Return of the Mad Merc

[Antoir Setrrin]

The Depths of Space: Aboard 'The Far Reach'

It had been so long.

Time had rushed by her, forgetting to let her know of it's passage, moving forward without aim.

So much had changed.

The Protectorate had faded, the Empire had taken hold of the galaxy, and the Republic faltered.

What had become of her?

The Mad Merc had traveled into the darkness, she left everything behind, and she simply waited.

But the calls had kept coming in. We need you, they said, we're losing the war. Help is requested. She wasn't sure what finally made her answer the messages she received. Maybe it was the destruction she saw on a world she passed- the plains all burned from bombs and blasterfire. Or perhaps it was the ache, the longing, for battle still left in her alchemy-born chest.

Maybe it was the fact that family called.

Darren misses you, Ven. You need to come home. That had been it. Her son needed her, even if she wasn't sure she wouldn't hurt him somehow. Circe might have a need for her too. The woman didn't have many people left. Ire... Ire needs help. There was the matter of her niece, as well. Another mad Sekairo with a taste for blood... Still, the child had once held a sweet innocence to her.

That had likely disappeared by now. Ven had been gone for over a year, and it had been nearly five since she had last seen her kin. How much had changed? Would she even be able to recognize her family anymore?... How much had Darren grown? It was a painful thought. But one that drove the Mad Merc to do what she had to do.

She called up Circe Savan.

[member="Enigma"]​

 

[Onrai]

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

Queerly enough, the number Circe had given Ven long ago routed to another datapad - one belonging to a woman known as Vanessa Kuhn. The moment she noticed who the number was from, everything in her office went dark as she opened the call line up. "Hey, Ven... Long time no see. Listen, I'm in the middle of something, but meet me in orbit over Sluis Van and I'll explain everything to you. I'll even bring Darren too." She smiled. "I love you."

With that, the call was ended. It was time to prepare for the future explanation...

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

She hadn't even had a chance to say "I love you too". Or even just "Goodbye".

That hadn't been entirely unexpected. Circe was a... busy woman. Over the nearly two decades that they'd known each other both had almost always been doing one thing or another. Finding time to spend with each other hadn't been easy. For awhile, at least. They'd found a way eventually, though it hadn't lasted forever, nor had it exactly been healthy. Being busy was better for them.

Or maybe that's just what she told herself to lessen the feel of absence.

No matter how good or bad the distance she usually kept from Circe was, she was now ignoring it. Her ship, The Far Reach, slowly moved to orbit over Sluis Van. There she'd likely be docking with one of her friend's larger vessels. From there... well, they had things to do, moments to catch up on, and a son to raise.

In time, Ven thought, all in time...

[member="Enigma"]​

 

[Onrai]

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

As the vessel docked in the hangar bay of Sluis Van's orbiting shipyards, Vanessa took a ride, Darren coming with him. The glistening green eyes of the Vinithi reflected a warmth unseen for ages, even as Circe's brain ran through torrid affairs of licentious thoughts that curled around the cortex of her mind. All she desired now was to give Ven a kiss the moment she saw her.

"Ven..."

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

The sound of harsh footsteps announced the giantess' arrival. A ramp had lowered from her ship, and just moments later she had appeared, still as large and as frightening as ever. Despite the small smile on her face, the woman would look intimidating to most. As tall as a Null with bright yellow eyes she was quite the sight to see. But to the duo who stood before her... well, seeing her meant joy. Maybe even safety. A sense of security.

These days, with the war waging endlessly, that was something to be treasured.

"Circe... Darren..." Ven'Rain Sekairo, the Mad Merc, murmured, moving forward to finally embrace her family once more.

[member="Enigma"]​

 

[Onrai]

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

A soft smile would cross Vanesa Kuhn's face as she embraced Ven, Darren giving both of them a firm embrace. "It's so great to see you." She grinned before leading the woman onward. "Ven, I have some things for you - namely a pair of rad-pistols and an adamithium exoskeleton to keep you from getting fatal radiation poisoning. I only care about you, after all." She smiled, snuggling up with her love, the dark poison of her heart.

"Shall we talk elsewhere?"

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

Without any hesitation the woman returned the hug, placing a gentle hand on Circe's back as she did. Being that close to the woman she loved felt oddly... nice. It was a sensation she hadn't missed until she felt it again. Oh, how the universe works in mysterious ways. This hadn't been what she had expected to want. To love. Nay, she had once thought that a quiet life alone would be the best thing for her. Apparently she had been very, very wrong.

Because nothing had ever felt this good.

"I missed you. Both of you," Ven said, tears forming in her eyes. "I shouldn't have left again. I'm... I'm sorry." And then she brought a hand up to wipe away her tears, letting out a soft laugh. She felt embarrassed. But it was a good sort of embarrassed. The kind that you don't mind every once in awhile. "Let's... Let's talk. We've got a lot to catch up on."

[member="Enigma"]​

 

[Onrai]

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

The two would proceed further onward into the complex, a smile on the face of Vanessa as she led Ven and Darren into a private room. "Alright... Long story short, Ven, I'm with the Republic now, designing radiation-based weaponry for use against the One Sith and their Yuuzhan Vong-based technology. Would you like to have some of the prototype equipment I've made?"

After all, it was lethal to any living individual.

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

They walked along, Darren holding onto his mother's hand, not embarrassed in the slightest, even though he was now in his teens. It had been to long since he had seen the taller of his mothers, and he did not plan on wasting the time he was being given. Ven didn't seem to mind, of course, and she reached to give her other hand to Circe. After all, they were a family.

