Heat of the desert (Nimue/Dass)

[Preliat Mantis]

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Dass hated Mos Eisley more than most. To him, it was a representation of all that he hated about his home planet. It was dusty, dirty, and they tried to act like it was the cultural center of the universe in some parts. He would rather prefer that the entire planet be abandoned, and the sands of the desert to simply wash away the entirety of the city. But, it was here to stay. It'd been there for years upon years, centuries and about every major empire. Gulag plague, what may come you- it was still standing, if standing meant that it was a huddled collection of huts and below-average citizens.


But then, there were some real pieces of crap. Like the Hutts. Dass had been contacted about a job, transporting one [member="Nimue Stormson"] across the desert to a Hutt's compound. A Hutt that preferred to operate on his own out in the desert meant that he was especially scummy, even for a Hutt. Either way. Take a speeder. Drop off the girl. Wait in the speeder. Drive her back. Make easy money. Dass was leaning on a landspeeder, one that could handle the dunes- it also had a rare feature for vehicles- no top (for the moment, it could be put up for overnight trips).


Dass was leaning on the speeder, his rifle draped in the console of the speeder. Bolt-action .308 sniper rifle. The one that the Sith gave him to kill bad guys with. He tapped his foot on the ground, observing the spaceport exit. He presumed the person he was transporting knew what he looked like, so he wasn't afraid of a case of mistaken identity. He just wanted to get off the planet as soon as possible, and get his money. He blinked behind his sunglasses, a must have for the desert.


He brought an extra pair, because he figured that she would probably forget to bring some.

 

[Nimue Stormson]

Empress Nimue already didn’t like the planet Tatooine. Is was far too hot and dry for her liking. Of all the planets she’d been to over time this one had seemed the most desolate and barren pf places anyone could live on. It amazed her that this was a place some people called home; sentient or animal.​

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But she wasn’t here for the sights or whatever sort of “fun” could be found on this dust-ball of a planet. She was here on business. One of the Hutt’s, the species that apparently had a lot of hold over this planet, had contacted the Empress for business dealings. Given the power the Hutts had she knew they could make for a valuable ally. So she’d agreed to set out and meet with them, taking a small squad of guards with her to be safe.​

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However upon arriving on the planet Empress Nimue found things going from bad to worse. The pilot of the shuttle provided to her had brought them to the wrong place. Not intentionally but because he was told to by the Hutts, since the Empress was to go alone with the one contracted to take her there. It was then he brought the Empress and her men to meet with [member="Dass Tallav"] , already waiting by the speeder.​

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Not knowing this the Empress felt a little overdressed for the occasion. She wore her usual regal gown but it wasn’t layered as usual. Coming from a temperate to basically colder type of world she would often wear furs as part of her attire. Instead she had smaller cape with thinner robes that were short-sleeved. She still had boots on but less expensive in appearance. She still, however, sported a crown with long golden horns; a symbol of her power and authority.​

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Looking at him, less than happy, she asked “Am I to assume you’re here at the behest of your Hutt masters to bring me before them?”​

 

[Preliat Mantis]

So she had an attitude. That was annoying in of itself. She definitely didn't look the part, given that she was wearing a shiny golden crown and all in the middle of the desert. He hoped that no sand-raider villages would be nearby en route. That'd be annoying. He sighed and got a good look at the queen, or Empress or whomever she was. He'd only glanced over the dossier to be honest. He tapped the speeder, obviously annoyed. He'd make sure to put the throttle aaaaaalll the way forward to get this over with quickly.


"Do you have eye protection? Don't want you getting crows feet. Also, I'm going to have to ask you to take off the crown. Sandpeople like shiny things. They also like to shoot shiny things."


He turned his head, towards his rifle. Slugthrower. .50 calibre rounds. Camouflaged with wrappings that made it appear to be part of the dune. Electronic scope. He reached behind him, into the speeder, towards the pair of sunglasses, and held it out for the Empress. This was going to be fun- taking someone who had no idea what the desert was like, into it. In contrast to her elegant dress, he was wearing cargo pants, a digital desert pattern, and wearing a black t-shirt, with a shoulder holster for his sidearm, a standard-issue Sith blaster pistol.

"Also, I'm a freelancer, so please don't assume that I'm working for the Hutts. They hired me for my expertise, and the fact that not a lot of them wanted to tote around royalty."


[member="Nimue Stormson"]

 

[Nimue Stormson]

The first thing that annoyed her was that he didn’t show her respect and bow to her or the like. Even underlings like him should have shown some curtesy. But then followed his blunt talks of telling to get rid of her crown and needing eye protection. She could already tell that this vagabond of a man was going to be a nuisance during the trip. She’d just have to do her best not to talk to him during the whole time. His last comment about the Hutts not wanting to deal with royalty had made her scoff at him, not saying anything but making it clear she wasn’t interested in his opinion.​

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Finally taking his word at least she removed her crown and kept it under her shoulder. One of her men gave her a pair of goggles for the trip, she thanking him before strapping them on over her head and eyes. The two large black covers protected and hid her eyes from everyone.​

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After that she passed [member="Dass Tallav"] to get into the speeder while saying “Shall we be off then?” in a smart-mouth tone.​

 

[Preliat Mantis]

"Nice goggles."


