Sandstorm

[Seo Linn]

The slave was changing from a girl into a woman and her owner had noticed. So far in her life she had only her mother looking after to care and feeding. Slaves in the pit too often died. Yet some of them had grouped together and lived as best they could in unfortunate circumstances. A summons was given to Seo to attend to their owner and master.

Saraid would make sure her daughter looked as best she could when that summons was answered. When Seo approached the house of her owner, the doors were opened for her and she stepped in. The interior was very regal and well made. There were more riches than the girl had ever seen before or imagined there were.

A female stepped forward and motioned for her to follow. Falling into step behind her, the girl looked around with wonder and wide eyes. Her fine clothing did not compare to what the others around her wore. That was about to change though.

The woman she followed took her into a room with several other women who proceeded to wash and redress Seo. She was given new clothes and then taken to see her owner.

He looked at her as she brought forward and leaned forward with a keen interest.

"What is your name girl?"

Stopping when he motioned that she had come close enough, her naturally gold eyes looked at him and then to the ground before returning to his face to answer him.

"Seo Linn."

His dark eyes remained on her and he finally leaned back. Motioning for her to continue her approach, he allowed her to come to stand in front of him. A hand raised to her cheek and lightly touched her smooth skin.

"Do you know why you were brought here?"

Shaking her head, she had no idea. The reason was made clear that night and many others after that. He was not an overly abusive owner, but he did not appreciate any rebelling she might have done. Finally a day came when a storm hit.

It was no natural storm and slaves ran haphazardly around. This was all the life they had ever known and were like lost souls when freedom was granted to them. Seo was one of many like this. She had murdered her owner then freedom had been granted to her. A group of people had come in and started releasing the slaves one at a time until their owner was weakened and Seo able to deliver the killing blow.

She now sat in the room next to the cooling body of him in stunned silence. Outside the storm raged. In here it was quiet and peaceful. Comforting and something Seo was familiar with. Not yet ready to face what was outside, she remained inside, the open door creaking as somebody entered.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

Lorrd. James had come here as one of a select few to help free slaves in a goodwill run. Since his dad had vanished four years ago, the teen had never stopped searching. Somehow, someway, he never gave up hope that in one of these cells he would find the face of Eric Justice. He turned a passage sprinting as quick as he could away from the blaster fire that was coming from the other end.

He turned a corridor, coming face to face with a man twice his size gripping a DeathHammer pistol. The seventeen year old didn't even have to think, he brought this fist around for a heavy punch to the man's jaw. He stumbled back, James stripped the weapon from the man, it was heavy, massively heavy. The man caught himself, preparing for a heavy punch, but something in James' gut had him a step ahead of the man. He swung the DeathHammer like a club, knocking the larger man out. The teen stripped a keycard from the man's filthy belt.

"How's that last line of defense coming, kid?" Came a voice from the comm in James' hand. "We ain't going nowhere without it taken down."

"I'm almost done," James said, sliding the keycard into the slot of a dataterminal built into the wall.

"Well, hurry up, we are pinned down over here!" shouted the voice on the other end of the line irritably.

"I'mma goin! Sheesh!" James muttered tapping the keys as fast as he could. He wasn't a fast reader, even on his best of days, and pressure didn't help. No thanks to his lack of schooling, he could speak 30 different languages semi-fluently, but he could barely sound out words in basic. He licked his lips, the spacer was helplessly lost.

"We don't have a lotta time here!" the man antagonized him a minute later.

"I know! This ain't as easy as it looks!" James was out of time, he had to just hope to trust his luck. He was always lucky, or just lucky enough to get by. He began randomly pressing the selections on the screen. It turned green with a series of characters across it, "How's that?"

"I'll be damned," the voice said surprised, "You did it. Get back over here and let's blast this thing."

"Go on," James said. "I need one more search. Just for stragglers."

"We got em all, there ain't time, kid!"

"Go! If I die, well, I die, and that's ok." He tossed his comm away and with the heavy blaster pistol in hand he dashed away.

James didn't know what he was looking for, but he knew that there had to be something. He finally turned a corner and saw the first closed and locked door he had come across. Every locked door is just an invitation, he could remember Eric's words. With a quick slide of the key card, the door slid open. The teen stepped in, looking around. There was a girl, blonde, just a few years younger than him, dressed in some kind of show clothes. A corpse was behind her of a man. James had seen dead people before, but it still shocked him. His eyes widened for just a moment. He was wearing a frumpy leather jacket, a threadbare grease-stained shirt, and flight pants that were rolled up at the bottom. He gave her a youthful smirk, despite his dirty face and roguish appearance. Through it all, there was a general smell that most would consider relaxing or charming that worked most of the time on people's subconscious.

