The Force of Fear

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac's hook worked as intended but he quickly learned that Kay was not about to act passively. Mac was proud of her will to fight, he had previously thought that she surrendered too easily. [member="Lady Kay"] kicked up at Mac's already weakened knee, landing a strike with a crunch. Mac swore loudly and holstered his left ax so that his hand can reach down and comfort his knee.

"Karking Hell."

His knee was definitely busted, Mac could feel it. He stood up, seemingly ignoring his knee, and brought out his ax again. The blow to his knee clearly angered Mac, he had been taking it pretty easy on Kay and turned himself into a practice dummy. However the pain that Mac felt nearly sent him in a rage. He was breathing heavily, eyeing Kay who had taken the opportunity to rise back up. His jaw clenched and he jostled the axes in his hands. He could easily kill Kay right now and a part of him was tempted to, or at least kill something. He flexed his muscles. The axes felt good in Mac's hands. He certainly felt powerful. But Mac resisted his urge and reigned himself in, exhalingdeep breaths. This wasn't going to end like his spar with Ellie. He wasn't going to have another episode. Mac closed his eyes in meditation. Most of the time, such anger and pain and emotion helped him immensely in winning fights, but at other times, it proved to be a danger to those around him.

He opened his eyes and looked at Kay, his demeanor shifting noticeably. Mac offered a small smile as he holstered his axes. "Good job, Kay. You have improved quite a bit in a short amount of time. However, I don't think it would be wise to continue for today." With the rage subsiding, the pain set in Mac's knee. He swore again and dropped down.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay winced as she heard his knee crack. It gave her the time that she needed to get up, and so she did, rolling herself away before getting to her feet. Her eyes remained fixed on [member="Macoda Haberon"] as he swore. The anger in him was easily seen and felt. Did she go too far?

She stayed where she was as Mac calmed himself down in near meditation. As he did so she relaxed her stance, yet still she was on alert in case he was faking her out.

But he wasn't.

Mac's compliment brought a smile to her face, but that quickly faded as soon as he dropped down. "MAC!" Kay rushed to his side, near his injured knee and knelt beside him. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you so badly!" She gingerly placed one of her hands near his knee. "I can fix it, if you'll let me. I used to do this all the time when my late husband would come back from battle or a duel." She knew that Mac was afraid of the Force, as it was probably only used against him. But here he had a chance to see it being used in a good way.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Damn this hurts.

As [member="Lady Kay"] rushed to Mac's side full of concern, the pirate couldn't help but chuckle in an effort to stop her worrying. He wasn't used to being a target of concern and it made him a bit uncomfortable. He smiled nonetheless, "I'm not dying, Kay. And you did great, you'll give any bounty hunter a run for his money." Mac sat up and his hands went to his knee very tenderly. In truth, Mac was no stranger to injuries although a broken knee cap was a first. He looked over to Kay as she offered to heal his busted knee.

With the force?

"Nah, thanks Kay. I'm ok really." Mac denied the seriousness of his injury. He knew that he would heal from this, though it may take a couple weeks. Mac tried to stand up with the help of Kay, although the small queen couldn't provide much support to a figure of Mac's stature. He grunted as he stood up, and gingerly eased weight onto his left leg. Searing pain shot through his knee and Mac clenched his jaw, his fists tightening into muscled balls. He let out a loud frustrated grunt that his damned knee won't work properly. But he wasn't one to complain, least of all about injuries. He took another step forward and experienced the same results.

Ok maybe this could take several weeks.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay frowned a little as [member="Macoda Haberon"] denied her helping him. She understood why, yet she had felt that maybe, just maybe, he might have trusted her enough to allow her to. But instead his habitual fear of the Force took over.

