Coldest Glass Beckons

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

The soft whine and whirrrrr made him paranoid, but there wasn't anything they could do about that now.

It sounded far enough not to be a threat to them right now. Besides they had the large bulk-doors to worry about and Xian wasn't sure how they could get through them - in any reasonable frame of time anyway. The whine turned into a rumble and for a moment the Twi'lek looked back.

He cursed.

Cursed again, right through her question, when he saw what was coming at them. Xian didn't wait, didn't ask, just moved to the side, grabbing Blackthorne and jumping away from the gorram explosion heading their way in a harsh whistle. It was pragmatism; this lady was his payday and dead she wasn't worth anything to him. The explosion came next - a blast of heat, followed by implosion and a shockwave sending them flying even further past the ground.

The Twi'lek caught the brunt of it, what with shielding her slightly with his body.

Behind them the explosion caused the door to crash inwards, a large dent in the metal causing a rip through the door. But it was still mostly there... for now.

It probably wouldn't survive a second hit.

"You alright, Thorn?"

 

[Blackthorne]

"I've been knocked to the ground by far less attractive things," Blackthorne wheezed in response, having had the wind knocked out of her not once, but three times. Twi'lek, explosion blast, ground.

Thrum. Thrum. Thrum. Thrum.

Head spinning, lungs heaving for air, the Captain made no immediate moves other than to turn her head past his to see what the feth was coming their way. "Shet, mecha suit," she dropped her head back to the ground, "I fething hate those things."

She'd rather it was a Starweird.

THRUM. THRUM. THRUM. WHIIIIIIIIINE-

Glaring up at the twi'lek who was only just beginning to shift his weight off her, Blackthorne seized the front of his shirt to hold him in place, grip like a damned vice, "Wait-" her other hand shot out from beneath him just in time to toss up a Force Shield as a second rocket came sailing by and blasted open the doors as if they were made of sheet metal.

When the flames and smoke began to clear and her ears stopped ringing she dropped the shield and loosened her grip.

"Ok go."

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

Now that got a snort out of him.

Before he could pull out, she pulled him back in again - close, very close, she smelled nice; of cloves and spiced sharp honey, but this was not the time for that. Luckily Thorne seemed to know that as well, because instead of any sort action the Force erupted around her and a projected shield sheltered them from what was to come.

Another explosion, just as explosive, but this one made the doors explode. Metal shards flying all across the promenade like shrapnel, it even bounced back towards the goons with the mecha suit.

"To be continued," He said with a whisper, before helping her up with a hand. The mecha suit wasn't paying attention to them anymore and instead focused entirely on the slaver market. That didn't mean they were out of trouble yet. Not when a handful of thugs did decide they were a problem.

Behind them Xian noticed an alleyway adjacent to the fortified slavers' market. People running away... but where had they come from in the first place?

"Here," He shouted over the whirr and whiiiiiiiine of the mecha suit, as its servomotors hummed during its approach.

The sudden blast from his sword caused the rabble to scatter and return fire, but they were already retreating back into the alleyway. It was there, some steps into the alley that Xian noticed a hole, another set of reinforced bulkdoors set ajar for those cowards to run from the mecha suit.

"Our way in without dealing with that fether, Thorn, let's go."

 

[Blackthorne]

A brow followed the man up from his whispered words. Uff, such promises.

Blackthorne was on her feet in short order, swiping the rifle that had fallen from her grasp after colliding with the twi'lek. A new energy clip loaded into the blaster, she shouldered the former and backed down into the alley after the man. Difficult to turn your back on a mecha - she'd done that before and she would not be repeating that particular mistake. Her ears had rung for a damn month after that.

THRUM. THRUM. WHIIIIIIIIIIIR-

"Go..." another rocket came sailing their way, "GO!"

She shoved the man down the alley towards the indicated door, grabbing him by the back of the jacket so as not to lose track in the frantic crowds of people spilling out. They shouldered their way in, ducking just as the third rocket careened through the gaping hole at the front entrance, slamming into the reception desk which blew in a hail of fire and shrapnel. Bodies flew, the smell of melting plastic, burning wood and flesh filled the forward courtyard.

THRUM. THRUM. THRUM. THRUM. FWWWWSSSHHHHHH-

A jet of flames blasted in through the doors, catching furniture and flesh alike in flames.

