One man's trash

[Dire Wolf]

Balosar: it is easily one of the biggest cesspit of crime, corruption, and poverty this side of Coruscant. The lawlessness of the planet was second only to Nar Shadaa... and that was only because of the aura that surrounded the Smuggler's Moon. Balosar tended to be the place where the worst go to hide from the law for this very reason... that and the local vice... death-sticks... are very popular. They are extremely addictive as well, it takes medical treatment to remedy an addiction to them... and that often costs much more than a junky can muster.

Lanara let out a long and drawn out sigh as she stepped down the ramp and silently cursed, why did she not bring her helmet along? That way she wouldn't have to breath in the putrid “air,” if in fact that was what the people of Balosar breathed in, she would instead be breathing the filtered oxygen of her suit. Lana sighed again and stopped whining to herself, she had been through worse than having to breathe in a little polluted air, much worse. Besides, it was too late now, everyone was moving and she refused to hold up Axle because she needed creature comforts.

The armor clad woman looked around at the filth that was Balosar and almost took her Blaster Carbine off of its sling... almost. She cautiously stepped off of the ramp and took a mental note of all the people that were walking by, scanning their face for any possible... unsavory... intentions. Most had nothing but a look of pure euphoria on their face, Lanara scoffed, they were high. She waited for Axle to emerge from the Red October. When the merc did she attempted to give a reassuring smile.

“Sooner we get the stuff for the ship the better. I've been 'ere once or twice... ain't exactly a place to be hangin' 'round.”

[Latus]

What a dreary place, dusty and polluted. Axle shook his head and continued to change into clothes with a thicker fabric. The canopy of the Journey was already coated in a thin layer of dust and the wind whipped the dirty air against the sides of the ships. That was a great PR campaign for the planet, "free ship weather polishing while you work." Withdrawing goggles and a cloth scarf from the holds he hopped over the pilot's seat and grasped the hatch. He did know how but they found him, again. Axle had discovered the alert only minutes ago as he populated the list of parts the ship needed. He had stumbled onto it after checking the weather forecast, a none-too-subtle bounty offer, picture and all. Dropping through the hatch and pulling it shut behind him he wrapped his neck with the scarf and slid the goggles onto his head. Without them, he guessed, he would never be able to fly in this weather.

Almost sure Lanara was waiting for him at the egress hatch he quickly made his way to the engine room and retrieved his tools, fastening them around his waist. They would be all the more necessary is he had bounty hunters to deal with. Quickly striding through the halls of the ship he checked and rechecked his parts list. The total cost was substantial but not unbearable. That was not the problem though, it was finding a reliable vendor; difficult on a planet like this. He was met by a blast of putrid air as the door to the egress hatch slid open. Cringing at the stench he pulled the scarf higher on his face covering his nose and mouth, he must have been a sight to behold, his embarrassment faded as he saw a great number of passersby that had similar coverings. He was barely able to hear Lanara over the howl of the wind and his own voice was muffled beneath the scarf.

I can see why. Its hard to believe anyone or anything can call this place home.

Sliding his hands over his belt one last time he stopped over one of the larger pouches where a large lump had taken up residence. Not hesitating he reached in and grabbed it. Axle's hand was greeted by the touch of cold metal and he withdrew it. He recognized it as Sylbia's droid. Looking over at Lanara he gave her as much of an unsure look as his coverings could muster. Shrugging he stuffed the small droid back into his belt. He was surprised to see that Lanara didn't have her face covered, the lack of comfort was evident in her face. Reaching back into his belt he drew an oil rag and tossed it at the female soldier, it wasn't the cleanest thing but it was better than breathing in the polluted air.

Its not much but it should keep most of the pollutants out. Lets get this unpleasant little trip over with.

Stepping down onto the turf he slid the goggles over his eyes. He hoped the trapping he chose would not only protect him from the weather but prevent anyone from identifying him.