"Hey," he said, his smuggler's cant gentle, and not worn with age, "Ye alright?"

 

[Seo Linn]

That she was the only person alive in this room was something Seo was unconscious of. The other slaves that had been in here had fled when the storm started and left her alone with their owner. She now had his blood on her hands and was in shock more than anything else. How she had even accomplished his murder she didn't have a clue on and sat in an almost fetal position on the floor. Her knees were pulled up against her chest and her arms were wrapped around her legs as she rocked forward and backward in place. Unknown tears ran down her face and probably made a mess of whatever makeup she had needed to put on that day.

Not looking up when the door opened, she jumped when James spoke to her. She looked up at him and briefly considered using the same weapon on him she had killed her owner with. In her shocked haze, she could tell he was male and only a little older than she was. Something about him soothed her frayed nerves though and the urge to draw any weapon on him went away.

Wiping at the tears she noticed in her eyes, she nodded and quickly cleared them away. Peering intelligently, if still in a slight state of shock were golden brown eyes. Remembering what she had been taught growing up, she was slightly cold and distant. Not giving away very much of what she thought or felt. However, her shock was clear and she shivered slightly from that.

Standing up and attempting to stop shivering, her arms wrapped around herself and rubbed her arms slightly.

"I...I am fffine."

If being in one piece and alive with this storm going on around them could be considered fine, her answer was accurate.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

James didn't have to be an empath, like he was, to know that she was far from ok. His mother was a Zeltron, he had inherited her empathy and some of her telepathy, but he hadn't learned how to turn it off, or control it. While the tears coming from her told him she was in bad shape, it was the initial sight of blood that sparked an alarm through his system.

"My dad used to say that when a girl's makeup is run, it's gotta be a bad day for her," he said offering a smile as he took a few steps closer.

A quick precursory glance showed she didn't have any injuries he could see like massive bleeding or broken bones. A wave of relief went through him. He placed a hand on her tricep, resisting the urge to look back at the dead body in the room. He didn't want to know the story behind that, but he was sure there had to be a good one. His other hand held the heavy blaster pistol limply. He had seen more than a few slaves in his day, most were pretty battered, crying with pain or gratitude. This girl wasn't any of that.

"My name's James," he said nodding his head back towards the door he came from, "I am with a rescue group, we came to get some of the slaves like ye outta here."

A shudder from the sandstorm, brought him back to the impending danger they were in. The door he had come through was suddenly covered in a cave in as the passage fell under. The entire room shook with the fury of the storm.

"I've got a ship out there, but there ain't much time," he took her by the hand. "Come on, we have to get out of here."

There was only one other door out of here. He stepped over the dead body on his way to it, a chill went up his spine. He hoped he would never have to kill anyone, he couldn't imagine living with that. He would have to make sure to help this girl through that for sure. The door opened and the passage opened up to the forward, the left, and the right. He had gotten a brief look at a map, but not much of one. He felt his gut tugging ahead, so he raced down the passage as fast as he could. Not far behind them, that room collapsed like a house of cards. He looked back at the girl with a grin, "Seems like we got ye outta there in just the right amount of time."

The two came to a massive chamber. On the other side was the exit out, but before them were a trio of fiery red plasma sheens as the semi-solid matter was arced across the room from one side to the other.

"This is part of the power generator grid," James explained, "I once had to get past one on Nubia to deliver a hold of guns. We have to disable the two control panels to take it offline," he pointed at one on a scaffold on the right wall. "There is one. Do ye wanna go for that one or try to find the other?"

 

[Seo Linn]

She didn't have a dad, not one she had ever met or heard of, at least. The only had her mother and the few people in the camp that helped take care of her. No brothers or sisters either.

"Who is your father?"

He reached his hand to take her by the arm and in her state of shock, she made no resistance. What other things he was saying were lost on the stunned girl. Talking about slaves and rescue, she shook her head slightly in an attempt to clear her clouded mind. When the hall he had just come into the room from crashed, that spurred her into motion.

The girl had lived here for months now and knew her way around. This guy did not.

"Wha...wha...What are you talking about? We can get out that way and not have to get past that bbb...barrier."

Her shock was still present in her words, but there was some intelligence in her speech and look. Very rarely had the girl spoken freely except with her mother. Doing it this time, she did not think James would take her words poorly.

"Why do we need to take this offline if all we are doing is getting out of here?"

