end of the kitchen, behind Kail. Kink, the 3PO unit planted itself in the opposing door frame before stepping confidently past the counters, a somewhat larger gun in its hands, pointed straight for Kail; that blaster was not on stun. He had done just as anyone 'smart' would do, following an almost military protocol down to a T. Yet, this was where Xenia shone. Raising her posture a bit, having regained a bit of ease, Xenia pushed away from the wall and stood straight ahead of Kail, her eyes meeting his own with a heated fire of already won victory. At least, that was what it seemed, certainly.

<<Don't move, Kail Ragnar!!-->>

"Ooorrr," another dramatized face, mimicking a brief pondering.
"Oor you could learn to stop underestimating me, mister Ragnar."

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Xenia had that look he didn’t forget – beautiful and confident, regardless of her arm in a sling, she didn’t look phased. But he knew should would be, just slightly. After all, Kail was in HER home. While his SSX was in his hand, he didn’t aim it at her regardless of the small snub blaster in hand. That thing wouldn’t do much in her use, she didn’t have the nerve.

She was toying with her words, looking all sweet and innocent, but Kail had a job to finish and he would hate to spoil things so early.

He was about to speak when a whirr of machinery and heavy footsteps stopped him, and a dangerous looking protocol droid stepped into view with a deadly looking rifle aimed at him. One thing Kail didn’t trust was a droid with a weapon. There was no reasoning with a droid operating under orders.

Running his tongue over his teeth as he weighed up his options, which were few, Kail slipped the blaster slowly back in his thigh holster with little effort and raised his hands up.

”I’m getting a little tired of these surprises.”

He stood upright, turning his hip slightly forward. There, tied to his vest, was a bag.

”This is for you. If you want to come and get it.”

Kail met her eyes and gave nothing away as she stood in her revealing dress.


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

This victory played out in slow motion. It felt even better than she had thought it would, and she had set high standards this time around. Her eyes relished over the man's body as he offered his surrender, capping his gun back into the holster from which it came. His arms raised, just above his head, bent at the elbow. Her face, though, showed that she had expected just about as much. Meanwhile, in her head, she was screaming with excitement. She had expected something, anything to go wrong. Those emotions would never make it close to the surface. Xenia took a few steps closer, winding legs moving with a potent grace. Her body was covered in a white dress of elegant design, the bottom half of which flowed in the wake of her movement. Put together with white, silken fabrics, the dress was shorter at the front, showing most of her legs and became steadily longer as it wrapped around behind. But she stopped far enough away from Kail to enact ample reaction time, should he try anything foolish.

"You're tired of these surprises?"
A small giggle, sarcastic in nature. Kail spoke again.
"Oh? You haaaave something for me?--" her eyes rolled slowly.
"I'm sorry, I missed the part where I came off as an idiot to you, Kail," she spat the name.
"You're here because I showed mercy on you, but I wasn't planning on this!"

<<Don't even think about moving-- Kail Ragnar-->>

"This is its own charity event. How many times can I not kill Kail," she mocked.

Apparently she thought it amusing, because she laughed again, flashing her white teeth.

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Kail rolled his eyes as she spoke, the only reason she sounded so irritating was because she had a droid behind her.

”Excuse me, but this is the second time you’ve hidden behind something facing me. Shackles, remember? Now a protocol droid? Please.”

He looked away out the windows in the corner of his eye at the blue sky and feigned boredom at her confidence.

”If I wanted to kill you I could have done it by now. Call of your lap dog and we can talk.”

Kail turned to her.

”Your credits you left me with like some beggar, they’re in the back. I don’t need them. Buy yourself something nice, like a brain.”

Shooting a glance at the emotionless protocol droid over his shoulder, the mercenary shifted his weight to his right leg. His jaw was starting to flare up, fist clenching to work through the pain. He let out a small growl dropping his head, before snapping it up back to her.

”Look, will you just get on with it whatever you’re doing? I don’t have time for these games.”

She was still out of his reach, unfortunately - just a step closer - but he couldn’t help another glance over her.

He hated himself for it.


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

Again, he was asking for her to merely end things. It seemed like just yesterday he was asking for the same thing, tied down to her bed. She was feeling rather confident now, most of the fear she had previously channeled leaving her body and leaving her a bit more relaxed. She studied him anew, eyes flicking to the bag of credits and back at him. If he didn't want them, she had no problem taking them back, though she would not be caught off guard in some kind of trap. She was much to clever for that, and the short grin she offered proved she knew that about herself. She started at his feet, and traced his entire body with eyes that looked more inquisitive than interested. Though, there was an unmistakable scent of lust in the look she gave, so that when she found his eyes again she could almost feel his breathing next to hers.

