Hunting a Bane

[Sage Bane]

Sage Bane walked the sidewalks of Nar Shaddaa in the darkest hours of the night. The young half-Chiss needed to tie up some loose ends on the crime-infested planet, and former home, before he cut off all his ties completely. When his drug cartel, the Ko Hentota ,was raided a week ago by an Ession Jedi Knight, he'd been given a confusing choice: to give up his life as a drug lord to pursue Jedi Knighthood or to be thrown in jail on drug trafficking charges. As a former Hutt slave, Sage was deathly afraid of losing his freedom, so chose the path of the Jedi.

Sage spotted his familiar old sector, with its graffiti-ed durasteel walls and steam rising through sewer grates. The addict had a few things to grab from his flophouse of an apartment building, most notably a heroic amount of spice that he wanted to smuggle into the Jedi temple on Ession, rules be karked. Everyone on on planet like Nar Shaddaa had an addiction. Sage's was glitterstim. It was the eternal itch he could never scratch, but he still couldn't bring himself to kick the habit. As he rifled through his things in the one room apartment, he darkly mused that while he was no longer a Hutt slave, perhaps he had traded one form of bondage for another.

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

Nar Shaddaa, a hive of degenerates and low lives. Addiction and corruption ruled this forsaken place. And oh by all the gods was this place beautiful! Zenva loved this forsaken planet. The work was always simple, kill anyone that got in the way of her current employers. At least that's how it normally went. This one was different. This one would be fun. Live capture. Just thinking about it made her hearts beat faster and brought a smile to her face. She had to keep reminding herself to slow down, relax. It wasn't time.

She kept to the shadows, her face hidden beneath her voluminous hood. Her boot heels clicking softly on the streets as she followed. A practice that seemed redundant. Her target was lost in his own thoughts. The fool wasn't even watching for a tail. She would keep her distance, maintain the targets pace. Keep calm and wait.

The man turned off the street to make his way inside an apartment building. Perfect. She made her way in behind him. Stopping at the enterance, Zenva turned to scan the streets behind her. Unlike her target, she was cautious of being followed. Satisfied that no one would interrupt her fun, she turned inside and continued the pursuit. In time she watched the man enter his room. Now! Hearts racing, she moved up to the door. Pulling her blaster from its hulster, and let her great coat fall back around her to conceal her appearance. She pushed through the door.

Her blaster sweeps the room before settling on the back of her target. "Hello sweet meats. Nice and easy now. Stand up real slow boy."

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

As soon as Sage heard the voice, he froze. The click of a blaster coupled with the threatening words could only mean one thing. There was a bounty on his head, of course. He supposed the Ko Hentota suppliers or buyers or whoever were pissed about the drug bust, and guess whose sweet ass they blamed? Someone always had to pay for something on a planet like this. Sage chastised himself for being so stupid, gallivanting around town without a care. His body was too busy fiending for glitterstim that even his empathic Force powers had failed him.

One thing about Sage that most didn't know from looking at him, especially given his strung out, pretty-boy looks, was that he was a skillful fighter. Sage had been a slave for most of his childhood, and during that tenure, forced to fight in elaborate tournaments with other slaves. He might have been an glit-biter, but he could be a lethal opponent. Especially if cornered.

With all of his concentration, Sage called the Force to him. He wasn't trained enough to use a Force push maneuver like Master Rexus, but with his abilities, he could feel her proximity to his body. Sage put his hands up alongside his ears as he arose slowly, just as he was asked. "Well, well, " he said calmly. "I wasn't expecting company." He paused and turned his head ever so slightly so that he had her in his peripheral vision. "But since I don't like to turn down guests. Let's party, girl."

Knowing exactly where she was, he suddenly whirled around and attempted to grab the blaster from her. If successful he would grab her hand and bend her thumb back, spraining or breaking it so that she would drop her pistol.

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

Warning! Warning! Warning! Like the emergency klaxon of a capital ship, Zenva's mind filled with white noise as the man drew in the force. Taking a step forward, the blaster was levelled at the man's head. "HEY! Drop the energy kid! I don't want to..."

