Private Crashes to ashes

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

DANGER ZONE​

"No. Your arms first. My shoulder is just a flesh wound."

His tone told her he didn't want to hear protests, but she'd be damned.
"Like hell it is." she scoffed.
Not that he seemed to listen as he went on to grab the medipack before she could and taking out the light and the cauteriser.
"Give me your arms and try to sit still,"

With a huff, she plopped down across from him again and removed the shredded vambraces with a pained hiss before she allowed him to take her arms.

When the beam hit the first laceration, she let out a pained groan and gritted her teeth to not yank away. But it soon evened out and she could relax.
"We're going to have to sleep here without a fire tonight. Let's hope it won't get too cold. Food... we can worry about tomorrow as well."
"Yeah - well need a rifle for food. Or go scavenge the crash site again." she said, wincing a little as the beam moved. "As for the cold - the temperature does drop quite a bit. Especially here at the water. If it gets too cold, we'll...we'll have to huddle up." she went on.

He looked at her then, the surgical light causing shadows to dance over his green eyes.
"How are you feeling? Any other wounds?"
She cleared her throat. "No, I don't think so. Not that I've come to feel yet, at least, so it's fine." she said. "Thank you." she then added as she pulled her arms back as he finished before holding out her hand for the cauteriser and the light.
"Your turn." she said, her turn for no nonsense. "Off with that cuirass, mister." She motioned with her hand to the armour that had gotten relatively crushed under the creature's giant claws.

She gave him a chance to comply before getting to her feet to stand behind him with the light between her own teeth now. In the light, she could see that it was a mess.
"Damn, son. He got you good." she said softly past the light. "You should have let me do you first." She put her free hand gently on his arm to stabilise him. "Now hold still." She trained the beam onto his shoulder and worked as best as she could, knowing full well it was causing discomfort.
"You didn't have to do that, you know?" she said as she worked, moving over to the other shoulder. "I would have brought you back from the dead to kill you myself. I didn't save your sorry ass just so you can get eaten by an animal."

It was almost surreal how quickly she had gotten to the point of considering him like a squadmate. Her heart clenched slightly at the thought that she wouldn't be able to banter like that with any of them anymore.
"Does...does it get easier?" she asked him, clearing her throat halfway through as she finished with his shoulder. "The loss?"

She had to know.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

As expected, she was protesting his decision, but he was a very stubborn man and also reached the medpac before she could. She was just going to have to accept it this time, and luckily, she did. With a gentle grasp on her hand, he did his best to help her keep the arm steady while he worked, and slowly but surely, the wounds were starting to close up. "I think scavenging might be a better option. Those things are harder to kill than I thought," he admitted as he shifted to heal up her other arm.

"As for the cold - the temperature does drop quite a bit. Especially here at the water. If it gets too cold, we'll...we'll have to huddle up."

For a second, he paused and looked up into her eyes. It wasn't uncommon for soldiers to be forced into the situation — it had happened during his Marine training quite often — but somehow this felt different. "Aye," is all he could say in response, as he dipped his head in agreement and swallowed hard.

He then finished up and offered a quick smile in response to her gratitude, but it faded the second he realized that it was his turn now. First, he took off his armor but when he tried to lift his arms to remove the shirt underneath, he winced and quickly lowered them again. It hurt far too much, so he decided to just tear the fabric around the wounds a little more, making it easier for Mischa to access them with the cauterizer.

"Damn, son. He got you good." she said softly past the light. "You should have let me do you first."

"It's fine and I figured you'd need your arms to not be bleeding before you could hold that thing steady. Keeps you from bleeding all over me, too," he joked as he looked over her shoulder with a grin. Then he sat still and calmed his breathing as he felt the wounds close, and with it, the pain began to fade. "Neither of us had to help each other, but here we are," he said in response while his gaze shifted to the ground. "But you'll get your chance to kill me another time, I promise."

He chuckled once but when she finished up his shoulders, a question was asked that was met with a relatively long moment of silence again. "No," he finally said. "It never gets easier, but you learn to keep moving forward. If you don't, you'll either die yourself or drown in misery." It was a sad reality, but he wanted to be completely honest with her about it.

