Why Must We Fight?

[Jamie Pyne]

The bottom of her lip quivered the moment she saw that vibrant violet blade spring to life. Aela didn't even give her a three, two, one countdown. No, she simply touched the edge of the incomprehensibly hot lightsaber against her bare flesh. The very moment the heat of that blade made contact, all thought of Villia, the stab wound, the pain of the knives, the nausea, basic processing, all of it was gone. The loudest, most agonizing scream burst from her lungs the likes of which she didn't even know as a human she could possess. Jamie could swear she put cracks in the windows of the estate the cry was so karking loud. If there had been people on the lookout for the two girls anywhere nearby, they would have most absolutely heard that blood curdling scream of pain.

That single explosive yelp followed a series of smaller, excruciating whimpers as a levy full of tears burst, instantly rolling droplet after droplet down her cheeks. Never in her life could she imagine such terrible pain could even exist. Wound closed or not, she felt as though a thousand burning coals of hell were just raked over her body, burning her straight to the very core. And that was only a graze to stop the bleeding. She could hardly imagine what losing a limb or anything even remotely worse would feel like.

"Just leave me here Aela," She shook her head, unable to move. "I can't....I can't....I can't."

Jamie repeated that over and over until her mouth was completely filled with saliva, eyes a glossy mess of water and nose running like a faucet.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela took a deep breath. This was bad. She knew it, she could see from the way that Jamie was reacting. There was something more to this than a stab wound. She frowned for a moment and looked at her padawan, unsure of herself for just a few seconds. Then she spoke ”It’ll be okay, Jamie. Think good thoughts. Think about Kurt.”

She had to get her mind off of death, darkness.

Without warning Jamie Aela stepped forward and slipped her arms beneath the girl. She pulled her padawan up and over her arms, craddling her as one would a child. It was difficult, Jamie weighed nearly as much as she did, but as always the force helped her.

Now she just had to make it back.

Quickly Aela began to run. It was an awkward, almost too difficult, jog, but it was a run nonetheless.

”Focus on Kurt, Jamie.” When trauma occurred, it was best to focus the subject on something else besides the injury. This generally prevented the person from going into shock, at least for a little while, giving them the focus to at least survive the wound for a little while longer. ”Think about seeing him again.”

If she knew more about her padawan she would dredge up other memories, but in her moment of panic...nothing else came to her.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Thinking about anything besides the unbelievable pain raging through her body was easier said than done. For every moment her mind shifted to Kurt, it was immediately torn back to her abdomen. Now coupled with the fact that Aela had lifted her from the ground and was now doing her best to carry her, each step along the way was a sharp reminder of that pain. As tough as she wanted to try and seem there was simply no holding back the cries with each bump along the way. The time it would take to reach the safe house was already more than she could process, but the fact of the matter was that even if they reached it, they still had no other plan as to how to get off world, and no proper medical facility. These were the thoughts that consumed her consciousness, and it was doing nothing to quell her worry.

"I'm sorry." It was the only two words she could think to say as Aela carried her back. She knew that trying to help was likely a bad idea, but she couldn't just let this woman who had just murdered a house full of innocent, well, relatively innocent people try and kill Aela as well. In her heart she had done the right thing. Though her heart and brain would argue that decision quite differently.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

”It’s alright.” Aela said, her breath ragged and nearly gone. Sweat was beginning to drip down her face, her arms growing weak, her legs growing tired. Even with the force it was difficult to carry Jamie this far, and her focus was quickly beginning to slip. Yet she had to make it.

Had to.

”You were trying to help.” She tried to talk to the girl, to keep her occupied, do anything to stop her from slipping into unconsciousness. ”It’s alright.”

It had been a foolish thing to do truth be told, and had the situation been any different she likely would have given Jamie a small lecture. Villia hadn’t been a threat to her, at least not in any real sense, and Jamie jumping in...well it had been an unknown quantity. Aela didn’t blame her too much, she’d done the same several times when she’d been younger.

Up ahead she could see the pale light of the alleyway that they had originally come from, some mercy granted by the force. ”Almost there.”

