Post by Meira on Jun 6, 2015 9:34:26 GMT -5
She couldn't keep running like this. Once, she would have been able to. But there was no sense in dwelling on what she used to be able to do. She was long past that now. She slowed to a trot, looking up and down alleys until she found one that seemed safe enough. Checking over her shoulder, she made sure she wasn't being followed, and then stepped into the dim space between two buildings. The alley dead-ended a few yards ahead of her. Glancing upward, she could see the metal scaffolding of fire escapes. It took more energy than it should have to scramble up high enough to reach the ladder and then climb up to the roof. By the time she got there, she was panting from the effort. It was not a tall building, but she believed it would serve as a hiding place for now. She lowered her body, leaning against the low wall that surrounded the edge of the building's roof and tried to slow her heart rate.
The crew she'd been traveling with these past few months had taken their time in accepting her as one of their own. Their tendency to be cold with newcomers, and her own aloofness made for some long stretches of silence whenever she entered the common area of the cargo ship. For the most part, she didn't mind. She'd never been a conversationalist. The process of making friends was foreign to her, and she honestly didn't really see the point in it. So for weeks, she did her job and spent most of her free time in the quarters she shared with two other crew members. Those two spent most of their time in the common area, so she basically had the place to herself.
But one day, a rare wave of curiosity overcame her as she finished up a meal in the common area. Many of the crew members were crowded around one of the tables. Between their shifting bodies, she caught glimpses of a game that she would later learn was a specific type of poker. Her curiosity caught the crew off guard, but they did not protest as she watched them play. More weeks passed and she deciphered the basic rules of the game, and also picked up on what seemed to be common strategies. She also realized that the crew members playing seemed to be fairly predictable in their play. When the cargo ship reached Agamar, she followed some of these crew members to a cantina. As they dealt out cards, she sat down at the table, adding some of her own credits to the pot in the center. There were some hesitant, then smug looks passed around, and then they started to play.
As she sat there, her fingers tapping out a senseless rhythm on her knees, she began to contemplate what she'd have to do next. She couldn't go back to the ship, that much was certain. But it would be leaving soon. If she could just wait it out, they'd be gone. It was a lucky thing that she made it a personal policy to always carry her blaster and knife with her. She wouldn't have to return to the ship to retrieve them. All she would lose was a few changes of clothing; nothing she couldn't live without.
The poker game hadn't started out well for her. Understanding the strategy of the game, and implementing that strategy were apparently two different things. She lost several hands, much to the satisfaction of the other crew members. But she soon began to hit a stride and was able to turn her attentions to studying the other players as she kept pace. Soon after that, she was edging some of them out of the game. Their initial jovial nature turned to amused surprise, but then quickly began to sour as they were each played out of the game. When she beat the last of them, she barely had time to collect her winnings before they started displaying overtly aggressive behavior. It was hard for her to comprehend. They all won and lost money to each other all the time. The fact that she had soundly beaten all of them on his first go at the game didn't seem at all suspect to her, but it was an outrage to these crew members. They surrounded her, and she realized that it was time she sought new employment.
She could have killed them. Her blaster pistol, concealed at her back under her jacket, called to her. There were only four of them, and though each seemed like nearly double her weight, she knew that their size and strength would mean little against her training. But she also knew the kind of attention killing them would bring, and she didn't want that. She would have to escape them. She waited, poised and muscles tensed, ready to move. When the first one lunged, she danced away, allowing his momentum to offset his balance as he stumbled past her. The others acted then, each coming at her, ready to beat her senseless. She snaked her way through, and then away from them, and took the opening when she could to dash out the cantina door.
She'd run flat out for a few minutes, but her body soon gave way to fatigue. It was harder for her to stay fit to the standards she'd been held to at Green Meadows. No, that was impossible. Those standards required a functioning chip, which she no longer had. The chip hadn't seemed to show any signs of functionality in months now. Perhaps she was still very fit by normal human standards, but she couldn't be sure, as she had no idea what those standards might entail.
"She can't have gone far!"
The voice snapped her out of her thoughts and caused her to scramble to a crouched position. Her ears strained, and soon she heard more voices. They were down in the alley. She waited in silence, hardly sparing the thought to breathe as she listened for what they'd do next. Then one suggested that they check the rooftops and she felt a wave of frustrations wash over her. Without wasting any more time, she took off, running across the roof toward the opposite side of the building. The gap between it and the next was small enough. She didn't hesitate as she took the jump. By the time she was to the other side of that building, a head popped up over the edge of the first building and she heard a shout as they spotted her. She was too exposed up here, she needed to get back down to street level.
She flew down the next fire escape scaffolding she could find, landing in a puddle filled alley with a splash. She quickly moved out into the street, where more people meant more cover. She hid in the crowd, moving with the flow of people as she tried to figure out what to do next. Her pursuers were relentless. Soon, she saw the reflection of one in a storefront window as he closed in on her. She ducked behind a group of migrant workers who must have just come in from one of the nearby crop fields -they stank of sweat and manure- and entered the first door that opened up to her.
