Team Justyx

[James Justice]

James felt her closeness.

She meant it, and that was what hurt him the most. She knew the risks and she didn't care. One day he would die, he knew that. He would die and he couldn't bare to let her watch that. One day the Prosecutor would find him, and one day he would die at his enemy's hands. He could almost see his body falling lifeless now.

No, he wanted to scream and push her away to save her the pain. Instead he swallowed and just lay there. Inside he knew that one day he would regret this, probably one day sooner than later. He let his free hand caress the back of her neck, keeping her close, "Ok, babe. Ok. Anything ye want."

Her skin felt warm and consoling against his. It was a stark contrast to the chilling, frigid air that was around them. Yes, they were two dead souls. They had lost more than others could come to understand. One day he would tell her about Leighlah, how the cave at Degobah had brought her death to mind. One day he would, but not today. Today the hurt they had was enough to last a lifetime or four.

He didn't know how long they lay there, sleep was beginning to tingle and call at his limbs when he felt it whisper in the back of his mind. Get out of there.

No, he protested inside. She was comfortable and warm, and felt so sweetly gentle. Get out of there.

Just a few more minutes, he protested, like he was bumping the snooze button on an alarm clock, Please, just... a....... few............more................. GET OUT OF THERE.

James' eyes popped open and he gave [member="Nyx"] a soft kiss on the top of her head whispering, "Come on, babe, let's get--"

Then he heard the crunch, boots on the broken glass he had made earlier.

"What the hell is this?" said a distinctly Rodien voice.

"Ugh, looks like a breaking and entering," replied a voice with a twe'lik accent. "You call it in, I will take a look around."

"Don't you wanna wait for back up?"

"This looks pretty standard, been done a few hours ago, they don't stick around," scoffed the partner.

"Ok, if your sure."

 

[Nyx]

Nyx wasn't really sure how long they lay there, just enjoying each other's company. She held herself close to him to stay warm, the air around them frigid. She had never felt this close to someone, before. These days, people only wanted her for her skills or her body. With James, it was more than that. He obviously thought she was hot, but she knew he saw beyond that. He gave her hope, resolve to resist the Darkness, to resist the voices in her head. The voices didn't like James, but Nyx didn't care.
​She felt her eyes droop, and her mind began to slip into unconsciousness, until a very familiar Miralukan voice whispered into her ear: "Wake up."
Her eyes flew open, and she nearly bolted, but [member="James Justice"] was there to hold her and kiss her forehead, urging her to leave, before being interrupted by the entrance of the Narr Shaddaa authorities.
She rolled her eyes. Of all the times for the corrupt cops to show up. . .
She slowly slid herself to the ground, her eyes remaining on the front where the cops were.
"Hmph. You want to leave quietly, or teach them a lesson for interrupting us?"
She whispered quietly, glancing at her lover. She was amiable to both. On one hand, she was pretty pissed at the interruption. On the other, she was still satisfied and sluggish.
The struggle was real.

 

[James Justice]

James lighted on the floor, cold to his bare feet. He stifled a curse. He gave [member="Nyx"] a playfully knowing smile. She was terrible at stealth, and she was freezing. He grabbed his two most valuable items in the world to him; his leather jacket and his DeathHammer. He wrapped the garment around her bare body and prepared his weapon. He shut his eyes and stretched out with the Force Sight. His time under the Prosecutor's torture had given him access to sight beyond sight. There was a door down the hall, the exact opposite to where the cops were. Still bare as the day his harlot Zeltron mother gave birth to him, James motioned with his hands for Nyx to know where the door was. He didn't know how long it was until their backup got here--or frankly how many there would be, but he wouldn't wait to find out.

Clicking the heavy blaster on he gave her a nod and caressed his lover's cheek. His body's last bits of adrenal reserve were keeping him sharp enough right now. The spacer twisted on his heel into the opening, blaster ready. The Twe'lik found his gut pressed against the DeathHammer's cold barrel.

Rage began to take over and James lost all reason. He grabbed his victim's throat with a vice-like grip as he offloaded half a dozen armor piercing-grade shots into the cop's body. Blood and gore spewed out onto the floor and his blue victim saw it all with acute horror as he began to struggle. Infuriated, the spacer slammed his victim's head on the wall. Again. Again. Again. The fifth time its skull shattered.