Aela said as she somehow managed to break off into a sprint, she ran as fast as she possibly could, kicking in the door and heading directly through the maze of corridors.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

For a moment she smiled. It was a small bit of comfort not to be scolded at that moment in time. But the feeling of happiness was quickly torn away and once more replaced with blinding pain. Her teeth clamped down atop each other, her mouth pulling back to try and resist the urge to cry anymore. She sounded like an injured Nerf or something, it was actually pretty embarrassing. There was also the issue of leaving Villia there on the lawn of the estate. Aela hadn't been able to apprehend the woman, and she would soon awake from unconsciousness and very likely report what had happened to her sister. That sister was still very much a threat, even if Villia was out of the picture, at least physically.

If nothing else she would never forget Aela, that was for sure. A couple of broken ribs would be a cold reminder of what had happened, and if that girl didn't seek revenge Jamie would be surprised. As the two once again returned to where they had left and the others opened the door for them a waive of questions immediately erupted. Joran even looked moderately concerned for her, though he likely knew what had happened if the two returned in that state. Though to quench his own curiosity he asked all the same. "Were they there waiting for you?"

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

”Clear the table.” Aela ordered in a stern voice, and the soldiers quickly answered. They tossed most of the equipment off, grabbing boxes and slamming them on the ground before pulling out one of the cushion blankets and putting it atop the hard plastic table. Aela struggled across the room, putting Jamie down onto the table and signalling for Bjorn to come over. ”She has a stomach wound, Villia stabbed her with some kind of boot knife.”

Joran’s face darkened as Aela went on. ”I sealed the wound but couldn’t do much more.”

The older soldiers grimaced slightly, but nodded his head.

”Don’t worry love, we’ll fix you up.”

The soldier said with a smile as he pulled his own backpack from one of the racks in the corner. It was marked with several symbols, one of them being the mark of a medic. He pulled a few tools out, scanners and whatnot, then gently lifted Jamie’s shirt just enough to reveal the wound. The burned flesh was ugly, cauterized and singed, but it had at least stopped the blood.

Bjorn inspected the wound, for a moment, then pulled a small kit from his bag. From it emerged a needle which he gently slid into Jamie’s skin before depressing the plunger.

”That’ll give you some relief.”

Before he could say anything else however Bjorn was interrupted.

”It won’t help, she’s been poisoned.”

Almost immediately Aela rounded on the old man, eyes focusing on him and a snarl of anger flowing from her lips. ”What do you mean?

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Jamie laid relatively quietly atop the table, a few groans here and there as her eyes stared in a daze up at the ceiling. Teetering on the edges of consciousness already, whatever was burning through her bloodstream was taking its' toll. The time spent racing her back to the safe house was plenty of time for whatever toxin had been driven into her to spread. Jamie's face had begun to pale, lips turning a slightly lighter shade.

Despite the momentary concern he had for Jamie, it was also evident that he was partially proud in some way of being able to witness the effects of the poison.

"Is there any other way to say it my dear? She's been poisoned. She'll die soon." He took a step closer to the table where Jamie lay, looking over the girl. He placed one hand on her forehead, feeling her body temperature rising, the beads of sweat reflecting the bit of light cast on her. Joran then turned back to Aela. "Are you familiar my child, with Tears of the Rist?" He smiled, "It's a rather nasty poison, first developed quite a long time ago. Very toxic. My daughters have been studying the effects of various poisons for quite some time and they finally uncovered the recipe if you will, to make Tears."

The man stepped back over towards the chair he'd been sitting in and dropped back down. "She has maybe an hour at most before you'll be building her a pyre. We still need to find a way out of here, lets not waste time with what cannot be stopped."

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

For a moment, Aela considered smacking the man, but her anger was quelled by concern for Jamie.

She had only just met the girl a few days ago, but in that time Aela felt that they had formed an odd sort of bond. Perhaps it wasn’t quite as strong as the bond of padawan and Master should have been, at least not yet, but she would be damned if she let Jamie die. Her mind began to race, her thoughts going a thousand places at once.

”Aela...I don’t have anything that can stop a toxin like that.”

Bjorn said the words quietly, almost as if he could see what she was thinking. There had to be something though...Jorn said...said that the sisters experimented with the toxin, that they created it and tested it...Villia applied it to her blade...there had to be accidents, right? Times when they accidentally nicked themselves with the poison?

They weren’t complete idiots after all. She rounded on Jorn. ”Do they have an antidote? Did they make one along with the poison?”

Jorn stammered for a second, seeing the anger in Aela’s eyes.

”I-I...of course. They made it in case they ever ingested or cut themselves with it accidentally….but it’s in the palace. Villia’s room. You can’t get it, it’s impossible.”