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

James bit his lip. The question hadn't come to him in the four years since he disappeared. He had said his dad's name only a dozen times in the years since, he made a point of not saying it. Just mentioning his name made Eric's vanishing too real, too concrete for him. He had jettisoned all of his pictures of his dad into space, seeing that face brought him to tears. There was no point in living in the past, James just kept running as far and as fast as he could. All he could do was run. Except now.

His face took a downward turn as he literally was physically stopped in his tracks by the question.

"Eric," he said at last, "Eric Justice. He's gone."

She asked him why they were going this way. James was counting on this place holding to the building codes with an emergency exit on the other side of this barrier, just in case of a reactor melt down. He was almost certain this was a way out, but any other--she was the local. She probably grew up here and knew it better than he did. The building shook again as the storm's assault threatened to level it. Dust sprinkled from the ceiling onto the floor. He looked at the sheening plasma barriers, the back to Seo. It was an awful risk, the next gamble could either kill them or save them.

"Ok," he said, relenting. He motioned with his hand holding the heavy blaster, "I am sure there be an emergency exit on the other side. A failsafe we could use to get outta here, but," he winced and sighed, "If ye sure, lead the way."

 

[Seo Linn]

Being on the move, in the company of a person that drove her, some of Seo's mind started to stabilize and the lessons she had been taught growing up about how to read people and body language came into use. She could tell her question disturbed James somehow, but not the how and she recoiled slightly at his reaction. Even though he had yet to raise a hand to her, when he stopped that thought crossed her mind that he might hit her. It was something her owner would have done when she displeased him with a question or action.

"Like my father. Gone. I know nothing about mine. Not even a name."

One thing might be noticed about Seo spoke of their respective fathers. It was in present tense. They weren't dead to her, just out of their lives for whatever reason. Her mother never mentioned her father or who he was. She knew nothing, but if her own life was a clue, then she had an idea about what he might be.

Letting out a sigh of relief when he did not hit her, when he responded to her second question, she tipped her head to the hall on the right.

"That leads to the ladies rooms where all the girls were got ready to see our master."

Her voice took on a quivering sound as if she was about to cry again. She did not relish the thought of returning to that first room, but she knew it lead to a clear exit from the building. A path she had tread only once, but remembered it well. Taking a few deep breaths, she nodded and grabbed his hand. She might be the one leading them out, but he was her savior. He was needed and gave her something to anchor onto, at least for the time being.

Unless there was anybody left in the crumbling building, their path was clear until they reached the actual exit from the room she spoke of. They had not come across anybody still inside as they had all fled, but the door was locked and she had no key to open it with.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

"Like my father. Gone. I know nothing about mine. Not even a name."

James pursed his lips, swallowing. There wasn't time for this but he still felt the waves of emotion thinking about Eric. Even the man's face was vanishing from his memory. Before James would cry himself to sleep at night and try to remember Eric's face. But after the first year he stopped crying, and soon remembering his face was so much harder than it could have ever been.

"Sometimes its easier that way," he managed. He offered her a consoling pat on the crux of her lower back. Subconsciously, through the contact, he sent a wave of calm and assurance to her. His dark brown eyes met her's and he licked his lips. "It's not easy, but its easier."

When she took another dip, James offered her his support again, emotional and physical if she was about to collapse with the intensity of it all. He couldn't imagine what she had been through, but the seventeen year old had seen enough of the galaxy to know that it was far from good.

She did, she knew what she was talking about. James quickly fell behind her as she lead him along. Behind them the walls of the building shook, threatening to bring it all down around them. Several times he was sure that the walls would crash in and he would be left under a pile of rubble to rot. But thank the Force it didn't. When he was in there, he could see the many tools of the wiley woman splayed out; makeup, clothes, and so on. None that really went beyond the superficial. It sent anger through him, righteous indignation at women being extorted and used for their bodies.

At last they came to the exit. It looked like the place truly was abandoned, since there was no one to stop them. He looked at the large door, once they were outside the wind from the standstorm would be a second issue, the sand could rip the skin off their bones if they let it or get in their noses and suffocate them on dry land.

"Here," he grabbed one of the blankets, "This should be enough to wrap both of us in together, that way we don't get flayed by the sand."

He retrieved the comm from his pocket, thumbing it to his private channel. "Reed? Ye there?"

The faithful astromech gave a sour whistle.

"Yeah, yeah, I know I was late. I need ye to play Marco Polo, ok?"

The droid gave an affirmative beep. The comm began giving off a small beep. He handed it to Seo, "I am going to need ye to hold and use this. When we get outside, it's gonna beep faster when we are goin' the right direction towards me ship. It'll slow down when we make a misstep. Can ye do that for me?"

