Stowaways Always Bring Trouble

[Holden Tark]

There was only one thing Holden could do, well, that he wanted to do. The Corellian took the time it took Varik to spin to drop his arm and knock the arm with the accelerating blaster out of the way. It seemed in the nick of time too, because the blaster shot at that close range, even on stun, could have killed the man. Holden wasn't sure how he was going to get out of this fight, but what he did know was he had to buy time for Eryn to get away. Tark quickly slapped his hand to the wrist holding the blaster, and gripped it. With a pull he brought Varik forward as his own head came crashing toward his. This was likely a stupid move. Tark knew even if it connected his head was going to be hurting. Varik looked strong, and that was the danger of this move. Tark knew he was going to be all kinds of exposed if this did not work.

[member="Eryn"] | [member="Varik Ryjin"]

 

[Varik Ryjin]

Varik was getting impatient. There was only one way this little tiff was going to end, but every second the big man delayed him was another that put his bounty in jeopardy. The man was quicker than his bulk implied, but still far from the fastest Varik had fought. When he grabbed the wrist and pulled, Varik let him. In fact, he used the momentum to his own advantage, ducking his head to avoid the headbutt and twisting further to drive his shoulder into the man's sternum, right where the two sides of the rib cage come together. A simple punch to that area could drive the breath from a man, but this blow had all of Varik's weight behind it in addition to the momentum provided by the big man himself. There was also a wall at the corellian's back, so that didn't bode too well for him either. With his free hand, Varik reached around behind Tark, looking to snatch the shield unit off the man's belt and bring the fight to a much quicker resolution.

Meanwhile on the boarding ramp, Kresh didn't take it too kindly when she not only didn't run, but simply turned and began walking slowly away from him. That wouldn't do at all. He lunged at her and swept a paw across her legs. His claws were retracted, he wasn't trying to maim her, but the blow would be more than heavy enough to knock both feet out from under her, at which point he would step over her and plant a paw on her back or belly, depending on which way she landed.

 

[Eryn]

The swipe sent her knees forward and the rest of her backwards. Eryn landed on her back with a thump, teeth gritted as she felt the swift weight of the Blackstalker's paw on her stomach. She didn't waste time staring fearfully at the creature looming over her, as much as her heart hammered and her insides twisted in terror. Its breath was hot on her face, the growl rolling low through its throat set the air vibrating around her ears, but she had her knife, and she was fighting for her freedom.

She brought her blade up, slashing over its paw and driving the tip into the underside area where its leg met its body, violently probing, searching for a weak point, a way past the armored scales. If she found one and hit something, she'd roll away if he let her.

If not, well, she probably just made it angry and now she was double screwed.

|- [member="Varik Ryjin"] -| |- [member="Holden Tark"] -|

 

[Holden Tark]

Holden knew as soon as Varik moved this fight was over. There were some things Holden knew he could do, but none of them turned the fight into his favor. Besides having a shoulder drive into his sternum was enough to wind him, but the impact against the wall behind him meant there was no where for the rest of his mass to go. An object in motion stays in motion until acted upon by another force. Well that force meant a thud, crack, and pop inside Holden's chest. He knew his sternum was broken, and the pain he felt shoot up to the nerve centers of his brain exploded with that reality.

The Corellian slid down after the wall impact. He was winded and hurt. All his mind could focus on was the fact he failed to make good on his promise to Eryn. He promised he would take her somewhere in the outer rim when this was all over and all he did was lead her right to a bounty hunter. Tark had been blindsided, and the bounty hunter had taken advantage of having no problems of not playing by certain rules. Being a good boy kept getting Holden in trouble, and he knew he was going to have to stop caring about the rules so much if he was ever going to be competent in dealing with scum like this Varik. When Tark got better he'd sweep the ship for prints, DNA, anything that would help him get a lead on this guy.

It wasn't far to the bed bay. If Holden could give himself a bacta shot the bone should start healing itself. A shot of pain killers would get him moving. Hopefully he could reach Eryn in time, but dammit why had he been so careless. Why was it every time a pretty face came along trouble was always right around the corner? And why the hell was it, that this time, Holden actually cared about this pretty face enough to not give up?

[member="Eryn"] | [member="Varik Ryjin"]

 

[Varik Ryjin]

Varik took a step back as the big man fell, deactivating his newly acquired shield generator and clipping it onto his own belt. He was quick to move out of range of his various limbs, as he'd known men to fake severe injury in order to gain the upper hand, but the pain he could feel coursing through the man's mind told him this particular injury wasn't being faked. Good. He crouched down next to him. "Like I said, you can't save her." He should probably have just left well enough alone, but for a moment his arrogant streak got the better of him.

He spun when he heard a yelp and a growl coming from the direction of the boarding ramp, standing and rushing to the scene of the altercation between Eryn and Kresh. He arrived to find the girl scrambling to her feet and a small dagger lying on the ramp near Kresh's paw, the tip sullied with blood. The girl was lucky he hadn't taken her arm off. "Hold. We need her alive." The command was for Kresh, and the Blackstalker stopped with a grudging growl, haunches coiled and ready to leap on his prey. Clearly he was none too happy about not getting his revenge.

