Private Breaking from Chains to the Past (Liam)

[Dashara Horizon]

Dash appreciated the pat on her shoulder. A sign of comfort and familiarity drew warmth into her heard. It pushed back against the cold, strange surrondings in her mind. Vague, time worn memories filled her mind. Her own childish laughter mingled with her father's foot steps and mother's call. Her right hand pulled into a fist against her chest.

Simpler times during her childhood.

She meekly nodded, but the same confidence didn't resonate in her actions. It was hard to see herself as a strong, powerful female now. With all the damage done, would she ever truly be fine again? The question followed her like a dark shadow of doubt.

Her figure fastened to Liam's wake as he lead the way to the cockpit. When his arm extended to the right, her eyes followed his finger and rested on the chair. She only nodded in agreement with his statement.

With a cautious action, she lowered herself down then strapped herself in. Her hands found the arm rests as she gripped them tightly. As Liam called up communications and requested departure, a lump caught in her throat. Her nails gripped tighter when time ticked by. She released her breath when someone answered back.

After Liam winked, the ship rumbled to life. Its engines echoed in its corridors and through the vents. As they lifted higher and higher, Dash's sentiment glanced back. Her fingers released her grip on her armrest.

The interconnected city grew smaller as it shrank into the smog below. A sensation of sorrow, anger, and fear once more surged into her mind. Memories flooded her attention causing tears to collect at her vision's edge. Her hand lifted up to touch the faded image of her home for the past nine years.

Liam's voice broke her thoughts. Dashara's head flipped back to her left and tried to register what he said. It finally clicked.

"Is there anything I should do to prepare?" She had no experience that she could recall with hyperspace.

 

[Liam Wickens]

Tag: Dashara Horizon

Liam's focused gaze beamed out through the transparisteel canopy in front of them. The planet continued to fall away behind them. Reaching up to the control boards, he pressed a couple of buttons that lit up and flipped a set of switches. Just ahead of them space distorted almost invisibly while the pitch of the reactor and hum of the engine changed, thrumming a little more.

Ahead of them sparks appeared as something struck an invisible barrier. The energy and friction of the impact caused metal to incandesc as it rocketed off in a new direction. A moment later something else slammed into the forward shields. At her question, Liam's gaze broke away to regard her as he curved easily around the wreckage of an ancient Imperial Dreadnaught-class cruiser. They were passing through the debris field from the Battle of Nar Shaddaa during the Galactic Civil War era.

Saying nothing at first, he turned his attention back to the boards and turned a knob a tiny bit. "Nope. Just sit back and relax. You shouldn't feel a thing. I turned the inertial dampers all the way up. A lot of pilots like to dial it back a little so they can feel the g-forces on themselves and their vehicle. I do too. But a first-time jump to hyperspace should be nice and easy."

A few more bits and bobs banged off the shields silently, careening away in the dark. "Hold her steady," Liam advised, tapping the flight yoke in front of him, then gestured to an identical one in front of her. "Pressing will pitch the nose down, pulling back pulls the nose up. Rotating like a wheel rotates the craft. If you want to just shift the nose left or right, use the pedals on the floor. But for now, just keep her straight unless we're going to run into something bigger than a foot locker. All you have to do is steer. Little adjustments are all you need at first. I need to get jump coordinates and vectors from the navicomputer."

As he relinquished control of many tons of military grade shuttle, he went to doing exactly that... punching in a destination into a computer system and watching it's screen intently while also keeping an eye on her. There was no distrust there, but instead watching to see if she needed help. He'd be a lifeline, if she needed, but for now, he was trusting her with their lives and seemed completely at ease with it.

 

[Dashara Horizon]

As Liam focused, Dashara watched him. His dark eyes fixed to the console and twisted a knob, hyper focused on his piloting. She had seen the same look on clients when locked in the privacy of the bedroom. She leaned back into the seat as her arms wrapped about her. Everything had gone numb. No anger, sadness, or joy bubbled within her core.

Gradually tension and anxiety began to build. Like a durasteel cable tightly wound, it pulled taunt as far as it could. A loud hiss caused her to jump. Her eyes snapped up then spotted the debris drift back into space.

Dashara's breath became quick and short. Calm down... I'm safe. The words in her head didn't sound nearly as reassuring as she hoped.

She felt guilty for her behavior. After all, she called him to save her and now she acted like a scared Tooka. Liam's words tugged her attention back to him, her head twisted to the side and listened. She quietly nodded at the common sense about jump into hyperspace.

