A Chance Meeting

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

Ss'ss'th slithered across the jungle floor, his bulk parting the foliage of bush and grass alike. His movements were that of a wary predator. There was much to eat in the jungles of Dxun. Yet there was also much to be eaten by. This was not his first time in a jungle full of dangerous predators. He had arrived on Dxun little under a month ago, via spaceship.

The ship had been piloted by two Force users, one dark, another presumably grey. Aunna and Vex were their names. He had been on Carida when he'd met them. The confrontation was dangerous, and almost wound up with Vex and Ss'ss'th killing one another, until large, deadly arachnids had showed up. Ss'ss'th had never seen such beasts before, but he fought them as best he could, protecting Aunna and assisting Vex. Thus a friendship was born.

They had dropped him off here, where they would hide for a short while; they were on the run from something, and without home. Ss'ss'th parted ways, for his presence might bring unwelcome attention. He would keep them in his heart, but that would be all he could do. Ss'ss'th had thought it best to stay here on Dxun.

Thus he had subsisted off of the wildlife of Dxun, enjoying simple minded prey, but having constantly to avoid the much more simple minded, yet deadly, predators.

He had lived alone before, and thought that here, with plenty of food and excitement, he might find peace. But within that month, he had grown...weary. Always alert and ready, with reserves to spare of energy, but weary nonetheless. He figured that the best basic word he could think of for what he was experiencing would be, "Loneliness."

Ss'ss'th had felt this before. When he was growing up on the sands of his homeworld. When he was enslaved to the service of the Hutt. When he was forced to hide on Nar Shaddaa. Ss'ss'th, much like those two traveling Force users, hopping from place to place, had no home. Only, they had each other. Ss'ss'th had no home, and nobody.

Worst part was, he hadn't seen any spaceships to travel out on.

In front of Ss'ss'th, something caught his eye. It was a small rodent of some kind, furry, and about as big as a young pig. It popped out of a hole in the ground. Ss'ss'th didn't know what it was, but he'd been waiting outside of its burrow for an hour. The moment it came up, he coiled.

It sniffed the air. All thoughts of loneliness were gone now, and the only thought was the kill. His eyes narrowed to little slits. The animal nudged toward him.

He struck.

[sparrow]

"Bloody cannoks keep trying to eat all the equipment," Byar muttered as he held up one of the sensors that was cracked and covered in tooth marks for Zarene to see. "We're running out of replacements."

Zarene examined the piece of cannok-bitten machinery while idly the scars on her right cheek with her fingers. "Hmmm... how's our supply of poison pellets? Try non-lethal doses. Can't learn if they're dead. Besides, too many cannok corpses might make the Mandalorians curious."

Byar snorted. "Heh. Mandalorians... curious.... Anyways, I'll relay your instructions to the men, Commander."

Zarene nodded and watched as he walked off before heading off in her own direction. She couldn't wait to be off of Dxun. She hated the jungle. Hated the humidity, the annoying little buzzing insects, and the pesky animals that seemed to all want to take a bit out of anything, organic or not.

They were camped near some old abandoned structure that seemed to give off an unusual amount of dark side energy compared to its surroundings. The Mandalorians seemed to avoid the place, which made it a perfect place to camp out without being noticed.

Hopefully this next try would work. The mission was one big balancing act. They had to figure out where to put the sensor so that they wouldn't be eaten by the local jungle creatures. They needed to mask the energy signatures enough so that the Mandalorians wouldn't find them, but not so much as to reduce their effective range. All of this while avoiding the zakkegs and the random buckethead patrols that wandered through the jungle intermittently. They had gotten careless earlier and ran into one of said patrols, which resulted in a short but intense firefight followed by Zarene and Byar having to sneak dangerously close to a zakkeg in order to deposit the remains in its nest.

She wasn't sure of any of this was going to turn up any useful information, but more information was almost always better than less, especially when there was the outcome of a galactic war at stake and the it was unclear which side, if any, a particularly dangerous faction was going to come out on. How could you play chess if you didn't know where all the pieces were?

