Sunburns & Hyperdrive Troubles

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"Well, I'm no stranger to applying lube." Kurt said almost immediately after Kaile made her joke.

A test wasn't the worst idea, in fact it was probably the best thing to do. His finger reached out and pressed against the door panel, choosing a floor at random. The Turbo-lifts inner doors shifted slightly, then slowly began to slide closed. Luckily there was no noise this time, no straining creak of shriek that echoed throughout the entire facility. For a moment Kurt looked at Kaile, simply shrugging and then watching as the doors finally settled closed in front of him.

A moment more passed, and then the lift began to raise.

Unlike the main lift, this one seemed to move at a crawl. It jumped for a second, then slowly began to move up the elevator shaft. Kurt let out a long whistle.

"I guess this one forgot the turbo, part of it's name." He said the words deadpan, looking over towards Kaile to see if he got some sort of laugh.

 

[Kaile Vera]

The joke was what the brunette needed.

A snicker bubbled out of Kaile, her shoulders shaking in her nervous mirth. "Well it is a service lift... I'm sure it does its best. It ain't the motion of the ocean there bud... it is the end point after all!" their banter had a tendency to ride the line in the metaphorical as well as literal sense. Euphemisms had a tendency to be the main objects of focus.

Afterall, once you've hooked up a power coupling, you kinda can't help but joke about that.

While they waited, Kaile brought up her datapad. With her finger, she would trace and drag across the screen. "Well, the hanger isn't too large, despite it being in a volcano... although there are smaller rooms nearby that could be for maintenance." brown eyes would latch onto oceanic blue.

"If everything checks out, we can do our retrofits here before we head out to Raxus... maybe even come back and use it again." The sky was the limit now that she thought about it. They could potentially use this bunker and more...

Hmm..

It would take another minute before the service lift began its downward descent.

"What do you think?"

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt nodded. It was a better idea to retrofit the ship here, especially if they found the proper parts and supplies. Raxus was still a ways away and if they could get The Messa fixed up a little more while they were here on this world...well it would go along way to keeping Kurt more safe of mind, especially since he was still rather weary of those wires touching and exploding them while they were flying. He frowned slightly for a moment, the lift dropping again.

"Yeah." Another nod. "Let's do that. At least get those wires replaced."

That was a big thing for him. "I don't doubt there will be a shuttle or something up there that we can scrounge parts from, if not that then maybe we can find something in those maintenance rooms. Either way, you're probably right. Better off fixing up the ship here then on Raxus."

Though he still wanted to make the trip to the junkyward world.

The lift eventually touched down on the ground floor again, it's doors sluggishly opening. Kurt watched it for a time, trying not to laugh a little bit at how slow the thing was going. He found it odd that this one would move at such a pace, especially considering how fast the main lift usually moved. A shake of his head and slowly Kurt stepped inside, gesturing to Kaile to choose the right floor. The Courier wasn't exactly sure where it was that they were going.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Needless to say, despite the agonizingly slow ascent, Kaile couldn’t help but fret with her fingers. They would interlock and lock nervously, sliding against each other back and forth as if she were waiting for something to go wrong. The only thing going for them is that it moved so terribly slow, that it didn’t have the sudden shifts or shakes a turbolift had.

“YeahwecanprobabllyjustfindwhatweneedandthengotoRaxustogettherestofthestuffinthemeantime.
Imeanwestillneedanewhyperdriveandevenifwedogetfolktobuyusanewoneweneedoneinbetweenright?” Kaile spoke so fast it was hard to make sense of what she’d said. It was her nervousness you see, her foot tapping incessantly along as they swept past the eighteenth floor.

It only grew worse at about level fifteen, when she suddenly seem to blanch. Her stomach seemed to flip flop. What… what was going on?

Was she THAT nervous about the lift? That had to be a bit extreme right? As it was, it felt as if a blast of cold air just smothered her, nausea chills rising up as goosebumps over her arms.

Yeah, definitely did not feel good.




[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

"Wat." Kurt said as he looked at her.