When he tapped the yoke in front of him, she scrunched up her brow and her lips curled to one side. It took a moment for her realize he intended on her to take charge of the star ship. Dashara took a deep breath before her trembling hands reached out.

"No, not now. Breath... relax." Dashara muttered to herself.

Tightly her fingers gripped the handles of the flight yoke and her posture stiffen. She managed to hold it in place, guiding the ship along the intended path.

 

[Liam Wickens]

Location: Nar Shaddaa
Tag: Dashara Horizon

Liam watched Dash intently when he wasn't checking on the Navicomp. It would take a minute or two to get the data and have a course plotted for them. "Relax," he said quietly. "You're in charge of this bucket of bolts. You decide where to go, but you don't have to crush it." He wasn't that hyper-focused, but he knew giving her something else to do was likely better than letting her dwell in her own darkness for the moment.

Around them they were starting to slip free of the debris field, leaving clear space. There were lanes of traffic coming and going, but around them, they were alone. "Go ahead and play with the controls a little, get a feel for it," he murmured. That was all he sought to give her now, was a sense of that control, that freedom, handling a ship. She didn't know any of the technical aspects, but for now she didn't need that. It was akin to sitting in a speeder with a kid in your lap and letting them steer while out somewhere safe and they couldn't do any real harm.

Along the way the navigation computer pinged that it had a course plotted for them, but he let her fly for the time being, until she'd had enough. "Okay going to bring us around for the jump. I'll let you do the honors if you want," he said. Getting them on course would be trickier, but allowing her to take them into hyperspace was another measure of freedom as they would be very safe there. And it was shutting the door on the old life.

 

[Dashara Horizon]

Liam Wickens

The sensation of Liam's eyes on her only hyped up her anxiety. Dashara licked her lips to sooth the dryness. In and out, her chest rose into a rhythm for her focus. Several milliseconds passed before the calmness filtered out to her body.

Her arms eased from their ridged posture while she listened to Liam's words.

"It's not... easy to relax. I feel everything from numbness to fear." She stated, more out loud than to her companion.

Dashara swallowed a lump in her throat then practiced with the steering yoke. She tentatively turned it right then back to left. It rolled perfectly with the controls as she continued to lean into it. At some point, her mind stopped thinking. Her foot pressed the pedals to direct the nose into circles, loops, and other pathways. She remained mindful of the traffic lanes and kept her distance from it.

Though it did nothing to address her emotions, it distracted her from it. A relief she became thankful for. She gradually began to level out when Liam mentioned something about the jump.

Her grip tightened again and that blissful moment ended. A weight deepened in the center of her body as she expressed hesitation.

"What? I-I..." her words stumbled over themselves.

If it had been years back, she would've done it. No regret for her actions. Now, it was a different matter all together. Over the years, she accepted her role and played it well. She never expected freedom was possible for her. A sour sensation swelled in the back of her throat. Memories of punishment and consequence tried to push against the want for freedom.

"I'm not sure..." She wanted to be free, but could she really survive it? Dash didn't know for sure.

 

[Liam Wickens]

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Location: Nar Shaddaa - The Smuggler's Moon​

Equipment:​

Tag: Dashara Horizon​

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Feeling her rising anxiety, seeing it on her face, Liam shook his head. He raised one hand and rested it on her shoulder reassuringly. "Its alright. You don't have to," he said. Mentally kicking himself he shook his head. It was too much, too fast. He knew better. She was in a fragile state, mentally. She was an abuse victim, and so much had been beaten into her. He could see the rising panic and anxiety attack coming on.

Reaching out he gently took her hand in his, his grip tight but reassuring rather than controlling. "Breathe for me," he said. "Listen to my voice." He knew he had to stay calm lest his own state would crash in on hers. But he could help ground her and pull her back, at least until later when she could process things safely. But they needed to be away first. "I need you to do me a favor and point out five things you can see," he requested. If he could pull her back into the moment, and her body, he could keep the spiral in check. And then they could work through it, but first, she needed to have connection, not pressure.

As it was the hand wrapped in hers was the one he needed to take them into hyperspace, so the best they could do for now was fly straight, so he let the computer do the flying, instead choosing to focus his entire attention on Dash.

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[Dashara Horizon]

Location: Nar Shaddaa - Smuggler's Moon
Tag: Liam Wickens


Dashara couldn't breathe. The air weighted in her chest and refuse to leave. With each compression of her lungs, nothing expelled. It just sat there and began to crush her heart. Her bright green eyes quivered at Liam.

Every thought in her mind just stopped in its tracks.