[Dire Wolf]

By the Force Lanara hated this place, Balosar. The last time she was here the woman vowed to never return... come Sith, highwater, or an outrageous amount of cash, but here she was, on Balosar, again. Then, as if on cue, she went through a minor coughing fit, apparently she breathed in something that her lungs didn't quite agree with. Her face scrunched together in anger for a second, but the look quickly faded. If the Republic had any sense they would just glass the planet over and start anew, no, she halted that thought process right there. It wasn't for her to decide who lived and who didn't, maybe someone from this wretched cesspit of a planet still had a major part to play.

Lana nodded at the kid as he spoke. Indeed, only those either down on their luck, cash, or incredibly high on deathsticks would ever want to live here... ever could live here. The fire seemed to leave her eyes for a moment as she realized just how sad the situation was for some of the people here, she scanned the faces of the people passing by, again. Only this time she could see past the surface, the woman saw one underlying emotion that was consistent with most people: Sadness. The flash of movement in the corner of her eye jolted her out of her thought process as she nearly let her warrior's instincts take over. Nearly. She smiled a little bit at Axle as she slid it over her face.

“Thanks”

With a little hidden smirk, which Lanara honestly could not explain for the life of her, she motioned for Axle to lead. The woman didn't have the slightest clue of what to look for, and she had one of those bad feelings about this little escapade. She figured that it would be better if she kept the kid in her line of sight at all times... she wouldn't forgive herself if something happened to him... to anybody... on account of her. Unless of course they wanted to kill, wound, or capture one of her fellow crew members. Then she would probably be forced to hurt them, seeing as Ocelot doesn't want unnecessary killing. To tell the truth, Lanara didn't either: She was never a big fan of killing people... even when she was in black ops.

“I don 'ave a clue a what to look for... and I'm Lanara by the way.”

A smile contorted what little facial features that were visible as she held out her hand to shake his. She hated introductions, but it would felt a little off to be wandering around with someone who never told you their name, even if you knew it.

[Latus]

Nodding to her thanks Axle continued to look about the dusty, polluted landscape. He realized that the foul air had begun to permeate the thick cloth wrapped around his face and coughed lightly. The quicker they finished their business the quicker they could be rid of this hellish place. His companion's hand made him flinch and step back until he realized it was merely her hand, a gesture of good faith. He quickly took her hand and shook it once, there was no reason to linger on pleasantries.

Axle. I'm not much better off than you at this point. He said, looking a moment in either direction then down at his datapad. Solid sources indicate that the better quality vendors are distances farther away from the spaceport than I would like. Oh well, I suppose it can't be helped. Glancing back for a moment at the two ships as he always did he silently hoped that it would not be long until he saw the Journey again. Steeling himself Axle pocketed his datapad and paced away from the safety of the silent ships.

Upon departing the fairly crowded area that composed the spaceport and surrounding facilities he had to slow his pace. It was difficult not to look on in pity at the destitute that trudged the dirty streets. They had been handed a worse lot than even he, an escaped genetic experiment, had been given. At least he was able to change his stars and escape his suffering; these people had no such luck. He found himself empathizing with them, an uncomfortable feeling. Involuntarily he shifted his wings under his thick fabric overcoat. Catching himself he ceased the movements, Lanara was in direct line of sight of that particular action. Cursing into his scarf he begged the stars that Lanara didn't see his mistake.

As the pair continued to trudge along Axle found himself unable to strike up a conversation with the woman. Something was putting him on edge; he wanted to get to his destination more than anything else in the galaxy. The hair stood up on the back of his neck more than usual. Why do I get the feeling... His eyes shot through his field of vision, trying to discern anything that was out of place. Outwardly he tried not to look spooked, walking as smooth as he could as quickly as he could. Withdrawing his datapad again Axle checked his route, So far so good, but what is this feeling...

His mind began to wander as they continued along. The crew seemed to be a stout group, able to hold their own. Axle finally thought he understood why Ocelot sent Lanara with him; the winged youth appeared scrawny and harmless on the outside. The captain wouldn't be the first to underestimate him, though. Not to mention she was armed. Protection, much? Perhaps it would turn out to be for the better. Even so, he was incapable of throwing off the feeling of unease. The Facility had sent some serious hardware after their lost property in the past but he had been able to slip away. The reason; he was always on his own. If that happened again Lanara could be caught in the crossfire.