He had absolutely no idea what Kaile had just said or what she was trying to communicate. A large question mark sat over his face, telling her that he had absolutely no clue what she was talking about or what she wanted. He frowned, the Courier not quite sure what he was supposed to her. Her face suddenly began to turn a bright white, her arms wrapped around her stomach. Kurt eyed her, his face suddenly growing into a bit of concern.

"Kaile?" Kurt said as he stepped forward. "You okay?"

His eyebrow lifted.

What was up with her? Was it the Turbo-lift? They were almost to the very top floor now, where the hangar was located, so if that was the problem then it would be over in just a few moments.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Breathe in through the nose….

Out through the mouth…

“I’m… I’m okay. Just… tummy issues.” her voice was a bit strained, but as they neared the top, she began to feel a bit better. Kurt’s worried expression didn’t fade, and he took another step forward. Kaile, however, was just trying to steady her breathing.

It had felt the same as when she’d first had Bobo. Just, suffocating. Kaile, wouldn’t connect the nav points then, believing that this was just nerves and jitters from the previous experience with the lift.

“See… better!” her hands still cradled her belly, but she gave a weak smile up to the pilot. It was evident that the Lorrdian was just trying to reassure the courier. However, there was a bit more color to her cheeks as the service lift came to an easy stop.

“Nervous I guess.. sorry for being such a silly goose.” she apologized, a sheepish expression settling on her heart shaped face. Up ahead, it became evident that the lift simply had come to a halt to a medium sized area. It was fairly open, with natural reinforced rock walls.

It was dark which meant they had to use their flashlights. Maybe if they could open the hanger doors they’ll be able to use the natural light of the sun.



[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt eyed Kaile, somewhat suspicious of how she was acting. He was sure that there was more to the story than met the eye, but he wasn't quite ready to confront her about the whole situation. So instead he simply shook his head, his eyes drawing away from his friend and towards the outside of the Turbo-lift. He found absolutely nothing but darkness, a black abyss settling in front of them. A sigh escaped his lips, the flashlight in his hand coming up to shine it's bright beam into the darkness.

"You sure you're okay?" Kurt said as he stepped out of the lift.

There was an immediate surge of dust into the air, Kurt disturbing several centuries of particles that had lain there. He coughed, covering his moth as he tried not to sneeze. His head shook, the feeling quickly leaving his nose as he looked back at Kaile.

Directly in front of them lay a large open space, not the hangar, but a fore hangar of sorts.

It was the place that most vessels who landed in the hangar would be taken, a place where ships could freely be worked upon and repaired. It was too dark yet to tell if there were any vessels in the place, the meager beam of the flashlight not having enough illumination to even call half of the hangar into light.

 

[Kaile Vera]

"Yeah.. I just need a breather..."

She would wave him off, encouraging him to move forward. "Go.. I'm right behind you." A weak smile would see as she stepped off the lift. She took another deep breath. That had been so strange. So sudden. It almost felt as if Bobo had suddenly climbed on top of her, knocking her into his Force suppression bubble.

Another exhale, another deep breath. She then fiddled with her bag, taking the flashlight out. A twin beam would join Kurt's.

"Anything?" she asked, feeling a little bit better. Stepping along beside him, she panned the beam of light around. ".... Looks like a maintenance hanger."

Slowly, with the pilot, they began to move to explore. Off in the distance once could hear wind. Their steps would echo and a distinct scent began to tickle her nose.

Ammonia?

It was about that time that their feet would start to crunch against what appeared to be grit on the floor.


[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt had already moved forward a bit more into the hangar. There was something on the floor, a thin layer of gray that he couldn't quite identify. A frown plastered across his lips, eyes wandering around the entire room as the beam of the flashlight floated across everything inside. The small frown grew larger as he caught sight of a large black shape with wings, his eyebrow perked, his lips thinning as he wandered closer to the shape in the back of the hangar.

"Kaile." Kurt called out, drawing his friends attention.

"Wha-" A realization fell over him. "Oh."

The flashlight beam shifted over the shape, it's great black wings and slightly red tinted viewportt. "It's a ship."