Aela frowned and turned away from the man, walking over to the crates that had earlier been tossed onto the ground. She popped one of them open and began to search through it, grabbing Thermal Detonators, cryoban grenades, and half a dozen other different weapons.

She’d already made up her mind.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

The man's eyes widened, seeing what exactly she was doing.

"You....You'll never make it." He stepped over towards Aela, though one of the others stepped between them, stopping him. "Aela. You'll die too."

That was probably the most truthful thing he had ever said. "The palace will be locked down. Guards will be everywhere. You don't have any way in. Even if you got the antidote, she'll be dead long before you make it back." He turned his head back over to Jamie, she looked pretty rough as it was. "There's no point risking your own life. We should leave her and find a way out of here while we still have time."

The blonde could hear everything being said. It wasn't like she was deaf, but there wasn't really anything to say. He was right. Aela was probably wasting her time when they could still get out while there was time. The tears in her eye still flowed, though whether that was because of the pain or the understanding that Joran was probably right was a toss up. Her body felt as though it was burning beneath her skin. Again all she could think to say was "I'm sorry." While she knew it was better for them to leave her there, she didn't want to die, not alone on top of a table in a cold building of a foreign world. That wasn't how it should be. It wasn't fair.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Bjorn put a gentle hand on Jamie’s shoulder, calming her.

”Doesn’t matter.” Aela finally responded to the old man as she slipped the final grenade into her belt, shifting her weight slightly and standing to check that she had everything she would nede. ”I’m not letting my padawan die.”

A few of the soldiers nodded their heads. They full-well knew that Aela would do the exact same thing for them, and even if it meant certain death...they’d all rush head long into it. She frowned for a moment, then walked towards the door. She had no time to sit around arguing, she had no time to defend her actions, she only had time to do what needed to be done. ”I stormed a Sith held Coruscant, twice. I fought on Lujo, Metalos, a dozen other planets. I’ve faced down a dozen Sith Lords. I can do this.”

It was unclear whether she was reassuring the others, or herself.

”Keep Jamie comfortable.” Aela ordered. ”I’ll be back in half an hour.”

It was a strong statement, one that showed her will. She wasn’t about to let Jamie die, and she w didn’t care if she had to face an army to do it. Without another word Aela pulled open the door of the safehouse, and stepped outside, immediately breaking out into a sprint and heading towards the palace.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

The man shook his head as she closed the door. "Foolish." He looked at the others. "She's going to die, you know." Joran looked at his cuffs, sighing.

"I'm sorry little one, but you're sentencing us all to death because of your lack of experience."

It was evident the man had little with regard to compassion for others. He was only interested in saving his own ass and getting off Bastion sooner rather than later. Jamie's predicament, and Aela's determination to save her was directly interfering with that plan. It was clearly agitating him that they refused to listen to reason.

"What purpose is there in surrendering our lives when she is going to die? You all would stand by and await execution simply to prove your morality? Moronic."

He turned his attention to Bjorn, "You there, you're a doctor? You know she's going to die. You can't help her. Why didn't you just tell Aela it was suicide?"

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

”I once worked for the Sith.

Bjorn began to speak at the same time as Aela was running. She had already made great stride towards the palace, and while she rushed forward, Bjorn moved to defend her.

”I killed as many people as I saved. Aela Talith offered me a way out. It was after Lujo. The Alliance lost there but they managed to capture a few of us. The 5th Legion was already formed...and it gave us a way out. I thought I would just be another faceless soldier, another man on the wall, but…”

She saw the palace.

Jorn had been right about the defenses, the place was a fortress. There were spotlights on the wall now, a dozen guards patrolling the outside, even a few defensive towers set up. She didn’t stop however, she simply looked for her opening. There was a small gap in the patrol, and Aela rushed forward. With the same grace as before Aela bounded up the duracrete construct in three steps, jumping over and landing on the other side with a silent thud.

”I was wrong. Aela knew every one of us. Our names, our faces. All six hundred. Do you know how impossible that is? She may forget at times, but she knows who we are, what we want, and she trusts us, and we trust her. There isn’t a single one of us that wouldn’t die for her.”

