Miss Me?

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

His fingers gently traced up and down her spine, slowly following the trail all the way down her back before sliding up again. "Not Coruscant."

He confirmed as she slowly pulled away from his lips.

Kurt had never even wanted to visit the place, mostly because of the Sith that controlled it. There were many worlds in the galaxy, many places to go, many places to live. Not all of them were comfortable, some were downright torturous, but he knew that he would find something. This wasn't just for him, this wasn't just for a selfish need to grow, it was something that he and Jamie could share, something that his girlfriend, his best friend, and whoever else was important to him could have.

Perhaps it was time to start looking.

"Rishi is nice." Kurt whispered as he pressed his lips against her neck. "If you don't mind the pirates."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Pirates?" She questioned. "What exactly do you mean?" Why would Kurt want to live someplace where pirates were common enough to mention, or worse, if they controlled the planet? Jamie had little knowledge of that world. It was rarely mentioned, save for in passing by teachers or her parents. It seemed like a pretty uninteresting place really. "Have you ever been there?"

There were occasions where it was painfully obvious to Jamie how little she knew about the galaxy in comparison to Kurt. This discrepancy was disparaging on some levels to Jamie, as she felt like she was always asking him about things that perhaps other people knew more about than she. It made her feel childish, or ignorant, or even a little inferior. She wanted to learn and know things, but her life was spent in a very confined and defined bubble until she left Naboo.

"What's it like? Aside from the pirates that is?"

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He smiled slightly. It was funny how their relative knowledge sometimes counter-balanced so well. Kurt had never lacked for a need to know about the stars, Even as a kid he had made it his business to look at different worlds, trade routes, hyper-lanes. He had always looked up, and always wanted to know where and what everything was. It was that part of him that yearned for more danger, more speed, the same part that made him such a great pod-racer.

He would always find the fastest track, the most dangerous way.

"No, I've never been there." It was something he had always wanted to do, go to Rishi and simply explore, but he'd never quite found the time. "It's the beginning of the path to the Rishi Maze. It's tropical, warm, sits higher on the x axis of the galaxy then any other world. No government controls it, no organizations really touch it, Rishi is a little bit more on the wild side."

Kurt liked that thought for some reason. "It's warm, from what I hear. Like Spira, unless you get closer to the poles."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"A place with no government, no laws, and no formal security forces?" Jamie's face went blank as she stared at Kurt. He knew how she felt about places like that. It made her nervous at best, and at worst, afraid. Perhaps she wouldn't always be afraid of such places, but right now, with limited training and no weapon to speak of, the idea of living in such a place where the law was only as good as the one who could enforce it frightened her to no end. Clearly that was what made it attractive to pirates. "I don't know about that. Living someplace where the only thing separating crime from law was the eye of the beholder."

There was already so much Jamie could do with the Force, even if most of it were mostly smoke and mirrors tricks, but it was hardly a formidable means of protection for herself, much less so of anyone she truly cared for. Kurt had military training and an abundance of practical smarts whereas Jamie had neither, but was that truly enough on a world so seemingly hostile? She wasn't sure it was worth the gamble.

Running her hands over and down his chest she began to curl her fingers into a scratching motion until she reached his waist, returning to a soft gliding motion around his hips until she grabbed hold of two fist fulls of his rear with a smug grin.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He mused for a moment, his fingers tracing down her spine again as he tried to contain a small bit of laughter that came from seeing the look on her face. "Rishi is a bit different then Tatooine."

One hand slowly snaked lower, thumb hooking in the top of her swimsuit.

"There's no direct government, sure.." The other hand sailed just as low, his other thumb joining the first in hooking at the top of her swimsuit. "But, Different sectors of the planet are controlled by different groups. There's pirates, yeah, at Raiders Cove. They don't allow any trouble because it would be bad for business. There's also the Rishi villages, and of course..."

He kissed her, pressing his lips hard against her. "There's the wild side of Rishi. Warm beaches, everlasting seas, waterfalls, islands galore, but we can go somewhere else if you like. Dantooine, Borleias, maybe even a place like Rinn."