It was to late. The man spun and locked down on her hand. Pain shot up Zenva arm in an instant. Years of training kicked in briefly. There was only one way to keep her thumb from being broken. Letting her weapon fall to the floor, Zenva's arm buckled at the elbow. The man's own force on her arm causing it to curl back and toward her body. A cry escaped her. Part pain, part frustration.

Forget the blaster. Forget the pain. She needed to brake his concentration before he could remember how to do anything flashy with the force he had gathered. "If you wanted a kiss..."

Zenva's head pulled back just before she drove it forward. Aimed directly at the bridge of his nose. Between her horns and he own solid forehead something was sure to connect. If she was lucky his nose would be smashed like an over ripe fruit. If she was lucky he was so strung out on chems the blow would knock him to the ground. Either way, a headbutt from a Zabrak was sure to ruin his focus.

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

As the two grappled for a minute, Sage managed to bend the woman's thumb back far enough that she dropped her weapon with a sharp cry, and he cackled as the blaster clattered to the floor. The half-Chiss racked his brain. He didn't recognize the red-skinned Zabrak in the long coat, so he was now convinced she was indeed a bounty hunter hired by the Ko Hentata. Once you got into the Nar Shaddaa drug trade, it wasn't that easy to get out, after all. Sage was about to put the Zabrak in a choke hold when suddenly she did something his meager Force powers couldn't predict. And he blacked out for a half-second as horns connected with skin.

Sage felt like he'd been rammed by a Tatooine mountain goat. Pain blossomed throughout his face and he staggered backwards, crashed into his dresser. Shaking his head to clear the fog of confusion, he reached back with his arms, and grabbed whatever happened to be lying on his dresser, which was a small urn that contained tobacco for rolling cigarettes. Grasping it in his hands, he brought it down over his head in an attempt to bludgeon her with it. It might not be large enough to knock her out, but the pain of metal hitting skull might be enough to knock her over.

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

The man staggered back, his eyes rolling aimlessly for a brief moment. Enough time for Zenva to take stock of herself. Gritting her teeth against the pain she flexes her hand, and glances down for an instant. Her thumb was in the socket and still sitting at the proper angle. That was the better part of the situation. The pain was there but pain was an old companion. Her hand still functioned and that was all she needed for now. Her blaster was still at her feet but there was no time to go after the weapon. Instead she quickly shuffled her feet and kicked the blaster toward the wall furthest from her target. "Come here you chit sucking stain."

Soldiers throughout history have spoken of the battle grin. That look that comes over some warriors when they have seen too much blood shed during their career. The smile that spread across Zenva's face as she began forward again was far beyond any battle grin. This was a killer playing with it's prey. An animal out for blood. The thought crossed her mind long enough to become intent. Long enough to become desire. Blood. His blood. It called to her. Ahhh gods! She needed it. Rushing forward with single minded determination, her bright yellow-red eyes found that which called to the hunger in her. The throat and its large pulsing vein. Instanct demanded she tear his throat out with her bare teeth and drink deeply. The steel urn clipping the side of her head however, disagreed.

A full frontal charge became something of a stagger. Instead of razor sharp teeth finding the soft tissue of the man's throat, the man was simple crashed into. There was a tangle of limbs as Zenva fought to push the man aside. Her logical, conscious, thinking mind was unsure of what was happening around her. So she simply let her training take action. Her head bobbed to the right. The left arm came up to protect her head from a second blow. Her right hand exploding forward in a palm strike toward the chest. Protect her head and hopefully knock the breath out of the man.

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

The two opponents' battle suddenly became chaotic. The moment the urn connected with the Zabrak's head, Sage saw a flash of white teeth coming at him like a rabid animal's. "You frakking bugslut!" he exclaimed. Then came a moment of rough grappling for dominance. Suddenly, Sage's assailant's palm shot out right underneath his eye line, so he didn't see the attack coming. As her palm struck his chest right in his solar plexus, the force of the blow pushed him backwards, his diaphragm spasming painfully. Sage gasped for air, clutching at his throat in fear, his other hand blindly waving behind him, searching for anything to use as a weapon. His hand came up empty.