Have to hurry. That damn bounty, much more obvious this time around. Unusual for them. A bad omen? Doesn't matter, gotta hurry.

[Dire Wolf]

Lanara scanned the bereaved faces of the vast multitude of people as she walked with Axle. It was sad: Most of these people where born here, and most would die here... still addicted to their vices. With a heavy sigh she walked past a woman begging for a few credits, the mercenary wasn't without a heart... but she couldn't give credits to a woman that would turn around and use them for drugs. Then, a sight caught her eye, a destitute woman holding a few children and begging for spare credits. The armor clad woman dropped a few credits into the little jar as she passed, her eyes a lighter hue of purple. The beggar would probably use them for drugs... but the Lana was not without a heart. If the woman did turn around and buy death sticks than it was on her conscience for betraying her children and not Lanara's for giving the mother a chance to help her young.

Then, the huntress caught a slight rustle under Axle's clothes out of the corner of her eye. Her head snapped to the boy, but the rustling stopped... she shook off what she thought she saw. Keyword: Thought. Axle was a human... or so she thought... but in all honesty it was getting harder and harder to keep track of all the near human races bounding around, so the prospect of him having... something... on his back didn't bother her much. So long as it wasn't something creepy... like a tentacles or something. Lana shuddered at the thought, tentacles were weird, but tentacles on somebodies back was just plain creepy. Lana shook her head, trying to get rid of all the musings... they were useless and distracting.

She continued to walk with the boy, now instead of scanning the impoverished faces she was looking for the more malevolent looking characters, her proverbial “spidey sense” was tingling. The huntress wouldn't dare say this to the boy, though, needlessly scaring the living bantha poodoo out of him would be counter productive. She would, however, emphasize just how important it was to get to where they were going. Fast.

“Axle... 'ow far do we gotta go?”

With that she glanced over her shoulder, looking for any malice in the peple behind her. Lanara was coiled up like a cat preparing to pounce on its prey, but she was not necessarily to ready to protect herself. If one of these characters tried to attack Axle she would move to protect him, even if it meant taking a blaster bolt.

Taking her rifle off of its sling would call to much attention to the two, so she decided to let her arm hang next to the holster that housed her blaster pistol. This action looked fairly unnatural, seeing as the rest of her looked as if she was about to suddenly break out in a run. If need be, she could draw her pistol and fire a few bolts into any assailants in a little under a second.

[Latus]

Lanara's question broke Axle out of his paranoid thoughts. Tugging on his datapad he pulled it back into his field of vision. They were close, a few more minutes and they would be out of that rank wind. He slowed his pace so she could hear him through his thick scarf. Still unable to detect any sharp hostile movements, he strained to see his companion through the dust covered class of his goggles. The rag he had donated for her benefit was already turning brown around her mouth from the dust and ambient moisture.

Keep it together, Lanara. Its just up the street.

He muttered, pointing to a squat building in the distance, obscured by blowing dust. After crossing the moderate distance without incident Axle nods to Lanara and pushes the door open. Pulling his scarf down the young man was just about to breathe a sigh of relief until he began gagging on the even fouler air of the interior of the building. In an instant the scarf was back over his mouth and he began breathing hard again. By the stars... this place is one nightmare after another. Quickly he puts his hand in the way of Lanara, barring her entrance. There was no need for her to come in, he wouldn't take longer than he had to.

*cough cough*Stay outside, its worse in here; rancid.*cough gag* I won't be long.

Slamming the door behind him he stepped between the cramped rows of industrial shelving, scrap and spare parts lining each alcove. After a few minutes of searching he finally located the shop keeper and with him, the source of the stench. Why a hutt?The hutt that owned the shop looked as if he hadn't bathed in days, the stench proved it. He was flanked by a small squad of heavy labor droids. Reacting to Axle's approach the thing gave a throaty laugh. Greetings, little human. How can I help you? Nearly thrusting his data chip into the hutts fat mouth, stopped in front of his nose, he waited for a response.