He gave a static glare, rolling his eyes behind his sunglasses, before leaning back in the speeder's driver's seat. The speeder hummed to ignition at his request with a turn of the key, and he leaned back for a moment, rubbing his face. He clearly was not thrilled with the idea of taking her there.


"Coordinates say we should be there in about three hours. After that, we have about four or five hours of sunlight left, and I don't feel like getting eaten, or worse, so I expect to be back before then, because I'd rather not stay at a Hutt hotel."

He had to admit she was pretty, at least.


"Also, if you could avoid talking to me for the three hours we have to go, I'd appreciate it very much."


[member="Nimue Stormson"]

 

[Nimue Stormson]

Taking her spot in the passenger seat the Empress was careful to keep her crown on her lap during the trip. She kept it a little covered thanks to her dress but had to resort to putting it down near her feet for the majority of the trip. Hearing the man give his whole talk about time and all that she was thinking to herself how three hours would be long for a speeder travel; even longer without needing to talk with him.​

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When he’d mentioned not talking she retorted with “Believe me, I’d like nothing more.”​

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[member="Dass Tallav"]​

 

[Preliat Mantis]

He braked. Hard. They were barely outside of the city, but far enough for it to be an uncomfortable, but not dangerous walk. He stopped the speeder, and glared at the Empress.


"On second thought, I'm gonna ask you to drop the attitude before I drop you off so you can get chopped up and eaten by the sandpeople or ransomed off by jawas. I don't have to do this, and you don't need to go to talk to those Hutts. I can make them pretty angry at you, so for the love of the twin suns-"


He turned and removed his sunglasses. His tone was cool and collected, drawl and all.


"Have some hubris."


[member="Nimue Stormson"]

 

[Nimue Stormson]

His sudden stop made Nimue almost lurch in her seat before they’d come to a halt. She turned, about ready to say something at him, before he began his little rant against her. She scowled at him underneath the goggles. Her eyes may have been covered but she was looking ready to slap him for speaking to her in such a way. However, given the heat and the fact that this missions seemed important, she instead chalked it up to not being worth her time.​

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She turned away from him and said “Very well. I apologize. Now may we please go?”​

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[member="Dass Tallav"]​

 

[Preliat Mantis]

He smiled. So he made a small victory. Just enough to give him just a bit of a rush. He forced the throttle forwards, and the speeder began to shoot across the desert.


"In an about an hour, I'm going to tell you to get down and stay down for about twenty minutes. We're gonna be passing through sand raider territory. They don't like males, but I hear they like beautiful women."


Dass eyed his rifle. He flexed his fingers. [member="Nimue Stormson"] could note that he had a small tattoo, rather innocent in appearance all things considered. It was a circle with a V shape through it, and a line going across the V shape. The line extended outwards of the circle, just barely. It was on his ring finger, on his knuckle. He clucked his tongue, glancing over at her. He decided to make conversation. Solely to annoy her.


"Ever done it in a speeder?"

 

[Nimue Stormson]

While she remarked at his tattoo Nimue didn't say anything about it. Hearing his instructions she only nodded while staying silent. She was trying to enjoy what she could from the trip, which wasn't alot. She only looked out to the horizon, admiring the few oddly shaped rock formations and the occasional long distance view of something like a sand crawler or a heard of Bantha. His question about "doing it in a speeder", however, made her looked at him in a gross manner before looking away. She would be really glad once she was away from [member="Dass Tallav"] once this was all over.

 

[Preliat Mantis]

"If you don't say no I'm going to assume the Empress has a dirty secret that everyone wants to know and I'll be sure to tell everyone when we get there."


He feigned surprise.


"I bet it was someone rather...important. Maybe a Jedi. Maybe a little family in there? I know how you royalty like your family a little too much."


[member="Nimue Stormson"]

 

[Nimue Stormson]

As he continued to talk and make his guesses the Empress only huffed a smirk. He thought he was going to get some sort of dirty secret on her about her sex life? Truth was that almost anyone she met knew about it; at least those she felt were worth her time. Royals. A Jedi. Sith. Men. Women. It didn’t matter to her. She had her reasons for each encounter, some more complicated than others, but it was clear that she wasn’t one to shy away from sleeping with someone she found attractive. She wouldn’t say that to him however. The last thing she wanted was for this vagabond to think he even had a chance with her, compared to the others she’d slept with.​

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[member="Dass Tallav"]​

 

[Preliat Mantis]

"I'm gonna tell everyone that the Empress of Effart likes to bang her siblings. Maybe that's how you got power...."He turned and wiggled his eyebrows at her, smirking. They were about ten minutes from the trouble spot in their journey.