A tone sounded as she entered what appeared to be some sort of lobby or waiting area. It was empty. At the other side of this room, a reception desk of some sort was also empty. Atop the desk, there sat a small sign that said "Please Ring for Service". Beside the sign, there was a button. She pressed the button and chimes sounded over some sort of comm system. She glanced over her shoulder at the door to the street, willing it to stay closed.
The crew she'd been traveling with these past few months had taken their time in accepting her as one of their own. Their tendency to be cold with newcomers, and her own aloofness made for some long stretches of silence whenever she entered the common area of the cargo ship. For the most part, she didn't mind. She'd never been a conversationalist. The process of making friends was foreign to her, and she honestly didn't really see the point in it. So for weeks, she did her job and spent most of her free time in the quarters she shared with two other crew members. Those two spent most of their time in the common area, so she basically had the place to herself.
But one day, a rare wave of curiosity overcame her as she finished up a meal in the common area. Many of the crew members were crowded around one of the tables. Between their shifting bodies, she caught glimpses of a game that she would later learn was a specific type of poker. Her curiosity caught the crew off guard, but they did not protest as she watched them play. More weeks passed and she deciphered the basic rules of the game, and also picked up on what seemed to be common strategies. She also realized that the crew members playing seemed to be fairly predictable in their play. When the cargo ship reached Agamar, she followed some of these crew members to a cantina. As they dealt out cards, she sat down at the table, adding some of her own credits to the pot in the center. There were some hesitant, then smug looks passed around, and then they started to play.
As she sat there, her fingers tapping out a senseless rhythm on her knees, she began to contemplate what she'd have to do next. She couldn't go back to the ship, that much was certain. But it would be leaving soon. If she could just wait it out, they'd be gone. It was a lucky thing that she made it a personal policy to always carry her blaster and knife with her. She wouldn't have to return to the ship to retrieve them. All she would lose was a few changes of clothing; nothing she couldn't live without.
The poker game hadn't started out well for her. Understanding the strategy of the game, and implementing that strategy were apparently two different things. She lost several hands, much to the satisfaction of the other crew members. But she soon began to hit a stride and was able to turn her attentions to studying the other players as she kept pace. Soon after that, she was edging some of them out of the game. Their initial jovial nature turned to amused surprise, but then quickly began to sour as they were each played out of the game. When she beat the last of them, she barely had time to collect her winnings before they started displaying overtly aggressive behavior. It was hard for her to comprehend. They all won and lost money to each other all the time. The fact that she had soundly beaten all of them on his first go at the game didn't seem at all suspect to her, but it was an outrage to these crew members. They surrounded her, and she realized that it was time she sought new employment.
She could have killed them. Her blaster pistol, concealed at her back under her jacket, called to her. There were only four of them, and though each seemed like nearly double her weight, she knew that their size and strength would mean little against her training. But she also knew the kind of attention killing them would bring, and she didn't want that. She would have to escape them. She waited, poised and muscles tensed, ready to move. When the first one lunged, she danced away, allowing his momentum to offset his balance as he stumbled past her. The others acted then, each coming at her, ready to beat her senseless. She snaked her way through, and then away from them, and took the opening when she could to dash out the cantina door.
She'd run flat out for a few minutes, but her body soon gave way to fatigue. It was harder for her to stay fit to the standards she'd been held to at Green Meadows. No, that was impossible. Those standards required a functioning chip, which she no longer had. The chip hadn't seemed to show any signs of functionality in months now. Perhaps she was still very fit by normal human standards, but she couldn't be sure, as she had no idea what those standards might entail.
"She can't have gone far!"
The voice snapped her out of her thoughts and caused her to scramble to a crouched position. Her ears strained, and soon she heard more voices. They were down in the alley. She waited in silence, hardly sparing the thought to breathe as she listened for what they'd do next. Then one suggested that they check the rooftops and she felt a wave of frustrations wash over her. Without wasting any more time, she took off, running across the roof toward the opposite side of the building. The gap between it and the next was small enough. She didn't hesitate as she took the jump. By the time she was to the other side of that building, a head popped up over the edge of the first building and she heard a shout as they spotted her. She was too exposed up here, she needed to get back down to street level.
She flew down the next fire escape scaffolding she could find, landing in a puddle filled alley with a splash. She quickly moved out into the street, where more people meant more cover. She hid in the crowd, moving with the flow of people as she tried to figure out what to do next. Her pursuers were relentless. Soon, she saw the reflection of one in a storefront window as he closed in on her. She ducked behind a group of migrant workers who must have just come in from one of the nearby crop fields -they stank of sweat and manure- and entered the first door that opened up to her.
A tone sounded as she entered what appeared to be some sort of lobby or waiting area. It was empty. At the other side of this room, a reception desk of some sort was also empty. Atop the desk, there sat a small sign that said "Please Ring for Service". Beside the sign, there was a button. She pressed the button and chimes sounded over some sort of comm system. She glanced over her shoulder at the door to the street, willing it to stay closed.