All her senses powered on pure fearful energy. From sight to touch, her heart raced at the information which bogged down her mind. She pleaded for it to stop. A tremble worked its way across her skin, and she feared being helpless again. Memories of training flickered across her mind's eye in fragmented words or images. All them added up to the fact she had lost control for so long.

When his hand rested on her shoulder, Dashara's eyes zoned in on Liam. His mouth moved, but her foggy mind muffled the sounds. The young woman didn't fight or resist Liam's touch. She barely noticed it over his emotions. It had been the first thing that jerked her from the mental nightmare she locked herself into.

She said nothing, but her posture softened in her seat. Dashara let him take hers and give a gentle squeeze. Anyone else would've gotten a flinch or fearful reaction from her.

Never him.

That night they met, he had been among the few to show her kindness and safety. A bright, rare thing compared to the filth on Nar Shaddaa. It made her want to trust him.

She weakly nodded. Her attention started at the strongest focus: his eyes. The blue-green irises seem to draw her focus rather easily. She sucked in new air between her teeth then exhaled. Her heart kept thumping in the back of her head, but gradually it grew quieter with the passing moments. Liam's instruction began to bring clarity. Her surroundings fell into place then anchored themselves there.

"Your eyes. Your hair. Your face. The seat. Your yoke." Dash's frayed emotions shimmered down.

Exhaustion washed over her mind, but she resisted it. She continued to look at him as realization enlightened her expression.

"What did I do?" The question meant far more than it seemed.

 

[Liam Wickens]

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Location: hyperspace between Nar Shaddaa to Nal Hutta​

Equipment: shuttle, blaster pistol,​

Tag: Dashara Horizon​

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Seeing her start to calm, he nodded, rubbing the back of her hand with the side of his thumb. When she seemed to come back to herself more, he gave another small nod and then a sigh. He was as calm and steady as a rock, aware of the state of mind she was in. She needed that stability, but also to know she was being heard.

Her question had nothing to do with the ship or the moment, and everything to do with what they left behind. Sure, she'd killed someone. Life was cheap half the time in the galaxy. Especially places like Nar Shaddaa. Truth was, his whole job revolved around killing people. Ideally the right ones. He was a protector, keeping innocent people safe. Or those that he served with. People just like the one she'd put down. It was self-defense and there was no shame in that.

Taking a breath he turned toward her more fully, then nudged the controls to send them into the safety of hyperspace. Starlines leaped toward them, before coalescing into the blue-white energy field of hyperspace all around them, shifting into a higher dimension. Safely away, he pulled her closer gently. "You did what you had to. You broke your chains", he said gently, steady as a sidewalk. "And it seems very scary right now. And you feel like you have no idea how to handle this new reality. But you aren't alone. And you'll never be helpless again. Not if I have anything to do with it." As he said it, a wave of conviction and determination seemed to wash off of him and around her. He meant every word of what he said, everything else be damned.
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[Dashara Horizon]

Location: Nar Shaddaa - Smuggler's Moon
Tag: Liam Wickens

Dashara absorbed the calmness she drew from Liam.

For Zeltron, half or more, emotions and life were connected. One couldn't exist without the other. For some Zeltron, following their own emotions often dictated their paths in life. Her had kept her bound on Nar Shadda. It ranged from fear to grief for over a decade.

A numb sensation washed over her. It increased her weariness and weighed down her figure. As Liam pulled her closer, she took a deep breath. Wetness collected at the edges of her eyes. Her arms pulled about him to lock them in place, a connection to this moment.

Her ears absorbed and let his words linger in her thoughts. She wanted them to be true, but the future seemed very dark before her. The very notion of it caused her arms to tighten to protect herself from the pain. Dashara took another breath to purge the toxic feelings.

"I hope you're right." Her voice held a timid and emptiness to it.

She closed her eyes and leaned into him, unable to remain sitting up for much longer. The series of events had stolen every bit of strength from her. Her face buried near his neck, her nose memorized familiar scent. When she passed out, she couldn't tell as she drifted into the dreamless abyss.

 

[Liam Wickens]

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Location: Hyperspace​

Equipment: shuttle, blaster pistol, ​

Tag: Dashara Horizon​

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Liam held her until she fell asleep, then stayed like that for a while longer. Picking her up, he carried her to one of the small rooms aboard the ship and put her to rest there. Sitting with her for a time, he made sure she was comfortable and would not wake up soon. The next leg of the trip to Nal hutta was uneventful, as was the next jump. He focused on getting as far away from the sector as he could for now while considering possible futures, and how he might help Dash gain the strength and skills she needed to feel safe.​

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