An old kind of ship, not one he'd seen in years actually. The Vessel was mostly out of commission in the galaxy, but it would make sense that they found something like this here. The Old Empire had always been rather connected and all over the place, it was no surprise to him that this type of vessel would end up here. Kurt motioned to Kaile to come over, waving to her that she should join him in front of the massive bat-like shuttle.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]


“Yeah?” Kaile’s curious voice fell in line behind the pilot. The beam of light swiveled towards the direction of Kurt’s Flashlight, allowing a greater sphere of illumination to fall upon the twenty meter ship. It was black, with two folded upright wings.

Kaile’s brows scrunched up, her mind racing to see if she recognized the ship. “... looks like a Lambda… but not.” not with the matte black paint. No, this was a little bit more recent than the typical Lambda’s.

“Huh…” splitting off from Kurt’s side, the agent went on a clockwise sweep to inspect and get a closer look. It was covered with dust and about an inch of… what was that?

“What is this?” she would mull aloud. Off in the distance, there was a slight fluttering sound. Kaile immediately swung her flashlight towards the direction of the main hanger.

“What was that?” she whispered, looking at the courier. Without further ado, Kaile went to investigate. She took slow steps, trying to listen in.

Well this outta be interesting...

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt didn't follow after Kaile, instead his attention was entirely grabbed by the shuttle in front of him.

He recognized the vessel of course, he'd seen a few on Tatooine and a few more on his trips to Raxus Prime. The vessels were quite well known, or had been once upon a time, it helped that they had a rather fearsome appearance, making them look like something to intimidate the enemy. Kurt knew well enough how to make the thing work, and he walked towards it's underside in order to grab the manual release for the loading ramp. The small metal hook gave way, a hiss resounding within the hangar.

"Just the ship." Kurt called out to Kaile so she didn't get scared.

The ramp quickly fell out from under the ship, landing with a soft thud directly in front of where Kurt was standing.

With a smile The Courier stepped onto the ramp and wandered into the ship, his flashlight scoping out around the vessel and quickly looking at anything and everything. Within a few seconds he found his way towards the cockpit, his footsteps ringing out slightly against the metal plating.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

Even with the warning, Kaile couldn’t help the slight start she gave at the noise. It was quite comical really, for in the dark one could see how the light gave a twitch and a sudden upward lift and drop. Off in the distance, that fluttering and the sound of wind grew louder.

“Trying to make me pee again!” she joked, grumbling under her breath. Her heart had spiked in its beating. There was no denying that she was still a bit on edge, and honestly, who could fault her? Continuing on while the pilot investigated the curious shuttle, the agent took cautious steps forward.

Whatever lined the floor became a bit thicker, more like encrusted dirt. That scent of ammonia rose, tickling her nose and prompting a slight twitch of it. Crossing the bridge between the fore Hanger and the main hanger, things became a bit more interesting. That fluttering noise grew louder, and this time around, tiny little chirps came with it.

For a few moments, Kaile thought she was hearing things. In the distance there were a few open shafts of light barely illuminating small pin points of the hanger. Is that where the noise is coming from?

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt didn't hear the comment, and not only because he was now inside the ship, but mostly because he was completely enthralled by the vessels controls. His fingers darted over switches and buttons, the beam of the flashlight illuminating the console in front of him and giving him a few clues. He smiled slightly as he finally found what he was looking for. There was a small activation pad within the corner of the console, ten keys laid out in perfect rows.

The Courier rolled his eyes.

He had never really understood the idea of setting a lock such as this on a ship, especially since more often than not once someone got onto a vessel it was hardly an issue to activate the thing. Putting the butt of the flashlight into his mouth Kurt pulled a small pocket knife from his belt. He jimmied the blade beneath the access panel, popping off the keypad and revealing a mess of wires. He jimmied them for a moment, moving them around until he found the two he was looking for.

"Idiots." Kurt commented about the designers of the ship, shaking his head and reaching out to cut the two wires then quickly splice them together. Almost instantly the vessel around him jumped to life, the reactor within the base of the ship springing into action and the lights within the ship flooding almost instantly. The Courier blinked furiously, his eyes somewhat blinded by the sudden stark illumination that struck him.