Blackthorne spied a sign on the wall of the far side, just over the wall of flames. The auction hall was one floor down.

"There! The elevator," she pointed over his shoulder to the doors that presently were trying to close on an inert body. The lift was not there, leaving a dark and open shaft.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

The onslaught of the mecha suit did not stop. In fact, it seemed like the driver decided to throw in a few more toys into the game - firethrowers, flames licking against the interior from the holes blasted open in the bulkdoor entrances by the missiles.

"Ayeaye, Thorn." Lady was strong though. The Twi'lek had noticed it back then on the ground and then again while helping him push through the crowd.

From the depths of his belt he got out a thin cord.

There was hurry in his movements as he swung it around a table mounted to the floor nearby. Thorn was impatient, looking back over to the bulkdoors and the mecha trying to force its way through. The thing was large, powerful... and the driver was smart. Already it stepped back allowing the goons to get through first, to make way for it.

Xian wasn't going to wait on it.

The cord was tight around his belt. "Let's go," grabbing her by her waist. "Hold on." Then the Twi'lek jumped, praying that it would hold.

One level down was all good and well, but with no elevator there were still about four more besides it.

Xian couldn't even enjoy her weight against his as the air beat against them, while they propellered down i to the shadows.

 

[Blackthorne]

"That's a good trick."

Green eyes glowed in the black, lower lids pressing upwards in a recognizable expression of smirking.

The Captain's voice echoed in the empty elevator shaft as they repelled down into the darkness. They didn't have far to go but no one upstairs was going to make it easy on them. Blackthorne looked up at the sound of blaster fire in the jammed doorway above and screaming. Frantic, torturous screaming. A flare of light suddenly filled the void as a body tumbled through the doorway, flailing heathenous flames all the way down, roaring in agony as he slammed into the pair and scrambled for a hold.

He managed to snag the Pirate's leg much to her utter disgust and tore her from the Slaver's grasp. Xian caught her arm and the woman let loose a yell as she was stretched between the two.

"FRACK! Get off me!"

The flaming man wailed in terror and pain, fire having caught on to portions of the woman's jacket.

A massive groan from up above could be heard followed by a quaking tremble. Dust and debris fell down upon them from higher up the elevator shaft. The cables groaned. Blackthorne felt her shoulder tear out of its socket and kicked at the hand on her leg.

"GET OFF!"

BOOM

Xian's tether shivered and then suddenly they began to drop. So much for his anchored table.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

"I can show you more-" The rest of the reply was cut back as he was interrupted by screams... then a flying burning man crashing against them. Thorne almost dropped, but he managed to snatch at her arm, holding it tight. This did mean that he couldn't compensate, the additonal weight and previous momentum send him against the wall during their further descend.

His shoulder rammed against the duracrete, but Xian managed to avoid hitting his head. Small wonders hadn't left the world yet.

Looking down Thorn was having issues with the man clinging against her.

There wasn't anything the Twi'lek could do - one hand was holding her, the other holding himself steady so they wouldn't start whirling around, flying into more walls. "Can't get a gorram shot, ki-" The popping of her joint wasn't missed.

Neither was the BOOM.

Nor the whisper-soft snap that heralded the sudden lack of tension in the cord. "Fet-" They were already falling.

This drop would kill them.

Xian wasn't quite ready to die, but this was where that previous momentum worked for them. They were falling almost diagonally and automatically, through sheer survival instinct, the slaver managed to grab a hold of a protruding ledge. Impossible to climb up, especially with two bodies against him, already his muscles were straining.

"I can't shoot and hold us at the same time, Thorn!"

 

[Blackthorne]

There would be no biting back the snarling yelp of pain rendered by the second short stop as the weight of both herself and the clinging, burning man tore her shoulder joint further. Green eyes bled black as the three of them dangled against the wall, flaming shrapnel raining down on them from above. Blackthorne took her free hand and gestured downwards at the man still clutching at her leg, fingers splayed.

The flames dwindled, dying on his body, coiling upwards towards her outstretched hand as though being sucked up by it. The man's scream faded as well, turning into wheezing, gasping, suffocating sounds. His fingers withered, his eyes sunk in, his broiled skin pulled taught over his body as within a few moments she had pulled from him every ounce and wisp of life force available. He finally fell away a crumbling husk, pieces of his body dropping to tumble and disintegrate into dust as it bounced against the walls.