Aiden then looked over his shoulder again, directly at her, "You're strong, you'll move forward. But for now, I think it's best we get some rest," he said with a faint smile tugging at his lips. Then rather slowly, he lowered himself onto his back and groaned, "I had almost forgotten how uncomfortable it is sleeping on rock like this."

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

ZOMBIE​

His silence at her question was deafening.

It made her heart sink. Was it that bad?
"No, It never gets easier, but you learn to keep moving forward. If you don't, you'll either die yourself or drown in misery."
She met his gaze with a somber expression as the light now lay in her empty hand. "Thank you...for being honest, at least." she finally answered.
"You're strong, you'll move forward. But for now, I think it's best we get some rest,"
A sad smile tugged at her lips. "I wouldn't be so sure about that strong part, but all right." she said as she stepped toward the medipack to return the cauteriser and the light. "Let's see how far that resting goes." she added with an attempt at a joke.

With a grown, she lowered herself to the ground not far from him as well before feeling around for a flat stone to abuse as a pillow. It was almost completely dark, the only light coming from the moon spilling into the mouth of the cave.
"I had almost forgotten how uncomfortable it is sleeping on rock like this."
Mischa chuckled as she struggled to get into a comfortable enough position. "It's shit for sure. Gonna feel it in the morning." She finally got a comfortable enough position on her side. "Night, Aiden." she said softly.

But her mind didn't want to shut off.

With a sigh, she rolled back onto her back, looking up at the dark roof of the cave. This was a shit situation all around. There was no way in hell that she'd be able to pop him in the head now. She didn't want to either - not since dragging him out of that wreckage. But what was she supposed to do? He'll have to get off-world and if she led them back to the Imperial base, he'd definitely be captured and interrogated or worse. How was that any better? She couldn't leave him stranded in the middle of nowhere - they'd both be dead before getting anywhere far.

So what the hell?

She sighed again before finally sitting up. She shifted slightly to rest her back against the wall. There was no way she was going to be able to sleep, so she might as well keep watch - as much as she could in the dark.

Hopefully by morning, she'd have a plan figured out.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

Aiden grumbled a little more from the uncomfortable sleeping position but looked over in Mischa's direction to make sure she actually laid down as well. The joking that followed got him to softly chuckle, but soon enough, they were both trying to get some sleep. "Good night," he echoed before he closed his eyes and tried to calm his mind.

But no matter how hard he tried, nothing happened.

His body was exhausted and without a doubt, he should be feeling completely drained, but his mind was far too occupied to allow him the peace of a good night's rest. Everything about today had been challenging — from losing more squadmates to having to work together with the enemy... but one he was beginning to not only respect but like as well. It made it even harder to think about how they were going to get out of here.

If they reached the Imperials, he'd likely be tortured and eventually killed. If they were picked up by the Alliance, her future would be behind bars at best. Was there a better way? Looking over in Mischa's direction, it seemed that these same questions bothered her as well. She shifted around and sat down with her back against the wall.

"You should be trying to sleep, you know..." he said very softly as he moved over and sat down right beside her. Even with their shoulders practically touching, it was hard to see much more than just the outlines of her face and body, but he could see enough to still feel like he was searching for eye contact. "But I understand why you can't... I can't either."

He let out a soft sigh and rested the back of his head against the wall. "How far is the Imperial outpost? If that's what it takes to get you out of here, I'll turn myself in. I don't think the Alliance will come for us anytime soon. We were supposed to be out here alone for about a week."

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

ZOMBIE​

"You should be trying to sleep, you know..."

His soft voice made her jump as he sat down next to her. It was dark enough now that she could barely make out his outline next to her, but even without seeing she could still feel his eyes on her.
"Yeah. Wish I was a droid so I could switch off my mind." she said as she leaned back too. "They have it easy."

She heard his sight as he shifted slightly next to her.
"How far is the Imperial outpost? If that's what it takes to get you out of here, I'll turn myself in. I don't think the Alliance will come for us anytime soon. We were supposed to be out here alone for about a week."
That rendered her speechless for a heartbeat, almost knocking the breath out of her sore body. She stared at him in the dark as the silence hung between them. If only she could look him in the eye at that moment.