"What the--"

"Get the hell back," James roared discarding the body.

The rodien's beam of light lit on the spacer and its face and limbs grew weak with horror, his radio clattered to the ground, as he couldn't look away from the blood-stained nude man before him and the victim at its feet, "Oh, my, gods--"

James began advancing, his feet pounding the ground, murder in his eyes.

 

[Nyx]

Nyx blinked as he wrapped his jacket around her, confused, but glad to be out of the frigid air for a bit. She watched as James closed his eyes, and guessed he was doing some sort of sensing thing. She had always been terrible at that, preferring to use the Force to augment her already existing athletic and martial abilities. And when he motioned for her to move across the hall, she hesitated. She didn't like that look in his eye, or the way he was handling that blaster. She knew that look. She 'd seen it in too many gangsters before a job; it was bloodlust.
She slowly made her way over, making sure to keep an eye on [member="James Justice"] as he moved.

Then the shots rang out, and Nyx bolted to the entrance, and watched in horror as he brutally took out the twi'lek. She was too shocked to move as he threatened the Rhodian, but hearing his voice after seeing him perform that act snapped her out of it.
Moving quickly, Nyx used her rather limited Force abilities to snatch the blaster from James's hand, and shove the Rhodian against the wall, knocking him unconscious. She threw James's jacket at him while grabbing her own, discarding the weapon.
"You can argue with me, or we can get out of here before they discover your little mess."
She threw her jacket around her shoulders and slipped on her pants, moving to leave, but moving her head back, her blue eyes meeting the brown eyes of James.
"Coming?"

 

[James Justice]

James looked at the body, crumpled on the ground. Nyx's words snapped him out of it, silencing the raw darkside that tainted his soul.

The spacer grabbed his pants and shoved them on before buckling his holster on and adding his boots to the equation. Sirens were beginning to sound off, getting louder. How many were there? 4? 6? Either way it was reason enough to get [member="Nyx"] out of here as fast as possible.

Grabbing her hand he began sprinting away as fast as his legs could carry him. With her damaged leg he was sure it wasn't easy for her. Down three streets and two alleys into a park he ran with her and hid under a massive tree.

Crouching low he looked at Nyx, "Are ye alright?"

She probably would think worse of him for the temper. He wasn't sure if she had seen his rage before. Either way he felt guilt for her having to seen his rage like that. "Babe I--I'm sorry I just--get protective--I can't--I can't--"

He slammed his fist into the tree angrily. "Damn it."

 

[Nyx]

Nyx winced with pain every time her injured leg hit the ground as she ran with [member="James Justice"], her mind whirling. What the hell was that? She had never seen James that angry before, had never seen him act that way. She recongized it, though. That anger, that rage. She had seen it in her own eyes, when she had Fallen, when she had given in to the Darkness. She couldn't see James end up like her, she couldn't see him give in.

They came to rest at at giant tree, and Nyx braced herself against it, panting. James asked if she was alright, to which she slowly nodded. He then rambled a bit about how sorry he was, and how he didn't mean to do it, and punched the tree, obviously exasperated.
Nyx stood silent, then she did something she hadn't done in awhile.
"James, look at me."
For the first time in years, Nyx let the Darkness inside show on the surface. Her skin turned see-through pale, her veins showing clearly on her face, her cheeks turned sunken and hollow, and her eyes turned a sickly shade of yellow. She turned into the face of corruption.
"See this? This is what happens when you let that anger get to you, when you give in to that rage."
She grabbed his shoulders, and forced him to stare into her corrupted and sickly yellow eyes.
"Don't let it control you. Don't become this. You're better than that."
Her body radiated Dark power, and even her voice was slightly different, more guttural. Nyx had to be careful. Let it all out for too long, and it would be difficult to reign it back in.
"Promise me you'll try to control it, James. Promise me you won't become me."