Your... reputation precedes you. I need everything that is listed here. I will be paying you in cash with a little something on the side for your trouble so I do not expect any funny business. The delivery coordinates are in there as well.

Several minutes and several thousand credits later, Axle finally pried the door open and stepped back into the street beside the shop. The hutt's services may have been more expensive than others but he was an honest businessman. They would have parts to repair the ship, if they were lucky, for months. Reaching into his tools again he ran his hand over the newest addition. It was a dusty red and nearly half a meter long with an adjustable clamp on the end. Perfect for the compression clamps holding the engine block in place. Breathing a bit easier he looked about for his companion. They still had the return trip to worry about and, much to the youth's dismay, the feeling foreboding had returned.

[Dire Wolf]

The Rilan woman looked up at the short building that sat just down the street, its form was blurred slightly by all of the smog and dust that was kicked up by the rank winds of the planet. She let out a little cough, the rag that she wrapped around her mouth was quickly becoming less than useful. At this point she was regretting her decision not to bring her helmet, or at least the face mask that accompanied it so that she could be fed cleaner oxygen.

She began to scan for any possible threats, there were more than a few. In fact, most of the people in the crowd had potential in that area. Then the woman caught sight of a bounty hunter in Mandalorian Battle Armor, the woman saw him just as they began their little sojourn to the parts shop… and she could just feel the bad vibes rolling off of the man. To a normal person the man was just leaning up against a railing, but Lanara had been a bounty hunter at one time… and she could tell that he was paying fairly close attention to her and Axle. He payed a little more attention to the latter of the two, she could tell by the way that he subconsciously turned his head away from her gaze as she shot a glare at him.
 
The huntress would have preferred to follow the boy into the store, but eventually elected not to go in after him. She would rather watch the entrance of the store, ensuring that nobody that looked overly… armed… entered. Yes, she had done a job that required her to be a bouncer once, too. With a heavy sigh, then a coughing fit directly afterwards, she leaned up against the wall next to the door and waited for her companion to exit the shop.

Lanara casually noticed that the bounty hunter she was eyeing earlier had taken enough care to stop across the street and look into the window of another shop. Yup, he was hunting them alright. She was about to enter into the store and retrieve Axle when the boy, as if on cue, came out himself. The bounty hunter took notice of this and began to walk towards the two, she drew her pistol and was about to fire a stun round into his chest when she caught a flash of movement out of he corner of her eye. He had a friend.

The Rilan snapped her head to the side to see another Mandalorian swinging a vibrosword at her companion. The woman exploded into action, snapping her armored arm out to stop the blade, her armor may not have been able to stop it... but it would stop the sword from cutting her arm off. The woman hissed in pain as the blade of the vibrosword dug deep into her arm, going straight down to the bone. The adrenaline began to course through her blood, and she barely noticed the otherwise mind numbing pain of having bone exposed to air as the man pulled back for another swing, this time at her.

The nimble woman twisted her torso out of the swords way and arched her body around in preparation for her counter attack. She pulled out her knife and plunged the knife into his back him just as his torso was dipped down after the swing of his blade, he instinctively arched his back as the combat knife buried itself up to the hilt in his body. Lanara didn't hesitate to bring her knee into the man's sternum as his torso was still parallel to the ground, her strength amplified by her armor. He fell to the ground... the bounty hunter would live if he got medical attention, but if not...

[Latus]

The flurry of movement that followed Axle's exit was unexpected at first. Only moments after he had identified Lanara on the dusty streets had he also spotted two others, their movements definitely hostile and sharp. So here they are... They had the outward look of bounty hunters, Mandalorian ones at that; armor and all. His first instinct was to run, and he would have if his companion was not with him. Instead of making a break for it, Axle reached back into his tools and grasped the rough iron of his newest piece. It would have to suffice for working over a pair of bounty hunters. Not to mention his fists wouldn't be able to penetrate the thick armor. Unfortunately, he had to look away from the pair to draw the massive bludgeon and couldn't help but gasp when he finally returned his eyes to the situation.

Lanara?!

