Same Old Bar, Different Town (Elpsis)

[Cora Passek]

"He is cute, in an 'I can totally swallow you whole' kind of way." Which in Cora's book was so the cutest thing ever. "As much as I like you, Fluffy will probably like you too, but that isn't always guaranteed. So we'll see what we can do there, after I get your shoulder fixed up." She said with a sigh as they moved onwards in the rain.

"Yeah, Force is admittedly a little disconcerting for me." The blonde said softly. "The power is cool, don't get me wrong. I just ... I've had a hard time with Forcers. After all, Sith killed my family... So I ain't exactly fond of em." She gave a small shrug as her brow knitted together. The small detail she left out, was discovering she had the force the hard way. And still had a dark entity within her mind that occasionally trying to wrest control of her body away from her. "But if I get cold enough, I'll take ya up on it." She said with a smile. Then Cora nodded to the Firemane's question. "You look about my size, so ... Yeah there's some clothes in my closet I'll let you have. It's not a problem. Don't you worry."

In the distance, she could see ships going in and out of the spaceport as they were finally getting closer. "Not much further now. Couple more back alleys and I'll actually get us there a little more directly."

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Elpsis seemed to tense slightly when Cora brought up her bad experiences with the Force. After all, she did not want to make the cool, hot blonde uncomfortable! "I've...had my own bad experiences with it as well. A Sith Lord tortured me and tried to break my mind once...Raped my mother. So not a fan. Can't stand most Forcers honestly. Average one is an arrogant prick," she said bluntly. Naturally she left out the fact that her mother was a Jedi Master.


Same applied to the fact that the Sith Lord in question was her father. Litteld did Elpsis know that her mother and Cora went way back. However, the blonde's next words made her brighten. "Ok. Sounds great, darlin." They coud see ships going in and out of the spaceports and hear the roar of engines. Even at this late hour the Fondor spaceport was still very busy and a hub of commerce. After all, citizens still went about their daily lives and the shipyards churned out a substantial profit. But it was no longer the economic powerhouse it had once been.

 

[Cora Passek]

Cora couldn't help but feel for the girl, her heart aching for her - for what she had to endure. "I'm sorry to hear that. No one should have to go through something like that." She said softly, laying a gentle hand on Elpsis' uninjured shoulder. "And you're right most of them are. Though I've run into a couple who were so no like that. Exception but not the rule that's for sure." The blonde actually referring to the girl's mother without knowing, as well as Siobhan Kerrigan. Those two she liked and felt safe around. The rest not so much. Though Elpsis was slowly working her way onto that list, given what she had been through, it was something Cora could relate to.

So the blonde kept them moving, walking them through one alley after another. Then Cora with a sigh stepped out onto one of the main streets but mostly hung in the shadows as she could, heading directly for the spaceport. The entrance she planned to take them through was a lesser used one, and less guarded. Not that the guards here weren't above a little bribery. So that was always an option to get them to look the other way. "It's the back gates we are heading to. Know the guards well enough that a little ... cashey goodness will make them look the other way. That and one of them owes me a favor for saving his life, long story. So we have no worries there. Should be relatively quiet at this point to get to my girl, and we can get the hell off this world."

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Elpsis seemed to relax a bit. At least the cool blonde did not mind the fact that she was a Forcer. After all, that often made Elpsis uncomfortable herself. Of course, she did not know about Cora's colourful past, her possession by a vile Sith spirit or her history with her mother! So many fun tales Cora would have to tell her some day. So she kept moving along with the blonde, weaving through one alley after the other, always on the lookout for people pursuing them while trying to come across as ordinary and unexceptional as possible. A bit of a balancing act, but they seemed to do well enough as they made a path through the shadows. Before them loomed the spaceport and Cora guided them to a back entrance. Hearing her words, Elpsis gave the blonde a nod.


"Sounds good. Better than the last time I tried to sneak onto my ship through a heavily guarded spaceport after random bar fights," she commented. Back on Nal Hutta every thug had apparently wanted to kill or capture her and [member="Abaigeal E'ron"]. Getting back on their ships had required beating up lots of people. There was still a bounty on their heads there. Little did Elpsis know that Abaigeal had had a chance-encounter with a certain Countess Cora knew very well!