"Pass 'em forward, then. At my feet, nice and gentle, the droid stays."

At first she ignored his childish insults. For the first time, his insults sounded as if they were a bit more desperate. He was feeling the heat of the situation, there was no doubt about that. With a cold blooded droid behind him, and the perfect distraction in his face, there was little he could do should she play her cards right the rest of the way. Her gun never left the aimed position.

"And by the way, this... all..." she motioned with her gun hand at the situation they were in.
"... This was all very predictable. I mean, you gave me enough time to--" she paused, and then just looked at her gun.

<<You heard her-- Kail Ragnar-- Pass the credits forward.>>

"And the gun, too, slide it forward," she began.
"Try anything funny and Kink fries you."

<<The gun, Kail!>>
"Well, and anything else you're carrying."

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

If she could see you now, she’d laugh at how pathetic you look.

The Sith Knight’s voice bounced around in his head as Xenia spoke. She was right not to waste time with him.

Here he was, a mercenary, faced down by a scantily glad bounty hunter who was incapacitated in places with a droid waiting for her command. She had enough chances to kill him, and so had he – not as many, but a few – and neither had taken them.

Courage helped him face Sith magic which resulted in his injuries and because of that lost nearly everything. Now here he was again, with a choice to make and a consequence that could just pull the curtains on his confusing and uneventful existence.

He had nothing to lose, but everything to gain.

Kail stood upright, hands linked above his brown hair.

”You want them, you take them.”

He took a step forward, eyes not leaving hers.

”You didn’t kill me then and you’re not going to now.”

Brown boots softly thudded over the marble floor. Another step closer.

”Get rid of the droid and we can get down to…business.”

She was a breath away from Kail now and he could smell her purity away from the toxic city of Coruscant and Rodia. Here, she was at her most vulnerable regardless of what she spoke, and Kail was eager to find out what made her tick.

”Let’s not waste time.”


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

Human error. An unavoidable margin of slippery territory where mistakes were made in abundance. It was what made sentient beings unique from one another. Those small lines of code within the brain that broke logic and defied whatever obvious reason was being presented. When Kail took a step forward, his words suddenly became thunderous and much more intimidating. He was testing his boundaries. It was dangerous, but again, he had nothing to lose. Beyond that, he was right. She didn't want to see him dead, and she had given it away now too many times. Her face tightened for only a fraction of a second, a single crack in her toughened act. But this was not an act she was prepared to lose. Her gun raised, and she gave a powerful warning glance before the droid behind Kail shot. It wasn't aimed anywhere vital, but set to burn through his shoulder. The droid's angle rendered Xenia an impossible target, saving her from any fire on the droid's end.

At the same time, Xenia's fingers moved with a honed proficiency. The small pistol stilled and she let loose her own volley of shots, two blasts straight into the left leg and one into the right. The blasts were set to stun, though she knew from experience that they were still very painful. She had searched a long time to find this specific weapon, a stun based blaster pistol which acted as almost a fusion between the burn and stun settings. There was no lethal power possible on the pistol, this was a tame way to bring someone to their knees. Her aim was impeccable, aligned by a skill which seemed unlikely from the girl. She had sent enough power to temporarily cripple the man into falling, each blast capable of sending numbing pain through large areas of the body at a time.

"Listen Kail, frack! I don't want to kill you, alright, there, it's out," she announced.

"But you're hardly giving me much choice. I don't know why you've been following me, why it's soooo important that you return free money to someone that doesn't need it--" she made a short glace around her illustrious home. "You think I want that?-- err what, that I need that?" Her eyes rolled once more, and she took another step towards Kail. He'd be useless against her in the numbed but still very conscious state she would have just forced upon him. "That's just one bounty, I did a lot more than pay you, Kail. A looot more. You could at least... I dont know... knock before entering!" She paused briefly, "those Rodians, the ones after you, yeah, they were good employers. Paid veeery well, and now I'm wanted by their parties. Your name? Cleared. You could start with thanks!"

"Kink... leave us..."
<<M'lady?>>
"Now."

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

He could see the cracks appearing and her face a picture of panic, but Kail slowly walked forward, no severity or danger in his action – just calm and in control. He heard the shuffle of the protocol droid behind him, and his muscles relaxed for fear of a shot to cripple him so it wouldn’t cause more damage than if he was tense.

He then saw he straighten her blaster arm, finger moving to the trigger and he held his breath for the shot.

She fired twice, three garish bolts of blue that hit both legs and sent a sharp pain down to his feet. With a stumble forward and a cry of pain, Kail fell onto his knees, hands coming down to stop himself on the floor on all fours.