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

Ss'ss'th stayed low, avoiding the Mandalorian patrol that passed by. This was not his first encounter with Mandalorians, and the last one hadn't ended well. In fact, afterward, a 'hunting' party of Mando's had come out in search for the 'Giant serpent' which had killed some of the Mando patrolmen. Now, the Mandolorians thought of Ss'ss'th as an even greater challenge and honor to fight as a Zakkeg, and even more rare, since this was the first they'd ever noticed of him or his species.

Just more humanoids that sought to reap and kill him, Ss'ss'th thought. He would not give them the grace of a fight.

However, these were not the only humanoids on this planet. Ss'ss'th didn't know who they were or why they were here, but a group had landed not too many days ago. So far, Ss'ss'th had avoided both groups, seeing no good end to their meeting. However, the Mandalorian patrols and the second groups patrols had been getting closer and closer every day. Ss'ss'th was worried about a possible conflict.

Not only did Ss'ss'th want the unnecessary of either party, but it would also cause a stir in the jungle and rile his prey, making them harder to find. And when the prey were harder to kill, the predators had to work harder to kill them. And that meant Ss'ss'th was bound to get in trouble with a beast he might not be able to handle, and whether he could or not, didn't want to fight. or worse, he'd get reckless and bump into one patrol or another of humanoids.

But Ss'ss'th could not do anything to prevent these circumstances. He was no peace negotiator, nor was he capable of preventing this in any other way. Ss'ss'th was a healer and a warrior in a strange land. He had no place here, yet here he was. Neither side would except him, that was for sure.

Ss'ss'th's eyes followed the Mandolorians. They were headed in the direction of the other groups' camp, the one that had just landed here on Dxun. He knew they'd turn back before they could reach the camp...but if there was another patrol, there was sure to be a confrontation.

Logic told him to slither away from the area. However, Ss'ss'th found himself slithering quietly on the trail of the Mandolorians. A gut feeling told him to follow, and he could not ignored that feeling.

[sparrow]

Zarene wasn't sure how anyone could stand to live on this moon for very long, with the blasted heat and humidity. The protective plates on her mechanical shoulder slid open, allowing the small fans underneath to better do their work, taking some of the heat out of her circuits as they spun with a low hum. She took a long drink from her canteen. Warm water... ugh. Still better than no water.

Abruptly she shut her fans off as her ears picked up something coming from the distance. A low buzzing sound, similar but different, from the direction of the mandalorian camp. And it was moving closer.

She squinted, trying to see if she could make out any sort of movement. A flash of painted metal in the distance. Another Mandalorian patrol. Blast it! These patrols seems to be coming more and more frequently. Perhaps they had noticed that a few of their own were missing. Oh the trouble one careless mistake could case.

"Byar, we've got metalheads in the area. Lay low."

"The boys are moving the heavy equipment. It'll be difficult to hide all everything in time," Byar's voice came back over the comlink.

"Fine," Zarene growled. If this mission was going to work out, they had to be completely undetected. "Just... try not to make too much noise. Hopefully they'll turn back soon. If they come any closer, I guess I'll just have to kill them myself."

She moved closer, laying low in the tall underbrush, trying to get a better look at this most recent patrol. There were eight of them. That was twice as a big as the one they had fought earlier. What could explain this increase in size? They must have suspected.

How many could she hope to fight simultaneously while still be fairly confident about victory? Three,... maybe four. Perhaps she'd be able to handle more if she could keep the element of surprise, take out a few before they knew she was there. That was leaving an awful lot up to chance though.

Her hand moved slowly towards the blasters on her belt. Hopefully, the patrol would turn back. If not, she'd find a way to make them wish they had. Somehow.

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

Ss’ss’th lay frozen in place, above the Mandalorian patrols, hanging among the thick branches overhead. From this vantage point, which he’d had to travel ahead of the Mandalorians for some time before he could get to a position where the tree-tops offered ease of passage for a creature as heavy as himself, or a part where he knew the patrol would pass, he could see everything. He knew this was close to the other groups borders, and he thought it would be such a shame and pity if another fight ensued.