It was her indeed. She had thrown herself between himself and a very fast moving vibroblade. It was incredibly uncomfortable how close the blade came to giving him a frontal lobotomy but it had instead sliced into Lanara's arm, cutting through her armor. Small drops of blood began to fall from the open wound, falling onto his goggles and scarf. As he looked on in silent shock the man drew back for another strike. This time Lanara struck; lightning quick she plunged her quickly drawn knife into the body of the assailant. Axle was unable to draw his eyes from the girl's arm, however, which continued to seep blood down her arm and onto the dusty ground. He finally felt something stirring in his chest, it was worry. A great aching fear of what could and would happen to Lanara. My fault...all my fault! Wouldn't have gotten hurt if I came alone. Why does this have to happen? Another one, have to help!

The other hunter, realizing Lanara as the greater threat, turned his attention to her. Big mistake. Sliding his blood-smeared goggles up and out of his way Axle lunged at the second hunter. His own speed was surprising, in only a few short strides he had covered the distance and was within striking distance. Anyone looking on would have thought the same, Axle was not built like a fighter; tall, lanky, maybe a bit malnourished, but not a fighter much less a mechanic. Dragging his improvised weapon through the dust he swung it upwards, barely missing the front of the faceplate of his enemy's armor. This was his aim though as the dust that was kicked up, matching the color of him implement, would be the perfect distraction. This would also get the man's attention back on Axle.

The blinded man swung his vibroblade in a long arc, trying to strike at the nimble youth through the cloud of choking dust but Axle had already backed off, readying to move again. He was breathing hard and his eyes watered, trying to get used to fighting with the scarf and no eye cover. Rushing foreword again he swung his weapon laterally, impacting with the hunter's weapon arm; an audible crack and a grunt of pain erupted from the visor as the blade fell to the ground.

Stepping back he bounced up and down on his feet.This was his usual fighting style if he was unarmed, but it seemed to work all the same. The adrenaline was now flowing free, tightening his movements, making him more aware. His target quickly stumbled back, out of the cloud of obscuring dust. Axle could hear him panting heavily. Pressing his injured arm to his body, the hunter drew and knife and began to circle the youth, Axle returning the motion. The young man's heart sank as he heard another set of footsteps running toward them, too heavy for a civilian and too hurried for police. More friends to play with, Lanara... don't die. He thought as the man before him began to growl menacingly.

[Dire Wolf]

(( I swear, Lat... it didn't look so big in Word))

For a few moments all Lanara could do is stand over the wounded bounty hunter, the blood ran down the striations in her suit's synthetic muscles. Normally the Rilan would be crying out in unbridled agony as her bone was exposed to the putrid air of Balosar, but she could feel no pain. The adrenaline that coursed through her blood made sure of that. The woman's hand began to shake from as she viewed her work: The mandalorian bounty hunter who was now writhing around in pain from the knife that eviscerated his guts from the behind. She would have preferred to NOT cause a such pain, but he did nearly give Axle a lobotomy.

A hue of deep red quickly consumed the ocean of blue as she finally noticed that her arm had been cut up. Strangely enough, that is when she began to feel a slight tinge of pain, but the adrenaline was still coursing... and it refused to allow much of the pain to enter its receptors. She turned to the second bounty hunter only to discover that Axle had already fought him back. Lanara smirked underneath the rag that covered her face, that kid was scrappy, she would give him that much. Not many people actually have the skills (or the balls) to fight a Mandalorian bounty hunter.

Then Lanara noticed another small group of bounty hunters as they crawled out of the shadows. Was there some kind Mando's 'R' Us around here or something? Or was Axle really worth that much? She glanced over at the boy for a second... he definitely had some explaining to do. Lana shook her head, now wasn't the time to play 20 questions with anybody but her fists. The woman drew her pistol and put 2 bolts into a mando's chest and one right in the cross of his “T” visor in about the space of a second. He hit the crumpled to the ground like a strip of thawed bacon.