As Kurt spoke he slowly trailed his lips against her skin, kissing down the length of her jaw and to her neck while his thumbs slowly began to climb down her thighs.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie felt her head fall back, mouth agape as breath after breath remained the only noises she were able to make. Once again her nails dug tightly into Kurt's soft flesh the more he manipulated his hands on her.

"Mhmm...Pirates at Raider's Cove....Villages and warm beaches and waterfalls." Another gasp of oxygen was drawn in by starved lungs. "We can go wherever..." It was rather obvious her mind had fallen away from actively participating in the conversation, and was more or less on autopilot as she simply repeated his words, reveling in the sensation of his hands on her body and the bliss of the warm water and beautiful scenery surrounding them without a soul for miles. "Maybe Rinn, yeah..."

For a few short moments her eyes shuttered, the moment capturing her body and mind together. "Kurt." Was there actually anything more to say? "Kurt." It seemed more so that hearing herself call for him was more self-serving than anything, as he'd begin to feel her body pressing more and more against his the more she repeated the single word. It was then she opened her eyes, looking past him and further into the clearing. For just a moment she swore she could see the tall grass moving against the direction of the wind. It was then the tone of her voice adjusted from sultry to curious. "Kurt?" That's when she caught glimpse of it. There was in fact movement. A pair of bright yellowish eyes reflected light for just a moment before disappearing. "...Kurt....Something's watching us..."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

His hand stopped a soon as Jamie said his name. He frowned for a moment, his fingers lacing around her upper thighs and his thumbs slowly unhooking from the cloth that had been lowered half way. His gaze fell on the pool of water in front of him, the waves having stopped as soon as their movements had come to a standstill. He watched the reflection, trying to see something, anything that she was talking about. Kurt's lips only thinned when he saw nothing there.

"Sweetheart." His voice was calm, steady. "I need you to take a breath."

He could hear the slight bit of panic in her voice, but that wouldn't do them any good. She could use the force still, that gave them an advantage.

There was a chance that nothing was there, that they were alone and that Jamie was just imagining it, but Kurt wasn't going to risk that. He trusted Jamie with his life, and if she said that she saw something then Kurt would believe that she had. It was that simple. "I need you to use the force, and bring my blaster over here, okay? Slowly."

That was one benefit of your girlfriend training to be a force wizard.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Oh--Okay..." Her voice had soured from carefree and jovial to dismal and afraid. She wasn't certain what she saw, its' size, or anything. All she saw was a pair of yellow eyes and a bit of movement before it faded from view. Thought she did see something. Okay...The blaster isn't far...You can do this... With one arm firmly hooked around Kurt's neck her free hand reached forth toward the blaster. It was difficult to calm one's mind and dull the senses enough to focus solely on a task and object when the very real fear of something lurking in the distance watching you was at the forefront of your mind.

Still, she would give it her best shot. Finally she forced her eyes closed, feeling and seeing through the Force the short distance away. At first it was nothing more than an object in a massive sea of texture, buried beneath layers and layers of fuzzy objects. With more effort she focused herself and narrowed her search, peeling away the layers of the world around her to locate the blaster that belonged to Kurt. Got you. She said to herself, though she may have spoken aloud, she wasn't entirely aware of what her lips and vocal chords were doing at the time.

With a bit of a nervous shake the blaster began to rise from the ground and float towards the two, though twice it fell back to the ground beneath it as she struggled with her self-control and concentration. If the situation were in fact dire, she knew she would never be able to successfully pull off such a stunt at a moment's notice.

At long last the blonde felt the handle of the blaster in the palm of her hand. Releasing a gasp of air she relaxed her mind and dropped her arm down, still holding onto the weapon as it hung just above the water in her grasp. "Got it."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

It wouldn't do much good in her hands, at least he assumed so. For some odd reason he had never seen footage of Jedi or Sith using blaster weapons. Perhaps that was because Lightsabers were so much better, but Kurt had actually no idea if that was true. "Okay."

He said the words quietly, still unsure of what Jamie had seen.

On the one hand it could be an animal, on the other it could be a pirate or something of the sort. Part of him doubted that it was the latter, mostly because if they were human, or even aliens they very likely would have already come out of the jungle and shot them, or taken them captive. That made him think that it was very likely a creature of some sort, and that meant it was likely intending on eating them. He frowned for a moment then slowly slipped his arms up Jamie's thighs and to her lower back.