She got the rest of the way to her feet, clearly wary of the large canine, and Varik never gave her the chance to compose herself. He reached out to grab the back of her neck, getting a handful of hair as he did, then used the leverage to pull her off-balance as he began to drag her back toward the fallen Corellian. He'd left him conscious for too long already, but the wounded cry of the Blackstalker could have meant their target was escaping and that was even more urgent. They rounded the corner into the hall where the man lay, and Varik wasted no time raising his pistol and firing a single stun bolt into his wounded body. Then he turned and pulled Eryn along with him back toward the cockpit. "Come on. You've got an appointment to keep."

[member="Eryn"] | [member="Holden Tark"]

 

[Eryn]

If there was one thing Eryn had learned over the years, it was that you didn't show all your cards at the beginning of the game, especially if you weren't the bigger dog at the table. You had to play smart, think things through, wait for the right opportunities to act. Keep your secret weapons secret until you absolutely need them. Following that rule had kept her alive this long.

It's why she didn't pull out all her blades and attempt to peel the hunter like a grape.

Eryn did, however, give into the hot, unfamiliar feeling trembling in rage deep in her chest and lash out with fists and feet in wild attack as she was unceremoniously shoved forward into the cockpit. The strange sensation had arrived bright and burning the moment she'd seen Holden Tark, broken and crumpled on the floor of his own ship. She knew what it was, as much as she refused to admit it, but there was no denying it. She'd found his gaze, held it, had never looked someone in the eye that long in her life. It was…terrifying, what she saw there, what she felt there frozen in that moment, both of them knowing what was coming, both trying to say something they couldn't put into words fast enough. He looked…sorry? Determined? He had that look people got when they made oaths or promises, or so she thought when she reflected on the moment long afterwards. She'd tried to look reassuring, opened her mouth to make sure he knew she didn't need that look, didn't want it. He'd feel better knowing that, right? She didn't know. She didn't know how other people worked, she just knew how she'd feel in his shoes. "Holden, I'll—" …be okay. But the hunter fired before she could finish, and Holden's eyes closed, and Eryn's breath got stuck in her throat for a good six seconds as she was dragged away, eyes smarting.

…Because of the grip in her hair, not because she was upset. It was the grip in her hair. Hair pulling hurts. Stings. Y'know. That's why. Only reason.

Caring? It sucked. It sucked massive, hairy wampa balls.

Her punches were quick but thoughtless, seeking just to impact, not to win. Eryn's physical outburst served more than to release her confusing emotions, though. If she could make the man think she was just an angry, untrained, useless girl, maybe he'd be lax with his control methods. It would certainly help the grand escape she was planning. Or would be planning. Later, sometime. Maybe.

Kark it, plans never work, she'll do what she always does: fly by the seat of her pants and run when her feet hit the ground.

 

[Holden Tark]

Holden couldn't hear Eryn even if he wanted to. Their eyes locked, and it was exactly what she thought, a promise that he would find her, and get her back. Even if it was just to take her to the outer rim somewhere and deliver on his earlier promise. The stun blast came before Holden could think about anything. Varik's words were the only thing ringing in his ears as it he blacked out. I told you so... He hated it when people said that, or something similar. Varik was cocky, and it would be his downfall someday, arrogance always was its own poison.

For Eryn's part, Holden had completely blacked out. There would be no seeing her face in dreams, nothing that would give him any kind of hope she was okay. All he had was a name. He'd be able to cross check that with the database of active bounties. As long as hers was still active, he would know Varik hadn't cashed in. That would mean she got away somehow, or something else that Holden didn't even want to think about. The Corellian was constantly getting emotionally involved with his work, but this was the first time he could say some random stowaway had stirred up any sense of emotion other than anger. Damn the feelings, if he could, but that wasn't going to be happening. Maybe if there had not been that moment in the vault after she had been poisoned, but they did have it, and it was seared into his mind.

Right now everything was cold and black. There was only one thing which was certain, when Holden woke up, he was going to be alone.

[member="Eryn"] | [member="Varik Ryjin"]

 

[Varik Ryjin]

Varik wasn't gentle with his captive. When they finally made it to the cockpit and she started beating on him, he hurled her to the floor and fired a stun blast into her back before she could get up. The only reason she'd remained conscious as long as she had was because he didn't want to carry her any more than he had to, but now he was starting to wonder if he shouldn't have just stunned her outright. He called for Kresh to keep tabs on the corellian, then sealed the ramp and dropped into the pilot's seat and fired up the engines. It was a long walk from here to his own berth, and taking a stroll with an unconscious girl over your shoulder wouldn't be received too well on a planet like this. It was attention he didn't need, so he'd rented out the berth next to his own as a precaution.

It was a short trip in the ship, pretty much just up and down again, and while it was mildly unusual, it still drew far less attention than the aforementioned unconscious carry. Once the ship had settled in, he hefted the girl over his shoulder and sent Kresh out first to check for any passersby. The coast was clear, so he made the short walk between berths and once again boarded his own, much more familiar, VCX-820 Escort Freighter. The ship was short on space, so the cells he'd had installed were little more than reinforced horizontal bunk pods. They were even enviro-sealed and could be used as survival pods in a pinch. Hard as hell to get open from the inside though, so that would definitely be a last resort.

After divesting her of her remaining weapons, an impressive number of knives secreted away on her person, he laid her out in the pod, stuck the nutrient IV in her arm, and sealed her up for the trip. With that done, he fired up his own engines and was space-borne within the next half hour. After that, all that remained was contacting the bounty placer for a drop location and to work out payment details.