With that taken care of, James raised the heavy blaster he aimed as carefully as he could at the lock and pulled the trigger. It was heavy and the blast was intense, sending a spray of molten durasteel chips into the air. His aim had been off, but it was enough. The door was sent wide open by the gusting wind, almost knocking James flat. He quickly went in for cover with the blonde girl. Together, they were wrapped tightly in the blanket. He could barely see out of the fabric, but what he could was the roving, screaming sand.

"Ok, let's do this!" he shouted. Their only hope of making it out of this storm alive was together.

 

[Seo Linn]

Because her father had no part in her life, Seo had thought very little about him as she had grown up. The comfort James provided for her helped to give her enough support to get them as far she did. Looking around the room as he worked with the door, she totally jumped backwards when he blasted the door open. She grabbed two items from among the many here. They might not look like much, but these two pieces of cloth would help save their lives.

Accepting the communication device, she wrapped a scarf and veil around her head and face. If James allowed her to do it, she would hang a similar scarf and veil around his as well. The blanket he wrapped around them was an added benefit and would protect her exposed skin.

One hand gripped the blanket along with the device he had given her. Her other hand held onto James and she wasn't going to let go. Both their lives depended on staying together. As soon as they exited the building, she stumbled slightly over the body of one of the guards. He had been on duty, either keeping the women in or others out, but that duty had ended. A rifle was gripped in his cold hands and Seo picked it up, letting go of James for only a moment to do so.

She was a deadly shot with a rifle at her young age. Growing some confidence in herself now that she wasn't entirely helpless, this might be felt by her rescuer.

"In what direction is your ship located?"

The confidence wasn't total and that device beeped patiently in her hand.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

Getting over the dead bodies wasn't exactly easy, but holding onto Seo they were able to make it without collapsing into each other against the wind that pushed against them. He got behind her, wrapping his arms around the younger girl. This way their wind profile would be easier as they worked together against the wind and they'd get tired slower. With his arms wrapped around her middle, it'd be easier for them to stay together. The wind screamed in his ears as they stood out in the storm. He had to strain to hear Seo, even as close as they were.

He felt for a moment, thinking, and feeling with his gut. From here he had no idea, it would be pure luck. He turned her, guiding her to the left, "This way!"

He leaned forward against Seo, his body against her back as they fought against the wind. He could provide the muscle if she could provide the guidance with the comm's beeps. The pair fought for each step against the rage of the wind. The sand pelted against them with furry, the blanket stopped most of it, but still James could feel the sting of some grains that made it through the blanket to his hands and face. It got everywhere, in his jacket, his pants, his face, his eyes. He could feel himself getting steadily tired as what would have normally taken two minutes took ten times that, at least.

Finally ahead of him loomed the familiar Dynamic-class freighter of the Drunken Marie.

"There it is!" he shouted over the din.

The Marie was perched on a butte, connected to the Plateau by a duracrete bridge. With the familiar sight of his beloved ship, James felt fresh strength fill his body. He urged Seo on, using his own strength if her's had given out. They came to the bridge and he felt his senses go off--the same senses that had helped him dodge the blockade at Rodia by knowing where the fighters were just in time. He stopped a third of the way across. The bridge creaked under the strain of the wind, faltering and cracking. The center gave way, crumbling into nothing, stopping right at their feet. Bellow the massive boulders hit the ground with a tremendous crash.

James tossed the blanket aside, the fresh sting of the sand on his face hitting him like a thousand Nemodian wasps.

"Get to the ship!" he shouted in Seo's ear before grabbing her and tossing her across.

She was a spinner, easy to pick up and easier to toss. He drew on the Force, helping him toss her as far as he could. James squinted through the storm, hoping she made it.

 

[Seo Linn]

Before the two of them had gone much further, the danger of the storm sunk into the shock rattled brain of Seo and she stopped walking for a moment. In the dim light, she squinted her eyes and quickly unhooked the rifle band from the gun she had grabbed earlier. Stopping for a few moments, she would ensure they would not get separated. Securing the strap, she tied them together and nodded for him to continue on. Even though she had the beeping comms device, they were headed to his ship.

Even tied together, it was still a struggle to stay on their feet. One step at a time, it was slow going. After what felt like a lifetime of torture, hard breathing and sand getting pretty much into everything, he yelled that they had reached his ship. The device was letting off an almost constant beep and Seo handed it back to him. Untying the gun strap, she did not start to panic when the bride started crumbling under them.

"SQUINT YOUR EYE, JAMES!!"