Anyhow, the back entrance was less well-guarded than the front, as Cora had anticipated. A few guards stood sentinel, armed with blaster rifles and looking as enthusiastic as could be expected when one considered that their pay was probably bad in these troubled times. Never mind the fact that it was bloody pouring down with rain. Nonetheless they made an effort to look sharp and project an aura of officialdom, for they still represented Fondor's finest. Even though the planet was no longer the capital of a superpower, but of a battered nation that was a shadow of its former self and in the process of dissolving.


"Halt," their Sergeant commanded our ladies in an authoritative voice. "State your business. Port access is restricted. If you want in, go to the main entrance." Clearly there would have to be negotiations that involved the power of the almighty credit.

 

[Karrigan'Xalda]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Once upon a time the plain old brick building had contained a shop, which sold stuff such as herbs, potions and the like. Traditional medicine for those who distrusted modern science. Supposedly the owner had also doubled as a fortune teller for those who were into that sort of thing. Megaera used to provide that sort of service as well. In another life. Quite literally.


However, those had been better days and now the small building was abandoned, though here and there one could still pick up the smell of herbs and incense or discover a small bottle that probably contained a potion. Remnants were left behind of a better time. The weak whiff of sulfur still creeped her out. It brought back memories that could never be forgotten. Upstairs a small lonely apartment with two windows and a single door. One had to be in the shop just to find out how to get up to here she was, which made her feel a safer. Maybe the owner had been among the untold trillions who vanished during Akala's reign of madness. Contrary to what the media proclaimed, not everyone had returned. Or maybe she had been murdered during the chaotic upheavals that took place when the Galaxy was plunged into chaos.


Truth be told, it did not really matter in the end. Barely anyone visited this section of town, excluding criminals, cutthroats and the unfortunate souls who were down on their luck. For this was one of the many areas that was considered a blight on the magnificient city of Fondor. Little did the well-off know that the sun had set on all of them. Still she was wary when she snuck into the house and as quiet as possible when she walked up the stairs. Upstairs was naught but a small, lonely apartment with two windows and a single door. Yet there was far more to it than met the eye, for there was a small computer with excellent 'net access and the closet was stuffed with weapons of various types. Likewise there was a blaster pistol under her pillow. The room was in a state of complete darkness, but she was used to it enough so that she knew where everything was without switching the light on.


She had entered the building through a backdoor and immediately went about securing her living space. Down the stairs she rigged a few traps, a trip wire to alert her if someone was coming, another explosive just past the old counter on a laser trip line, one invisible to the naked eye. Likewise a trap was placed at the aforementioned backdoor, which she sealed shut. Next time she left she would do so through the window. Only then did she allow herself to relax and return to her tiny apartment. There were no personal affects to be found and the fridge was quite empty, though she liberated a bottle of water. Then she sat down and switched the computer screen on. A heavy blaster pistol lay on the desk, ready to be drawn in a blur should anyone intrude.

 

[Cora Passek]

"I've found, sometimes it pays to make the contacts that really can save your tail when you need to get away." Cora said with a smile. Though truthfully the rain was starting to get to her. A slight shiver racing through her slender body. Seeing the guards, she smiled sweetly at the Sergeant as they approached. Reaching into her pocket she pulled out a slip of flimsi, in it was wrapped a good thousand credits. "I have my credentials right here." She said confidently. "You'll see, everything is right there."

The man reached out taking the offered package. He gave the paper a once over before just slightly opening it to see the credit slips inside. "Everything is right here, and looks good. Have a nice day Miss Sampson." Cora rarely ever gave her true last name these days. Paranoid, maybe. I am not. Just eccentric, thank you very much. Fine, eccentric.

The blonde lips curled into a bright smile, "Thank you." With that she reached back, taking Elpsis' hand in hers and urged her through the gates. So far, so good.

Once out of earshot of the guards, she let her own guard down just a little, dropping the smile as she turned to Elpsis, "Just a little further now." Lifting a hand she pointed off to one of the hangers. "Bay nineteen is where we are heading. Furthest back from the front of the spaceport, and closest to the back gate. Pays to be prepared." Up ahead, was the hanger. Took them a few more minutes to get there and inside sat Don't Panic. The blue letters etched boldly on the hull of the old HWK-290. A ship that she'd redone, inside out. It no longer required a copilot thanks to the improvements she made in restoring the old ship to more modern standards and at least gave her plenty of room to work.

