Unexpected Meetings

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

He felt her relax against his side, a sign that she had fallen asleep.

For a time he didn't move at all, simply sitting within the darkness of the cave. He watched the lights within the forest. They spread around for a time, looming, searching, until they too began to retreat. Eventually they drew back to a point where he could no longer see them, likely withdrawing to their camp or a new place to rest.

The pirates knew theyd have a better shot finding them during the day.

His eyes didn't leave the forest however. He still watched, gaze never shifting away until he felt Taheera shiver at his side. The girl had withdrawn into herself, curling away from the cold. He frowned for a moment.

His arm snaked around her, and with a simple and gentle tug he drew her closer against himself, allowing her to take in more of his warmth.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

There was something calming about the light just before pre-dawn, the warm glow that was held just below the horizon. It ushered in something promised - that the sun would rise. That light filtered into the back of the healer's and manbun's cave. There were a few caws of morning birds and other wakening wildlife as the forest began to transition.

The light pressed against her closed lids, tugging the healer back into the world of awake. Stomach growled. Green orbs slowly opened. She was curled in a tight ball against Val's chest, cradled on his muscled thighs. Her own muscles were tense and tired. Must've been from the cold last night and the cold she was feeling now.

"You never woke me," she whispered an accusation. He could of course, sleep now. If he hadn't already.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

He had never woken her, but only because sleep had never really worn down on him. Sleep often didn't come to him all that easy, not since Aerith had passed away, and being in this cave didn't make it any easier. Besides, the fish from last night had helped keep him energized, and he hadn't seen the need to take away any of her rest. He was still fit to fight, and once he ate something else he'd be even better. It was how he had always worked.

In the PDF the others had always called him a Vampire due to his propensity for staying up all hours.

"No, I didn't." He said simply, his arms still wrapped around her though he made no move to shift her away from him. "Wasn't tired."

The explanation was simple, but truthful. In the end it was important that she got more rest. If he got hurt during a fight it wasn't a big deal, she could always heal him, but if she was too tired to concentrate? Then she wouldn't be able to heal. It was simple logic once again, the kind that Val apparently really liked to stick to. "Besides, you looked far too cute while sleeping."

He offered a smile.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

She laughed and finally willed her stiff limbs to move. "Does that line work on all women?" Scooching carefully off his lap, she stood slowly, fingers going to work out the knots in her lower back. She massaged that area as she wandered over to the entrance of the cave and peered out.

"I need to get some fish because I'm starving." She began jogging in place, hands moved to rub her arms up and down, trying to restore blood flow. At least a little warmth was returning because the cold was all the more noticeable no longer curled against the crazy, viking stranger. Fingers then moved to tie chestnut strands of hair back into a simple ponytail.

"Any activity last night? Do you know if any of the pirates camped near us?"

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

"No. They camped back in the clearing." Val said with confidence. "They made a fire."

It had been a stupid thing for them to do, but then again they weren't yet afraid. For all they knew both he and Taheera were little to no threat, so why worry about them being hunted? There was a logic too it, one that Val could see, and one that he would soon abuse. A small smile perked at his lips, though it wasn't because of anything Taheera had said. He shifted slightly and looked up at her, watching as she jogged in place and began to rub herself all over.

"Perhaps you should head back to the village and gain some supplies. We can split up for the day and meet back up here." He spoke carefully, not wanting her to throw the idea out immediately.

If they did split up he could keep the pirates busy, she could contact her fellow Jedi, and he could...well he could start with the Killing.

A good plan really, though one that she would perhaps object to. If he were alone out here by himself there was more danger to him, he could get killed or captured himself, though of course the latter option didn't really bother him so much. He would make for a difficult prisoner.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

Lips pursed in thought and she turned away from the entrance to glance back into the lightening darkness of the cave at Val. "It's a risk. If they saw me or picked up my tracks and followed me to the village....," voice trailed off.

But what she wouldn't give for something besides raw fish. AND another jacket. Then again....

"I'd have to see if my friend could help. Everything I owned was on that speeder." She was referring to the Bothan, of course. Her favorite shirt was in that bag. Those pirate scumbags. And something else was bothering her. Chestnut brows knit together.

"And whoa-whoa-whoa. If I go, what will you be doing?"

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

"I will distract the pirates." He said simply, slowly rising from his place against the wall. "Making sure they look to me, and not you."

That was the only way she would make it back safely.