Dropping his forehead to the floor, teeth gritted and fist clenched, slamming it on the ground, Kail felt the numbing sensation affecting his muscles, and it felt like millions of insects were eating away at his flesh, but he couldn’t stop them. He breathed sharply, listening the noise from Xenia’s mouth, empty reasons for her blind firing.

With a small groan, Kail pushed up on his knees and rested on the floor, looking up at the girl with a bead of sweat on his brow, face flushed with frustration and his scar highlighted by this wave of annoyance.

He caught the end of her little speech about the Rodian bounty, which was all very well and good, but the fact she brought him all this way not to kill him even in her own home spoke volumes.

Kail swallowed and untied the bag of credits, chest heaving slightly and body slowly convulsing with the sharp pains zapping his leg muscles. She dismissed the droid.

”I swear to god you’ve got…some unstable emotions.”

He threw the bag to her expensive looking heels, leading his eyes to her long legs. Shaking his head, he lifted his head to her.

”That’s the second time you’ve shot me now. You don’t get a third! Just what the hell is your problem? Why didn’t you leave me on Rodia for the bounty?”

Resting his hands on his thighs, sat on his legs on his knees, Kail felt he was actually at her mercy, but welcomed her best. She had dismissed the droid – she wanted privacy. She was open.


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

Her face flinched with annoyance at Kail's stubborn charm. Something which she couldn't place her finger on, but felt it all the same. Something that seemed to genuine and good about him. A real light, even atop his rough exterior. As the bag landed in front of her, she paused to look at it and Kail both, making sure she was safe to take it. She swatted it to the side with her feet, knocking it out of the way. She was not interested in the credits currently. For the first time, she dropped her gun, stepping back one step to compensate that choice. Distance enough for her to raise it again in a time of need.

"I dont know, Kail!?-- Frack! I'm not evil! I don't like watching people sent to their deaths."

Her pause was short, but there was one.

"I could ask you the same, why you've been following me through thick an--"

She pointed.

"--And on Coruscant, too..."

She gave him a serious look, almost sad look.

"I wish that I could trust you, Kail, but we're... a little beyond that..."

And she pointed again to his gun.

"Please just give me the gun, Kail... please..."

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Kail cocked his head slightly, trying to weigh up the woman before him. She was clearly living life as a bounty hunter, yet from her home she didn’t really need the bounties – and she was far too fragile to grant someone an execution if it required it.

She was breaking down before him, and he could see the urges behind her eyes, and for once in a long time, it excited him.

”I followed you to return your money. I know – well, THOUGHT – how much pay can mean to someone trying to make a living, but it looks like you don’t even need it.”

He began to rub his thighs and brought his legs out from under him. Sat down on the kitchen floor, he quickly took in the surroundings – low level units, various implements, large windows and two doors out.

”You shoot me…actually that DOES make it three time. You shoot me, drag me off my home-world, tie me up and then leave me without any explanation? Do you know how humiliating that was?”

Kail dragged his tongue over his top lip, before it snaked back into his mouth.

”You owe me an apology. And then I’ll be on my way.”

Leaning over, he slowly unclipped the SSX blaster and removed it from his thigh, flipping it over in the one hand. He held it up to her, but didn’t move forward to make it easy.

”Come. Come and take it. I know you want to. But be careful, you sound like you’re begging me.”

His eyes didn’t leave hers.


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

"You know what humility is?"
She sounded surprised.
"Shockerrr."

And he offered his gun. At first, even seeing his hand near it made her tense, but that was part of the process should he hand it over. Even so, after it was turned so that the handle faced her she felt no better about the situation. Her senses twittered with alert as she took a step forward. Though, Kail would only see her act, a confident step forward, as if she thought nothing of his offer, and planned to take the gun without second thought. Drawing near, she reached with her own gun arm. And then, in a split second, there was a fraction of 'just kidding,' but not enough to warn for the two more shots she fired at the man. One for each arm, numbing them to the bone, though causing more of the pain she had already inflicted earlier. "What, did you expect me to tie the noose around my own neck, too? Frack, Kail..." It was annoyance, that hidden flavor in her tone. She was tired of being underestimated, and by someone who had accomplished nothing but loss after loss against her mental prowess. How was it that he continued to have a set outlook on her actions. If only she could hear his acknowledgment, though it shouldn't have mattered to her. I just did. Assuming the shots hit, an almost impossible thing to miss from her distance, his fingers would be numbed to the point of dropping the gun, and she'd sweep it away from him with her foot, bringing it away from him and closer to her, only then would she pick it up and offer it to her left hand. It was only barely able to hold the pistol, though it worked well enough.