The roar of the ships reactor would flood the hangar.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Light blazed throughout the hanger with the illumination of a small sun. The roar of the engines flooded the space, resonating in her ears as the light would blind the agent. She instinctively would shield her eyes with the crook of her inner elbow, her eyes stinging at the sudden brightness. Stars seemed to float under her eyelids, echo glimpses of the magnitude of the brightness of the shuttles lights.

Her ears rang, and her jolt of surprise would be nothing compared to what came next. For the roar of the engines would echo throughout the hanger, sending a sonic shock wave that roused the inhabitants that had called this their home for the last few years. In the stark illumination, the walls and the ceiling of the hanger began to writhe and move. It was as if they came to life, for a moment, Kaile thought she simply imagined it.

Until the blood curling shrieks cut through the wail of the engines.

Large black wings, as wide as from the tip of her fingers to her elbows took flight. Sharp teeth, pug noses, and large furred ears gave way to the colony of bats that had taken residence here. Like a massive singular entity, they all went airborne, shrieking their discontent as they attempted to flee the light.

Ohmystars. Her stomach fell in horror, stunned shock etched upon her face. Arms drew up to protect her face, feeling them fly around her. They caught in her hair, scraped at her arms. Her flashlight clattered to the ground. The grit finally made sense. It had been bat droppings littering the deck.

With a hive mind they whirl winded around the small space, sending Kaile stumbling into the floor as they lashed out with clawed feet and the flap of wings.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt didn't notice the bats, at least not at first. He was far too focused on checking which systems of the shuttle worked and which ones still needed a bit of fixing. Surprisingly, or perhaps not so much, the shuttle needed hardly any work at all. It seemed that whenever this bunker was abandoned the Shuttle had been one of the things that hadn't been forgotten or left behind. Every system worked perfectly fine, albeit a few of them seemed to be stuttering due to age.

"No-" Kurt suddenly found himself cut off as he heard a shriek from Kaile.

His eyes immediately shot up, peering out of the red tinted viewport to see a swarm of black floating and fluttering around the hangar. His eyes popped open, his mouth falling slightly as he tried to register exactly what the kark was going on. He let out a curse, then suddenly reached over towards one of the controls to the left. He pulled back on the handle the sound of whirring gears echoing out.

"Here goes nothing." Kurt said as he pressed a large button on the console. Suddenly the ship shook, two large red beams surging out to strike the cloud of creatures. There was another shriek, though this time not from Kaile. The swarm of bats began to immediately turn and swarm away from the ship, away from Kaile, in an instant they headed towards the holes which had allowed them to nest within the hangar, dozens upon dozens of them flying out and away. "Kaile!"

The Courier called to his friend as he rushed from the ship.

 

[Kaile Vera]

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

Kurt would find her huddled low, crouching down as she shielded her head with her arms. A few red lines lanced her skin, with Kaile desperately closing her eyes and attempting to make herself as small as she could. The Pilot ran out towards her, his boots a heavy tattoo that booked it to the brunette. Large hands caught her arms, dragging her upright, holding her close.

Kaile vaguely heard Kurt ask if she was okay, but all she could hear was the screeching of the bats flying out of the hanger. A shudder ran through her, and all Kaile could even think about was remembering how to breathe.

"Bats..." she stammered out. Her body was shaking, more out of stunned shock than actual fear. "Should have figured out it was bats."

Her hands curled around his waste.

"... because of all the poodoo laying around here."

Kaile was trying to be funny, as she was still a bit rattled. All the pilot could do was merely shake his head and rub her back.

"I guess the shuttle works?" her muffled voice spoke from against his chest.

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt gently rubbed the small of Kaile's back. "It does."

The grit on the floor made it more difficult to walk, making him more unsteady as he slowly scoops Kaile to her feet and lead her back towards the Shuttle. The ship was really all they needed, it computer was hooked up to the bases own latent systems and would be able to open the Bunkers doors. He knew once the doors were open that any remaining bats would very likely attempt to find their way out of the cave, and truthfully Kurt would rather not be anywhere near the outside when that happened.