It was foolish really, but sometimes, sometimes foolishness inspired loyalty.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

"That doesn't change the situation any. You're going to die for nothing. She's going to die for nothing. That girl there --" He said, pointing at Jamie. "She's going to die, maybe not in the next minute, but within the hour she'll be gone. And between all of us? She'll be the only lucky one if they find us here." The fear in his eyes whenever the slightest noise rang out could be read with ease. He wanted out, quickly. "We should be finding a way off the planet, not standing around like caged animals waiting for the hunter to come pick us up. We're not safe here."

By this point Jamie's eyes were feeling heavy, and the call of sleep was becoming rather difficult to resist. The tug of war between unconsciousness and pain was slowly becoming one sided, with unconsciousness beginning to take the lead. Those within the room were starting to look more like blurred figures, voices melding together in an echoing manner. Objects became shapes. "I'm....tired."

Even that was difficult to force out. If she just kept still, perhaps some energy would return to her. If she just maybe got a minute of rest she would feel better.

"It's almost over, child. Just sleep." Joran was colder than Hoth.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

It was obvious that nobody else in the room agreed with Jorn, Bjorn gently took Jamie’s hand and squeezed it, hopefully offering some measure of comfort to the girl.

"It’ll be alright, Lass. Shut him up.”

Zven, and one of the other guards happily obliged, taking one of the old rags from the box of machine parts and quickly grabbing Jorn. Within a matter of moments they had gagged the man, a humiliation that he would likely not enjoy. The silence was key however, Jamie needed to fight, now more than ever.

At the same time Aela was getting ready to fight too, one hand grasping the hilt of a lightsaber, the other holding a thermal detonator.

She remembered the layout of the house well enough, and she knew that Villia’s room would be on the southern end of the palace. Luckily for her, none of the outer cameras had spotted her yet, and as she ran across the lawn no one alarms sounded. Of course, that was all about to change. She found the southern edge of the building, a grand, almost boisterous abode that stretched into an oddly curved dome.

Aela didn’t slow a single step. The Thermal Detonator in her right hand began to beep, red lines quickly shifting over the bulbous silver orb, it went faster and faster, and then she tossed it. Within half a heartbeat the orb clashed against the building's outer wall, exploding and tearing into the structure.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

The man was not pleased.

He struggled, though it was a waste of effort as he had no chance of overpowering the two much younger men while also handcuffed. In the end he was set down in the chair with no means to speak, much to the pleasure of the others in the room. Truth be told it made no difference to Jamie. Words had begun to turn to sounds, a series of pitches and tones mashed together to sound nothing like conversation, but instead another background noise. Her breathing began to slow, and she finally allowed her eyes to close. Just need....A moment... A few minutes of rest would help, she was certain of it now.

By the time she woke up Aela would be back, she'd hop off the table and they would all slip off of Bastion.

Yes. That's how it would be. Just...A little...Rest.

She coughed. There was a bit of thick mucus behind it, so she turned her head to spit on the floor.

While she paid it no mind anyone actually watching would see it was in fact not spit, but a thick red liquid. Joran, given that he couldn't speak, gestured with his eyes and craned neck towards the floor to get the others attention.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Aela jumped through the explosion before the dust even settled. The Thermal Detonator had left a hole within the structure, crumbling stone and dust falling as alarms began to blare throughout the facility. Guards began to swarm, droids powered on, and dozens of attendants began to rush through the building to get to safety.

Aela didn’t pay attention to any of it.

She had one objective on her mind, the antidote. Nothing else mattered. She rushed through the palace as quickly as she could, her lightsaber flicking across door locks to seal anyone and everyone within the room they were in.

There were no chances here. The first group of Guards fell upon her, they gave no warning for her to stop or no chance to surrender, they opened fire immediately. Blaster bolts began to soar down the hall, bounding off of Aela’s lightsaber and reflecting into the walls and floor. A cryoban grenades exploded amidst the group of guards, freezing them instantly.

She allowed nothing to impede her progress.

The second group of guards fell to a wave of the force, the third to her lightsaber. Each one was practically ignored, not permanently dispatched, just driven back. She didn’t care about them, she only cared about reaching one thing. A swing of her lightsaber saw the door to Villia’s room shattered, her heavy food breaking the scarred wood in two as she stepped inside.

At the same time those within the safehouse began to pay closer attention to Jamie, Bjorn gently putting her on her side while administering an IV drip to keep the poison at bay.

”Grab me some bacta, see if that will help.”