Walking over slowly, glad to be out of the rain for the moment, she pressed her hand to the external scanner, allowing it to read her palm print, "Vocal Recognition Password?" A mechanical voice chirped at her, "Fluffy is here." At those words, the ramp finally descended. With an elbow, she wiped down the palm reader, after all she didn't care to leave a print behind for someone else to attempt access to her ship. No, not at all. She was paranoid like that. Eccentric! Right, eccentric.

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


There were times that showed that Elpsis was a lot younger than her street smarts might make you think. This was one of them. There was the cool ship, the vocal recognition software and the whole Cora apparently being paranoid thing. Never mind the smooth way Cora handled the checkpoint. Sort of like in one of those holovids she watched. Wide-eyed fangirling inevitably ensued.


Yep, this was a thing for Elpsis to fangirl about. "That ship looks so cool. Do you place booby-traps in your apartment as well?" she exclaimed, sounding a bit eager as she stepped across the ramp and walked into the ship of the cuddly terrorist. Oh, and, yes, she would totally want to know how to place booby-traps as well, since it was a very useful skill to have. Certainly when one considered her chosen form of employment."You sure I can't meet Fluffy?" After all, a wild nexu was the cutest thing ever.

 

[Cora Passek]

Cora glanced over her shoulder to Elpsis, the answer was quite simple to if she booby-trapped her apartment. "Yes. Apartment, safe houses. Well they are safe for me, anyone else ... boom." She said flatly. "Anywhere I live, pretty much as some type of security that kills, like Fluffy. If someone gets past my password and vocal password, Fluffy is always around to eat them."

She walked slowly, guiding Elpsis, first to a mess of a room where Cora dug out some clothing for the both of them. "Here you go. Should fit you decently. But before you can meet Fluffy, how about we get you smelling less like blood and dinner and then we can think about that." She said as she headed off to the med bay. "Have to at least patch you up a little first."

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Someone else might have become a bit concerned about being on the ship of what seemed to be a paranoid survivalist. Who probably had lots of people gunning for her if she booby-trapped any place she stayed at. However, Elpsis was not like most people. So her reaction was totally different and actually approving. "Sounds useful. Can you teach me how to lay booby traps? Could come in handy for me," she said seriously.


She gratefully accepted the clothes and gave Cora a nod. "Probably wise. I'll go strip off. And, hey, thanks for your help." Then she walked towards the medbay, though not before running a hand down Cora's back and roaming over her arse, before giving it an appreciative grope. Inside the medbay she removed her blood-stained jacket and then stripped off her tank top, without the slightest bit of false modesty. A vibroblade had gotten her good in the shoulder, as the blood and open wound showed.

 

[Cora Passek]

The blonde jumped a little at the touch, not quite used to that just yet. Then Cora nodded, as she pulled a variety of medical items from various drawers in the medbay. "I can. It's not a problem really. Would be nice to pass some of those skill on to someone else. It's not like I'm going to have a kid to pass em on to." She said with a shrug. Much less actually settle down that much for one.

Picking up a syringe she quickly filled it with an appropriate amount of pain medication. "Just pain meds. You'll want them before I do anything else. Because cleaning that wound alone, is going to suck." Cora said firmly, though she waited for permission first. The girl seemed almost a little paranoid like her. Or maybe she was seeing things. Still, it seemed easier this way.

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Things were not going to get hot. Not at all. This scene would be totally safe for kiddies to watch. Silly kiddies should get a life and do their homework. Elpsis watched Cora intently while the older woman filled the syringe with the medication. Needles reminded her of the fact that she was still feeling a craving for spice. It was good at keeping the pain out and taking her somewhere else. Somewhere nice. Before she woke up with a good headache in the morning.


But then maybe the hot, crazy survivalist blonde could take her somewhere nice. "I know. Not the first time I've been stabbed. Go ahead," she said simply. "It's weird, I kind of feel comfortable with you," she admitted a bit shyly. One hand was raised and travelled across Cora's shoulder.