 

[James Justice]

James watched as his lover transformed before his very eyes. A lesser being would have been appalled or disgusted. James, however felt compassion. She was an amazing woman, a very good, fun, care-free and fun loving woman. Yes she had her vices, and James did too, but in so many ways, she was more pure than him. She had been an orphan with no choice but to break the laws, he had been--well alright he was an orphan too, but he had choosen this path to try and make the galaxy a better place. Why [member="Nyx"] do this to herself?

He let one of his hands reach out and caress her damaged cheek. The dark energy was enough to make his skin feel a ting of physical paon. His eyes looked into her darkside-tainted yellow eyes and he pulled her closer, until their faces were less than inches apart. It was important she could understand this. Some were mistaken in feeling that he broke the law or hurt people for its own sake. Some thought he did it for fun. Given the past few hours, that would appear to be true. But every one of his victims, without exception had been a bad person. A worse person.

He wanted her to understand, to know. To feel what he was about to say.

"I will do," he whispered tenderly, "whatever I have to to protect the ones I care about. And that includes ye. Whatever it takes."

He licked his lips, "Ye dun't have to do this to yeself, and I know ye are gonna say its too late for ye. But it ain't. There be good in you. I know it. And there may be some bad in ye too. But that dun't make ye bad. It just makes ye normal."

A tear slid down his eyes. The emotions were strong, strong enough to send a ripple through the Force to her. He always felt a person's pain. Always, it was like a blistering sore under his skin.

"Let me help ye," he said almost commanding and almost pleadingly as he started drawing it away, drawing it like a siphon and releasing it to the ground. He had done it before, for Felicity. He had done it before for Ruby Rose, and they were just strangers. He would gladly do it for Nyx, no matter the feeling.

 

[Nyx]

Finally, she was getting through to him! She winced as he touched her corrupted cheek, and she could feel his hand twitch at the same time. She hated to have him see her like this, see the real her. Behind the mask she put on, behind the facade. She smiled at his speech, but it disappeared as he began draining the Darkness from her.
The instant she felt the power leave, the voices began screaming. The screams tore at her mind, at her soul, at her very being. Her already fragile sanity teetered on the edge as the voices tore her apart from the inside, all of her senses replaced with sheer agony. She heard another voice join, only to realize it was her own, screaming in pain.
She managed at last to speak, her eyes streaming tears: "Please, stop! Stop! They don't like it, they don't like it!"

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

Please stop! Stop! They don't like it!

James felt it more than heard it. He stopped instantly, like he had grabbed a pan that was too hot on the stove top. He didn't want to hurt her, never ever.

His arm wrapped around her shoulders and he pulled [member="Nyx"]'s small frame to his chest. Wrapping both arms around her, he surrounded the woman with his love as well as his body. He would help her, he would some how, he wouldn't give up on her. His fingers began to soothingly comb through her silky dark hair. His body rocked hers back and forth.

"Its alright, I'm here, its ok," he said softly, soothingly, willing his voice not to crack with emotion. "I got ye, nothings gonna happen to ye, yer safe."

Every fiber of his being screamed to protect her, to heal her to do anything that would keep her safe and from that again. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I dun't mean to hurt ye."

His lips brushed against her head as he just held her close. It didn't matter how long it took, he would be there. And he wouldn't leave her. He would take care of her, he swore, no matter what.

 

[Nyx]

Nyx rocked back and forth in his arms, her eyes squeezed shut, willing for the voices to go away, to stop screaming in her head. They whispered to her, telling her to do things, things she didn't want to do. They never went away, they were never quiet, they would never just shut up. Nyx knew herself, she knew that she wasn't strong enough to resist them forever. She was just an orphan from Coruscant, she wasn't meant to deal with this stuff! She was supposed to focus on making sure she had enough to eat and a semi clean place to sleep in. She wasn't meant to deal with the voices, the Dark Side, or her aching heart.
She sometimes thought it would've been best if she had died in that alley when she was twelve.

Finally, Nyx gathered herself enough to speak.
"I'm sorry. I. . . I'm sorry for not being strong enough. I'm sorry you have to see me like this."
Her sickly yellow eyes slowly opened.
"Please. . . forgive me." Forgive me for what I will do, for you are stronger than I could ever be.