Unfortunately, he staring down at just that. He couldn’t see her very well, but he certainly could hear and smell her. His extra keen senses catching on. The slight whisper of his voice, though he couldn’t hear what she said, the ruffling of her movements. He knew Zarene was there, and he knew this wouldn’t end well if the two parties met. He wasn’t even sure she could handle this kind of heat.

As the Mandalorians clunked ever closer, Ss’ss’th eased himself into a more comfortable position. They were oblivious of him. He could hang down and grab a one of them before they even noticed. But that would be unpleasant for all parties involved.

‘Maybe,’ Ss’ss’th thought, ‘she will realize that she is outmatched and stay hidden. I should let this play out. The longer I remain unknown the better -my- chances of survival.’ He decided.

[sparrow]

She continued to lay in the grass, waiting, hoping that they would turn back. They didn't. Fine, she'd do this the hard way then. She drew the blaster from her belt, held the weapon steady, taking aim at the visor of the nearest Mandalorian....

The sound of a snapping twig came from the left, behind a wall of tall bushes.

She hadn't noticed them before, a group of boma beasts. Well, actually she had, but the mandos had occupied her attention so she hadn't given them a second thought. The answer seemed clear. She could fight the mandalorian patrol all by herself, or she could...

Concentrating, she formed a whip with the Force, drew it back before sending it forward with a snap.

The lead mandalorian in the patrol paused as he heard a rumbling sound coming from the brush. He managed to raise his rifle just as the first charging Boma burst out from the trees, stampeding down the slope towards him and his men.

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

The heavy rumble of the Boma beasts stampede caught Ss’ss’th by surprise. He could feel the vibrations of their feet along his sensitive body, especially his head, a not so subtle thrum, like a ship. Unlike a ship, this thrum was louder and more pounding, but just as constant, due to the nature of a Boma charge. That nature being, chaos and constant stomping.

The Mandolorians were quick and agile, skilled in reflexes and with a quick wit. Not to say they were particularly intelligent, but unlike most sentients their first and immediate reaction to a sudden surprise ambush by a group of stampeding Boma was quite realistically the best reaction to have---get the hell out of the way.

Many of the Mandolorians escaped with ease, but the lot of them were disorganized and disoriented, one even having been caught up in the Boma attack and laying across the floor. He slowly rose to his feet with a limp. It seemed an opportune time to strike, but it wasn’t. The ones who had been good enough to get out of the way were on full alert now, thinking the only thing capable of panicking a group of Boma so suddenly and vigorously would be a large predator, possibly a Zakkeg. Their weapons were ready and their attention high, covering their more disoriented partners.

Ss’ss’th couldn’t tell what was going on with the lone woman from the other camp, but he knew she was wisely not attacking. Unless she had an impressive ace up her sleeve she stood no chance. Hopefully, she had run away, but then the patrol might discover the camp. He couldn’t hear her anymore due to the rumbling of the now distant Boma.

Slowly, things calmed down. Ss’ss’th focused his attention on Zarene. So did the Mandalorians, though they didn’t know it. They slowly moved through toward where the Boma had been, searching for the source of the disruption.

Ss’ss’th found her, still hiding. The Mandolorians were too close, if she moved, they would find her. Her only hope was to ambush them or hope they didn’t discover her. He didn’t know what her abilities were, but he did know that her chances were low.

Normally, Ss’ss’th would remain neutral. It wasn’t much his business. But the Mandolorians reporting this would likely result in a full scale battle. The other camp was as of now, non-hostile toward the Mando’s, and already knew of their presence, so if Zarene survived no harm no foul. Not only that, but Ss’ss’th couldn’t bare to watch her die. He had a soft heart and he knew he shouldn’t in so harsh a place, but whether he should or should not, he still did.

If she was seen, he knew he wouldn’t be able to stay out of this.

As the Mando’s Ss’ss’th seemed to hold his breath. Suddenly, one of them began to walk toward Zarene’s hiding location. Now Ss’ss’th knew he had to react. It was time to stop messing around and pick a side in this conflict. The Mandalorians would never accept him. He knew nothing about the camp, but…maybe. If nothing else, he could barter for a ride off this planet in return. He had been here too long.