 

[Cora Passek]

Cora nodded before finally injecting the medication into Elpsis. "Had to be sure. Personally, I'm the only one who drugs me when it comes to injuries. I had a problem with a certain someone who drugged me, knocked me out. Admittedly she fixed the wounds and stuff that I had. But I'm a little too.... how do I say this? Eccentric for that." Like hell she'd call herself paranoid. She was not paranoid, ever! "Don't trust many people. Never have been able to." Nope, because they all try to stab me in the back. Such a lovely galaxy I live in.

She gave a soft smile, "For all that I may be, with the trail of trouble that usually follows me ... I do at least try to be kind to those who actually want to be around me." Another shrug followed. "But I'm glad you feel comfortable." Cora said quietly as she helped Elpsis to lay back before pouring the cleansing solution over the wound. Then after numbing the wound, she quickly stitched the hole up, with such practiced movements and grace that showed she clearly had done this a few times. Probably far too many times. A smile crossed her lips at the touch across her shoulder. "You'd be surprised how often I've had to patch people up over the years. Any other wounds I need to know about?" She asked as she placed a bacta patch over it.

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Elpsis winced slightly while Cora spoke, partially out of pain. It certainly sounded like the blonde had been through a hell of a lot, though this had the effect of making Elpsis feel closer to her. Little did she know how much history the cuddly terror had with her mother.


As Elpsis had freed herself of her tank top, Cora would have a good view of her wounds. Brutal scars marked each sholder, probably inflicted by slug rounds that had taken out a good piece of flesh. However, that was not all. Indeed, it looked like her back was criss-crossed with vicious scars. They had clearly been there for a good while, but had faded little. These happened to be the handiwork of Xerexes, the girl's lovely father, but she preferred not to think of him.


Elpsis allowed herself to be lowered and stayed still while Cora worked over her wound. The grace and care Cora displayed clearly showed that she was an experienced hand. Yet she seemed alone. It seemed like a lonely life, probably devoid of friends because they either died or turned on you. In a way not that different to Elpsis, though she had [member="Abaigeal E'ron"] to rely on. Still Elpsis gave Cora a thin smile while the hole was stitched up, then gasped a bit. "Couple old burns and scars, knife wounds. Got a...slug round in the leg couple weeks ago," she winced at that. It seemed like the injury was playing up again since clearly the bullet had not been removed. "I ain't keen on hospitals," she said by way of explanation. How ironic that her mother was a healer.

 

[Cora Passek]

Cora sighed softly, as she scanned over the girl's torso keeping track of what she was being told. Truthfully, the blonde had been through hell and back and yet, it still didn't seem to be over for her. So many things, so many problems in her life. And with the exception of Siobhan she'd been all alone for a long, long while.

"Don't blame ya on hospitals. Ain't keen on 'em either. After losing my left leg in one. I was pretty much done with them. Nearly died for my stubbornness a few times." She said with a shrug. "I can take care of most things as long as you trust me enough. Even the leg I can at least look at, though I make no promises."

Moving on to the burns, Cora started to clean them carefully before placing soft bacta patches of them. Doing everything she could to ease Elpsis' wounds as best she knew how. "Just have to see what I can do. As long as you don't mind me trying."

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Hopefully one day Cora would be able to find some peace by embracing the true faith. The one true faith of the Great Goddess Ashira!


A soft sigh escaped Elpsis' throat whilst Cora worked over her burns. The care the blonde was taking with her was quite evident. It did a good deal to reduce the discomfort Elpsis was feeling about exposing herself like this. After all, she did not like hospitals. Or doctors. Or appearing vulnerable in general. However, there was some sort of connection she felt between them. Nothing romantic or anything silly like that, but something that made it easier to let down her guard.


The fact that Cora was cute and good at blowing things up probably helped a lot. See, Elpsis had a thing for older women with a penchant for explosives. "Ok, darlin'. I guess I do need it. I'll have to be extra appreciative to you when you're done," she said rather cheesily, batting her eyelashes at Cora and giving her a wink.