Val had a pretty good idea of how he could get the pirates to focus on him, more so how he could get them to focus away from their new little base of operations. The cave was a good place to sleep, and if they could get some supplies for the next night...well then things would work out much more nicely than before. He shifted slightly, walking past Taheera and towards the edge of the cave so that he could actually stand up to his full height. The crack of bones could be heard as he stretched to his full height. "Don't worry about me."

She really shouldn't.

His plan didn't involve running headlong into the pirate camp, that would have been suicide, rather it was the beginning of something a bit more...subtle. Their original plan still had to take effect, with him picking off as many pirates on their own as humanly possible. They were no match for an army, and that was no more false than it had been last night. Slow and steady won the race after all.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

"I'm not worried about you," she slipped past him and squatted, turning around, she began to scale down the rock wall. "I'm worried about the pirates." Would he offer any of them a chance to surrender? Would they even think about taking it? Rocks skittered down as she made her descent. "It'll take me a couple of hours to get back there and a few more to get back here."

Maybe more if she had to move slower and worry about stealth and she'd have to travel back light. A speeder would give her away. She'd only be able to pack what she could carry on her back.

Feet hit the first ledge. Arms stretched for a moment before she started the second descent, looking up at Val as she went. "At least I'll be able to get my hands on an outside comm." Stomach grumbled. "And maybe some bacon."

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

Val didn't follow after her, stopping at the edge of the cave to keep talking to her.

"The pirates will live." For now. "I need them alive to do what I want."

He needed the supplies she would bring back, needed to make sure that she would be able to live out here for the next week or so. Once that was sure, then he could begin the killing. For now however he would only distract them, and figure out exactly what they were up against. That was most paramount to him, knowing exactly how many pirates there were, what they had brought, and where they were based. The main Camp was likely somewhere in the mountains, and he intended on finding it.

"I'm going to start a fire, draw them to the east, then I'll find their camp." He sounded sure of himself, no worry of capture.

"I want to see what we're up against." Val told her as she descended to the second ledge. "It should cause enough of a commotion to let you slip by unseen."

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

"Alright, well," her feet hit the ground and she called up to him. "I hope you know what you're doing, big guy." Quarter-turning, she surveyed the brightening forest. Senses in the force stretched forward, probing. The icy feeling of danger wasn't immediate. All good signs.

"See you on the other side and don't do anything too stupid." He might not see the smirk from the ground. Turning, she took off in a light jog. She'd follow the river for awhile and then cut back into the woods. The river would be too exposed but for now it offered the easiest trail back the way they had come and toward the village.

Ponytail bobbed back and forth as she ran. A light sheen of sweat was already to start on her skin, making her clothes damp. But the good news was, any lingering chill from the morning air was gone.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

"Better get a kiss when you get back!" Val called after her as she rushed into the forest. He watched her for a few moments bobbing and weaving between trees. There was much to do still of course, but...well for a few seconds he just needed to rest. The day ahead of him wasn't looking to be the most relaxing, and catching a few moments of peace was never a bad thing. As Taheera disappeared into the forest Val closed his eyes. He took a deep breath, chest rising.

The wind gently tugged at his clothes, cool, but not cold as it had been the night before. Slowly he took in the sounds around him, the rushing river, the tweeting of birds, it was all part of this. Val let go of the breath in his lungs, shaking slightly as he opened his eyes and peered down into the valley below.

Slowly he stood, eyes opening.

The Pirates had made their camp in the clearing that Taheera's speeder had been destroyed in, that meant they were north from here. If he was to draw them to the east Val would have to make a bee-line, hopefully they would take to his distraction and go after the fire he was going to set. The Warrior took another deep breath, and then jumped from his place at the caverns Edge. He landed with a loud thud, knees bending as his boots pressed against the dirt.

For a moment he looked around, then rushed off towards the east.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

By the time she entered the village, her clothes were sticking closely to her skin. Hairline dripped with sweat. With a little negotiating, she got some more supplies. She also put in a call to the jedi guardians and explained the situations. Unfortunately, they wouldn't be able to get out there until three standard days. But when they did get out there, they agreed to make it so everything mined would go to the villagers. They'd all get standard ownership deeds.

A silver lining to the otherwise challenging situation.

Could she and Val keep the pirates occupied until then? The good news was, most of the villagers had already evacuated. Comm tucked safely into the backpack with some other supplies, footsteps carried her back into the tree line. The sun was high in the sky. It had taken her a good half of the day to get where she currently was. By the time she made it back to the cave, it'd be dark.