Zarene’s only chance was if something were to distract the Mandolorians. She could slip away, or use the distraction to gain the upperhand on the nearest Mandolorians, then finish of the rest along with Ss’ss’th…

An ample distraction? Ss’ss’th could do such a thing.

With his tail end firmly wrapped around the tree branch, he uncoiled himself and began to hang down, slowly from the branch. It was a bit of a timing issue. If he didn’t move fast enough, they’d reach Zarene. If he moved too fast he’d be seen and ruin his chance for optimal shock and surprise, thus getting shot more. Blaster fire didn’t have much effect on his thick upper scales, but it did burn his underbelly and his face, and was generally unpleasant. He wanted to take as little of it as possible.

There were two Mandolorians right beneath him on the rear guard. They were looking every direction but up.

As Ss’ss’th’s hanging body slowly descended further, he raised himself but a little further, then slacked more, now he had a perfect half coil for a strike.

His body shot forward. The Mandolorian standing directly behind his target almost screamed and dropped his weapon in shock as the massive snake suddenly came down upon his friend, fangs ripping into his chest, piercing through his armor. Holding the now wounded Mando in his mouth, Ss’ss’th thrashed about wildly, the Mando screaming as his body was tossed back and forth between the air. Those piercing screams were enough to garner the attention of…everything in the area.

Now that Ss’ss’th didn’t need the Mando, he lifted his head and launched the Mandolorian straight into the ground with bone crushing action. The sounds of ligaments snapping was drown out by the crunching of the armor.

distraction complete.

[sparrow]

Strange. That usually works better. Just not my day, is it?

The Boma charge managed to disorient several of the mandalorians, but the bulk of the squad had managed to get out of the way. And they seemed to be on alert now.

Lovely. Just lovely.

Without warning a giant serpant dropped down from the branches above onto one of the Mandalorians, fangs piercing. All the rest of the squad turned towards their their fallen companion, and that was the moment Zarene acted. One of the Mandalorians reached for his rifle, moments before the blaster bolt hit him in the face, the area around his visor erupting in flame. A second bolt took down a second Mandalorian in the same way.

The rest quickly dove for cover, and Zarene reached out through the Force, forming flows of telekinetic power that would rip their weapons out of their hands. None of them would be allowed to walk away from this fight alive.

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

The blaster bolts came flying toward Ss'ss'th, knocking into his tough scales. Some bounced off, others seared against the scales, leaving small burn marks. Ss'ss'th could feel the searing blaze even through the scales, though it didn't actually do any damage, it stung nonetheless. He tucked his head away and rolled so that both his vulnerable head and his soft underbelly were free from exposure. The blaster bolts continued to sting for a few moments. Then, the Mandalorians suddenly made strange exclamations in their foreign tongue. Ss'ss'th dared a peak.

Their weapons were no longer in their hands. Indeed, they were floating in the air.

Ss'ss'th took this moment to change position, slithering forward and closer to the Mando'ade.

One of them began to pull out a grenade. Ss'ss'th saw this and knew what it meant. An unacceptable threat, for that would certainly hurt. In a flash of speed, Ss'ss'th flung forward and around the Mando. He wrapped his large body completely around the Mando, ( he didn't even have to use the majority of his body to coil around him! ) so that the only thing visible of the Mando was his outstretched hand with a grenade on the top.

Ss'ss'th wasted no time in flexing his muscles. This caused his whole body to expand slightly and his coil around the man to become incredibly tight. The large scales were sharp and grinded against the mans skin, cutting in, even before he flexed. The Tightening of the coil was to devastating effect on the man. The sound of bones snapping was clear in the air, and the muffled cry of the man was quickly cut off as blood shot through the seams of the coil and around the hand that was outstretched. The arm got splinched off, falling to the around beneath Ss'ss'th.

The giant snake came uncoiled and faced the Mandolorians, blood covering his already sleek body.

The Mandolorians, unarmed and facing a large, bloody snake that was clearly capable of killing them, began to get second thoughts.

"Those who are prepared to kill..." Ss'ss'th told them in his mechanical voice, "Should be prepared to die..."