His fingers laced gently around the handle of his blaster.

"On three." Kurt said quietly. "I want you to turn around and run in the opposite direction."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie gave him the most absurd look she could form on her face. Nose crinkled to the left, lips thinned and pushed in the same direction. The girl's blue eyes squinted, and brows furrowed. She wasn't keen on the idea, but that would be plainly obvious to Kurt by the sheer look of contempt she was displaying.

"Absolutely not!" She exclaimed, though her voice was still a whisper. "I'm not getting out of the water and running anywhere! Are you forgetting I'm partially naked?!" Her face began to redden a bit. Even in the face of potential danger she was still incredibly modest. "Besides! I'm not leaving you, even if it's just to lure whatever it is over there out." She shook her head defiantly several times.

"No, absolutely not Kurt Meyer!"

The tall grass just ahead would once again shiver, something was definitely moving out that way, though what it was she could hardly tell.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Kurt balked for a moment.

"So?!" What did nudity matter when something was about to potentially eat you? "Whose gonna see it, the plants?"

Of course that wasn't exactly the thing he should have been focusing on, but it was also the thing that made him smile a bit. Even in the face of danger Jamie chose modesty over her life. There was also the sentiment that she wouldn't leave him, though right now he was rather annoyed with that idea. Not because he didn't appreciate the love and devotion, but because he wanted to see her live. If one of the two of them had to face any sort of danger, whether it be a monster or a man, Kurt would much rather have it be himself then Jamie. "Look."

He began to whisper, hearing a feint growl of some sort.

"I'll be fine, honey. Whatever's there can't get to me before I get to it." That was almost assured. Despite being a pilot Kurt was excellent with a blaster, and he was confident that he could take down whatever was going to come at them. "I don't want you getting hurt."

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"I'm not a baby!" She shouted in protest, before quickly covering her mouth from the sudden involuntary burst of frustration, her eyes widening in a moment of panic. Correcting her tone, her voice fell back to a whisper as she continued. "I can help! I can take care of myself you know! I'm not some helpless girl of the court that needs to be coddled from danger! I'm not going anywhere."

The blonde slid herself free of Kurt's arms, releasing the blaster to his hands and allowing herself to float a foot or so away as her eyes shifted from his to the rustling brush a short distance away. The growl was low and gave the impression of a large animal. It was quite possible that there were more than one, if this was a pack hunter. She certainly wasn't going to just run away from Kurt, especially if that were the case. Then they'd be in even more danger.

"I'm not going to get hurt." There was also the fact that her ankle was still not quite up to snuff, despite having feigned that she was in fact as good as new when they'd left camp. It was still sore and unfit for strenuous activity. Of course she wasn't about to inform Kurt of that tidbit of information, at least not yet.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He frowned, but they didn't have time to argue. Whatever creature was on the other side of that Jungle wasn't going to be waiting around for them to have a full conversation about what they should do. Shifting slightly the Pilot made sure that the blaster was okay, the old hunk of rust charged and ready to fire. The frown on his lips extended slightly, Kurt shifting in the water to half look at Jamie were she was now. A shake of his head, but finally he spoke again. "Alright."

There was no point in arguing now.

"On Three." The pilot said quietly. "One, two, th-"

Kurt didn't have time to finish what he was going to say.

As soon as he hit the first syllable of the last count the creature that had been stalking them made it's move. The beast pounced from the jungle, not a Nexu like Kurt had been talking about earlier, but a Manka Cat. The creature bounded forward with a roar, pouncing towards Kurt as he half turned and fired his blaster.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"Oh gosh!" She screamed as the beast came barreling forth from the tall grass in the distance. Its' teeth, long, sharp, and gleaming were bared in eager anticipation of its' fortuitous prey. Its' massive legs were covered in toned muscles. Clearly the animal was well suited to the terrain and hunting, allowing it to scale great difficulties and chase its' prey for long distances if need be. The blonde had seen a couple of these in the past. A traveling circus had brought with it a mated pair of Mankas. They were much smaller in size than this particular one, but were incredibly majestic and frightening as well.