Choking and coughing, Sage found himself paralyzed and unable to focus on anything else but breathing. If he didn't get air in his lungs soon, he would pass out and then he'd be karked. As he raised his brown eyes to meet her vicious red gaze, he felt that he maybe was karked either way.

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

With no second blow raining down and the hands that had been grabbing her now gone, Zenva's training didn't have anything left for her to do. Her eyes blinked once. What happened? Why was she cowering behind her arm? Her eyes blinked again as she began to come upright. Her left arm crossing her vision for a second. Was that her blood on the sleeve of her coat? Why was her hood down? There was a man in front of her. Why was he choking? He looked frightened. Was he in trouble? Her eyes blinked a final time and came back into focus.

That no good junkie had brained her! The warmth trailing the side of her head was her own blood. "You little chit!"

Her left arm snapped forward. Not to strike him but in an attempt to grab a fist full of his hair. He bloodied her. He should have just let her take him in. Her right hand curled into a fist as she drove it towards his belly. The whole of her body pressed against his as she continued trying to ratchet short uppercuts to his abdomen.

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

Too winded to properly fight back, Sage cursed in several different alien languages as his hair was roughly pulled. His hands shot up to untangle her fingers from his hair, but she in turn pummelled his midsection with her fist. The Zabrak fought like a karking wildcat!

Between gasps for air and colorful phrases, Sage tried to reason with her as she relentlessly beat him. “Stop! Stop! Whatever...you're getting paid...I can get you....more! The Red Ravens...Can pay you...more!”

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

How was this little bastard still talking? Never mind his pathetic begging, how was this stim-sucking junkie still standing? Most humans would be laying in a pool of their own vomit after all the hits this jerk kept taking. He took another five shots to the ribs and belly all while trying to buy his way out of this? What was with this kid?

In his struggles the man broke Zenva's grip, freeing his hair and subsequently regaining control of his own head. Why wasn't he fighting back? Doesn't he realise those Ko Hentana morons were likely to torture him to death if he was brought in?

Zenva shoved herself off the man. She needed to aim not keep straddling his leg. "Hey!" Her left hand came up again, her palm open as though to slap him across the face. In actuality the hand was to draw his attention and bring his hands out to that side. Her right arm curling back to throw a right cross at his jaw. "Just go down!"

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Cryax Bane]

((Wrong character, doh!))

 

[Sage Bane]

Sage finally wrested himself free from his hunter’s grip, and he let out a sharp. “Ha!” The moment she moved back, he also jumped back crouching. His brown eyes momentarily flashed an alien red hue and then back to human. Breathless he shook his head at the Zabrak incredulously. “Come on, babe? Don’t you like credits?” he implored. “My brother’s the President of the Red Ravens. He’s karking rich.”

Then her hand came up again and Sage sidestepped to the right, roughly grabbing her left arm. He moved forward to twist her arm with the hopes of getting behind her, but a punch came up from the right. Fist connected with jaw and his head snapped back. Sage was tough for such a lanky kid and while it cracked his jaw, it didn’t quite disable him.

Finally catching his breath enough to make a move, Bane’s adrenaline kicked in. The half-Chiss grabbed each side of his opponent’s head, curling his fingers around her ears, and brought her head down at the same time as he swiftly raised his knee up, aiming for her face in attempt to knock her out.

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

Red Ravens president, his brother? There were easier lies to pass off than that one. Was he just talking out his arse or was the kid telling the truth? It didn't matter right now. If he didn't go down soon, someone was going to end up very injured. She had to make sure she wasn't the one on the ground. The Ko Hentana wanted the man alive, she didn't have that kind of insurance.