She helped Mac to his feet, however it was difficult and she had to really widen her stance in order to not fall over. He took first one step, and then the other, wincing and grimacing in pain. This would take them quite some time to get up the stairs to the medical wing. "Please, Mac? We don't want you to trip on the stairs and injure it further. I know what I'm doing and it won't hurt at all. I promise....It's the least that I could do..." Luckily he didn't have to worry about medical or losing his pay. Universal healthcare was a wonderful thing on Commenor.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac's hesitation was a mixture of the fear of the force and a little of his own pride. He wasn't used to care or concern after all, nor did he have any love of the force due to his past experiences. However one look at [member="Lady Kay"] who was clearly there to help him, and Mac knew that he was being unreasonable. He looked at Kay and relented with a small smirk. "Alright. Thanks Kay."

Mac struggled to get to the stairs, but when he did, gently lowered himself onto the step with the small amount of support that Kay could provide. He used both hands to carefully outstretch his leg in from of him. He began to feel nervous, and his good leg jittered with anxiety. He exhaled not out of pain but out of uneasiness. He felt like he was pinned to an operating table, and he was very protective of his injury, like a great bear licking his wound.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay was glad that [member="Macoda Haberon"] gave in, though she knew that he wasn't entirely comfortable with it. He was nervous too. The bounce in his leg, the look in his eyes, his breathing, all of that was evidence of his discomfort. She met his eyes and gave him a playful grin to try to ease his tension. "Well we can't have people finding out that you just got beaten up by a lady, now can we?"

She took a hold of one of his hands, while her other was gently placed on his knee. Kay then closed her eyes and concentrated, focusing on the Force that surrounded them. It had been a while since she had used it in such a way, but like riding a speederbike, she remembered. Kay visualized Mac's injury in her mind, spotting the fracture on the kneecap and how the joint was out of alignment. Already liquid was forming to protect the joint, yet she began to repair the damage on the molecular level. It wasn't quickly done, as she wanted to do it right. Mac would feel the warmth of her hands as well as a bit of heat around his knee while it healed.

Ten minutes later, she opened her eyes and released his hand as she moved her other from his knee. "Better?" Kay made no move to get up yet as such a thing always zapped energy out of her.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac laughed at [member="Lady Kay"]'s comment. He fired back with his own snarky comment, still somewhat nervous, "My lady, if you thought that I was trying then I am insulted." He offered a grin, fully aware that he was letting himself be distracted. She took his hand into her own which surprised Mac at first, he wasn't a very touchy-feely person, but it did soothe him. He allowed Kay to place a hand on his knee and he squeezed her hand in both pain and anticipation.

However when Kay began to work her magic, Mac loosened his grip on her hand, although he never let go. His other hand gripped the ledge of the stair he was sitting on. The sensation was weird to say the least. His knee cap tingled, he could feel it move back into place. However he felt no pain, for it had stopped as soon as Kay began to repair it. His heartbeat dropped a little and his nerves calmed. He took deep breaths as she must've worked for ten minutes. She was strangely warm to Mac, it was pleasant, as if she was radiating with warmth.

Mac was in disbelief the whole time. He didn't understand this, didn't try to understand. How could the force be so comforting? He felt like he was a child again, completely at peace. He had never experienced such a feeling like it. Mac didn't know what he was expecting when he finally relented but it surely wasn't this! He looked at Kay, just speechless. She was practically radiating!

How?

As she finished, the warmth began to subside, as if it was sucked back into her. Mac was stunned. He carefully bent his knee, and it worked perfectly. No pain, no broken knee cap. He looked to the unbelievable woman beside him, wide eyed. He had never witnessed the force be used for something so good. Normally it stood up the hairs on the back of his neck or induce a panic attack. But this? This was just.....

"Unbelievable"

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay could see the shock and awe in [member="Macoda Haberon"] 's eyes as he looked from her to his knee. She smiled a little and let him have his moment to test it out, while she glanced over at her water bottle on the floor. When Mac spoke again she looked up at him. "Well, it wasn't exactly magic. Your own body has the same ability to fix you. I just helped it to move a little faster, in the same sort of way that bacta does."