The woman didn't like killing... but she knew bounty hunters. She was one. If Lanara didn't kill him now he would come back with twice as many people at his disposal... and he would be considerably craftier about it. She turned to Axle and quickly motioned for him to get back to the ship, the blood that had been running down the striations of her armor now apparent. Axle could fight, but she wasn't sure just how many people were still hiding in the woodworks.

“Get back to the ship!”

The blood red in her eyes slowly faded into a deep purple: courage. Lanara was willing to die so that these men wouldn't take Axle, despite the fact that she barely knew the boy... or what he did to merit so many bounty hunters after him. The woman was about to fire another salvo at a bounty hunter when she caught another flash of movement out of the corner of her eye. She flicked her head towards to see one of the assailants with a sickeningly long combat knife mid swing. While most people would have jumped backwards at this site, the mercenary woman lunged towards the swipe.

Lanara caught the man's wrist between her crossed forearms, slid around the hunter's now outstretched arm, and let her hands fall down to the man's wrist in one smooth motion. At this point, her father taught her to take the man's wrist behind his back... but this is where she deviated from the general rules of the martial arts of the Jedi Order: This was going to be much more painful. The woman grabbed the man's elbow and pushed while pulling his wrist. The hunter dropped his knife almost instantly as his elbow hyper extended and eventually broke.

The huntress quickly collected the dropped knife and drew her own, flipping both around so that each tip was pointing towards her elbow. She would try to avoid killing if at all possible, but again... each man that she left alive would come back twice as hard.

[Latus]

Gotcha!

He almost shouted in the tense moment that saw him club the injured Mandalorian in the face-plate. A reassuring crunch and stifled groan signaled that this bounty hunter was down for the count. Axle was unable to keep himself from pausing, victorious, over his foe marveling at how effective the heavy tool had been in combat. It wasn’t just that but how effective he had been pummeling that hunter. What little he did know about Mandalorians claimed that they were was anyone with money on their head should fear. What’s more is that he just downed one. Rather than giving him an immediate boost in confidence it caused him to seize up in shock, looking down at his dusty bruised hands. Was this their doing? The Facility? Is this their intended use for me? A soldier?! The adrenaline that had guided his limbs began to wane as his mind raced, trying to understand.

The mounting sound of heavy footsteps brought him around, back to the situation at hand. His eyes jumped in the direction of the steps. If one had given him that much trouble they would have several times that much on their hands momentarily. Axle then realized, the Facility had never sent that many hunters after him at one time. Sure the credit value was worth a small fortune but they usually went for a more subtle approach. The answer was right in front of him he realized as a twitchy Axle surveyed possible routes of escape; Lanara. Shots rang out and Axle nearly jumped a mile as one of the approaching hunters suddenly gained a pair of precise burn holes courtesy of Lanara herself. He caught her motioning back toward the spaceport; her comment very sensible at that point and he wasn’t about to argue. Putting his back to the hunters, Axle took off running. However, his conscious was faster than him and it quickly caught up. He slowed to a stop, turned, and looked back at Lanara.

This is wrong…

The hunters had finally reached her. One of them was writhing in pain on the dusty turf, clutching his wrist. Cringing he finally overcame the little nagging doubt in his mind and started back towards the group. Not only was he unable to leave his companion to her fate, or that they didn’t look very heavily armed but there emerged a powerful obsessive urge to understand more about why they were after him. If none of them were willing to talk then he would have to knock it out of them.

[Dire Wolf]

Lanara snapped her gaze over to the next man as he pulled out a blaster rifle and leveled it on her chest. The Rilan near instantly juked to the left and kicked at the bottom of his rifle, it was ripped from his grasp and sent twirling high in the air. Without a moments hesitation the woman threw a punch into the man’s Adam’s apple, sending him reeling backwards as she swiped her knives at the muscles that were critical to him fighting back. With a scream of agony the man crumpled to the ground, the muscles and tendons that allowed his limbs to move severely eviscerated. He wasn’t going to move on his own until a surgeon put him back together.

