The Force of Fear

[Hadrian Bjormund]

The empty weight room was filled with the sounds of muffled punches. The weight room was meant for [member="Lady Kay"]'s bodyguards, although most would clear out the room whenever Mac went down to use it. He knew that the guards had their suspicions on what really went down. He would catch them looking at him sometimes. However today, Mac was alone in the weight room, viciously taking out his anger on the helpless punching bag. The giant pirate had to raise the bag to a more suitable height before he began to wail on it. The last job that he had worked on with Miss Blonde had affected him more than he realized. He had lost control. How many did he kill? Twenty? Thirty?

Every last one of them deserved it though.

They did, his victims were not innocent to say the least. The most vile kind of creatures that Mac had ever seen. In his life, Mac had been on both sides of slavery but what he saw on that forsaken planet... he had no words to describe it. Although his axes did a pretty could job on emoting how he felt. He offered no quarter to the slavers. By the time he finished the mission, his clothes were saturated in blood. He must've looked like a painted devil, twirling his axes and roaring. But the fear on the faces of the slavers did not make up for the rapes and tortures that he had witnessed before hand.

That girl must've been no more than fourteen.

Mac roared and delivered a massive punch to the bag, as if to punch the image out of his head. The impact was so great that the chain that suspended the punching bag broke, and the bag was sent flying into the wall. It landed with another punching bag that Mac had launched previously. Mac swore silently, he could've broken his hand if it weren't for the gloves that he was wearing. Yet the punch was cathartic. Mac's breathing slowed back down and his anger faded. Now feeling a little guilty at breaking the chains for a second time, he walked over to the punching bags that were lying on the ground and sat them back up.

Mac took a swig of water and started to make the walk back to his chambers. He walked down the corridor, his boots thudding against the hard ground. Mac was bare chested, revealing his large tattoo, reminiscent of his days as a pit fighter. He was broad in the shoulders, and his chest and arms were powerfully built. His stomach area was less defined than he would've liked, but that is simply due to his natural build.

He took another swig of water as he walked past Lady Kay's office doors on the way to his room. His workout had left him in a better mood.

 

[Kay-Larr]

The small bit of damage in the weight room caused by [member="Macoda Haberon"] and others didn't go unnoticed with those that looked after the equipment. It was more than just the regular wear and tear, and that's what brought it to her attention. Nothing for her to get angry about, however. It was just another expense.

Kay exited her office about 10 minutes after Mac had walked past it. She headed down the wing towards his, all the while her mind drifting to whatever the issue could be. Mac had been offworld, she knew that. He returned with a bunch of credits and obvious anger or frustration with something that he needed to work out of his system. Maybe she could help?

She reached his door and knocked. "Mac? It's Kay. May I come in?" She had no intention of opening the door without permission. Kay savoured whatever private moments that she had, and so she respected the rights of others to have theirs. People weren't expected to drop everything for her, Queen or not.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac just got out of a rather quick shower when he heard the knock at the door. It was [member="Lady Kay"]. Mac swore and scrambled to get dressed quickly, his hair still wet. He slipped into dark, well-worn jeans, and donned his brown boots. Mac wrapped his holster which held his axes around his waist and tightened it. He began to wonder what brought Kay to his chambers without a message through the comlink first. Not that he had a problem with this unannounced visit, he typically doesn't get many visits at all.

What could Kay want? Perhaps an off planet trip? She usually gives me time to prep the Free Lady first though.

"Yes of course, come in!"

Mac managed to slip on a loose fitting undershirt as soon as she opened the door.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay opened the door and stepped in, noticing the apparent rush that [member="Macoda Haberon"] was in while getting dressed. His hair was wet. It was obvious that he had just had a shower. "Oh...sorry. I didn't mean to intrude. I just wanted to talk. May we sit down?"

He had his axes on. She wondered if he ever took them off. Did he sleep with them too? No doubt he still wasn't comfortable here. Or maybe he figured that he had to go somewhere. Right now the answer to that was no.

Kay sat down on a chair, folding her hands on her lap as she looked up at Mac, meeting his eyes as she tended to do. "I heard a whisper about some punching bags that suffered your wrath in the weight room. I'm not looking for you to pay for them, I'm just curious as to where the sudden aggression came from. Has it got anything to do with where you went off to on your days off recently?" He didn't have to answer in any detail. She had her own mental issues caused by trauma that she was dealing with and working to get healed.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

"No please come and sit down."

Mac motioned to a chair in his chambers for [member="Lady Kay"] to take a seat. As he listened to Kay as she explained the rumor behind her visit, Mac dried his hair with a towel that he had around his neck and ran his hands through his hair. He was surprise that she found out about the punching bags so quickly and was even more surprised that she had enough concern for him that it prompted a visit. Mac knew that he and Lady Kay were friends and all, but others being concerned for his well being was just something that he had to adjust to. He looked up at Lady Kay after she finished explaining and tried to play it off. In truth, he did find the punching bags to be therapeutic.