It was during that silence that she realised that she wouldn't be able to do it.

"N-no." she said softly, more breath than sound. "I won't let you do that." she added a bit louder. She leaned over to butt her shoulder with his. "I didn't save your ass just so you can turn yourself in to the Empire." An attempt to ease the gravity of what he was saying.

She gently put a hand on his arm in the dark.
"We'll figure it out." she said. "I'd rather take my chances with the Alliance than handing you over to the Empire." she added. She got lost in her thoughts for a few heartbeats.
"There are some settlements on the planet that our scans had picked up." she said eventually, musing aloud. "I have no idea how far the closest on is, only that it lies East. It should have a ship or at least a long-range transmitter." she added. "It's risky, but it's at least a better bet than handing you over to the ISB."

She wouldn't be able to live with herself if she did.

Not after the integral part he had played in their survival so far.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

His proposal was first met with silence.

Earlier, it would have probably made him feel a lot more nervous, but now he had accepted the fact that this training mission was likely a one-way trip for him. So if he could somehow at least make sure that she survived, he'd be able to find peace in the fact that one of his squadmates did survive. Because as far as he was concerned, she was one of his own team members now.

But rather than accepting the offer, she softly spoke a "N-no." that got him to blink and turn his head to search for her eyes. It was dark in the caves, but somehow at this very moment, he felt as if he could still look into them. "But it might be the only way..." he said before she bumped into him and joked a little. A smile slipped through the cracks of his more somber facade, and he glanced down while she rested a hand on his arm.

"You're very stubborn, you know that?" he smirked and placed a hand over hers, "But yeah, we'll figure it out," he then echoed while she explained their options. Going for any remote outpost was risky with predators lurking everywhere, but they had gotten through a lot of shit already. They could handle more, together.

After a moment, Aiden blinked when he realized his thumb had subconsciously traced over the top of her hand, "Maybe uh, sleeping like this will be a little easier. You can lean against my shoulder - should be more comfortable than the ground." There was still the problem of what to do next, but maybe their decision to see this through until the end together had helped ease the mind enough to rest.

"Tomorrow we'll kill the other fucker, and maybe scavenge the crash site before we go for the long walk."

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

ZOMBIE​

"You're very stubborn, you know that?"

She snickered at his joking observation.
"I have to be if I want to command shitheads like you." she said as she bumped him again. How quickly they had fallen into the squad mentality after the shit they had dealt with today. They were a team now.

But she became all too aware of his hand on hers as he traced circles over it - and that it felt almost normal to her. It seemed as if he realised it too as he spoke up then.
"Maybe uh, sleeping like this will be a little easier. You can lean against my shoulder - should be more comfortable than the ground."
She searched his dark face for a moment for heaven knows what.
"It is slightly more comfortable, for sure." she finally said.
"Tomorrow we'll kill the other fucker, and maybe scavenge the crash site before we go for the long walk."
She settled in a bit better next to him. "Killing that thing would be the sweetest thing under the sun." she said. It was a prospect she really looked forward to.

With a better plan in the works and the death of a predator to look forward to, her mind had finally eased enough to have her eyelids getting heavy. Without really realising, her head was on shoulder.
"Thank you, Aiden...for everything." she mumbled before drifting off into a dreamless sleep.

***​

The early-morning light spilling into the cave pulled her from a deep sleep. Half awake, she realised her head was still on his shoulder while her arm had circled through his somewhere in the night.

She jolted into an upright position before pulling her fingers through her tangled hair full of leaves and sticks.
"Sorry." she said before struggling to her feet. "We should uh...probably get going - scope out where that rifle is exactly before making a run for it." Trying hard to cover up her embarrassment with tactics. She only then realised how stiff and bruised her body was from the previous day's ordeal.

That'll have to wear off pretty damn quickly for the day ahead.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

She seemed to agree with his offer and shifted a little while he did the same to make himself as comfortable as possible. He'd allow her head to gently settle on his shoulder while he remained relatively upright and relaxed his body. "Killing that thing would be the sweetest thing under the sun." she said in response to his comment, which drew a short snort from him, "We'll find a way, I'm sure," he said in response as he felt the exhaustion from the day finally catching up with him.