"I can tell you don't think very highly of me."


[member="Nimue Stormson"]

 

[Nimue Stormson]

At the mention of her “sleeping with siblings” she looked back and finally slapped him across the cheek. He may not have known it but that was a sensitive subject for her that he had no right to talk about. Her past had involved something similar, but given the end result she didn’t even want to think about her sibling or how he and the rest of her family treated her.​

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“You will not speak about my family, or my sexual partners, or anything else for this entire trip! Is that clear?” she half shouted at him for what he’d said. Nimue didn’t even bother with answering his questions.​

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[member="Dass Tallav"]​

 

[Preliat Mantis]

The slap came across his cheek like a thunder's boom, turning his head with the force. It didn't hurt- he'd endured worse in basic training and other operations. But he struck a nerve. Definitely. He sat in silence, before turning his head towards her.


"I'm sorry if I struck a nerve. But if you think for a second you have any real power over me because of your position- remember that your title only matters to those people who care about it."


He turned his head forward, the sands rolling over the zooming speeder, and the sunlight glinting in his sunglasses.


"Still haven't answered the questions though."


He smirked, eyeing his rifle at his side. Trouble spot was inbound.


[member="Nimue Stormson"]

 

[Nimue Stormson]

Turning to him she’d said “Title or no title, you don’t ask anyone that. Or make such disgusting assumptions about them. It’s rude and debasing. And because of that, along with all your other little transgressions this trip, I’m not giving you the satisfaction of an answer.” She turned and remained quiet again, indicating she wasn’t going to shout about telling him to be quiet anymore. At this point there was no use wasting her breath about it. Best just to not let him think he had some sort of gain over her. ​

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[member="Dass Tallav"]​

 

[Preliat Mantis]

"You clearly haven't met me yet."


He was about to say something else- when a large red bolt streaked across the dunes, and slammed into the engine of the speeder. The speeder whirled and hollered, alarms in various forms going off. The cover went up quickly, giving them a thin metal protection from the impact. Dass forced the Empress down by pushing her head down, while he braced for the impact, trying to maintain some control of the speeder.


The impact was hard- the dunes were unforgiving impact zones, but they slowed down considerably after impact. The speeder wasn't too damaged, besides the engine block being shot out. Dass blinked, his sunglasses chipped and broken. He had to move quickly, despite his aching muscles and jarred structure.


Rifle. He had to get the rifle.

He turned and gripped the polymer guard, and exited the deposited vehicle. Another shot. Sloppy. He was sloppy. He crouched against the speeder, waiting again. The bad thing about blasters- he had a general idea of where the assailant was. He stood up slowly, placing the barrel on top of the speeder, and leaned up slowly. Their attacker, was wearing brown. Brown against tan didn't work so well in the long run. Especially when Dass put a round through his face- and saw the round exit somewhere out his back. Blood splattered against the sand, and Dass looked downward, checking the area, before crouching to peer inside the speeder.


"Engine's out."


[member="Nimue Stormson"]

 

[Nimue Stormson]

The Empress felt ready to say something to him before the sudden shot rang out. She ducked her head down and felt as the speeder came to a grinding halt. She stayed down the whole time, only perking her eyes up just to see what was going on. [member="Dass Tallav"] had his rifle out and fired, Nimue peeking over to try and see what it was he hit. It wasn’t until he’d relaxed, obviously killing whatever attacked them, which she heard him mention the engines were out.​

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She gave a groan and said “Terrific…”​

 

[Preliat Mantis]

He turned the rifle around, as he heard the screeching sounds of a raiding party. He dug his heels into the sand, and began to slowly lumber up the dune. He peaked over, before pushing his barrel through the very top of the dune, and letting his scope rest over it. Two Tusken Raiders, waving their clubs. Dass relaxed his body, and put them down like the animals they were. He worked like a machine, the bolt action rifle doing it's job to tear them apart. The two shots weren't head shots- good snipers like Dass went for body shots. More damage. More things to break, burst, or tear. Hearts. Lungs. Livers. Kidneys. More internal bleeding. Quicker, more guaranteed kills.


"Empress, I suggest you start thanking me now. Also, your rate just doubled."


Ammo was expensive, after all.

[member="Nimue Stormson"]

 

[Nimue Stormson]

When he turned and fired Nimue ducked out of instinct. Of course when it was over she looked back to where he fired before seeing him standing there and making his little quips. She frowned at him before removing her goggle, tossing them into the speeder before needing to get out herself. Her horned crown was still in the speeder, however, as she walked over to him.​

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In answer to his quip she said “Whatever.” After that she looked around before going back to him and saying “Well? What now? Do we walk or wait for help? You’re the expert on this planet.”​

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[member="Dass Tallav"]​