"Kail, I saved your life, I'm not thanking you for anything," she paused, and looked at the house around her.
"I was the underdog of the... group assigned to you. Had I not gotten you, weak little me, someone else would have."

She gave him an earnest look as if to say 'and we wouldn't want that, now would we.'

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Kail wasn’t going to try anything, not yet, as he held his pistol out and she took a step closer, her white outfit flowing slightly behind her, the soft click of her heels across the floor – one…two...

And then she fired her gun, twice. Two shots; one in each arm.

Kail’s muscles convulsed and pain ripped through him right through to the shoulders, his fingers going numb and dropping the pistol onto the floor before his knees. It felt like his fingers were on fire and his arms full of dead weight, and they fell to his side, heavy to move and tingling.

He shot a glance to her and let out a shout of frustration and anger, arching his back slightly still sat on the floor.

”God DAMN YOU will you STOP THAT!”

Kail was furious – he was being treated like a mutt; a slave, a toy and he had just about had enough of giving the girl enough chances to disarm.

He leant back and pushed himself up on his legs, still a little tingly and wobbly, but enough to get him and up and let him recoil onto the workstation nearest the door he had come through. His arms were still numb, and he could only just about move his fingers to keep the blood flowing and maintain activity.

Kail looked up at the little queen – standing there with his pistol, and her own, a smart look on her face that oozed faux confidence. Remove the weaponry and she’d have nothing against him, and he would be sure she’d learn THAT lesson.

He felt the horrid black void inside him bubbling away, and the last time he had felt that, someone had died in a splash of brain matter and blood on Annaj. Kail leant his head back on the large cupboard behind him and looked to the ceiling, stretching his jaw, the unbearable pain feeding his anger.

”That was stupid, Xenia. Stupid.”

Closing his eyes, he breathed steadily, his chest swelling and fingers working hard to get back the feeling she had taken away.


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

"Okay-- wait, Kail, I'm sorry, hey-- I'm sorry."

Her arms straightened as if offering herself to peace, eyes beginning their dance of nervousness. The cracks to her composure were steadily building, as if this man was the natural antidote. His mind, his responses and everything he did, it was all from such a detached place. Xenia's ability with words preyed on those who cared about something, anything. Kail, it was like he had nothing at all to fight for. His actions came from a place of natural chaos, completely unpredictable. There was no planning to be had with him, her schemes were hit until shattered. And she cared. Why? She didn't know, she wasn't even close to knowing.

"Alright, h-hey, Kail, listen-- listen! Calm down please, I will not shoot--"
<<M'lady!-- Kail Ragnar-- Threat-->>

Her stomach plunged, and she felt as if she were going to be sick. Looking past Kail, back into the kitchen, she saw the droid. Light glinted off of its new armor, as well as the Naboo style assault rifle it held. A sleek, long weapon with accurate, albeit weaker shooting. Regardless, it would take only one good hit to wipe the life out of someone, and-- "Kink! Do not-- No!!-- Don't," but it was already too late, the rifle had been aimed, and it was the droid verses an unsuspecting Kail. Xenia's hand raised, in an instantaneous blast of reflex, and fired the shot first. There had been no time to take proper aim, or even think about using the scope, and the droid staggered back, smoking at its core. Something in her felt as if it had burst, and tears she fought back remained confined behind sheer will power. It took her a moment to look back at the droid, I mean really look at it, and when she did she was able to assess what had happened. The blast had crushed directly into the central circuitry, an unprotected region of the 3PO series, responsible for the droid's mechanical nervous system; the lights in Kink's eyes were still glowing, but that only seemed to make things worse.

"Alright, truce, truce, Kail, please, can you just-- can we just... end this...? This-- this whole," her hands shrugged at the area.

"I'm not gunna blast you, look-- please."

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

Kail turned his head, eyes burning and his muscle tensing in his right jaw as she showed signs of surrender.

Now who’s WEAK…don’t let her hurt you like she did!

As she spoke and he kept her eyes, his fists clenched more, fingers flicking up and down and he rubbed his gauntlet, the feeling coming back to his arms, still heavy, but less sore. He was going to speak but the voice of the protocol droid snapped his head around and he stood upright, ready to move but the rifle was now aimed at his torso. It was going to be a direct hit, and the end of a mercenary broken by emotions once more.

Nothing to lose – nothing to lose.

Kail glared at the droid, but winced as a bolt from behind shot out and took the armed unit down in a shower of sparks from the centre unit, collapsing back onto the floor with a crunch and a small wisp of smoke from melting circuits and wires.