Sound advice from somebody that had grown up here and her own eyes were squinted only open enough for her to see what was directly in front of her. He turned and pointed her in the direction of his ship and then launched her into the air. Shivers went through her as he put the Force onto her body to propel her across. She made it across and landed not entirely stable on her feet, shivering without the blanket, the sand whipped the surface of her skin and made it red as if it wanted to draw blood.

Crawling on the ground, she made herself as small as she could against the onslaught of the storm and boarded his ship. Just inside were some items that would be of great use. Throwing that rifle down, Seo rushed around, still wearing that veil and tied some rope together with a tether and attached that to a harpoon that was handy.

The winds were wild outside, but Seo watched the sand closely and when the timing was perfect, she chucked the heavy harpoon in the direction she knew James was in. Hoping it did not connect with him, she watched it sail through the air until it was washed away by the storm.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

James stumbled for a moment, he heard Seo tell him to squint, and he did, the fiery sting of the sand on his eyes hurt less, but it still felt like pure fire lit in his eyes. She made it safe, he could vaguely make out her small frame scampering away. It was only then that his mind turned to the most obvious question--now what? He hadn't thought of his own escape, the spacer had been so caught up in rescuing this poor young girl. The wind whipped him, battering James from all sides. He staggered, struggling to remain on his feet, let alone think of an idea. He knew if he jumped with the wind against him like this, he didn't have a chance.

Out of nowhere, he felt one of the harpoons brush against his arm, it came from the direction of the ship, he grabbed it, tugging against the harpoon. There was some rope there, he was hoping the girl had it held tight or secured on something. Judging by her side, he was hoping more for the later, but today was a day for miracles. He gripped it with both hands before jumping. The wind pushed him, and James slammed against the butte. His grip slacked for a second, but adrenaline and the will to live were strong motivators. Hand over hand, the spacer struggled to pull himself up onto the ledge. The struggle didn't end there as he tried to pull himself up. His arms quivered with exhaustion. He was so close to success and he could feel his body threatening to give out.

"Grrraaaaah." he roared, willing himself over the top, no doubt with Seo's help.

On solid land once again, he half lead, have was carried by Seo into the safety of the Drunken Marie. The loading ramp closed behind them with a growling whirl. The wind was reduced to nothing more than a howl outside. James propped himself against the ship's bulwark, panting. With quivering fingers, he unbound the cloth around his face. Reed, the battered orange astromech who was older than dirt itself came around the corner with a disproving whirl.

"I know, I know," James said, waving the pile of scrap away, "Start us up."

The droid gave an abrasive blast of beeps.

"I hope ye don't kiss ye mother with that mouth."

The droid trundled away, moments later the Drunken Marie's engines could be heard warming up. James felt the familiar rumble of her out-of-sync engines sending vibrations through the durasteel floor. He turned his head, his dark brown eyes landed on Seo and he managed a smile. "We did it. Good job." He rubbed some of the sand off his face, "Ye are a pretty good toss for a 'Lil Spinner."

 

[Seo Linn]

She had been coming out of her shock as they got further and further away from the cause of it. Her down to earth and logical side had started to come out. However, once both of them were on his ship and the storm outside stayed there, Seo leaned against the wall panting and shivering at the same time. When she felt she had caught her breath, she lifted a hand to remove the veil covering her head. Since they had left the want-to-be palace, he had only seen her eyes, if even those.

Her own clothing had been designed on this world and the sand came out of it easily. Small sounds could be heard as it hit the floor of the ship. Looking at the droid as it beeped, her eyes narrowed slightly and she turned her head to look at James when he responded.

"I don't speak binary or whatever language your droid is speaking in. Could learn easily enough."

Taking a small gulp, her hand went to her throat and she tried to clear it. Gathering up a little saliva, she spat what little sand that was in her mouth out.

"Do you have something to drink?"

Falling silent, her naturally gold eyes looked around their location. They hadn't made it far past where they entered and she wondered what the rest of the ship was like. Attempting to stand up on her own, she was still shaking slightly and her knees seemed to feel like they were knocking together. A gust of the storm blew past or it might have been the ship taking off, either way, she felt the ship shake a little and she gave up on trying to stay balanced and sat down on the floor.

She was not ashamed of how she was dressed and James might sense that. Not closing herself off entirely to a physical view, she did in a mental sense and pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around her legs. Looking at those knees, she was almost in the same position she had been when he had found her. Beginning to rock back and forth again, there were tears in her eyes once more as the stress and shock returned.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

James gave the girl a smirk, "Don't worry, you don't wanna know what he said. It's rather vulgar. His name is Reed, he is a good soul even, with that."