"Thank you, Aiden...for everything."

He smiled softly and looked down one last time as her eyes began to close, "Sleep well, Mischa," he whispered before his own eyes closed and he found himself drifting off as well. In his sleep, his head fell to the side so that it gently rested against Mischa's head, but both were so fast asleep that it didn't register at all.

...

As light from the morning sun began to shine into the caves, Mischa was the first to wake up, but the way she shifted around got Aiden's eyes to open as well. Even half asleep, he noticed that she had held onto his arm during the night, but it didn't bother him at all. He just greeted her with a smirk and allowed that to be the only indication to her that he knew about it.

Sometimes words weren't needed.

"You're fine. Slept alright, I hope?" he groaned and got up to his own feet, where he paused a moment to pluck a small stick from Mischa's hair with a grin. "I have a pretty good idea where it is, so we'll be alright. We should go after it now and get ourselves some food as quickly as we can. The longer we wait, the weaker we'll get." He was already feeling a little out of it — he was a big guy, so he was used to eating quite a lot. This was definitely not an ideal situation for him.

Aiden walked over to the entrance of the cave, stretched a little, and looked at her, "First one to get there gets the better meal?" he joked before he took off into a sprint, clearly not to cheat and win this little competition. But even though he messed around, he was keeping an eye out for predators. They were out there, he knew it.

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

ZOMBIE​

She had seen his smirk.

It only increased the blush that crept into the collar of the undersuit she still wore while she couldn't exactly meet his eye in that moment. She had no idea why it affected her as much.
"You're fine. Slept alright, I hope?"
"I did yeah. Thanks. Were you ok?" she asked him, finally looking up. But the blush crept right back as he pulled a twig from her hair.

He did make a good point of finding food though. She was getting pretty hungry herself after the excitement of the previous day. They'd need it for the day ahead.
"Yeah, tell me about it. I feel like a hollow pit. Even a grilled behemoth leg sounds good right now." she said as they started moving toward the mouth of the cave.

"First one to get there gets the better meal?"
Settled back into the normalcy of survival, she smirked at him. "Oh you're on." she said before both of them sprinted out of the cave. But the predators were still waiting for them.

She could see the rifle glinting in the sunlight just a few strides ahead of them as she overtook Aiden's tall frame, dearly hoping that it would still work. Just as she heard the branches and underbrush rustle along with a growl, she dove for the rifle.
"Please work, baby." she breathed as she combat-rolled to a position to aim the rifle at the oncoming predator. "DUCK!"
She then held down the trigger while slapping the rifle. Golden bolts sprang forth after the second cycle, pelting the looming predator just behind Aiden.

It immediately directed its attention towards her, which is what she wanted. She clearly remembered the marine killing the other behemoth with a shot through the mouth. So that is exactly what she aimed for as die beast dove towards her, maw agape. With another burst of particle fire, she hit it solidly in it's gigantic jaw, the golden bolts searing through the palate with the little explosions.

The behemoth hit the ground right by her, only to collapse on top of her - dead.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

"I did yeah. Thanks. Were you ok?"

"I was comfortable, yes," he said with a confident grin. Her blush hadn't escaped him entirely and he could feel some heat rising within his chest as well, but that wasn't going to stop him from maintaining that calm Marine exterior. But it only lasted a few seconds before he shifted his attention to the cave entrance and proposed his little challenge. It was meant as a minor distraction from their hunger and to keep them really focused on the first step of their survival plan.

"Oh you're on."

With a grin on his face, he began to sprint and watched as Mischa was quickly gaining ground on him. He had always been more of a brute because of his size, so it wasn't too surprising that she could accelerate much quicker. Perhaps he could beat her at long distances though...

Sadly, before he got to really test that theory, he heard the growl behind him and intentionally slowed down. She was much more used to the rifle, so allowing her to get it was the wise decision. He instead distracted the beast by literally standing in its path, making him the first target. But only a few seconds before the predator reached him, he heard her call and ducked to avoid getting torn apart.