The man took the punch. Took it and kept coming. He spun back to her faster than Zenva thought possible. His thumb digging at the cut on her head as the man took hold of her. A sharp cry left her as she tried to pull free but it was no use. His knee came up, connecting sharply with her cheek. Pain! So many different levels of pain she didn't know which one to focus on. She could taste blood in her mouth, likely her own teeth had sliced into her cheek. She needed to shut him down.

Her knees felt weak. She didn't bother fighting it, or maybe she just couldn't fight it. Zenva let her left knee give out. Her coat fell away as she came to rest in a kneeling position, offering up the first clear look at her form. Skin tight black leggings clinging to well muscled thighs, an empty hulster strapped to her right leg and a skirt short enough to be attention grabbing. The tight brown corset followed the contour of her upper body perfectly. Her bright crimson skin stood out well against her bust line. Ironic her had called her babe, it wasn't far from the truth.

A desperate hand came up, trying to stop his knee from striking again. Her vision ringed with red briefly. She had to end this soon before there wasn't any fight left in her. How could she stop the man though? The MAN. An almost girlish giggle left her. Any man can be stopped. Her second hand came up in a fist aimed at his manhood.

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

As the woman fell to her knees from the force of his knee, Sage got an eyeful of her shapely form and couldn't help but grin. However, the sight left him painfully distracted. Literally. Sage doubled over in agony as the Zabrak hit him with a low blow. The punch brought him to his knees, where he was now face to face with his attractive opponent. This was getting ridiculous. One of them was going to have to say uncle eventually, especially since both of them were bruised and bloodied.

Through gritted teeth, still doubled over in pain, the silver-tongued half-Chiss tried leveling with his Zabrak opponent once again. He flashed his red eyes at her again to make a point. "I know I don't look Chiss, but I am the half-brother of Cryax Bane, President of the Red Ravens. I can personally guarantee that he will pay you quadruple what the Ko Hentata has asked for." Originally from Nal Hutta, Sage's deliberations slipped into bits and pieces of Huttese, some of the words insulting, some flattering. You'd be a koochoo to refuse this, leeah bo."

Sage stared at the horned woman with a furrowed brow, giving her the sweet puppy dog look he'd used to turn tricks on Nal Hutta. "Truce?"

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

Zenva simply stared at the man. It was several long moments before she even remembered to blink. "What's it take for him to go down?" The repeated blows to the head had taken a toll. She wasn't even aware she had spoken aloud. Slowly she forced her eyes closed again, taking a deep breath. When she opened them again the red film in her vision had faded. "Quadruple. That's a lot of money."

Zenva turned her head to one side, her eyes never leaving her target. Clearing her throat, she spit a mouthful of her own blood on the floor before turning back to the man. "Bane isn't it? Alright kid we can talk. Two rules though. First rule, you start drawing the Force in again, I'll put a hole where you teeth should be." To emphasis her point she pulled her hold out gun from it hulster on her lower back. The large barreled revolver sat comfortably in her left hand as she pulled the hammer back.

"No games kid. I'll kill you if I have to. Second rule, if you try anything cute I'll put a hole where your teeth should be." She cleared her throat again, spitting more blood to one side.

"So talk pretty boy. Make sure it's worth hearing." She would pause and narrow her eyes at him. "And what the kark did you just call me? Bugslut, than babe, and than what? Pick one kid, and be real careful which one you go with."

Aside from drawing the revolver, Zenva hadn't moved from her kneeling position. She wasn't sure she wanted to either.

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

Karking finally, thought Sage. The Zabrak had either calmed down enough to discuss the situation or he’d hurt her enough that the feistiness had gone out of her. “Do I look like I’m playing a kriffing game?” he said matter-of-factly, his hand rising to rub his jaw where she had decked him. “Geez, woman, I’ve been trying to play nice for the past couple of minutes, but you were too busy bashing my head in to hear.” Sage let out a long sigh, his heart rate normalizing, then he spread his hands in a conciliatory gesture, venturing a charming half-smile. He made no attempt to move from the floor, especially now that the Zabrak had a firearm trained on him.