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

He looked deeply into her yellow eyes and smiled comfortingly, giving her face a gentle caress. Inside he was dying, like he was being torn to pieces by a parasite that was eating him from the inside out to watch her hurt. She didn't deserve this damn it. He came closer, nuzzling her face gently. Her pain was almost palatable to him. And he would bear it with her, whether she asked him to or not.

He shifted her in his arms, pressing her chest against his, resting her hips on his. His arms cradled [member="Nyx"] close delicately this time, instead of ferociously. His nose gently eased along hers, his dark brown eyes as close to her yellow ones as they could be. He could feel her breath on his skin and it tingled. The closeness was intense, it was real, and it was tender and gentle.

"Don't ever apologize for being yeself," he whispered in his tobacco-scarred voice.

His lips pressed against hers, but for the first time that night it had no tones of ferocity or lust. It was sweet and tender. He took the time to savor her lips, how the felt and tasted before drawing back just enough to whisper, his lips still brushing against hers with these tender words, "Dun't ever hide from me. Please."

 

[Nyx]

Nyx had never felt this close to someone. He was so close to her, not just physically, but on a level she had never even thought she could experience. Only one person had seen her corrupted self, before, and it was the schutta that did it to her. Slowly, Nyx reigned in the Dark, her skin returning to it's normal pallor, and her eyes returning to their vibrant blue.
"Okay. No more hiding."
She took a deep breath, ignoring the voices.
"My first teacher in the Force was a woman named Darth Mordred. She was a Sith hiding in a cave on Tatooine, she found me dying in the desert, and healed me. She offered me power, the power to make me a force to reckon with, and like an idiot, I agreed. She . . . did things to me. Tortured me, put things in my head that whisper to me, tell me to give in, to do horrible things. She said she wanted to 'bring out the monster in me'."
Nyx chuckled a bit, shaking her head. "I guess she succeeded."
She finally sighed and sat back, her head hanging low, her face in her hands.
"I'm a monster, James. She's in my head, I know it. I. . . I can't resist her forever. You said earlier that I should stay away from you. . . it's really the other way around."
Nyx leaned against the tree, tired. She was so damn tired of it all.
"So that's it. No more hiding, right? You know. You know the truth."

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

James made a mental note of the name and added to himself to kill that son of a bith with his own hands--after he let Thraxis play with them for a few months. Or years. They would make a great pair, he felt.

He let his arm stay around her back as she leaned against the tree. She was exhausted and, frankly he didn't blame her. It had been a wild, unforgettable night in every meaning of the word. He knew he would never forget this night with her, even if he lived to be as old as a wookie.

The spacer reached into his pocket and fished out what was left of the cigarettes he had stolen earlier. He offered one to [member="Nyx"] and took one for himself. Snapping his fingers together in an act of pyrokensis, the spacer produced a flame for them to light up on. The man filled his lungs with the sweet tobacco, savoring it a second before letting out a heavy puff of the white cloud. He looked out over the Nar Shaddaa skyline. How many poor fools were out there sleeping tonight?

"Well if we are on secrets," he said softly. "Ye might as well know my big one. I got a lot of 'em but this is the big one. I were married 'afore," He swallowed and took a second draft on the cigarette before letting the smoke out in a thicker billow. His face set into a firm, stone-like expression as he thought about it a few moments before continuing. His age began to show on his face in hard lines and creases that seemed to appear out of nowhere, aging him ten, twenty years.

"She were my childhood sweetheart," he said slowly, his voice raspy. "Or as much a one as a boy raised on a tramp freighter can have one. Me da raised me, hopping from star to star, paycheck to paycheck," he sighed, "but Leighlah were always there when I came back. Always waitin'.

He paused, biting his lip and flicking the ashes off his cigarette to distract himself. "Then da died. Right in front of me. Got blasted down. It took me a long time after that to get back to Leighlah," he shook his head, "too long. Years. But she were still waitin. We got married not long after and started a proper life on Alderaan," he looked at Nyx and forced a chuckle, "can ye imagine me livin' proper? No booze. No women, no ships, just a desk job," the man shook his head again, looking away, bracing himself, "but we were happy. An' that were when she died. Her and the--" he would force himself to say it, he had to say it. No hiding, no surprises, "our unborn son."