Fuming, Blackthorne coiled her fingers, hand quaking from apparent pain, and forced herself to look up as she dangled. The woman swallowed an agonized groan and instead managed to blurt out, "Good catch," before reaching up to grab his forearm with her good hand.

"There's a maintenance ladder to the left, swing me over."

KrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrreeeeeeEEEEEEEEEEE- from above.

BOOOM

Another explosion sent flames and quakes down the shaft. Blackthorne shielded her face as best she could and by the time she looked up to see what was causing a most inconceivable screeching-

"Ladder. Get to the ladder!"

TWANG

The elevator cable snapped behind them and the elevator box, apparently several floors up, was now dropping down the shaft in a shower of sparks and metal screaming against metal.

 

[Arage Bao]

"Feth. Not only-" He swung her to the left, "-can you-" to the right, "-fly like a-" back to the left. "-mad Drexl."

Each swing brought more momentum to the clinging Thorne, allowing her to make the jump without breaking her neck and without him snapping his arm trying to throw her in one go without proper support. Xian was keenly aware they had barely enough time, but the crash above - firestorm causing him incline his head to shelter his eyes, before the groaning metal of huge weight started scraping past the confines of the shaft.

Xian threw her at the height of his momentum, before jumping on after her a moment later. The lift crashed on down just where they had been one second ago- the only thing rescuing them was the maintenance ladder. Just a small cramped space, just enough room for the both of them if they pulled their head in a bit.

Even then the view the Twi'lek was getting from... above... was moderately distracting.

"But you can suck men dry!" They climbed up over the ledge and Xian blinked, before realizing what he had just said. "Literally, of course."

For a moment they could catch their breath.

"You okay? Heard something pop back there." In the distance shouts echoed, bouncing from one side of the elevator shaft to the other in a cascade of sounds. The goons up high trying to see if there were any survivors most likely, he tugged her with, further down the maintenance shaft and deeper into the complex.

They were about a level or so too low, but at least they weren't dead... yet.

 

[Blackthorne]

"Don't be daft," Blackthorne heaved herself over the ledge with one arm and slowly picked herself up to her feet, "I can't fly."

She had nothing to say about sucking men dry. There were numerous comments she could have made but none of them really felt good enough to loose. The woman instead focused on catching her breath - not from being winded, but from the pain in her shoulder. Her right arm hung limply at her side, longer than usual, and the entire joint felt as though someone had shoved a grenade in there and held it in.

"You okay? Heard something pop back there."

Captain Blackthorne grimaced as she glanced at the man, "Just a ... minor pull. It's fine." She gave a sniff, pausing at the sound of voices from above. This wasn't a good place to be. Probably. Twi'lek tugged and Captain nodded in agreement, following after him.

Footsteps echoed along the empty walkway while above and below the deafened sound of explosions, battle, and fire could just barely be made out. A romantic orchestra set for a pair of criminals, to be sure. Xian rounded a corner and Thorne's steps lagged behind. The woman stopped, good hand on her bad arm, and shifted it about two inches upwards with a hiss before -

BAM

- bodily shoving the shoulder into the nearby wall. The joint squelched, the woman groaned sharply. She left a dent.

Blackthorne tested her fingers, fist closing and opening, and felt the onset of bloodlust at the back of her throat like an alcoholic might feel the urge for a cold one. Her ribenes seemed like a meal eaten days ago. Green eyes began following the twi'lek a bit more keenly.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

"--the kark are you do-" The Twi'lek looked back, taking stock of the situation. Didn't take him more than a few seconds to see what was happening. Xian should have realized it, that pop earlier wasn't anywhere close to being just a pull.

He grunted, coming back a few steps and looking at it with a practiced eye.

"Minor pull my left ass cheek." Valart mumbled before stepping closer. Their eyes met and one hand was placed on her offending shoulder, lightly. "If we getting out of here, we need you with two arms, 'least one and a half."

Having her cradle the useless one all the way through would be a mess.

"This is gonna hurt." His hands were firm, grip strong, clearly this wasn't the first time he had done a thing like this. "Count to three, aye?"

If she nodded, "Alright, one-"

While Thorn anticipated a two all she got was a sudden jerk as Xian popped the joint right back where it belonged with no hesitation.