The real question was if this was the only one on the island, or, at the very least, interested in snacking on them. "No! Don't!" she shouted as Kurt squeezed the trigger of the blaster, knocking it away and off target before he could potentially kill it. That softer side of her came to the forefront at the worst of times, but she couldn't just kill the animal simply because it was obeying its' natural instinct on its' own land. Of course, that still left the massive cat on its' war path coming straight for them, and likely a very angry Kurt. Without thinking the girl held out her hands and pleaded to whatever Force Gods there were. Quietly, within the confines of her own mind she made some kind of attempt to beg the galaxy, the animal, and the Force.

Please...Stop! We don't want to hurt you! As she attempted some kind of one-way discussion with the creature her head began to ache incredibly, as if a wealth of pressure was focused on the front of her cranium. Her face made a noticeable grimace, but for a second she could almost see, or, feel the cat through the Force. There was hardly much time to evaluate what it was, and her head hurt so much now. One last time she pleaded silently to the cat as it drew ever closer toward the two in the water. We're not your meal! STOP! The final word sounded almost like thunder crashing in her head, resonating through her core. It felt unlike anything else before, as if she could hear herself echoing in the mind of the animal. It frightened her, but there was little more she could do before she felt the grip of consciousness slip away.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Miraculously, amazingly, the creature stopped.

Kurt would have thought it impossible, he would have thought it entirely out of the question, but the creature seemed to simple stop. It stood in front of Kurt, growling loudly and watching Jamie for a moment. The pilot knew almost immediately what was at fault, and in truth he was too stunned to understand exactly what was happening. He looked at Jamie, half angry, half surprised, entirely concerned. His eyes bulged out of his head as he saw the struggle on her face, the effort she was exerting and then the sudden fall into the water.

"Jamie!" He cried out as she splashed into the water, a tiny ripple of water crashing against both him and the Manka Cat. He half turned, almost lurching towards his girlfriend when suddenly a loud, almost shrieking growl caught his attention. The creature, though temporarily kept at bay and docile by Jamie had returned to it's aggressive form. The Manka Cat had been startled by his yell, angered by their trespassing. It lurched forward, It's maw open and it's claw swiping forward towards Kurt.

"Kark!" The pilot yelled as he rounded on the creature. "Kark kark kark!"

He fired the blaster, but not towards the creatures heart. Instead he shot it's leg, the force of the blast striking the beast and sending it reeling back. It hissed, but Kurt was already on the move. He dashed towards Jamie and scooped her up, free arm throwing her over his shoulder. Kurt ran from the pool, shooting above the Manka cat's head and keeping it at bay, the creature being weary enough of the blaster bolts not to follow.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Big as it was, the fire from the blaster and the initial searing pain it felt after the first shot was enough to keep it from pursuing further. It backed away a pace or two, eyes still glaring towards Kurt and Jamie as he made his escape with her out of the water and atop a few large boulders by the edge of the pool. A snarl and a roar later the beast turned, limping its' way back into the jungle from whence it came. Just before reaching the edge of the clearing it paused, its' head craning back once more to get a look at the two, then licked at the fresh wound it had received, disappearing into the grasslands like a phantom shortly after.

Only another minute or so would pass before Jamie's blue eyes fluttered open, a disorienting daze engulfed her vision as she struggled to focus on anything in particular. A couple of groans would let Kurt know that she was at least awake, had he still kept her in his arms by then. There was an aching pain at the back and front of her head, as if she had been hit from behind with a durasteel bat, only to be hit again from the front. What was that? She pondered for a second, before her consciousness reminded her of the situation as it were before she had passed out. This revelation alarmed her, "Kurt what happened?!"

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

He was still running through the jungle when Jamie began to stir on his shoulder, the young woman jostling slightly as he jumped over a knot of roots that had grown together on the ground. The pilot was breathing heavily, his chest rising and falling and his shirt damp with sweat.

Kurt fell to the ground as they reached a soft spot within the jungle, a small clearing that had formed between four trees. Jamie was placed gently on the ground before him as he collapsed, his head dipping forward as they rested on his arms. Sweat poured off of him, his eyes closed as he tried to regain some of his composure. The heat was striking him harder than it had been before, sweat was pooling on his back and he felt like he was about to pass out.