She hoped he was still alive.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

The fire that he'd created turned out to be rather bigger than he'd expected, perhaps he should have used less wood. In truth it wasn't a bad thing, though when the trees surrounding the blaze began to catch a flame a part of Val was rather concerned about what would occur. Eventually however he left the fire behind, the blaze smoldering everything around it and hopefully attracting the eye of...well everyone. He headed North soon after, making a b-line towards the mountain Ridge where the Pirates had originated from.

The simplest method of course was a direct approach, but he knew that would be too dangerous.

So instead he swept upward, moving north of where he though the camp would be and climbing the rocky cliffs. They were steep, but luckily before his ascent Val had managed to catch a doe, a steady enough meal to keep him going for the next day and a half. He also wrapped some of the meat in a torn bit of his shirt, not the most sanitary thing...but if they figured out how to cook it later then they could get over it. He climbed the cliffs, blood covering his face and hands as he moved.

Slowly his ascent took him towards the upper reaches of the ridge, the sun losing some of it's heat, the wind returning to the biting cold of the night before. He climbed and climbed, until a plateau presented itself. Pulling himself over it's edge Val rose atop the great height, his eyes sweeping over the valley below. He breathed heavily, and then began to wander across the flat plain of rock. Slowly he moved to the other side, only to let out a breathy curse as he saw what was below. "Kark."

Nestled between the mountains, deep inside the rocks was the Pirate camp. It sprawled for what seemed like a mile, he could spot three starships, dozens of tents and fires, a single access to what he assumed was a mine below.

They would need a new plan.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

She was about halfway there. Pausing at the same spot in the stream they stopped yesterday, she knelt down and filled her canteen and dunked her face into the cool stream. That felt better. Glancing up, she could see the smoke from here.

Good job, Val.

Catching her breath, an icy feeling that wasn't the stream pricked its way up her spine. With a heave, she lunged to the right, following her instincts through the force. A red blaster bolt sizzled through the air and nipped the top of her pack. Better than her shoulder. Just as quickly she rolled to her feet and took off, taking a glance behind her shoulder. Five pirates. Must've been a scouting party who just happened to see her.

Sizzle-zip! Sizzle-sip! Sizzle-sip!

Scarlet bolts pinged in the ground and trees where she had been microseconds before. She felt a burn against her outer, upper arm but she didn't stop or slow down. The force pumped through her muscles, strengthening them and making them go almost as fast as Val had ran earlier. But she didn't know if it'd be enough.

Frak.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

He stayed atop the cliffs for a time, watching as the pirates moved through the camp. There were already several slaves within there, he could see them either heading into the mines or penned up in one of the further sections of the camp itself. His stomach turned slightly as he thought about where they might have come from, but for the moment he put it out of his mind. A frown settled on his face, and after he memorized every last detail of the camp he slowly wandered away from the ledge.

This wasn't good.

Val had expected there to be a hundred pirates at most, enough to fill a ship and take a few trade routes, but this...this was a much larger operation. Very likely more than half of the men down there weren't even really pirates, more mercenaries that had been hired by the original crew. The three ships he saw had all been marked with different symbols and colors, something that denoted cooperation between different groups.

There was something much bigger at play here than just one group. They were here to get rich, to mine the Aurodium and make as much money as they possibly could doing it. The slaves would be worked to death, the camp would be maintained and defended, everything was set up so this operation would last. As Val climbed down the cliff-face he couldn't help but feel a bit...trapped. There was nothing he alone could do, and even with Taheera...things would get dicey.

His feet settled on the ground once more, Val breaking out into an immediate run as he rushed back towards the cave. The sun was now beginning to set, and in the distance he could hear the echoes of blaster fire.

He rushed as fast as he could, making a b-line towards the noise.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

Lungs burned. A roar erupted from behind she she dove into a pile of grass and bushes as a speeder bike zoomed by. She wasn't going to outrun them. Ditching the pack, her fingers tightened around the cool, cylindrical hilt of her lightsaber. She preferred her staff but she'd use this if she had to. A golden blade the color of the sun bubbled to life and caught a blaster bolt aimed at her torso, reflecting it back to one of the pirates and hitting him in the hand. He snarled and dropped back.

"You should run, while you can!" She called out, myrtle-ellipses warily darting around. Three were coming from the front. The fourth, injured one from the side, and she could hear the speeder bike circling back for another run. The one she assumed as the leader with a dark, scraggly beard and a large scar over his right eye chuckled darkly.