 

[Blackthorne]

"Minor pull my left ass cheek."

Blackthorne narrowed her eyes, feeling her hackles curl as the man moved closer. He nearly got a snarl as he lifted his hand to her injured arm, but she bit it back and settled on a twitching lip.

"If we getting out of here, we need you with two arms, 'least one and a half."

Weren't but more than a handful of people in this galaxy she would trust to tend to her wounds, less so now since she'd left her home. The Captain had grown accustomed to tending her own, but he was right. She needed two mostly-working arms to get out of here, elsewise she was just a liability. Liabilities didn't pay and being one greatly depreciated the value she held towards the man.

"This is going to hurt."

You don't say, cowboy. Green eyes stared at him, nonplussed.

"Count to three, aye?"

A nod. No fething way he was actually counting to three.

"Onze-"

"FRAK!"

Knew it.

The woman seethed, alligator grimace baring her full loadout of fangs, good fist balled so tightly her knuckles were white. A beat. Two beats. She inhaled deeply, chest swelling, and turned roiling pools of acid back to the twi'lek, nose wrinkled in painful disgust. That was about as close to a thank you as he was going to get.

"Was that another ladder?" she definitely snarled that time.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

Xian wasn't waiting on a thank you- a weakness in their team had occurred, which prompted one out of two possibilities: fix the weakness or leave it behind for survival. Fact was this lady was his pay day, so he wasn't really eager to just drop her here. "Yeah," already turned around and speaking over his shoulder, the Twi'lek eyed the ladder for a moment.

No immediate sounds coming from above, none they could hear over the war noises a few levels up anyway.

"Go first, if the arm gets you into trouble I will be able to support ya." Again no room for discussion, not with the set of his jaw or the firmness in the glint of his eye. If Thorn cracked her skull open while he was climbing his way to freedom?

That would be annoying.

Either way, the maintenance corridor led to a dead-end after this ladder, nothing but metal walls behind it.

They didn't really have any other option.

 

[Blackthorne]

Many would argue that skull would be the hardest bone to crack. Hard-headed indeed. She followed him to the ladder, glanced up, and without further ado began the ascent. Wasn't far to go - a good twenty feet before she reached an opening into a maintenance office. The room was dark and empty save a few security screens running feed on various maintenance entrances and doorways.

She stepped over to the screens and leaned to take a closer look. One of the sewage tunnels in the lower levels had been overtaken by battle. Another area was so overcome by flames that nothing could really be made out.

A third -

"Where is that," Blackthorne pointed to a screen where groups of people were being ushered along by a retinue of heavily armored men. These people looked unscathed and there were clearly slaves in the numbers.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

He looked over her shoulder and shook his head.

"Private tunnel, helped bring in the valuable goods without putting too much attention on them." Xian supplied after a moment of thought. Not for recollection, but simply because it was on a need-to-know basis. But by the looks of the footage and the heavy fighting all around the market? This place was karked to hell and back already, no point in keeping secrets of dead men.

With a gesture Xian took hold of the controls, whoever was supposed to be here had left the console unlocked, which gave him the option to track their position down in proportion to the yellow blinking dot that signified that tunnel.

"We will need to get through the corridor here," his fingers briefly touched the one next to their current location. "Then pass through this hall, before we get to the tunnel. Issue? The hall is heavily under fire, so we will need to blast our way through."

Or maybe exit the market and circle around, but that meant going through the mecha suit which was still wrecking havoc in the upper levels.

"Didn't ask before, asking now, what you need a slave for? Why specifically here?"

 

[Blackthorne]

Stubborn persistence pressed into the woman's gaze in the same way a hulking ship might meet a tsunami wave head on. The risks were high and well defined by her guide but the bow was pointed unflinchingly forward.

"I don't keep slaves," Blackthorne replied, no hint of humor to be discerned in the words, "and I don't need them. I need to meet one."

The woman leaned down next to him, unabashedly close as she scoured the screens with extreme scrutiny. Face after face after face, and endless surge of slaves and guards and traders passed before her and then-

"That one," she reached the hand of her good arm forward and planted a curved fingernail on the screen where a team of Guards transported what looked like a tree on a repulsorlift at the back of the line.

"I have to find out who he was sold to and where he's going," the Captain looked to the twi'lek. He knew the station, perhaps he knew where they could get the information, too.