James licked his lips before looking back to Nyx. He wiped a tear from his face and flicked it away, "That's why I can't get close to ye. I can't be close to any woman. I can't lose again. Not like that. Never again," He forced a smile as he looked into her eyes. His shoulders lifted in a shrug, 'No secrets, right?"

 

[Nyx]

Nyx took the offered cigarette, sighing as she took out a box of old matches, scraping one against the side, the match lighting with a small pop and hiss. She held the lit match to the cigarette, the discarded the now useless tool, inhaling deeply, feeling the nicotine spread throughout her.
She listened to his story, nodding slightly. It made sense. All of it. His womanizing, the dispassionate approach to life, all of it was clear to her, now. They were two broken souls, unable or unwilling to allow someone else into their aching and bleeding hearts. It wasn't hard to see why they were drawn together, she supposed.
The sliver of Light left within her, the part of herself that hadn't given up, ached in sympathy, in understanding. This night had been simultaneously the most draining and the most uplifting night she had ever experienced.
"I understand." She said quietly, exhaling a cloud of smoke into the night air. "We've both lost people, James. It does things to you. You don't recover from it, you can only try."
She held the cigarette to her lips again, inhaling deeply as she responded to [member="James Justice"].
"You know, sometimes I just want to go. Somewhere, anywhere on the edge of the galaxy, where none of it will matter. Just stay in a little hut and watch the same sunset until the day I die on that dust ball. When that happens, you want to come with?"

 

[James Justice]

James nodded. She understood on ways that no one else ever would. Sometimes people turned to darkness for pure power, sometimes they turned to it to protect those he loved. He wanted nothing more than to lose himself in some backwater hole, a clod of dirty that revolved around a fething fireball and just let the worlds forget who he was and where he was from.

He had the money, he had the ability to just disappear. It was strange that the idea had never occurred to him before. His impulsive nature said to do it, to just about won over. But he couldn't do it. Not yet anyway. He had to prepare for it, to bring the worlds to peace. One day he would be done, his work would be finished. One day women in the Outer Rim would be able to go to sleep without worrying if they would be kidnapped and turned into slaves. One day the Sith would be fully opposed in ways they should be. When that day came, he would be able to disappear. But until then, he was stuck here.

"I'll be right there with ye," he said giving [member="Nyx"]'s hair a brush and smiling, "We'll do it. One day, I promise ye."

 

[Nyx]

The woman smiled as she exhaled a cloud of smoke, relieved. A plan. Sort of, anyway. She hadn't had one of those in years. It felt good to have one, even if it was years in the future.
They sat in silence for a few minutes, Nyx finishing her cigarette. She tossed it aside, her eyes following it into it's place in the grass. She watched it burn out, her mind thinking. She had never been this honest with someone before, and it felt strange. But there was something she thought needed to be addressed. No more secrets.
"How many women are you seeing right now, James?" Her voice cut through the silence, devoid of emotion. She wasn't jealous, exactly. Okay, maybe a little. She was no stranger to having more than one relationship at one time, though it had never been on the other end, before. Were they better than her? Prettier, funnier? Would she get along with them if they met? All of these questions stuck in her mind.
She picked up a twig from the ground, twirling it in her hands as she awaited [member="James Justice"]'s answer to her query.

 

[James Justice]

James didn't even flinch. [member="Nyx"] knew who he was, naturally. Most people when they heard "James Justice" didn't think of his fleet or his criminality. Most of the time they though of his polyamorurous nature. The fact that she was his friend, and had been so honest, hadn't surprised him. He wouldn't be surprised if she had been thinking he was comparing her to the other women all night.

He hadn't. He was just trying to have a good time, and make her feel good.

Still, the question deserved an answer. He took a long puff on the cigarette, counting in his head.

"Well," he said blowing the smoke out with each word, "Depends on what ye call 'seeing,' honestly. If ye mean business partners that I have f#ck%d to get deals," he shrugged, "Since I known ye 7. One of 'em I guess ye could consider a 'date.' Then," how could he describe Anara?

A Sith Lord he owed a favor to and was helping heal mentally. Who had no idea who she was, and he was the only thing keeping her from loosing her marbles, and who seemed to be calmed by his very presence. Who slept in his bed to keep from having nightmares but he had never f&ck#d. He had a hard time believing it himself, and he was the one living through it.