"Don't mess her up too much, boys. We got a bonafide jedi here. She'll sell for quite a fortune on the black market. I'm sure the sith would love a new pet."

Then, they fired.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

He heard the blaster fire, and his run jumped to a sprint.

Val rushed through the forest, weaving between trees, bounding over roots, and rushing as fast as he could. He heard a voice in the distance, half a yell that he recognized was Taheera. His body shifted, the scream of a speeder bike ringing out near him. For a moment he swiveled his head, and then he saw it. The bike dashed across the open grounds of the forest, weaving through trees and looping around to spike back towards where Taheera was.

The Bike drew closer, and Val snarled.

As the bike looped around it cut closer to where Val was standing, The Warrior launching himself up in the air and bounding towards the speeder. For a moment it seemed like he would miss, but as the bike came around the pilot pressed the throttle with the intent to reach Taheera faster, that acceleration pushed him into the path of Val, and without a second of hesitation The Warrior landed his blow. There was a loud crack of bone as Val seized the pilot and broke his wrist, half hanging off the bike.

The speeder jerked to the side, tumbling over and over and throwing Val clear onto the ground, the speeder flying into a nearby tree and exploding into a ball of flame and shrapnel.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

She parried and waved, her lightsaber arm burning. She had definitely been shot. A second pirate went down. She hear a roar off to her side and a wave of heat lapped up her back as the speeder-bike exploded not so far away. From the corner of her eye, she saw Val's flying form. Head swiveled back to the two that were left.

Clunk.

Something landed at her feet and with one beep, her vision filled with a blinding, brilliant light that felt as though it seared straight into her corneas.

A flash grenade.

She staggered back, rough bark grinding into her back as she hit a tree. A sharp, sizzling pain embedded itself into her thigh and she staggered to the ground. A yelp escaped her throat. Working through the pain and blindness, she raised her golden lightsaber and swung it on instinct from the force, a grunt of effort escaping her throat.

She heard a yell and knew one of two pirates went down.

But she was already sagging. Arm and thigh burned. Her vision was filled with blinding, white spots. She blinked against the air. "Val!" She needed help.

 

[Valkyrien Aurelios]

[member="Taheera Sollo"]

Pain spiked through him. Val was more durable than the average human being, he could take a beating, but he was still mortal. Cuts lined his skin, his shirt having become little more than a rag. Blood seeped from a gash on his neck and a massive patch of skin had been carved from his chest. A sneer pulled at his lips as he slowly rose from the ground, blood dripping from his finger tips, eyes jumping between the three pirates that were still standing.

"Forget the girl kill him!"

To them Taheera was disabled, at least momentarily, and that meant shifting their priorities to the new threat. It was too late however, Val was seeing red. He rushed forward, two blaster shots ringing out, one missed him, the other seared the skin on his left shoulder. He winced slightly, but didn't stop his charge. Within half a heartbeat he fell upon the first pirate. The familiar sound of snapping bone echoed out as he grasped the pirate and pulled him close, the man's arm snapping as Val wrenched him forward.

Another blaster bolt rang out, this time striking the pirate that Val had grasped. A snarl pulled from the Warrior's lips, a blade freed from the Pirates belt and thrown towards his assailant. There was a slight thunk as metal sunk into flesh, another pirate keeling over.

The last man standing fell backward, reloading his blaster and firing shot after shot towards Val. Each bolt was caught within the corpse of the first man Val had grabbed, the pirate riddling his companion with every bit of energy left in his powerpack until eventually the blaster clicked empty. Val let the first pirate go, another body dropping with a thud. Bloody, bruised, but not broken Val slowly wandered over to the last man. He stood over him, a scowl setting on his lips.

 

[Taheera Sollo]

[member="Valkyrien Aurelios"]

Cocking her head, she heard the bony snaps and thunks as bodies hit the ground. She had taken care of three. Val had taken care of another three..four? Her stomach churned as she tried to keep from feeling what the pirates were feeling. Being an empath-healer wasn't always a strength. With a press of her index finger, the golden lightsaber blade disappeared back into its hilt. Fumbling, she clipped it to her belt.

Fingers reached forward. She was still blind and it felt like she was back in that cave all over again. Staggering to her feet, she winced, one hand pressing down over her thigh. She heard the final one alive.

"You two will never get out of here alive. They'll come for you." She could hear the man's sneer. "Especially the girl."