“If you don’t trust me, I’ll prove it. I’ll Holo call him right here and now.” Sage knew that there was a fifty-fifty chance that Cryax wouldn’t answer, as the brothers weren’t always on the best of terms these days, but luckily the crime boss had a soft spot for family.

Then, grinning at the very attractive Zabrak with one eyebrow cocked, he added, “You know there are much more fun ways to get a guy on his knees than trying to murder him.”

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

There was no hair on the woman, but one 'eyebrow' came up nonetheless. "I was given a deposit on capturing you kid. Of course I was trying to bash your teeth in. Besides you called me a slut. A Bugslut. Remember? You deserved that cross."

Finally the Zabrak moved. With visible effort she got to her feet. "Stay there Bane. No games remember, and wipe that play boy grin off your face. If you weren't burned out on glitterstim you'd have a chance." Her gun stay trained on the young man as she crossed the room. Leaning back against the wall she would slide to the floor again. Her left knee bent and raised, the large revolver resting atop it. Her right leg stretched out in front of her as the same hand moved around on the floor. After a moment her hand came up with her blaster, which was worked back into its thigh hulster.

"You sure you want to bet everything on one call? I mean if your brother cares enough to pay your bounty four times, than why are you still in this chit-hole of an apartment? " Zenva kept her eyes and gun on the man but didn't get back up. She simply leaned her head back against the wall, one leg out, one knee keeping her revolver up. "Stop flirting kid. It's weird. Humans don't flirt with me. They ... I don't know, get a look at my face and decide crossing the street is safer."

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

Sage stayed on his knees as she'd asked him to. At her little insults he simply gave her an unflappable smirk. Unlike his brother who couldn't control his temper, Sage didn't get testy when someone wagged their tongue at him. It amused him to provoke people with his verbal jabs then stay calm when his opponents got rankled.

When she called his apartment a chit-hole the young glit-biter shrugged. "I'm not living here anymore. I just came back to get some things. Also, in case you haven't noticed..." Sage paused and let his eyes flash red like his brother's for a second then back to brown. He pointed to himself. "...not human." He gave the Zabrak a twisted smile. "Is it true what they say about Zabraks in the sack?"

Then he sighed. "My Datapad is over there." Sage pointed to the dresser across the room. "Are you gonna let me make that call or what? Or are you gonna sit there and stare at my pretty face?"

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]

 

[Zenva Vrotoa]

"Your bold kid, and you take a punch like a champ. I'll give you those. As for a Zabrak in bed..." She paused, letting the blood in her mouth wash over her teeth before smiling widely at the half-chiss. "Kick the chems and maybe I'll show you."

She still wasn't ready to stand up, so her revolver simply bobbed toward the dresser. "Alright Bane. Call your brother. Try something slick and I start shooting. Let's see how much your brother cares for his little burn out."

[member="Sage Bane"]

 

[Sage Bane]

With his mouth twisting into a wide grin, Sage arose and crossed to his dresser. Upon opening up his Datapad, he found it clogged with spam as well as malicious viruses from the various nefarious Holosites he commonly searched. But all Sage needed to use was the Holocall function which was luckily still working. Pressing in his brother's number he waited for the Chiss to pick up.

Sage rolled his eyes as Cryax took forever to answer his call, then finally an answer. Sage stood the Datapad on the dresser so that he could view the tiny blue Holo of his Chiss brother standing on its surface.

"What do you want?" Cryax asked, his tone surly. He wasn't still upset about that thing with his boyfriend, was he? It was just a kiss. He gave his brother a crooked grin and just told him the straight story.

"Seems I have a bounty on me from the Ko Hentata. I'm gonna get dusted if you don't quadruple the amount. Whatddaya say big bro?" Sage knew his bounty was a pittance compared to the amount the enterprising Red Ravens made in a day.

"Sure, whatever," said Cryax. "Give me the hunter's account details and I'll have the credits transferred later on today." Then Sage started speaking and Cryax cut him off. "Shut up and put the hunter on the line."

[member="Zenva Vrotoa"]