He hoped he would never become as vulgar as the little astromech that flew with him. James considered Reed his copilot, not his droid. The hunk of metal was older than him, to be fair and was probably better than him. They were an inseparable crew. He found Reed after his dad had died, the metallic pain in his ass had served as a friend and kept the young teen from becoming a utter helpless mess.

She asked if he had a drink, and she hardly knew what she was asking. He gave her a smirk, "Sure, Lil' Spinner."

She probably wasn't old enough to drink, and he wasn't either, but after they had gone through today, they more than deserved it. He pat her on the shoulder as if to say "stay here," before rising and grabbing a bottle of gin from his cubord. He took a cap off the top and gave it a sip before offering her the bottle. He saw her face for the first time, and she was--well quite the looker. Even covered in a light coat of sand like he was, it was clear she was very beautiful. When she fought for balance, he offered Seo a steadying hand before she eventually resigned herself back down.

He instantly was flooded with a wave of compassion. She needed someone to comfort her. She probably wasn't used to this level of change all at once, she probably hadn't even been off world at all. He immediately dropped down beside her. His eyes studied her intensely as he slid one arm around behind her shoulders, another around her legs. As she craddled herself, James pulled Seo closer to him, letting her rest on his chest. Through their physical touch he let his empathy flow. He emanated calm and security like a warm blanket.

"Its ok," he said softly, "I know what it's like to be all alone on ye own for the first time. Its hard and terrifying." His fingers went up, brushing some of her blonde hairs from her face, gently guiding her to look him in the eyes. She had delicate but captivating features. It was hard for him to not get drawn in. "But ye ain't alone. Not now."

Not like I was, he thought.

He could feel the rumble of the Drunken Marie shift as the space ship changed vibrational frequences. They were catapulting through hyperspace now, faster than light itself. When she was ready, however long she needed to stay there was fine, he helped Seo up, "Let me take you to a room, you'll be more comfortable changed."

When she was ready, he led her to his cabin. It was the only functioning cabin in the whole ship, his dad's had been completely revamped to be used for cargo since he vanished. The room was dirty, clothes all over the floor, on the bed. There were empty bottles strewn here and there and a number of used dishes. The refresher was attached next to it with a working shower, even if it was dingy.

"May yeself comfortable," he said motioning, 'Sorry for the mess. I'll see if I can find ye any fresh clothes cause while ye look great," he gave Seo a look over, "I don't want ye uncomfortable."

 

[Seo Linn]

A trait of Seo and some of her people was they could pick up languages easily. Given just a couple of days and she would start sounding just like a native. She could also travel to any world and fit in with most populations quickly. Even though this was her first time off Lorrd, she had been taught this growing up. Just like firing the rifle she had picked up, this would become second nature to her.

Still sitting and rocking herself when James returned with the requested drink, she looked up with blank eyes and accepted the bottle. Having grown up on a desert world, she understood how precious drinks could be. Taking only a sip, she coughed slightly at the burn as it went down and then took a larger drink.

She considered handing the bottle back to him and decided to just set it down on the floor they were sitting on. It wasn't very long where she needed to comfort herself before she felt James wrap her up into his arms. For just a brief instant, she stiffened up much like she had on the planet they were fleeing from.

That feeling only lasted a moment before she suddenly felt comforted. Unaware James was doing this to her, it seemed to be natural to her. He assured her she wasn't alone and this was clear to her. Just him being there was obvious enough to her. Finally her tears stopped and what he had said finally reached her mind.

Though her voice still quavered slightly, she was not on the verge of crying any longer. Lifting the arm that wasn't against held against James, he might notice a slave tattoo just under her elbow and she attempted to brush some of the sand off her skin and out of her hair.

When she felt she was stable enough to move, she nodded and accepted the help he offered to get her into another room. At this point she didn't care about the mess and just saw the bed. Even through the support James was giving her, she just couldn't move further. Attempting to pull away from him, she didn't get very far before that urge to curl up came to her again. She knew what beds were for and she wanted nothing to do with that right now.

Shaking her head, Seo kept looking between James and where he had been taking her.

"I...I cccan't. Nnooo, I www...n't"

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

She took a sip and coughed on the burn. James gave her a friendly pat on the back and a chuckle. "First time? I should've warned ye."

He took another sip of his own after her, the grit of the sand was still deep in his throat, but he was slowly clearing it out. When she was calmed, he could feel her body physically losing tension in his arms. It made him smile, it felt good to help others become better. He hoped that his dad, wherever he was, could see this and was proud of him.