"New name, newish body, and a new home... I've missed a lot, haven't I?" She said, smiling sadly. Then she glanced around the room, wondering if there was a specific reason Circe- ahem, Vanessa- had chosen it. "With the equipment... I don't know if I'm capable of handling that kind of equipment. You'd have to help with it, dear. But perhaps... perhaps we should catch up first, really."

[member="Enigma"]​

 

[Onrai]

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

"I suppose so. You deserve that much." She gave a soft smile to her long-time friend, her partner, her confidante. Slowly, they would move to a private room, one fitting a truine of comfortable chairs in concert with a large table and viewscreen. "As you can see, I've rather shifted roles here, though I have plans for retiring soon and leaving this all in the hands of someone rather enigmatic."

How utterly ironic.

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

She smiled, and they continued on.

"Things have definitely changed since I saw you last. I'm admittedly glad you're on the Pubs' side. I'd rather they win the war, or at least end up on top," Ven said, cracking a thin smile. "Hearing that you're retiring soon is also admittedly something that sounds sweet to my ears. You've been at this for a long time, love. It's about time you took a vacation. Even if..."

The woman paused, frowning a bit.

"I'm not retiring yet. I'm going to do some work then get back out in the field." Though she wouldn't say so yet, part of the reason she had called was because she wanted to speak to Vanessa about a new body. Again. "There are some Sith out there that I need to, ahem, 'have a word with'. I don't want to leave you to soon, of course, so it might be awhile before I sign up for the army again. But I will."

@Enigma​

 

[Onrai]

"Be careful." She gave a soft sigh, giving Ven a kiss on the cheek. "I love you, and I don't want to have to bring you back from the death... well, not again." She pondered over the thoughts of losing her chief love once again. "Please tell me, are you going to want another body to go through or anything?" She snuggled up against the strong woman, firmly embracing her.

And slipping her a new weapon.

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

"I'll be careful, love. They'll be sending me back home with two cents and a couple shiny medals, not a box. I'll make sure of that," Ven answered, letting herself grin as she returned the embrace. "As for what I'll need... Well, your love comes first. A new body, one that's a bit... ahem, smaller, would be nice. And I've got a suit of armor in the works that you could help me look over. I've still got some phrik from my days with the Protectorate."

@Enigma​

 

[Onrai]

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

"The new war of the Republic will be fought with weapons of such destructive potential that Phrik won't help you that much. What you need is something that can keep you safe from the environment, chiefly considering the fact that rad-weapons will be all the rage now." She smiled, motioning to the pistol she had slipped into the back pocket of her love.

"A new body... Means I'll have to kill you, you know."

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

She raised a brow at that one.

"There will be times where 'rad-weapons' will be out of the question. And there will be times where other things are needed, Cir-... Vanessa. For those times I'll have my armor. For the other times, well, I guess that's the part where I let you pick what I wear." Her plan was to be on the front lines as much as possible. She was going to fight the Sith until either they broke... or she did. But she wouldn't tell Vanessa that last part. Or Darren. "I guess you could call it killing me. But it wouldn't be for a bit, dear. We still have to get the body, prepare it, and all that."

@Enigma​

 

[Onrai]

"Or I could of course grow it for you." She smiled. "Have you really forgotten the genetic laboratories I still have access to? My skills with the crafting of flesh are second to none, after all." And such was true - she had done a great many things, more than most individuals would ponder over doing. A smile crossed her face as she pondered over checking out a new body's design.

Along with its many assets.

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

"I have a base set of genetics in mind. For the most part, at least," Ven said. She had rehearsed this part in her head quite a few times on the way to their meeting point. But now that she was actually saying it... well, her words didn't come as smooth as she had planned. "Firrereo. Damn good healing factor, natural strength, generally attractive, and capable of good speeds. With a little extra alchemy and the like, I bet we could get triple the average human strength out of the body, along with admirable endurance and swift speed."

Both of her eyes seemed to light up a little. She was clearly excited.
"What do you think?"

@Enigma​

 

[Onrai]

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

"I like it." She smiled, embracing her love snugly as she pondered over what to next do. "If you wanted, we can begin growing the body as soon as you wish. It may take several weeks for it to reach full maturity, but I suppose if you really want to get everything situated, we can definitely do such." She smiled, giving Ven another embrace once again.

"I wonder how this new one will hold up."

 

[Antoir Setrrin]

"The sooner the better, love. With the Sith raging war upon the worlds as we speak, I need to be ready as soon as possible," Ven said, her tone growing serious for a moment. This was something she felt strongly about. It took her a moment to realize that she sounded angry, something she had been hoping to avoid. "Just let me know if there's anything I can do to help speed up the process. We can't rush it to much, as I hope to have this one last for quite a few years, but like I said, the sooner, the better."

Briefly she wondered what it would take to keep her force-dead state in the new body. The process probably wouldn't be easy. She already knew that, due to her current lack of a force presence, she would have to die before the soul transfer could complete. But would it be possible for Circe to removed her from the force again once she was in the new body?... That was something that they'd have to discuss, for sure. Probably even go into detail about what the process entails.

[member="Circe Savan"]​

 

[Onrai]

[member="Ven'Rain Sekairo"]

"I will do my best to speedily ensure the manufacturing of your new body, Ven." She smiled, pondering over where she had received the initial genetic samples from. "I would suggest you ready yourself. Once your body is ready, I will have to kill you. Quickly. Brutally. With efficiency seen only by the Sith. The agony of your death will... be something I regret having to cause."

She sighed. If only there was an easier way...