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

Slaves were useless for the most part.

Weak, fragile, unwilling to do what it takes to break their chains. It was for these reasoms that Xian had little issue compartmentalize his old life as a slave and his new life as a slaver. After all, he had gotten out in the end... they didn't.

Which made them unworthy of freedom.

If you weren't strong enough to grab it yourself, what was the point? "The tree? Ain't that many Neti that are sold around these parts." Speaking with confidence and a sense of calm. It was clear from this and the way he handled the console that Valart had experience around these parts specifically. Experience that went further than 'I come to this station ever so often'.

Didn't have to be a slaver specifically, but Xian knew his way around the master part of slavery, that was for sure.

"Yeah, we need to go another level down. No fighting there right now as far as we can see, but half the sensors down there are crapped to pieces." Which meant something was there. "The archives are there, lads here are meticulous."

He looked up into the storm and did not flinch.

"Got everything you needed in this room?"

 

[Blackthorne]

Lip twitching, eyes distracted by the line of the man's neck, the woman leaned back and began fishing through her pockets for - ah, yes. She produced the tin of Sten and plucked one from within, pressing it to her lips as she stashed the tin away again. A glance around the room was given as she proceeded to fish about for her lighter.

Where was it...

"That flamethrow would be right handy-" kch, her eyes landed on the flame of the lighter presently held out by the twi'lek, "oh, perfect."

"Was gonna say these things kill ya, but we just got almost killed six times... so give me one as well."

This drew a grin and a snigger out of the Pirate, "These won't kill you, mate. This is about the only thing that will keep me from killing you for the next fifteen minutes." She took a pull, cringing as she used her injured arm to fish the tin back out and toss it to him, "Never given one of these to a flat-tooth. I have no idea what it'll do to you. Probably make you high."

 

[Arage Bao]

[member="Blackthorne"]

"What can I say," Xian mumbled, while getting one out and sticking it between his teeth. "I am pretty tasty, can't help it."

The light lit up, point of the stick glowing like dark embers, while he softly tugged at it with his breath to allow the fire to grow. Within a few seconds the stick was roaring pleasantly and the rest of the box was returned to her.

She was studying him, curiosity bare on the surface.

That made the Twi'lek smirk, before taking a deeper pull, letting the smoke curl in his mouth. Then he inhaaaaaled once the heat died down, a smooth breath out and the smoke escaped from his lips in a deep-set hurry.

He blinked.

Everything crystallized for a moment, little particles standing out and vibrating, hues of purple at the edge of his sight as the smoke did its work.

"Okay," Xian steadied himself against the table. Didn't fall down or trip tjough, wasn't his first rodeo. "This is... really good stuff, what is it?"

A blink as his mind processed previously said stuff. "Flat-tooth?"

 

[Blackthorne]

"I am pretty tasty, can't help it."

Oh luv, Blackthorne drew on her Sten while staring intently at his jugular, you have no idea.

It had an aromatic, cool, almost mint-like aftertaste and scent. Blackthorne recalled others commenting on its likeness to cloves, or menthol cigarras. She'd never used either so she really hadn't a clue - this was simply what had been given to her by the Beastia after a good, long talk about her use of spice.

Not that it stopped her from using spice, but she did use it less so when Sten was available.

And despite the hurry of her mission the Captain couldn't help but take a few moments to study her companion as he tested the waters. Curiosity had yet to kill the cat. She waited for it to settle in; the fog had to travel through the lungs into the blood where it eventually pooled in the mind behind the eyes. Her variety was of a particularly strong concentration to help combat her particularly strong and difficult to control bloodlust. It was ... twofold, given her heritage, and the bloodlines of her father had quite fully stamped out the Shamalain's inherent civility within her.

Just her.

Eordahn had come out somewhat the opposite, though she'd seen him in the thrall of a full bloodlust and it wasn't any prettier when he did it.

Blackthorne exhaled the breath she'd been holding and sent a cloud of smoke billowing between them, a sneer having grown on her lips now that she wasn't lusting for his throat. The woman leaned forward, cheshire grin split over her rows of pointed teeth, and snapped them just inches from his face, "Flat. Tooth," said the woman, fangs flashing. She gave his chest a poke as she brushed by, "Let's get moving."

Back down the ladder to take the short-cut to the next level down.