A series of bolts struck the beast, drawing its attention to Mischa instead, and all Aiden could do was watch. For some reason, this felt much more nerve-racking than what he did the day before when he tackled a beast and killed it while it was on top of him. He felt powerless now, and all he could do was hope that Mischa would kill the beast before it killed her. Luckily, she again proved that she couldn't be underestimated, and with some clever thinking she exploited the weakness he had taken advantage of as well.

"You okay?" he called out as he ran over and rolled the beast off of her, before extending a hand so she could pull herself up. "That was some great shooting," he said as he looked down at the dead beast, "We can try eating bits of this one to celebrate, or find our luck scavenging the crash site."

"What do you think?"

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

ZOMBIE​

The dead, gigantic beast was crushing the wind right out of her.

It was bloody heavy, pinning her in such a way that she struggled to get free of its bulk.
"Cccc'monn..." she gritted in frustration as she tried pushing against the bulk.
"You okay?"
The carcass rolled off of her, fresh air filling her lungs once more as she breathed heavily while she sat upright.
"I am now. Thanks for that." she said between breaths.

"That was some great shooting. We can try eating bits of this one to celebrate, or find our luck scavenging the crash site. What do you think?"
She was breathing steadier now as she took his hand to let him help her get to her feet.
"Let's cut off what we can carry and get to the crash site. Depending on the situation, we can scrounge up more stuff and maybe have some breakfast then." she said, smiling towards the end. Even her stomach agreed with a growl.
Drawing her vibroknife, she got to work on the behemoth.

Finally, she picked up the rifle and jogged back to the cave to grab the medipack before they hit the one klick back toward the crash site. It was already getting hot and humid, despite being early. Before long, those damn midges would be crowding them again.

Before long, they reached the crash site. The grim sight that met them, made Mischa's steps falter until she stopped dead. The squadmates that the predators could get to, were torn apart, pieces of armour everywhere while the ground was covered in the dark blood of dead men. It was impossible to tell who was who now, with body parts strewn all over. It was clear the predators had fought over the food source before they had come looking for the two survivors.

Mischa's hand covered her mouth as she tried to stifle a sob as tears welled in her eyes. It was already difficult to have lost them, but to see them torn apart like this, cracked her tough exterior.

If only she had time to bury them the day before.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

"I am now. Thanks for that."

He snickered in response while he pulled her up to her feet and shook his head, "You're the one who killed it, don't thank me," he said before his attention shifted to the dead beast again. They didn't have any proper way to store meat for long, but if they cut off some of it now and cooked it at the crash site, it would likely be fine. So he nodded in agreement, drew his knife, and helped her cut away what he could.

"I let you win that race, by the way. Just for the record," he added with a challenging smirk.

The two wrapped up their business here not much later, retrieved rifle and pistol, and moved back along the water towards the crash site. But once the grim sight reached their eyes once again, Aiden's smirk faded completely. The Predators had shifted between the bodies of their squadmates and ripped them to pieces. Bits of armor, clothing, and flesh were scattered everywhere, and the ground was stained with blood.

Turning his eyes to Mischa, he noticed she had frozen up and watched her hand cover her mouth. It was hitting her even harder than before, so he stepped over and placed his hands on her shoulder to apply gentle pressure, "Here, let's sit down and let me scavenge alright?" He asked while he set down his stuff and grabbed together some firewood and flammable debris. "If you can get a fire going here and start cooking the meat, I'll look around for supplies."

He had no idea what else was around here, so he figured the distraction would give her some time to process. Aiden then turned away for a moment and walked around to find some ration packs, another pistol, and even a simple survival kit with a knife, rope, and a few other useful tools.

"It's not much, but these disgusting energy bars actually keep you going for a while, and I found a handful." Or well, he found them among the bodies, but he wasn't going to talk more about that. "You doing okay?"

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

ZOMBIE​

She was feeling sick to her stomach.

She should have expected this. But to see her comrades, that were closer than friends, strewn around so horribly, just didn't sit right in her heart.

But then Aiden's broad frame blocked the scene as he stood in front of her.
"Here, let's sit down and let me scavenge alright? If you can get a fire going here and start cooking the meat, I'll look around for supplies."
Mischa nodded as her legs buckled her onto the tree-stump behind her, not confident enough to risk opening her mouth to speak.