Jorn only shook his head.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

The man in cuffs simply watched passively, knowing their efforts were wasted on her. She needed the antidote in the next few minutes or she was as good as dead. He was sure of it. He was impressed however that she'd even managed this long. To have made it back from the estate, and still be breathing was astounding. It was almost like a game to him at this point, to see just how long she could continue breathing with the toxin spreading through her body.

He crossed his leg, setting his hands atop a knee and watched them closely, as if it were some kind of reality show that he had front row seats to watch.

Even as Bjorn proceeded to administer bacta, Jamie's breathing slowed to a near crawl, heartbeat dropping steadily below 35 bpm. She'd lost consciousness sometime in the last minute or two, allowing herself to rest, feeling it was the only way to fix her problem, to escape the pain of the burning inside her body, and the words that Joran had spoken that kept replaying over and over that she was going to die, regardless of Aela's efforts. It was a hard pill to swallow, one she had brought upon herself even.

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

Within a matter of moments the room was turned completely upside down. The bed was upside down, the cabinets torn open, the closets ripped apart. It looked like a hurricane had torn through the small abode and ransacked everything.

Aela stood in the middle of it all, the sound of stamping feet and yelling reaching her from the hall.

Heavy breaths flowed from her lips, eyes darting to everything and anything that might be what she was looking for. She’d tossed everything, torn apart the room, and there was nothing...nothing at all that looked like an antidote or poison making kit. A cry of frustration left her lips, the force buckling around her as she did so.

The wave of power pressed out, tossing a guard that had just made it to the doorway back against the far wall.

The room shook, and suddenly something rattled behind the wall besides the closet.

Aela’s eyes instantly shot towards the noise. She was at the wall within half a second, gently knocking against the stone to be rewarded with a sound of hollowness. A step back and a sweep of her lightsaber saw the wall crumble, the force pulling apart the hidden door. Within she found dozens upon dozens of vials, trinkets, and baubles.

Her lips thinned, eyes searching.

Of course Villia had not been foolish enough to leave everything unlabeled. When dealing with horrible poisons and deadly cocktails, even a megalomaniac didn’t gamble. Eventually Aela found what she was looking for, plucking the vial from the shelf and scooping an odd bag off the floor to contain it in. There was a slight clinking sound as she stowed the vial...something else in the bag, but she was too rushed to think about it.

She had what she needed.

Now she just needed to make it out.

 

[Jamie Pyne]

Bjorn recognized what was happening as her blood pressure began to fall rapidly, her face falling pale, the weak pulse, cool skin.

"She's going into shock."

Joran rolled his eyes, shrugging from his chair. He was more concerned about who would be coming through that door first, Aela, or the palace guard. Jamie's time was just about up, that much he knew. Theirs would be as well if they didn't leave this place. He couldn't fathom why they were so hell bent on sticking around to watch this poor girl's life end. Joran would leave his own son if he knew it would guarantee him safety. That was just who he was.

"Get her legs. Elevate them, use a crate to keep them up."

He adjusted the young woman's head so that she was facing upwards. Leaning over her he checked to gauge her breathing. Nothing. In an instant he had her airways open and began to administer CPR. The others stood by, watching in silence. Joran simply looked to the door, one foot nervously bouncing with each passing second. Her life was as insignificant to him as the next, and the mere fact that she was delaying his escape made him that much more uncomfortable. Even if she lived, she would slow them down anyway. He only hoped she would die soon so that it wouldn't be a problem to deal with later.

"Come on, you can do it, come back to us."

[member="Aela Talith"]

 

[Aela Talith]

[member="Jamie Pyne"]

The door would suddenly slam open, and in it stood Aela.

She was breathing heavily, her body was marred with cuts, bruises, and scorch marks. The clothes she was wearing had practically turned to rags, and her hair was caked with mud. The Jedi Marshall didn’t look much better than Jamie did at this point, but in her hand she clutched the backpack she had taken from Villia’s room.

Jorn’s eyes grew wide.

”I have the antidote.” She sounded ragged, tired, on the verge of collapse. One of the soldiers ran over to her and took the bag, opening it and pulling out the vial, giving her a questioning look at the other contents. ”Give…”

She fell back against the wall. ”Give it to her, hurry.”

Aela allowed herself to fall against the floor, sliding down the wall and eventually coming to a sitting position as she leaned her head back. One of the other soldiers closed the door, though with what Aela had just done...they would have to move soon.