[sparrow]

They were running. Zarene fired her blaster. Once. Twice. Three times. Fortunately the mandos in this patrol had chosen to wear lighter scout armor, with more open unarmored places for her to shoot. It would have been much more difficult for her had they chosen to wear traditional full plate. But as it was, each shot found its mark. The bodies hit the ground in quick succession.

She turned to look at the giant serpent, pointing her blaster uneasily in its direction. She didn't want to agitate it into attacking her, yet she didn't want to be defenseless in case it did attack. She wondered why it had suddenly attacked the mandos, providing her with the valuable distraction that she had needed. Maybe I should ask it, she thought. Heh, that's silly. Everyone knows snakes don't talk.

It talked.

She stumbled backwards in alarm. "Bloody hell, it talks!" she muttered. The weapons that had been floating in the area fell to the ground with a great clatter.

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

Ss'ss'th turned his body to face Zarene, witnessing her deadly accuracy. She was a skilled individual. Mandalorians were no pushovers, either though, and it went to the cyborg's credit for killing them. Of course, the Mandalorians were under extreme circumstances, flanked, and facing a foe that they knew little about, and had a disadvantage against, and having no idea about Zarene's existence.

But still, her accuracy and the way she handled herself said it all. She killed them and took advantage of a great situation. As well as her cleverness with the Boma.

When Zarene looked over to Ss'ss'th and exclaimed her surprise at Ss'ss'th's sentience, he twitched his head slightly, so that his wound eye was facing diagonally up and the good one down. Curious. He had never heard such a word or term before; "Bloody." He repeated, his monotone voice not sharing the curiosity of his mind. The word, though he didn't know it, did not detract from her statement. He understood what she meant by her tone and her follow up. She as surprised, as many others had been before her. And indeed, those other beings had placed similarly strange expressions at the front of their statements.

He switched the subject, answering her statement as though it were a question, "Incorrect." his voicebox repeated, "I do not talk persay. The voicebox surgically implanted does, I merely communicate thought neurologically."

He turned to the dead Mandalorians, "You walk a dangerous line in a dangerous place. You have an encampment not too far from here, the opposite direction of theirs. You risked open war in this confrontation." Now he faced her once again, his scorched eye pointedly being in plain sight, "Open war is not a pleasant thing."

[sparrow]

Zarene shifted her position slightly. Sideways, the present a smaller target. Right side forward, so that her metal arm faced the serpent. The creature didn't look like it was about to attack, but with some things, one could never be sure, and it was better to play it safe.

Her initial surprise slowly faded as the creature continued to talk in that strange monotone voice. And just what kind of creature was this? Zarene had never heard of a sentient snake before. Interesting.

"Not war. Just a skirmish. Nothing more," she replied. Mandalorians were always fighting something, and she had taken steps to ensure that even if she and her men had to be beat a hasty retreat off Dxun, nothing would be left behind that could implicate the Sith. "And what of you? Why have you chosen to get involved?"

"Who, and what, are you?"

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

"I shall first answer your third question, then your second, then your first. I shall end with a question of my own." Ss'ss'th's voicebox returned, "As to what I am, I am a wanderer. I am a medic. I am a warrior. I am a pacifist. I have searched for a home, and had found one on this wild planet, for a short time, until it became disturbed with the presence of too many humans. In terms of Specie, the term I believe you intended me to answer, I believe the best fitting description I have heard is something in relation to serpentine, or snake. There is not yet a name for my actual specie, for I am the only of my kind to be known. I wish it to remain that way, and that no further questions on that avenue may be asked."

He lowered himself from the tree branch so that the main of his body was resting against the floor, then uncoiled his tail and allowed it to come down. The snake began to coil so that his body appeared compressed and small, and his muscles retracted. Soon what was a massive, five meter snake, was condensed into a meter in diamater coiled intricately on top of itself a mere half meter tall. His head raised so that Zarene could tell where she was being talked to from,

"As to who I am," Ss'ss'th continued, "My name is..." His voice box stopped, and his actual vocals hissed out his name in a sharp combination of a snake's hisses and the croak of air.

Ss'ss'th H'sss'kr.