Instead, she started packing a fire the old-fashioned way as her vambraces had been totaled by the behemoth. The movements started easing her mind, bringing her back to the norm of surviving. While the fire got going, she pulled quarters they had cut from the behemoth closer to start cleaning the hide from the actual muscle.

She had just slapped some meat on the flames, when the marine came back, arms full of stuff.
"It's not much, but these disgusting energy bars actually keep you going for a while, and I found a handful. You doing okay?"
"Thanks." she said, although she had lost her appetite somewhat. "And I'll be fine." She placed some more strips of meat on the fire.

She looked up at the blue sky.
"It's going to get hotter than a Twi'lek on a pole today. We're going to have to hustle to get a good distance between here and the village before it beats us down properly." she said, back to business, as she looked at him. "Without the actual scans, I have no idea how far we'll have to go before reaching that village." She was going entirely off of memory with the idea.

Not ideal, but it'll have to do.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

When he returned, Aiden spent a few moments just taking a good look at her. The physical injuries had mostly healed or weren't bad enough to be worried about anymore, but the mental scars he could see in her eyes mirrored his own, and he knew they'd never truly fade. All wounds healed with time to some extent, but fragments of the pain these deaths caused would always linger and always be able to resurface during difficult times.

"And I'll be fine."

He just nodded, not wanting to put too much pressure on her by going into it further. So he sat down and watched the meat they were cooking instead, making sure it wasn't going to get burned while they were both distracted. But when she commented on the weather, he did look up and let out a soft sigh.

"We should boil some of the river water and bring it along. Just so we don't dehydrate," he said before he showed something else he had managed to scavenge — hydration tablets. "These will also keep us going for at least a few hours. The village was likely built somewhat close to the river, right? That seems the most reasonable in a jungle, anyway. So we could try following the water for as long as possible. Will help us from getting lost or going in circles."

Now that they had recovered and were getting some energy back by eating, he was doing his best to really think through the whole situation. Their cooperation and ability to stay sharp was the only way to survive. The distraction also helped with not thinking about what would happen after all of this. Them both returning to opposite sides, likely to never be in contact again, or else they'd risk serious problems. It was difficult because the longer he spent here with her, the more he was starting to warm up to her

Aiden then got up and quickly moved between the river and fire with some containers he filled up with water. It wasn't much, but it would help keep them going longer. But before making his way back to Mischa, he also picked up something else he found near one of the Marine backpacks that had been thrown around — a jungle hat.

"You want this?" He asked as he offered it. It'd help avoid heat stroke for sure. "Looks better on you than it does on me," he tried to joke, hoping to lift spirits again a bit.

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

ZOMBIE​

Mischa was glad he didn't press the issue.

Instead, they both settled back into the survival mindset. It was much more comfortable that way. Much more normal than dwelling on some emotional aspects - how crushing it was to lose her unit in such a way. But Bastion born and raised, she had that resilience in her blood to carry on, despite hardship.

The will of defiance.

Aiden pulled out some hydration tablets he had found, which could only aid them on their trek.
"These will also keep us going for at least a few hours. The village was likely built somewhat close to the river, right? That seems the most reasonable in a jungle, anyway. So we could try following the water for as long as possible. Will help us from getting lost or going in circles."
"That could definitely help, yeah. I didn't even think of that. Nice thought in following the river." she said, face perking up again. Two heads were indeed better than one - especially if both were militaristically inclined.

They snarfed down some food before stuffing the rest into the few packs they had. The energy did her good - did them both good as she saw colour returning to his face as well. It was strange how constant he had become. Difficult to think that they still belonged to opposing sides. Not wanting to dwell on what would happen after, she instead got busy clearing up their stuff while he went to get some water for them.

When he returned, he had something else in his hands as well.
"You want this? Looks better on you than it does on me."
She looked at the hat he held out to her and then to his face before a smile cracked her face.
"You have now made me curious as to what you look like with hat like that. Doubt it'll make you look like a fool." she quipped, falling back into the old routine of taking jabs at one another, a smirk on her face, not realising what she had implicated with her joking comment.