"You..." He breathed out. "We almost got eaten."

The statement didn't come with anger or disappointment, it came with a mixture of fear and pure exhaustion. It was clear that the incident had shaken him. "You passed out. The Manka came after me."

It was then that he noticed a scent in the air, the distinct air of copper floating into his nostril as blood slowly seeped down his back.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie picked up on the tremors in his voice. Kurt looked visibly frightened, something she hadn't yet seen in him before. The sweat pouring off his soaked body only served to emphasize the look of exhaustion. Somehow he had managed to get them to safety though. Jamie was unclear of what exactly had gone on in those last few moments before she blacked out. There was a memory of her slapping the weapon away from Kurt when he attempted to kill the animal, and a throbbing pain in her head as she did something through the Force. Even now she was entirely unsure of what exactly she was doing in those final moments. But whatever it was, it was far more dangerous than she'd realized, and likely resulted in her losing consciousness for several minutes.

"I'm sorry. I don't know what I was th-" Jamie stopped mid-sentence, feeling droplets of liquid fall to her stomach. The color was what concerned her. Red? "Kurt you're bleeding!" Suddenly that feeling of panic returned. The girl scrambled from underneath him to sit up for a better look. "Oh my gosh! Kurt!" There was a set of perfectly lined gashes along his back from the swipe of the massive cat's paw. "This is bad!" What have I done? Her heart sunk in her chest, her stomach felt nauseous. If she hadn't intervened this wouldn't have happened. "You need bandages and stitches! Those gashes are big!"

Perfect. This couldn't possibly be any worse.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Kurt let out a dry chuckle, though doing so caused an arc of pain to run through his back. He winced slightly, looking half over his shoulder so that he could see Jamie. "I don't think we brought any of that."

There was a medkit on the boat of course, but getting there would be difficult and well...he didn't feel all that well. His head was beginning to spin, the blood loss compounding with the heat in the air making him feel rather woozy and dizzy. His hands fell forward gripping one of the thicker tree trucks as he tried to steady himself from falling over.

"Maybe..." He trailed off for a moment as a well of blackness came to his eyes, nearly taking his vision. "Maybe we should head back to the boat."

Kurt had booked in the direction of the boat, so at the very least he knew that they were near it, though where exactly he wasn't sure. His head was hurting too much to think about it, he felt weak as though all of the energy had been drained away from him. The grasp on the tree in front of him loosened slightly as he began to slip, his strength ebbing away.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Okay...Okay....Okay...Think Jamie, think!!!

The blonde was clearly panicking, her face flushing bright red, beads of sweat washing over her forehead and neck. Or was that just the heat? Maybe both. Who knew? It was hardly important in the spur of the moment. Kurt was in dire need of medical attention, and Jamie was hardly qualified for such.

What do we do?!

"Kurt I don't know what to do!" There was a clear sound of dismay and fear in her voice. Her hands began to tremble as she examined the cuts. "Can you walk? I don't know if I can carry you." A small quiver of her lip was stifled by an attempt to bite down and hold back the tears that began to well in her eyes. "I don't know where we are." Scanning the area she searched frantically for any kind of landmark or vantage point or even something that could be used to temporarily stop or slow the bleeding. Certain berries or fruits she knew could be used as a paste once crushed into pulp and thickened with a bit of shredded leaves. Perhaps that could work at least temporarily.

"Wait! I've got an idea." She said quickly, rushing off to a small bush about twenty feet away. Disappearing into the thicket Kurt would see the rustling and crunching of twigs and branches as Jamie struggled a bit to peel away dozens of berries, using her boots as buckets to carry them while also making sure to take with her a few thick leafy covered branches back towards her love.

"This should work I think." Jamie examined the outer skin of the berries before sinking her teeth into one, ensuring that the taste was sweet and citrus flavored and not sour and acidic, lest she risk infecting the wound with an acidic or poisonous fruit. "Yes, this should at least help curb the bleeding until we can get you back to shore. Just give me a minute to mash these down."

[member="Kurt Meyer"]