"In the common tongue, it would be pronounced Sissith Hisskar." His voicebox pronounced in a normal, galactic basic accent, "The meaning of the name in my communicative language means, the Weak One."

"And finally, why I have chosen to interfere. It is simple; I thought you were to die. I may seem intimidating, but I have a compassionate heart. The odds against you did not seem good. As well, I believed that if I drove them off, they may stay away from the area. Further combat would only greater disturb the wilds of this area. What's more, I have been watching for some time, both parties, and I am curious as to what your purpose here is. Those who follow this 'Mandalore' seem to have an established and agreed home here, their presence is simple. Yours is more complicated."

Ss'ss'th was silent for only a few moments before he finished, "Forgive my ramblings. It has been some time since I met someone who has been willing to hear my conversation, and thus my mind is...unaccustomed? Yes, unaccustomed, to even rudimentary talk. It is something I have both missed and feared. Now, my question for you."

"Why are you on this planet? It seems useless to those who do not plan to train. I have seen very little training. I have seen many machines and equipment. In my experience, it is rare for humans to have purpose other than economic gain or some kind of relation to other groups of humans, in this case, I suspect, you want something of or from or to the group that loves this 'Mandalore.'"

Ss'ss'th once again got the feeling that he was rambling, and stopped. He put his head down against his coiled back, resting it, and stared at Zarene, indicating that his turn of the conversation was as of now, finished. He had many questions for her, but perhaps now he should limit himself to just this one.

( He is usually not a being of many words. But he has grown eager for a chance to use them. xD )

[sparrow]

"Warrior and pacificist," Zarene muttered. "Well, if you want to be evasive about it, then fine."

"As for me, I am here to train my men as well as gather information. Just because they aren't punching each other out in a sparring ring doesn't mean there are no skills here that they can learn. As for the information, you may have noticed the increasing number of mandalorian troops gathering on this moon. The reason why could potentially affect millions."

Suddenly Zarene's comlink began to vibrate, and she picked it up to accept the call. There was a bit of static, but Byar's voice was still clear and recognizable. "Boys are done here. Looks like it'll work this time. I'm ready to get off of this moon."

Zarene nodded. "As am I."

She looked at the giant coiled serpent as she turned off her comlink. "Is there anything else you want to know from me, Hisskar? If not, I intend to be going." She was still rather curious about the snake, but at the same time her wariness around him, as well as her desire to be away from Dxun, prevailed.

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

Ss'ss'th stared at her for a short while. His mind was racing. She and her band were leaving for good. Dxun would calm down and return to its normal state of being. And Ss'ss'th would be stuck with the Mandalorians and the beasts again.

It was either be stuck here or stuck with sentients who hate and try to kill him. Sentients who, even when you save their live, they run and scream and hide in fear. Sentients who hate Ss'ss'th because of his appearance, and refuse to see his sentience. People who...

It suddenly occurred to him that Zarene had done none of that. Zarene stood her ground before him and spoke. She was wary, true, but she was neither attacking nor running. She reminded him of the last people who stood and spoke with Ss'ss'th, Vex and Aunna. Those two had stood before him without fear. He had had an opportunity to bond with them, unfortunately they were in a situation where tag alongs were dangerous. Still. It was one of the better times of his life.

Ss'ss'th hesitated in his mind. He was trying to reach a decision. A part of him wanted nothing more than to follow her to her camp and learn more. Another part of him wanted to let her leave.

"Yes." he finally said, "I would like to accompany you to your camp."

[sparrow]

She was just about to turn around and head back to camp when he spoke, and she paused. It was an unusual request, and Zarene was a naturally suspicious person. As she had just said, information was precious, and any outsider who entered their camp would be able to gain much of it. A sufficiently perceptive and knowledgeable individual might even be able to discern that they were Sith. Mandalorians weren't known for deception and deviousness, but it was possible. And if she and the Sith could be sneaking around the place, it was possible that other groups could be too. She hadn't received reports of any, but that didn't mean that they couldn't be there.