Slowly turning his head, Xenia was shaking slightly behind him with his SSX blaster held outwards – she’d taken the shot and saved his life after dangling death before him. It seemed toying with life and death was how this one got her kicks.

No more.

Turning to face her, her voice pleaded for the mess to stop. But as before, she resulted in shooting Kail when he was offering surrender, he was damned if she would get away that easy just because the pressure was on. That wasn’t reality. That wasn’t how the galaxy worked.

…the Sith Knight stared down Kail who stood before her, his gauntlet over his face securing those awful injuries. He had showed weakness and she had dismissed him as easy as that, after he had sacrificed himself to save her…

Snapping his arm upwards, he brought it up to slap Xenia’s wrist holding the SSX hard, sending it clattering out of her grasp and down over the nearby units smashing a small plate. He then reached and grabbed the arm with her small pistol.

He let out a deep growl as he stepped forward and wrapped his hand around her delicate throat, pushing her three or four steps backward, crashing into the far end of the kitchen units. His body to her left, avoiding leaving himself open for a well place knee; he gripped her wrist and neck and bore into her with his eyes.

”This is NOT a game where you pick when to quit. You pushed me, and now you pay the price. I WARNED you…!”

He squeezed a little more, but stopped before cutting off her air supply totally. The monster was escaping, untamed and dangerous, hurt; betrayed; abandoned.


@Xenia Nastassia

 

[Xenia Nastassia]

Chommell Sector;
Naboo;
Xenia's Home.

Her hand had nearly dropped the gun anyway before Kail reached forward and slapped it from her grasp. It seemed to smash into everything on its downward decent, other contents of the shelf falling with it. Of course, had she tried, she could have avoided the oncoming attack. Rather, had she been in the proper mind state, though this was too much for her to calculate all at once, and emotion kept getting in the way of facts. But her wrist was taken, and her neck with it, slammed backward against a wall. A horribly innocent noise burst forth when he began to squeeze and it became harder to breathe. Her arm jerked back and forth in his grasp, desperate to free herself from the fate that was now being written. A despicable turn of events. Though she spoke not words, she said nothing. It was all too submissive, even her right arm stopped fighting for a second. Her eyes just looked into his, all of the repressed fear in the world locked behind those green orbs, frantically looking for any option-- anything to solve her situation.

It was then that she struck, her final trump card.
The last trick she had prepared, and hopefully the last she'd need.

The arm in the sling lurched, and movable fingers pressed against a pressure plate attached to a short nozzle. She had one shot, and she planted it directly at the man's torso, at a weak point in his armor. With impressive speed, and relatively low accuracy, a dart whizzed into Kail's side, somewhere along his upper rib cage. It was a fast acting toxin, non lethal, though it would induce an intense drugged state on anyone victim to its effects. She had only one dose of it, and had deemed this an appropriate use, should she ever need it. Additionally, upon taking effect, the toxin would slow the victim's heart beat incredibly, weakening their body and decreasing their strength. From her understanding, the drugged state mostly consisted of drunken mumblings and stumbling around, though only lasted for a few seconds as the drug's effects were first coming on. Admittedly, she had never used the poison before, and certainly didn't know exactly what to expect. And she remained silent, staring into his eyes, suggesting that she too could remain fierce and merely look him in the eyes, testing the limits of his own resolve; until she forcefully ended it.

[member="Kail Ragnar"]

 

[Connor Harrison]

He didn’t know what to do and how to do it – keep gripping until she did in his grip, or let her go? Smash her head open against the unit as he did on Annaj, and then leave for home? He had no –

ZZZZIP

A small wince said it all, and Kail squeezed harder.

KILL…HER

Overwhelming heat race across his flesh, but was it his own darkness, or poison? He looked down quickly and saw the small dart protruding from between his vest where it wasn’t zipped up. Returning back to her eyes, Kail’s view went blurry, and with a sickening feeling coming over, he pulled Xenia back and threw her around and over the opposite counter where his gun lay.

More utensils fell as her body fell forward. Kail reached and grabbed the SSX pistol, pushed Xenia down with his left hand and holding the barrel to the back of her head.

”I’m…I’m sorry….ok…?”

Pathetic.

He tilted his head back, feeling….relaxed…calm…tired.

Draping his hand down Xenia’s back, his fingers traced across the lower flesh of her bare back and slumped off her body to the counter, as he dropped the blaster beside her.

Soft skin. Smooth. Eyes closing steadily…a little heavier…he was a mess.

Kail turned and collapsed onto his knees, crumpling by Xenia’s legs and momentarily passing out – hopefully not for long, and hopefully not to pass into death.


@Xenia Nastassia