She slowly got to her feet and tested her balance a little before heading over to retrieve her water bottle. "Now you've seen one of the reasons why I keep my abilities a secret. It allows me to heal my wounds and pretend to be injured so that I can escape. I've used that trick a couple of times." Kay picked up her water bottle, opened it and gulped some of it down. "The same skill for healing can also be used to pick locks." She tapped her left temple. "You just need to be able to visualize what you are working on." Such skills had been used by thieves as well, but thankfully she wasn't one.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac tested his knee again. It was as good as new. He got himself off the stairs and took a few cautious steps forward before realizing that his knee was completely and totally healed. He bent down and felt his knee cap with his hand gingerly, admiring [member="Lady Kay"]'s handiwork. Mac was still in awe about Kay's force powers and only managed to get out a "Yeah" after she explained how she healed him.

Mac looked over at Kay and nodded at her in acknowledgement.

"Thank you."

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay had another gulp of her water as she watched [member="Macoda Haberon"] test out his knee. It was a little funny to watch, especially with how he was nearly speechless over it. She closed her bottle and walked over to him. "You're welcome, Mac. It's the least that I can do for you."

She approached him and gave him a light hug. "Next time you'll get more of an equal chance to hit me. There's an old arena in the Twin Canyons, full of pillars and such. That could serve us better than these catacombs do for practice. Have you got any other tips for me in the meantime?"

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

The hug caught Mac off guard and at first he didn't know what to do. After standing awkwardly for a second, he gave [member="Lady Kay"] a large bear hug in return and rested his head on hers. He couldn't remember the last time he hugged somebody and the small gesture touched him. Had it really been that long? Mac tried to play it off though. "Just don't die on me, Kay." Mac offered a short laugh and they broke the hug. "Is there anything else, my lady?" Mac had nothing really planned for today after all.

 

[Kay-Larr]

The hug was a sign of trust. She shared some of her secrets with him and in return he kept her safe and was teaching her different ways to defend herself. Despite the rocky start to their friendship, [member="Macoda Haberon"] had proven himself to be a great asset to Commenor, as well as a loyal friend.

She laughed at his quip on her not dying on him. "I'll do my best." Kay started up the stairwell and thought of what else it was that she could need from him at this moment. "I'm not sure. We could probably use a rest, or at least I know that I do after healing you. I could use some tea and a bit of food. Then perhaps if my schedule allows, we could give the arena a try. Unless you've got other ideas?"

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac followed [member="Lady Kay"] as they walked up the stairs together. "I must admit I am curious about the arena." Mac wasn't lying. This was the first time that he had heard of an arena hear on Commenor. He wondered if they had pit fighting here too. Maybe he might enter once for old time's sake if there were any pits.

Still, after his punching bag massacre and the training session today, a rest good do Mac some good as well. He looked up at Kay who was a few steps in front of him and he wondered what she did in free time to try and relax.

Probably not pit fighting...

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay gave [member="Macoda Haberon"] a little nod of which he could see a bit of as he walked behind her up the steps. "The arena it is then, after I get more energy. I'll need to be on the top of my game in order to stand a chance against you." She had no plans on using the Force to help her, not unless she was injured quite badly.

Once they were back on the main level, she led Mac over to the kitchens. Most probably figured that Kay always had her meals prepped for her, but there were times when she cooked for herself. She hadn't always had a high position in society. There were times when she had nothing at all. "Are you hungry? I can cook us up some bantha steaks. Or would you rather something lighter?"

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac smiled at the offer. Food sounded fantastic as all the sparring and punching left him starving. "I'm not known for being light, my lady. Bantha steak sounds delicious." Mac grinned, for all intents and purposes, he was a carnivore. He went over to help [member="Lady Kay"] prepare the food. Mac wasn't used to being waited on after all.

He turned to Kay, "You have done very well in our first spar. How much fighting experience have you had?" He knew that she probably didn't have much fighting experience, but he was curious nonetheless. Did she have some sort of master that trained her with a lightsaber or something? Or had Darlyn taught her a few moves prior? For how close the two have gotten, Mac realized that he didn't know that much about her.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay figured that all of his meals were big meals, but one never knows. With [member="Macoda Haberon"] taking care of preparing the steaks, she readied the cast iron pan on the stove, melting the butter and adding in some herbs and spices.