Things were going great until he lead her towards his bedroom. She started fighting and tried to break away from him. James instantly was flooded with a protective, dominant side that sought to keep her from harm. He instinctively held on to her at first to keep the girl from falling and hurting herself, but he eventually let go, "Ok, ok."

James didn't know at first why she was so intensely afraid, until his mind connected where she came from with the bedroom. If he had taken more girls into his bedroom instead of on their home turf, he would have probably connected it immediately. He slapped the access panel and the rusty door came down, followed by the sound of the lock closing shut. James turned to Seo, hands spread out to show he didn't mean her any arm.

"Look? See? Nothing bad is gonna happen. I promise. Ye are safe now." He sent another calming wave through the air, his pheromones kicked into gear once more instinctively, enforcing the sense of secure his empathy emitted. He took a step forward, "It's alright, Spinner. I ain't gonna hurt ye."

He took another step forward. If she let him, he took her by the hand again, "The couch is more comfortable anyway, I ain't slept on that bed in a three months, I gotta get it replaced," If she would let him, he gave her a gentle nudge, "Come on, this way."

If the Blonde would allow, James lead her to the rec room. It was dimly lit, only the flicker of an ongoing cheap holodrama, with the sound muted in the middle of the room provided light. There were dozens of holobooks spread across the floor, tables, and several chairs that had been turned into tables. A cracked, worse-for-wear VR game console was strewn across one of the chairs with a few dozen cheap cartridge games. James sat on the couch, if Seo had come with him, he took the worn blanket and offered to wrap it around both of them. The red plether on the couch was cracked in multiple places, the blanket was smelly with threadbare patches, but it was warm and soft.

"Do ye like Melvin Wayne?" James asked grabbing the remote. He turned the sound up just enough for her to hear it, "This is one of his classics."

 

[Seo Linn]

On Lorrd, there was a drink she was familiar with, but it had no bite or heat like this one had. Instead it was a very sweet drink made with some fruit that could be found in some of the more fertile areas of the planet. Eventually her mouth and throat were cleared of the sand.

After those few minutes and Seo having her small fit, James let her go and after the door had been shut, she really felt better. It felt odd and good at the same time. Her state of shock was still there yet it seemed that he was telling the truth. So far he had yet to do anything to indicate otherwise and when he held out his hand, she slowly accepted it.

Her voice was hardly above a whisper when she spoke.

"My name is Seo Aris."

That was the name her mother had and so Seo had taken on the same last name. With no father in the picture, she did not have any idea what it might have been. She knew her mother wasn't married and had lead a life much like her own. Saraid had been as young as she was now when Seo was born. Such was the common life of female slaves.

Shaking her head when he asked if she liked somebody she had never met, she remained silent. Something about Seo was that she was a quiet person, only speaking when it was needed or necessary. That would remain with her until she might get to know the other person. For now, she would be reserved.

However, her stomach had other ideas and let out a growl of hunger.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

"My name is Seo Aris."

\

James nodded and smiled when she said her name. "Seo," he said the name, trying it for the first time. "I was close though, Spinner an' Seo are pretty close."

He made sure she was comfortable and close to him. He didn't dare risk her alone, or far from him with the state she was in. His protective instincts were in high gear, instincts he wasn't sure he had before. He was just 17 after all, basically the only instincts he had were survival related, he didn't know that nurture and protect were in him. He hoped it would make him a good father someday.

He took a sip from his bottle, offering Seo another go at it, "Spinner ain't a bad nickname either. Oh you've never heard of him? He's a classic action hero from fifty years ago. He was big into movies about the Outer Rim and 'blaster justice' as they called it when the law was the reach of the blaster," he chuckled, shaking his head, "it's still that way in some places."

He was talking, probably too much, but it was the best thing he knew to do to help her feel more relaxed. He was a talker, and inevitably it always seemed to make things better--he hadn't found a situation yet he couldn't speak his way out of. He heard her stomach rumble and James chided himself inside for not thinking of her hunger.

"Let me grab ye some food," he handed her the remote, a scene of a stone-faced, skilled gunslinger staring down the villain filled the screen. "Put it on whatever ye want."

He tucked Seo in carefully, making sure she was comfortable before trundling off into the mess hall. He could still easily see her from where he was and he kept a close eye on her as he worked. He opened the freezer. It was mostly empty, except for six half eaten TV dinners. James grabbed them, scraping their contents onto a chipped plastic plate. He tossed the mix into the microwave, giving it a quick reheat. When he pulled it out--well, it was food, edible food that was a mix of bantha beef strips, sliced tubers, mashed seed mix, ground eopie, candied Junie berries, and fried nerf, all coated in half a dozen different sauces and dips from around the galaxy. Or at least seasoned to imitate them. He grabbed a fork for her and made his way back to the blonde.