The woman looked up to see a blaster leveled on her chest and the deep blue hue of the wielder's Mandalorian armor behind it. Lanara dodged around the red bolt of light and plasma that came from the hunter’s weapon as she ran at him, she was just outside of arms reach as she round-house kicked the man’s weapon and used the momentum to plunge her knife into the man's side. She barely noticed the blood as she saw Axle turn around and begin heading back to help her. The woman snarled as she whipped around and threw her newly acquired knife into the crotch of a man. Lanara smiled, though only the contortions of her eyes were visible, and innocently spoke to the group as she dodged around a vibrosword and plunged her blade into the assailant's knee.

“Its been fun, boys… but I really gotta go.”

With that she sprinted off towards Axle, slowing down only so that throwing him over her shoulder wouldn’t hurt too much. The woman grabbed the boy's legs and lifted him so that his waist would rest on her shoulder, and to her surprise he was light... around one hundred pounds. She quickly regained her top speed, which was amplified by the suit's artificial muscles.

The adrenaline was beginning to fade only to be replaced by the agony of her arm wound and a little dizziness. She could deal with the former... but the latter, that was a bad sign. She was losing blood. Fast. If she didn't get back to the ship soon the Rilan woman might just crumple to the ground and die a slow and tiring death from the blood loss.

[Latus]

The footfalls came faster as Axle broke into a run, Lanara had just bitten off more than she could chew and now she was going to attempt to chew it. Cringing at each blow that she landed he reached into his belt and drew a smaller implement, something lighter and faster. He had already let one person that was close to him die, that was one too many, and it was his fault. Even though he barely knew Lanara he found his obsession driving him ever on, concerned more with her safety than his own desire for truth, justice. The fight took a sudden turn as Lanara bid them adieu and turned toward the spaceport. Even though he slowed his pace he was unprepared for how quickly Lanara was on top of him, she really could move. He made to turn around and follow but was shocked as the woman lifted the spell-struck youth and put him over her shoulder. Axle's obsessive mind immediately switched to high alert, her arm was dangerously close to his wings.

Hey, woah, woah, woah! Put me down, this can't be conducive for a full retreat!Among other things.

Lanara didn't seem to hear him as she was running full-bore back towards the spaceport. Axle shrugged, at that point there was little he could do as he watched the small group of pursuing Mandalorians slowly fell behind and gave up. Feeling a little more cocky he gave them a lopsided salute as the two battered companions retreated. Shaking his head he returned his tools to his belt and shifted positions, Sylbia's droid was in a particularly uncomfortable place under his leg. Reaching down he patted his ride on the shoulder, his own fears easing away; she had gone out of her way and safety zone to protect him. She was wearing a muscle suit, handy, and her arm was covered in...

Your arm... Lanara! Stop, put me down, we need to stop the blood. Please, stop.

Whether she heard him or not the wound looked deep, enough so to be a real problem. Reaching up Axle pulled off his scarf and balled it in his hands. A large portion of it he had kept tucked within his coat so it had not been contaminated by the polluted Balosar atmosphere, it would have to suffice for the moment. Tearing off a the clean portion he snatched the wounded arm.

Lanara, hold still a moment. I have to cover your wound.

Slipping the thick cloth around her arm he wrapped the wound as best he could, making sure there was a substantial amount of pressure. It wouldn't be comfortable to be sure but there was nothing else he could do. He watched as the cloth slowly gained a maroon hue, not good. Looking up he recognized the surroundings, the spaceport was close. If Lanara could just hold out a bit longer they could help her.

[Dire Wolf]

At first the Rilan woman barely took notice of the teen as he told her to put him down. The woman couldn't stop for anything... not until those Bounty Hunters gave up their chase. After but a few minutes of running she looked back to see the Mandalorians nowhere in sight, and she heard him mention something about her arm. The woman slowed to a stop and did as he asked... but she couldn't help but look at her wounded arm. The second that she saw the blood that was running down the striations of her muscle suit the wave of pain and dizziness hit her, she sat down without another thought.