But at the same time she did owe Ss'ss'th one, and he didn't seem like a spy. He wasn't ringing most of the normal alarm bells, and Zarene generally trusted her intuition on these things. Then again, that might have had something to do with the fact that Ss'ss'th was a snake and not a person, and that many things that applied to humanoid beings didn't apply to snakes, things that she doubted would be completely changed by sentience.

"Is there something in my camp that interests you?"

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

"The people. The company." Ss'ss'th replied. He thought for a moment, "The shelter." He thought for a moment, then said, "I am not without my benefits, and I have the ability to earn my keep. I have some experience in hunting and in medical practices."

He began to uncoil, stretching out to his full length, "In addition to my other, obvious skills. You need not be worried. If I had ill intention for you, you would not walk away from this conversation alive. Rest assured that I will be of little inconvenience to you. Though my size is great I can both provide food for myself and stay out of the way."

As he stretched, the muscles in his body flexed outward increasing his overall length and the size of his individual scales. The scales, in this state of flexing, were pressed down close to his body. When he contracted in the scales popped outward a little bit, like tiny little blades.

In this new state, Ss'ss'th's mixed heritage could be seen. The color of his clan was black, but Ss'ss'th was different. he was more of a mix between black and orange. It was beneficial, however, since the orange spots blended with the fauna and the black could obviously help him in the dark. All in all, the appearance was pretty odd and exotic for a snake.

On the other hand, Zarene too was quite odd in appearance as well. In his limited travels, he hadn't seen anybody who had android parts. He knew about the concept, however, by ear and by his own experience of the mechanical voice-box. He'd seen droids as well. However, he wasn't familiar with how all of this technology worked. It was frightening and yet intriguing at the same time.

Ss'ss'th asked, "How did yours happen?" he moved his tail slowly ( being sure not to seem antagonizing. ) over and indicated the arm.

[sparrow]

Her body stiffened and her expression darkened momentarily. It was a very personal question, and one that she hated talking about, especially coming after what had seemed uncomfortably close to a veiled threat. If I had ill intention for you, you would not walk away from this conversation alive. Really, now? For a brief moment she saw herself reaching down the snake’s throat with her metal arm, ripping away that voice box, bright red blood gushing out and running through her fingers.

“Stood too close to a big explosion,” she said flatly. “Needed a new one.” She would not say more.

Zarene turned and began walking back towards her camp. “Follow if you wish to come.”

[Deceit *Drinker of Jawa-Juice*]

"We are both different from those around us." Ss'ss'th murmured, "We both face skepticism in the eyes of others, skepticism about both our abilities and our intentions." He sensed that she became cold and distant, and knew he had said something he should not have. Perhaps she had taken threat in his earlier words, which he had actually meant to say as a comforting statement. In his culture, it was common knowledge that a confrontation would be fatal when confronted with a being in striking pose ( as Ss'ss'th's form was given to easily be able to go from defense to offense in the blink of an eye ) and that he evidently wished no harm because if he had then he would have done something already.

Sentients seemed to have an ego problem, though. It crossed Ss'ss'th's mind, for a split second, that perhaps he was the one displaying pride and ego. He dismissed the idea, though, confident that he did indeed have the upper-hand if he had wanted to attack.

He decided not to say anything, though, and followed in silence, uncoiling. His body making a trail in the soil beneath him as he slithered along.

[sparrow]

As Zarene neared the camp, she could see Byar there waiting for her. "Boys almost done loading the ship," he said, before suddenly reaching for his rifle. "Commander, behind you!" He aimed for Ss'ss'th and pulled the trigger, all in one smooth motion.

Reacting quickly, Zarene reached for the Force, creating a small but forceful tug that pulled the barrel of Byar's rifle downward and sending the shot into the ground, resulting in a small eruption of dirt and pebbles. "No need for alarm, Byar." Her voice was soft but firm. "The snake is my guest."

"Guest?" He grimaced, and shifted uneasily. "The snake... guest?" He seemed to be having a little bit of trouble wrapping his mind around the concept. Having never met a sentient talking snake until less than an hour ago herself, Zarene didn't blame him.

"Guest," she repeated. "Tell the boys on the ship to follow the standard guest procedures."

"Yes,... as you command." He reached for his comlink to relay the order.