"Sorry, I weren't planning for guests," he said, offering her the steaming plate of food, "I just grabbed all of what I had, if ye are still hungry, I'm sure I can scrounge somethin' up."

 

[Seo Linn]

Not entirely in the mood to smile, Seo picked up on his intention to calm and make her comfortable. When he offered her another drink, she accepted it and was able to drink it this time without coughing on the burn. Whatever his drink was, it wasn't something she would pick on her own.

Holovids weren't something she had access to before so names of people in them were unknown to her. Life had been tough on her, but she was a survivor and wanted to be as strong as her mother. When she thought of her mother again, her eyes widened and she looked at James.

"My mother. She's probably worried about me. Is there a way to get a message to her?"

He had already moved off to make her food and she wrapped one of the blankets around herself since there was one on the couch. Not really paying attention to what he was doing, her nose picked up on the smell and her eyes grew wide when he brought a plate out to her.

Like a starved person, she took the plate and fork. Looking at the utensil oddly for a moment, she started to shovel the food into her mouth. The food she had grown up with on Lorrd had been best been called finger food and she hadn't used a fork much. She was intelligent though and quickly picked up on how to use it. After what seemed like only a few heartbeats, the plate was empty and she laid back against the couch behind her.

Setting the plate on the table before she did that, she now just laid her head back and took some time to just be. Not knowing she could use the Force, she closed her eyes and listened. This was something Seo had been doing for a while and it was one thing that also helped calm her. The additional aid from James helped and she drifted off into a calm sleep.

For the first time since she was a child, Seo had her first good night's sleep. Dreamless and peaceful. When she opened her eyes in the morning, she was confused for a few minutes until her memories returned from the day before. Looking down at her hands, she opened and closed them a few times and sat up.

"I need to get clean."

She said this out loud and looked for her rescuer.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

[member="Seo Linn"]

The spacer nodded at her request when he returned with the plate of food, "I can see with the other spacers who ran the op with me, we will see if we can get ahold of ye mum."

James watched with surprise as the food disappeared. He didn't say a word, but if Seo had seen his face, his surprise would have been evident. It was literally leftovers from six different TV dinners. He had never expected her to devour them so quickly and without a word of complaint. He took the plate and fork when she was done with it and watched as she fell asleep quickly. He shook his head in surprise at Seo. He gave her a soft pat on the head, whispering, "Good night lil' Spinner."

He placed the dishes in the washer, Reed came into the mess hall with an inquisitive whirl.

"Not so loud!" James hissed at the droid in reproach. He glanced back at Seo, thankfully she looked undisturbed.

The droid gave a quieter whirl.

"I dunno how long. She had a bad break, maybe we should start by seeing what we can do for her." The droid gave a warning shrill beep. James groaned and shook his head, "I know, I know, but not everything is about the money. Sometimes we just have to do good for people when it costs us something." The droid gave an incredulous whirl. James rolled his eyes, "Of course, how could I ever forget ye are just looking out for yeself?"

The droid rolled away, and James made his way back into the rec room. There was no way he was leaving Seo alone right now and he couldn't risk putting her near a bed. Force knew what would happen from there. He cleared the VR set off from the chair at sat opposite of her. With a tap on the remote, the spacer turned off the holoprojector and almost absolute darkness filled the room. He had a busy, terrifying day. It didn't take the spacer long to drift off, even though he fought to keep his eyes on the blonde as long as he could. He slept lightly through the night, the familiar hum of out of sync hyperdrive lulled him like rocking cradle. He had spent more time on this ship than on any one planet. It was his life. His everything.

When Seo said she needed a shower, it was enough to rouse James. He blinked the sleep from his eyes. He needed one too, he couldn't believe he slept in the leather jacket and his dusty clothes. He was starting to chafe in some painful areas from that. He nodded in the dark before rising. A few consoles showing the Drunken Marie's flight gave some light into the room.

"I can take ye to the refresher, but its in my bedroom," he offered his hand to the blonde, "I'll give ye some privacy, but I need ye to not lose it this time. Can ye do that for me?"

If she said yes, James led her back to his bedroom through the unlit corridor. No light was needed as he crossed the rusty durasteel decking. He opened the door and flicked its light on for her, "Alright, have fun. I'll see if I can find ye somethin' decent to wear when ye get out."