As he asked about her fighting experience, she didn't hesitate in her response. "My first husband taught me a bit. Although he tried to keep me away from fighting as much as possible. Then I learned from experience during my slave rescue missions. After that I learned other techniques, using the Force, but mostly in shielding myself from harm." And now she paused, taking a breath as her mood dropped down a bit. "After I was captured and tortured by the Sith, I was taught to kill and to fight some more. However everyone that was put against me were weak individuals that were broken. They were allowed to die, to have their suffering end, whereas I was not." She picked up the steaks and placed them into the hot pan. "I think that now, my biggest threats are bounty hunters and assassins. Like my first husband, Veiere wants me to stay away from conflicts. But that doesn't mean that I can't learn how to defend myself."

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

The Sith training didn't make any sense to Mac. There was nothing one could learn from slaughtering the defenseless. Once a person is dead in spirit, killing them is like killing a wounded animal, done for the sake of the animal and not for the benefit of the killer. Still, Mac didn't want to question it as he was in too good of a mood to talk about Sith and the Force. He turned to [member="Lady Kay"] as he was preparing the steaks. Her comment about the slave rescue missions peaked Mac's interest. "How does the Queen of Commenor get into the slave liberating business?"

 

[Kay-Larr]

At least the topic was kept to something that she was more comfortable with. She glanced at [member="Macoda Haberon"] for a second or two before returning her attention back to the steaks. "Oh I wasn't a Queen back then. I was a Senator for the Republic. I encountered the Hutt Cartel during a diplomatic meeting and their leader Sempra...well let's just say that the things that he did was my inspiration. I operated outside of Republic space and did so on my spare time. I rescued over a thousand slaves through various missions of hiring mercs, or operating by myself. They put up a large bounty on me then, and for a long time I was hunted by hunters everywhere until I was caught. Thraxis was a pirate working for them. He and I have been rivals for a long time. During one of my slave missions, he had me caught and I woke up in a mental institution that he created. He still insists that I'm crazy and the evil one, but he's wrong..."

Kay wasn't innocent anymore and had done bad things like commiting murder, but she wasn't herself then, and she had a Sith Lord pulling her strings. But now that she was no longer under their influence and some of her memories were being restored, she liked to think of herself as being a better person.

 

[Hadrian Bjormund]

Mac laughed, "There is no need to convince me, Kay. From what I can tell, you aren't sooo evil." Mac offered a teasing wink. [member="Lady Kay"] was by far the kindest force user that he has ever met, although that really wasn't saying much when considering his past experiences. Mac continued as he prepared the steaks, "You know, I was a slave once... I had a falling out with a friend and she wanted nothing to do with me. So, I left and drank myself unconscious in a street gutter on Zeltros. Next thing I knew, I woke up in chains on a flight to Loovria where I fought as a gladiator." Mac instinctively rubbed his tattoo as the memories came back to him. "I had always had a talent for fighting, I had fought alongside my father during clan wars on Fornow, and I had tried my hand at pirating, but in the fighting pits and the arenas of Loovria was where I truly learned how to fight." Mac reflected on his time as a pit fighter, he had killed some of his own friends. But he also had learned a lot about himself in the process.

 

[Kay-Larr]

Kay smirked as [member="Macoda Haberon"] teased her. She'd of shoved him, but as the two of them were cooking over a hot stove, it wasn't really a good idea.

She listened to his tale, half surprised to find out that he was a slave at one time. Kay couldn't imagine being one, but perhaps in some way, during her captivity she was one. She had no freedom, couldn't eat or drink until they allowed her to. She had to do everything that they wanted or suffer brutal retaliation. It was one of the worst times that she could remember.

Kay let Mac keep an eye on the steaks while she prepared some tea. "Well we can enjoy this meal to celebrate our freedoms and the good fortune in our lives." Another thought occured to her, one that will cause her to shuffle around more people, but she had time. " Tomorrow I'll have to show you the different secret passages and tunnels throught the Palace. One of these days we may come under siege, and it'll be good for you to know of them. And I like my steak well done, by the way, but still juicy."