Mac displayed an embarrassed smile, "I am sorry, my lady. I can probably wield the chains back! It's just that the weight rooms aren't necessarily built for someone of my....caliber." Mac took a second to laugh at himself. "It was an accident, Kay. I can fix it."

Mac didn't even acknowledge his offworld excursions, hopefully Kay would forget about that.

Hopefully I will forget about that.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay raised a brow ever so slightly, maintaining an amused expression. Sure he looked very strong, but still, it would take quite the punch to rip the bags off from the ceiling. One was an accident, but two? That was something else. Not really on purpose, mind you, but his thoughts were somewhere else while he released his energy. [member="Macoda Haberon"] was another that she was glad wasn't a Force user, the other being [member="Thraxis"] . The Galaxy would be a far more dangerous place if they were.

She shook her head a bit, dismissing his suggestion of fixing it. "Don't worry about it. We have maintenance crews for that. It'll give them something to do that's out of their normal routine."

Kay leaned back in her chair, studying Mac. He was slightly nervous it seemed. "What were you thinking of while you beat up the punching bags? Any enemies that you were visualizing?" She was used to people prodding her for information in regards to her mental health. Now it was her turn to do the same.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac was taken aback by [member="Lady Kay"]'s question. He was completely perplexed on why she wanted to know details and was resistant to give her any. She was Queen after all, and it wasn't Mac's place to burden her with disturbing images. From what he had heard, she was still recovering from her abuse at the hands of the Sith, and Mac didn't really want to strain her mental health. The truth was that Mac was really not used to opening up, but her well being was how he justified his resistance to give any details.

He furrowed his brows and frowned, analyzing Kay who was analyzing him right back. He felt like a spotlight was on him. Was this some sort of test? Perhaps an investigation? Mac had taken great lengths to take his offworld jobs far away from the influence of Commenor. He became a little unnerved.

"I don't think of anyone in particular."

That was true in part at least. He never saw the faces of any Zambranos and he never had a true nemesis. He had seen the worst the galaxy had to offer, but it was hard to put one face to that. Mac continued to stand up in an uneasy manner, but he knew that this conversation wasn't done.

 

[Kay-Larr]

She pushed too hard. Kay saw that in how [member="Macoda Haberon"] reacted to her question. His facial expressions, his movements, his vague answer to her question. There was a lot that he was hiding. But for the moment, that was okay. She was very much the same way, but she was learning.

Time to switch tactics.

"I don't let things out like that as often as I should. It's been weeks since I've gone down to the catacombs to release the pent up energies and emotions that I have walled up inside. I don't use the weight room. I don't want others to see that I'm not as good at fighting as they are. If I was, then I might have avoided capture. Normally I can talk my way out of it...but there are some that that would never work on. It's a hard lesson to learn and I certainly paid for it." She rubbed the back of her neck and seemed to adjust a collar that wasn't there anymore with that one hand.

"At least I have good people to watch over me, no matter how annoying it is at times."

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac shuddered at the thought of [member="Lady Kay"] releasing her pent up energies in the catacombs, he had seen such power when it was not pent up. But under the stress that is brought on by ruling... it just wasn't good to keep all that inside. However Mac was relieved that the topic shifted away from him, at least for the time being. He took a seat in front of Kay and maintained eye contact as she spoke. Again Mac was surprised by what he heard, he shook his head.

How can a force user not be good at fighting?

"What do you mean that you are not good at fighting? You can use the force! That's not something that many people can claim." Mac was lost for words, he didn't understand what she meant. "When I tried to kidnap you, you could've easily killed me. You you could've electrocuted me or choked me or crushed my heart..." He was clearly struggling to speak at this point. Mac was a fighter if anything else, a large fighter that bested many opponents, including a Wookie at one point. He subconsciously rubbed his tattoo. Mac looked at Lady Kay, he frowned.

But this lady had me on my back.

That was power. That was power to be feared.

 

[Kay-Larr]

So that was his assumption. That every Force user was some super warrior that could best any man. Although the Sith that took her tried to force her to be that way, made her kill other prisoners in order to gain something as simple as a bed or a meal, the support that she had here turned her away from that. It was far beneficial for her to do things in other ways.

"Yes I'm a Force user, but that doesn't mean that I'm all powerful. I keep it a secret. Some alliances and agreements would be broken if my secret got out. I only use the Force as a last resort. The same as fighting. Even on my missions to rescue slaves, I stuck with a blaster and thermal detonators, as well as the skills of the mercs that I've hired. I don't like to kill people, Mac. And there are ways for people to strip the Force from me, even momentarily. So I can't rely on it. Doing so would render me useless without it. And I should be good enough to protect myself without it."