 

[Cora Passek]

One day she would, without a doubt. For now, she was still a little lost lamb without much purpose, with far too heavy a burden upon her shoulders. Too many people, friends she had lost along the way, leaving her alone. And the ones who didn't tended to place knives in her back.

Soon enough Cora moved on to patching up the knife wounds, carefully putting Elpsis back together as best she knew how. It took her a while but she finally moved down to the redhead's leg. It didn't take long to find where the slug had entered. Gentle hands felt over the area, looking for the slug itself. Finally she came across a lump that without a doubt, did not belong. "Good news is I found it. Bad news, it's going to hurt to get out. Deeper than I thought. But I can numb it and yeah, remove it. Just, you ain't going to like it." With that in mind Cora walked away for a moment, gathering up more supplies before returning to the bedside.

This time, the blonde didn't hesitate as she grabbed a syringe to numb the spot. With a couple of quick injections, she was done for the moment. "Just giving that a minute. Then we'll see if it's removable." Which this gave them a moment or two to chat. "So, where you from?" She asked, not terribly used to this small talk thing.

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Elpsis winced slightly when she felt the syringe pierce her skin, though after a few injections she was overtaken by a feeling of numbness in the spot in her leg. In response she just shrugged. "'S'ok. I can deal with pain. Daddy Dearest taught me a lot about that," she said with a strong sarcastic edge to her voice before she managed to shake herself out of it.


Apparently they had to wait and chat. "You ain't good at this thing called small talk?" she asked rhetorically. "I ain't either." Then before Cora could respond Elpsis had leaned forward and placed a quick kiss on her lips, before leaning back, looking rather smug. "I prefer doing stuff. I'm from Coruscant. Haven't been there in ages though. Probably for the best. You?"

 

[Cora Passek]

"I'm not sure I want to know." Cora said with a sigh.

Cora seemed a bit surprised by the sudden kiss. "No, I'm not .... Though it's more an I ain't used to being around people that much anymore. Small talk just isn't me." She said with a shrug. "Well, I was born on Corellia. Grew up for the most part in the old Sith Empire's space. Hell used to have an Imperial accent from back then." Though a frown soon spread across her features, and another sigh fell from her lips. "It's a long story there."

Moving back to Elpsis' leg, "Let me know if you feel anything." She said quietly as she picked up a scalpel. Though for the girl's sake she positioned herself to block Elpsis' view. It seemed a wise thing to do. So she began cutting, just a small incision. It took her a while of digging to actually find the slug. A sigh came, glad to find it. "Found it." She said softly, before grabbing a set of tweezers to remove it.

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]

 

[Elpsis Kerrigan]

[member="Cora Passek"]


Elpsis frowned slightly when she heard Cora's tale. More importantly paying attention to what the blonde was not saying. If the woman had secrets, the redhead could not fault her for it. Despite this - or perhaps because of it - she felt something like kinship towards her. Maybe also because Cora not only did not judge her, but seemed to have gone through similar experiences. "Welcome to the club. Seems like we both got Sith crap to deal with and plenty of BS we'd rather forget," she said and did not push further.


It seemed that Elpsis was one of this writer's characters who weren't nosy, unlike a certain Countess. She watched while Cora worked over her leg, though her view was obviously blocked. This was probably for the best because watching someone cut up your leg was not very nice. The wound was mostly numb so the sensation of pain was mitigated but Elpsis still winced and grit her teeth while Cora dug and dug until she found the slug. Elpsis gasped slightly when Cora grabbed a pair of tweezers, then gave her a nod. "Ok."

 

[Cora Passek]

"If only it was as simple as just forgetting. I'd love nothing more than to forget so much. Least I ain't the only one in that club these days." She said softly as she pulled the slug free and set it into a tiny bowl off to the side. Now she'd just have to stitch her back up.

"Funny thing was, as a kid the Sith were great to me, and my family. But that all changed one day when they decided we were traitors and killed every last one of them. I got lucky to get away." She shrugged as she carefully put Elpsis back together. Finally she closed the wound completely and placed a tidy bandage over the top. "And there we go. Much better." Cora said as she quickly cleaned up her mess before turning back around to face Elpsis. "Should heal just fine."

[member="Elpsis Kallikora"]