But she took the hat, nonetheless, knowing that it didn't belong to any of her folks, so it had to be from his. For that reason, she placed the hat on her head, adding a grin to help lighten the burden of the amount of death around them.
"Let's get going, then. The damn midges won't leave us alone before long." she said before she started toward the river. Them backing one another emotionally, was disconcerting. How much they had settled into one another's company. How much she had warmed to him. How they had fought for one another in such a small space of time.

It was better to focus on the trek than on the rest. How long before they reached the territory of a new pack of behemoth?

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

After eating some of the meat and drinking enough to survive in the jungle for a few hours, the two packed up and were ready to get going. He wasn't sure how long the walk would be, but even small distances could take hours in Jungles, depending on the vegetation they'd have to get through. Luckily, they'd be following a river, which made it all just a little easier.

He then offered the hat he found and smirked at the rather amusing response.

"You have now made me curious as to what you look like with hat like that. Doubt it'll make you look like a fool."

"I think it looks very cute on you, so let's not ruin the moment with me wearing it," he teased with a grin while he looked at her for a moment again. Every time they joked or had a more peaceful moment between them, he really fell into the mindset of her being his own squadmate again. It was odd at first, but now it felt normal.

"Aye, the quicker we move, the sooner we can have proper meals and showers again." It goes without saying that after some time in a hot jungle, smelling good wasn't exactly possible anymore. Luckily everything smelled terrible, so nothing stood out in particular. So with that, the two began to move and followed the river, which stretched out for miles and hardly in a straight line, making it a long walk but at least one that felt moderately safe.

"Hey Mischa?" he eventually asked while nothing interesting was happening in particular. "I was thinking. Once we leave this planet, and we both return to our 'own' people, do you think there's any way we can still be in contact? It's risky, but..." he sighed and decided to just be open. "I'd rather not lose contact entirely, you know?"

"But I do understand if it's for the best if we don't."

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

CRUEL SUMMER​

"I think it looks very cute on you, so let's not ruin the moment with me wearing it."

Mischa gave him half a pout, half a smirk.
"Now I know I look like an idiot. Shame on you." she jabbed right back as they trekked down to the river. It was hard to think that they both served opposite sides with how at ease they could be with one another. Like a proper team.

The managed to make good ground for a while, keeping a steady pace next to the water. She kept her ears open - so far, the birds were singing, which meant that they weren't being stalked yet. Hopefully.

But after a while, he broke the easy silence between them.
"Hey Mischa?"
"Hm?" she asked, keeping the pace.
"I was thinking. Once we leave this planet, and we both return to our 'own' people, do you think there's any way we can still be in contact? It's risky, but...I'd rather not lose contact entirely, you know?"
That made her slow down a bit, caught off-guard. She was silent for a minute as her mind tried to catch up.
"But I do understand if it's for the best if we don't."

She hadn't planned further than reaching the village. She had shied away from thinking what would happen after. With the tension between their nations escalated, it was an unsettling thought to think what was going to happen. But she had forfeited killing him the moment she had dragged him from that wreck. In this moment in time, it definitely felt worth the risk.

"I'd like that." she finally said, giving him a small, sideways smile. "It is a major risk, though. It can't be constant communication, you know? If the Bureau even got a whiff of something, then we're both dead and all this shit would have been useless." she added in a more serious tone, motioning around them. Her fear for the ISB was real. Too many people disappeared without a trace. She'd hate for Aiden to be one of them.

But that made her wonder...

"Why would you risk it, though?"

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

"Now I know I look like an idiot. Shame on you."

The comment only drew a bigger smirk onto his face, one he wasn't afraid to show her in an attempt to tease. Not that the hat actually looked terrible on her, but it was still very amusing to him. The joking and jabbing also helped keep the atmosphere free of tension and sadness, which given the situation they were in, was quite welcomed.

For quite a while, they kept that up as they walked along the water and kept their eyes open for potential danger. There seemed to be no trace of the predators that were bound to roam these jungles — perhaps they finally had some luck on their side. But the fact they were relatively safe also sparked confidence in him to explore a touchier subject. His question was first met with some thoughtful silence, but when she began to speak, he listened intently.