Kay fidgeted with her fingernails while she spoke to [member="Macoda Haberon"] . "If I didn't push you back when I did, then surely I'd be locked up in a cage somewhere, or killed. You could have easily killed me with your bear hands, or knocked me out with a single punch and I wouldn't of seen it coming. So what held you back? It certainly would've been easier for you if you did."

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac sat there, staring at [member="Lady Kay"] as she downplayed her force abilities and emphasized her hesitancy to use those abilities. However Mac remained unconvinced. Sure, Lady Kay might not like abusing her powers, but Mac thought of her as the exception to the rule. He sighed, there wasn't any point in arguing though. He knew enough about the Force from his experiences and he didn't want to make Kay angry either. She was still his friend, force user or not, and one of the few friends that Mac had left.

Lady Kay then asked what held Mac from simply killing her when he had attempted to kidnap her. He had put some thought into it, but he simply couldn't bring himself to kill her. As for a reason? A large part of it was that Kay was a woman. Call it sexist, but Mac always had qualms about hurting women, that just wasn't who he was or how he was raised. Kay also offered him kindness during the time that Mac had known her.

"I don't harm women. Not unless in defense, that's just who I am. And you were nice to me, Kay. I kept saying that I didn't want to hurt you and I meant it." Mac paused before he continued. "The real question is why you didn't have me killed as soon as we landed. I'm not exactly a good person, Kay. So what held you back? It certainly would've been easier if you did.

Mac made a point to use Kay's own words in wording his counter question.

 

[Kay-Larr]

"Maybe you wouldn't if hurt me. But you can bet that whomever you were planning to take me to, would have hurt me. So in an indirect way, you still would have caused me harm." She wasn't trying to guilt [member="Macoda Haberon"] , but to try to get him to see what could have resulted from his actions.

Thankfully things turned out better and common sense prevailed.

Then he turned her own question on her. Mac certainly had a gift for steering conversations. It was something else that she'd have to remember about him. "Easier, maybe. The right thing? No. As I said, I don't kill people easily. Even the thieves and murderers here are put to work instead of executed. Killing should always be a last resort. But tgat could just be the politition in me. I try to treat others the way that I want to be treated. Veiere said that I used to have a knack for seeing the good in others. Maybe I see it in you."

She chewed the inside of her cheek a little, turning her gaze from his eyes and to the legs of the chair that he sat on. "During my captivity, I had a lot of good memories taken from me. I don't remember my closest friends. I wasn't a good person when I was brought back, I did terrible things and I suppose they'll never forgive me for them. I don't know if I'll ever forgive myself. But during the time that you've been piloting me around, I regarded you as a friend that I could count on and trust. I don't have many and I didn't want to lose any more. Does that answer your question?" Her gaze was drawn back up to his again.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Aye they probably would've hurt you or killed you, but I acted with the cards I was dealt with.

Mac wasn't shamed by [member="Lady Kay"]'s initial response. He knew full well what he was doing and what the consequences would be for Kay, yet it seemed like the best course at the time. He was a mercenary after all, and did the best he could to keep himself alive. Still, a large part of him was glad that he wasn't able to go through with the plan. Although time will tell if that was the best decision. He did still have a bounty on his head after all.

Mac then listened to Kay some more, at first inwardly laughing at her suggestion that she saw some good in him. After all, she didn't know him as well as she thought she did. Sure, Kay knew well enough about Mac's character, but Mac had elected to not share many details about his past. Kay had not really done so either, but Mac could piece together a relatively good timeline simply from the gossip he heard. Then, Kay's conversation took a more serious tone which was marked by her averting her eyes away from Mac. She looked back up at Mac when she was done. Although he wondered what she could've possibly done that was so bad, he could tell that it had seriously affected her. He leaned forward and met her gaze.

"I think our answers are very similar. I didn't want to hurt you because you are my friend, and I don't have many of those." True, Mac had tried to kidnap her, but his fear got the better of him. "I know what its like. To feel like a bad person. To do terrible things. I understand, Kay."

 

[Kay-Larr]

[member="Macoda Haberon"] laughed at her. Or more so he laughed at what she had said with her views on him. It was okay though, as she kind of expected that. She's experienced it before through conversations with others, like Darlyn for example.

She nodded a little, glad that he understood. It was better if he did, and that they both understood eachother. Friendships were better that way. Atheus was another such friend. He saw the Darkness that grew in her as some kind of demon that needed to be controlled. It would always be a part of her. She would never be rid of it unless she cut herself off from the Force completely. That was something that she didn't want to do.