He shrugged, there were no secrets so he figured he might as well be as honest as possible, "There be another who shares the same bed as me. But we ain't--ye know. She is going through--its--its complicated," he said waving it off.

Honesty right? The truth.

"How many are ye seeing?"

 

[Nyx]

Business was business, she understood that. She couldn't count how many times she'd done 'favors' for other gang leaders to prevent them from wiping the Street Rats from the face of Coruscant. She never felt anything beyond physical pleasure during those acts, however. No emotional fulfillment.
As for his complicated relationship, she raised an eyebrow. Someone who slept in James's bed, but they didn't do anything? That woman must be special to him. She felt a stab of jealousy, and looked away from him.

"Not uncommon for me to share a cot with some of the Rats. My second, Kath, is a pretty common partner. Even had a brief fling with a Wookie. None of it means much, just sex."
She sighed and snapped the twig in half.
"This complicated friend of yours. Tell me about her."

[member="James Justice"]

 

[James Justice]

James opened his mouth. And closed it. He opened it again, and closed it. Where could he start? And when did life become so complicated?

The spacer took a huff from his cigarette and let it out, trying to piece together the right way to describe Anara.

"Wookiees" he said shaking his head, "so karking hard to please. Did one once, scariest decision I ever made."

It was very challenging to feel safe making love to a being that was known to rip arms out of sockets when they were displeased. It was a choice he would rather not make again.

He paused, trying to think of where to begin. His eyes stayed on the skyline, thinking. The first rays of the rising star were beginning to peak over the buildings in a glowing way.

"She dun't know who she is," he said for starters, "amnesia. I be helping her find out who she is. Some kinda Sith Lord saber-jockey," he said with a shrug. "She has inner voices. Hears things, and says I make it feel better when I am around. She dun't care for me, she made that clear," he said remembering how the redhead had all but slammed the door in his face many times.

He looked at [member="Nyx"] and felt a pang of remorse, genuine remorse. She didn't deserve this kind of treatment. She was a good girl. A very good woman, just someone who had been dealt a bad hand.

He cleared his throat, "Look, Nyx, ye have every right to hate me. I dun't blame ye. In fact, I wouldn't doubt ye if ye gutted me and left me to die. Every right. Truth be told I dun't know if I even know what 'love' is anymore. I'm a shell of who I used to be. A broken, tattered shell. Honestly I dun't even know who that man were anymore. Or if he were even real or a thing I lied to meself and created."

He shifted his weight and gently pulled her face too look in her eyes, her deep eyes that he had seen the corruption within a few moments ago. "If ye walked away right now, I wun't think less of ye. No one would. But I do--" he stopped himself, he didn't need to give this kid anymore heartache or hope than he had already given her. "I do care for ye. And that says a lot, I dun't care for many people."

 

[Nyx]

A Sith? A damn Sith? Nyx swallowed air and clenched her fist tightly, willing herself not to comment. Nyx prided herself on keeping nuanced and balanced opinions on many groups. However, Sith was where that stopped. Sith were evil, plain and simple. She'd seen too many of their atrocities on Coruscant to think otherwise, not to mention the corruption of her own sister. She felt no sympathy for any Sith, no matter what befell them.
She wouldn't pretend she approved of James being in a semi-relationship with one, but it wasn't really her place to judge. She'd done things with people she was sure [member="James Justice"] wouldn't approve of, so why should she judge him? She wouldn't, plain and simple. She wasn't capable of approving, but she wouldn't hold it against him.

Then he was looking into her eyes, telling her if she walked away, he would be alright. That he cared for her. And Nyx had to think.
Should she? Should she just walk away, save them both the trouble? The heartache, the pain? Could she live without him?
She wasn't sure, honestly. She wanted him, needed him, but didn't want to hurt him or herself.
As much as she hated the woman, maybe Darth Mordred had the answers to a bit of this.

"James, I. . . I think I need to go for awhile. I can't tell you where, or for how long, but I need to go be by myself."
It wasn't the complete truth, but it was what he needed to know.