"I'd like that."

That alone got his heart to skip a beat, as it made him feel relieved — it meant he hadn't been so arrogant or foolish to believe that what he felt could be mutual. It was. "Aye, we'd have to be very careful and limit it to certain occasions, maybe," he said, his own tone serious as well as he gave it all some more thought. It was completely bonkers that he was willing to risk his life for someone he had just met, and he struggled to understand why. It just felt right. But he also wasn't the only one who wondered what sparked the proposal.

"Why would you risk it, though?"

He paused entirely for a moment by the water and looked at ripples that formed within, as the tiny waves crashed against small rocks. "Because I care about you," he finally answered, his green eyes shifting up and towards her. "After everything we've already been through, I care about what happens to you, so I'd like to stay in touch."

"As far as I'm concerned, you're like the brothers and sisters we left behind here." Perhaps even more already, but even Aiden wasn't ready to throw that out there yet. They had only just met, and it was important for them both to be careful.

Mischa Korvan ​

 

[Mischa Korvan]

RAVEN
THE EMPIRE
OUTSIDE HIDDEN IMPERIAL BASE | CAMAAS
TAG: Aiden Rennek

CRUEL SUMMER​

He stopped completely at her question.

She stopped a pace or two in front of him, turning to look at him as her hand hooked onto the rifle sling over her shoulder. He was silent for almost as long as she was.

"Because I care about you."

Her heart skipped a beat and she had to do a swallow to hide the hitch in breath as he found her eyes. She wasn't the only one, then, inexplicable and unexpected as it was.
"After everything we've already been through, I care about what happens to you, so I'd like to stay in touch."
She cleared her throat. "Aiden..."
"As far as I'm concerned, you're like the brothers and sisters we left behind here."
It was said almost as a cover-up - an afterthought. A lifeline for them both.
"Yeah." she agreed, mustering a smile. "You're a pain-in-the-ass brother." A jab to lighten the subject again before they both devolve into thoughts of despair.

Some things were better not said in the moment.

She motioned with her head downstream, the smile much more sincere this time.
"C'mon, Princess. Rest is over. Sun is drawing water." she said.
She did, however, wait for him to get next to her. Wordlessly, she bumped him with shoulder coupled with a smirk before she picked up the pace again.

Wordless, but it spoke volumes.

They had traveled for another few klicks when the birds suddenly fell silent. Mischa stopped dead in front of him, slinging the rifle into her hand.
"Get into a high enough tree. Now." she said softly without looking at him, her eyes not leaving the underbrush around them.

She slowly began backtracking with him, trusting him to find them a perch before the new danger decided to show itself.

 

[Aiden Rennek]

Caamas

​

"You're a pain-in-the-ass brother."

While he chuckled at the joke, he wasn't so oblivious that the smile and way she responded to his words escaped him. It helped him understand that the feelings were mutual to some extent, but the exact depth of them remained to be seen. Right now they had survived together, bonded over misery, and found joy in the little things. With time, so much more could be possible, but the barriers between them imposed by their factions were likely going to make things difficult.

"C'mon, Princess. Rest is over. Sun is drawing water."

"Aye, it's best we don't stay in one place for too long," he said, knowing those predators were still out there somewhere, and he didn't feel like testing his luck trying to kill them again. He stepped over and began to walk, but she was quick to bump into him, drawing a smirk onto his lips that mirrored his own. Nothing more needed to be said about it between them right now — their jokes and the way they looked at each other meant so much more.

But soon enough, a new sign of trouble revealed itself as birds fell silent.

He looked at Mischa but before he could say anything, she already ordered him to get up into a tree. "Yes Ma'am," he joked but he did listen, and quickly began to climb up into one of the trees. He was, however, not fast enough to reach the top, and seconds later she could hear rumbling in the bushes around her.

it got closer and closer and... a rat-like creature about the size of a shoe appeared, and it looked completely harmless. But the relief wouldn't last long, as a sudden shadow was cast over Mischa by a huge avian creature coming down at her and the rat from the sky above.

"Mischa!" Aiden called out as a warning.

Mischa Korvan ​