"Thank you, Mac. Veiere doesn't even know what I've done. I know that he has an idea, but I don't want to tell him. He blames the Sith that took me, of course, but I don't want him to think less of me or to change his mind about marrying me." There lay one of her fears.

Suddenly she got to her feet as a thought came to mind. Kay clapped her hands together once. "So! How about you teach me hand to hand combat? Maybe some different techniques to get out of sticky situations. You never know when another bounty hunter would try to come after me. It's better to be over prepared, right?"

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac was surprised by her suggestion. It made sense of course, every person of interest should know at least a basic level of self defense. Mac let out a laugh and stood up with her. "You mean another bounty hunter like me?" He showed a genuine smile, letting her know that he was completely kidding. He was always a chit bounty hunter anyways.

Once Mac rose to his full height, he towered over [member="Lady Kay"]. He would wager that he was about a foot taller and double her weight. He wondered how well this would go. Mac didn't want to accidentally hurt Kay, and most self defense techniques required a smaller discrepancy in size between the attacker and the defender. Maybe she could use her speed to her advantage. He figured that there was no harm in trying.

"Alright, I'll show you a little hand to hand combat." Mac walked towards the front door and opened it. "After you, Kay."

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay looked up at him and grinned. "Yes, another bounty hunter like you. However I know of a Trandoshan King that would love to get a hold of me. I've escaped his attempts on a handful of occasions. He's not exactly happy about that."

The size of him was a bit daunting. She wondered if perhaps this wasn't a good idea. Yet there were plenty of hunters, assassins and others that were bigger than she was. And most wore armour too.

Kay turned and left his chambers, but instead of heading to the weight room and catacombs, she headed towards her own office and chambers. "I should get changed first though, don't you think? A gown isn't exactly appropriate for training." Unless of course Mac figured that she should learn in the clothing that she wore day by day. That was a possibility.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

"A Trandoshan King? Is there anyone who doesn't want to kill you?" Mac teased her. He let Kay lead him for he did not know where she wanted to practice, however she lead him to her chambers and said that she needed to change.

As much as Mac would like to see [member="Lady Kay"] fight in her gown, he decided that there really wasn't any point besides his own amusement. Wearing a gown would make the training seem more realistic, but right now they would just be hitting the basics and to add any additional difficulty seemed unnecessary. With that in mind, Mac elected to wait outside Kay's chambers as she got dressed.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay had to laugh at his comment. She was lucky that no one was at war with Commenor and that for the moment, the planet had no enemies.

It wasn't long before she was changed, wearing comfortable slacks and a tank top, padded shoes and a towel over her shoulder. In her hand was a water bottle. Her hair was still down, still self conscious over the pinprick scars around her neck that were barely visible.

Stepping out of her chamber, she gave [member="Macoda Haberon"] a small smile. "Shall we?" Kay led the way down to the catacombs beneath the Palace. It was her own quiet place to train.

Once inside, she set her towl and bottle down in the corner. "I'm a good healer, so you don't have to be too gentle. My late husband was a warrior, so you can imagine the wounds that I've had to heal."

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac allowed Lady Kay to lead him down into the catacombs. They were clearly old, but it was relatively well lit and pleasantly cool. Mac made a mental note of how to get to this place, he might just come down here to cool off after a work out. The [member="Lady Kay"]'s ability to heal was news to Mac. He had never heard of any non combative force abilities, certainly never seen any. But Mac couldn't help but chuckle at Kay's request for him not to be too gentle. She clearly didn't know what she was asking for. Mac had every intention of going easy, at least initially.

Like hell I'm not going easy on her.

They entered a particularly open room that would be suitable for training. Mac walked to the center of the room and quickly stretched, cracking his knuckles and neck and back. He loosened the belt that holstered his axes and gently set the axes near the wall, gently wrapping the belt around the ax heads.

Having taken care of his babies, Mac turned to Kay. "Alright, hit me."

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay walked into the centre of the 'arena' of sorts. While [member="Macoda Haberon"] was busy cracking his knuckles and various parts of her spine, she just stretched out her muscles, reaching up as high as she could, and then reaching down to touch her toes. There was no cracking involved. That always just sounded like breaking bones.

She frowned slightly as Mac asked her to hit him. It wasn't that she didn't want to, but more so that she hated to be the one to start. Kay usually fought more defensively, rather than offensively. Going first wasn't something that she was comfortable with. "Me first? .... Okay..."

He was tall and well muscled. She wasn't sure of his speed. No doubt any punch that she would do would hardly even cause a bruise. But a kick would probably do better. There was more force involved. Kay approached, keeping her eyes on his with her fists clenched. She pulled her right hand back, twisting her upper body as she prepared to fake a punch, and then went to kick his right shin with her left foot. It left her slightly off balance if she was pushed or something, but she was trying to see if she could fake him out first.