The woman had been conditioned to ignore pain, it was an ephemeral and fleeting creature... but this... this pain was beyond agony. The man's vibrosword had cut down to the bone, cutting into it slightly... and the fact that it was open to the air only compounded the problem.. and the anguish. The Rilan instantly let out a long and trembling hiss as Axle slipped the cloth around her wounded arm and applied the pressure. She looked up at Axle with a fiery mixture of red, orange, and yellow hues mixed in her eyes and spoke to the boy with a trembling voice. It was obvious that it was taking all she had not to cry out in pain.

“Th-... thank you... Ax-... Axle...”

Tears of pain were slowly rolling down her face as she slowly got up, using her unharmed hand as a support. Lanara's world quickly began to spin as she stood up... she would need Axle's help so that she could limp back to the 'October. The woman grabbed for the support of her companion as she nearly lost her footing.

“Ax-... Axle... I... will... ne-... your hel-... to ge-... back to the... oct-.... ship.”

Her voice was still trembling and her words were beginning to get spaced apart, she also began to exhausted. The woman would need to get kolto soon, otherwise she would be taking a dirt nap. The wounded warrior stumbled back towards the Red October, she was victorious this time... Axle was unharmed and they had the part that the ship required, but she nearly died in the process. Lanara was truly a complex creature; outwardly she made it look like she was some kind of money hungry blood thirsty mercenary, but in truth she was quite the opposite.

It felt like it took her hours to get back to the ship, but in reality it only took a few minutes, she slowly stumbled up the ramp. Her blood drained body could not take another step, however, and she collapsed on the ground. Lanara had experianced blood loss before, and knew that if she fell to sleep now she would probably never wake up. But, she wasn't thinking straight, and she found herself mumbling.

“So... tired... going... to... sleep”

[Latus]

Slowly, Axle noticed a change. It was subtle, it was weak but it began to creep into Lanara's being. It was one of diminished strength, of weariness. Her steps became heavier, her pace slowed until finally she placed Axle back on his feet and sunk to the ground. It didn't take much for him to realize why. She had lost a lot of blood. The bandage he had improvised for her was already soaked, dyed a dark maroon. Putting his arm across her shoulder he cringed at how much difficulty she had speaking. This wasn't good. The blood loss was so great that she was losing consciousness. If she did... well lets just say there would be some major problems in the near future. As the woman tried to get to her feet Axle couldn't help but stand rigid, one thought invading his mind, Lanara could die. No, can't let that happen.

Stay strong Lanara. We are almost to the ship, you have to hold on.

Trying to suppress the urge to cough Axle wedged himself under the woman's shoulder as she stumbled foreword. It took a considerable amount of strength to hold her upright. The muscle suit must have added another fifty pounds of heft to the woman, to her already considerable weight. In truth, Axle was no body builder; he was quite strong for his size but Lanara was almost too much. Every step was as strenuous as flapping into the wind, but he couldn't let himself fall, he wouldn't. This woman's life depended on it. He didn't care at this point if she felt his wings or not and he slid more of her weight onto his slender body.

The spaceport loomed as Axle's breath came heavy. This time he was unable to stop himself from coughing. Several shudders wracked his body as his lungs tried to purge the pollutants. As he finally got control over his body Lanara seemed to get even heavier. After what seemed like an eternity Axle's feet finally struck the egress ramp. A commotion seemed to be erupting off to one side of the ship and he quirked his head in that direction. Blaster fire? As if on command Lanara couldn't keep her own weight up anymore and it all hit Axle. Unable to hold her up he could do nothing but slow her descent to the metal paneling of the ramp. He barely understood her muttering but he knew what it meant. She was going into shock from blood loss.

By the stars! Lanara, stay with me! Don't you dare close your eyes.

Lightly he struck her cheek trying to bring her around. When he saw that it wasn't helping he moved around to the ship side of her. Grabbing her shoulders he tried to lift her, to drag her, to get her into the ship at any cost. It was slow but, inch by inch, he finally managed to get her into the ship, leaving a small trail of blood in her wake. The moment he had her inside the ship out of the polluted wind he propped her up against the wall.

Lanara, hold on. Please hold on. Turning he shouted into the ship, hoping that someone was still around. Help! Someone help. Man down! MEDIC!

((Back to Appetite)