"Come on." He said as they stepped onto the ramp. "I think there's a med-kit on board to disinfect those scratches."

The shuttle was actually bigger than The Messa, large enough to hold several rooms and also to contain a small med-bay, though it was little more than a secluded closet with a hard metal table that one could lay down on. The Courier supposed that the shuttle had once been used as a transport for someone important, though who that was he of course couldn't know. Nor did he actually know why the shuttle was still here, he'd have thought that important person would use it to get out.

This place held more than a few mysteries.

 

[Kaile Vera]

"Sure is big."

The Lorrdian would say aloud as they walked through the shuttle. It was larger than the Messa, a lot more roomier. Her eyes grew wider the further they went. Why would all of this be left behind? For a girl who came from scraping every credit and working to make it stretch, this was... Well all of this was just mind baffling to her.

"How could all of this have been left behind?" her confusion was riddled in her voice, and she could only shake her head. A slight grimace captured her attention, glancing down at the scratches on her arm. They stung a bit, no more than a dull ache. At least they were not deep, and instead they were superficial wounds.

It was more her pride and the start she got from the bats being there in the first place. "It don't make sense...none at all."

Kurt felt the same too, but getting Kaile to the medbay took priority. One that ended with Kaile going, "It even has a med-bay too?" in half awe. Despite being covered in bat poodoo, the shuttle was impressive.

Would we be able to keep this one? Came her initial thought, guided to sit on the singular table. The area was fairly cramped and tiny, but it would do the job.

"... what would you want to do with this one?" Kalie asked Kurt, searching his scruffy face as he bent down a bit closer to inspect her right arm. He was always taking care of her. They'd done this to each other as long as she could remember. After the fright of leaving, Kaile honestly hoped that bit would never change.

[member="Kurt Meyer"]

 

[Kurt Meyer]

[member="Kaileann Vera"]

Kurt went about slowly cleaning Kaile's scratches, using an antiseptic that he had found in one of the cabinets in the small medical-bay. He gently dabbed at the tiny cuts, wiping away any remnants of the guano that had collected there before slowly applying small band-aids to the cuts. "We use it to get The Messa."

Kurt said as he applied another band-aid.

"There's enough room in the hangar for both ships." He said as he pointed towards the cockpit. "I got a layout map of the place and can control the doors too. After we get The Messa over here we can see about what we want to do next. We still have to check all those storage rooms. If not...we can take the hyperdrive from this shuttle and slap it into The Messa. This thing is practically brand new, never seen more than a single trip i'd wager."

That was odd, but Kurt wasn't about to question good luck.

It would save them money in the long run and build up that bank from selling the vehicles, so perhaps they could get two years of wages instead of just one. It was a small thought, but it was one that Kurt liked a lot. Security was one thing, but actually having money to spend for some fun? After all he and Kaile had been through they deserved that much.

 

[Kaile Vera]

Kaile gave a small wince. While the scratches were superficial, it didn't stop the slight sting that came along with the antiseptic. With an appreciative expression, the brunette smiled up at the pilot. Wide, brown eyes would observe him as he tended to her wounds, a softening in her chest and a ghost of a smile lingering upon her lips.

To think that two weeks ago she'd given up on seeing him again and having him here was rather mind-boggling to her. Maybe that was just how things were meant to be. Taking a moment out of their rather long excitable day, Kaile just drank the sight of him. From the mess of his brown hair, to the half week of scruff on his face, and the bright blue of his eyes.

There wasn't a spot that she didn't know on him, hadn't traced or mapped with her lips, hands, and everything in between. She knew him, and after the confession earlier today, really knew him. That made her heart flutter a little bit in joy. That things now, after everything, may get back to where they used to be.

I'd like that. A lot.

"Yeah, using this hyperdrive would actually work better." she confirmed allowed, acknowledging his idea. "If there are tools to help us out and make it easier, all the better."

It was less time salvaging on Raxus after all.

By now, the bats had all but left, leaving them with a wide open hanger. Investigation would bring them to find the console that would open the blast doors, airing out the place.



[member="Kurt Meyer"]