Going Fishing

[Trixie]

As a former Death Watch, it was rare for Trixie to appear obviously Mandalorian. The leadership in the past had made it clear they didn’t want any overt affiliation, and that wouldn’t change even now. She was dressed in black armor that looked form fitting to where it was questionable whether it was armor at all. And of course, her face was revealed, blond hair tied up in a high ponytail. Her tight outfit ended in knee high boots with pointed heels.She hardly looked the part of a warrior, but she counted on being underestimated. Trixie decided she would simply beat up some Imperials and take their gear.

She had socialized her idea of retrieving her armor back, and it made its way to Leandros. To her surprise, he had agreed to join her, realizing that the prison would house several of their captured people. Trixie had only peripherally associated with Leandros in the past, though he never took any real notice of her. He was always fixated on Raz Solus, who struck Trixie as more of a man than a woman. Poor guy never knew what it was like to be with a real woman.

She twirled her hair as she waited for him, a cigarra hanging loosely at the corner of her perfectly red lips. Trixie was leaning against a speeder bike, waiting in an alley that opened up to a main street where Imperial vehicles sometimes passed.

It was later in the night, and it was the perfect time to strike. She trained her gaze ahead, deciding she would let Leandros lead the way. She had a tendency to be far more explosive than the situation called for, and she didn’t want to jeopardize getting her own gear back.

@Painus

 

[Leandros Solus]

Leandros wasn’t sure where he knew this woman from, frankly. She had some notoriety throughout the faction, though he'd never interacted with her personally. She’d been absent from the campaigns he waged, but he was well aware of her propensity for explosions and wanton violence, even if he never agreed with the chaos she caused. Still, she needed help, and through helping her, he could free scores of Mandalorians captured by the Imperials before the Empire’s dissolution. If he could put up with her antics long enough to get his people out, he saw no reason why he shouldn’t help.

She had arranged for a rendezvous point in an alleyway close to a busy thoroughfare on which Imperial convoys traveled occasionally. The plan, at least as far as he tried to get Trixie to understand, was to attack the convoy, take an officer hostage, and use them as a means of getting into the prison. She needed her armor back, he needed to free his people; it was all a simple job.

Leandros arrived amidst the darkness of the alleyway, his figure towering over Trixie. He turned his helmeted head down and… looked… at her. Her “armor” was so tight that any exposed assets were held in by sheer magic, her hair was done up in a ponytail, and he was certain he’d seen those exact same boots on some prostitutes on Nar Shaddaa. There was visible concern on his face when he thought about what would happen to her as soon as they started bouncing around and fighting. He had to say, she looked nothing like a Mandalorian. Granted, she did lose her armor, but even when he had lost his, he borrowed some generic beskar’gam before retrieving it. She didn’t have that idea, he figured.

Oh well. It was what she had, so he had to deal with it. ”Ordo,” he said gruffly, nodding towards her as he looked her up and down. He tilted his head towards the road, then checked his watch, ”I’ve set explosives up on the road just up ahead. When you see the lead vehicle approach, hit this detonator.” He held out a device for her to take, knowing that the chance to cause some mayhem would make her giddy. ”We’ll take them out and take someone alive to get into the prison. Got that?” He spoke slowly and methodically to make sure she understood and was going to play nice. He heard she could be… difficult.

@Sreeya

 

[Trixie]

Trixie turned and looked when Leandros finally arrived. He always looked so tall and powerful, it made her feel all types of ways. She wasn’t even fazed by his curt greeting by her last name, “Aw, come on Andy, you can call me Trixie,” She said in singsong voice that went with her ridiculous choice of attire.

She took the detonator from him, surprised he had already set the charges. Typically that was her gig, but she had a habit of wiping everyone out. As he reminded her they needed someone alive, she rolled her eyes and waved him off, “Yeah yeah, I’ll even let you do the interrogation,” She sighed, grumbling under her breath about having her fun spoiled.

Trixie looked back at the road, and there were no vehicles up ahead that matched their description. She turned her attention to Leandros, eyeing him up and down, “So, I hear you’re single now,” It had been some time since Raz died, so he was back on the market, right? It was a fair assumption after all.

She lit another cigarra and brought it up to her lips, puffing smoke. Though she kept glancing back to check for the vehicles, it was obvious the Imperials were slow and sparse tonight - unfortunately for Leandros.

 

[Leandros Solus]

Leandros rolled his eyes at the fact that she had just called him Andy. Nobody does that, nor had he ever been called Andy in his entire life. It was either Leandros, Lee, or, for whatever reason, Lenny, though nobody had actually called him Lenny to his face before. Now he had to add Andy to that list and, frankly, it irritated him. He’d never heard of an agreeable person named Andy, and most Andy’s he did know were generally skeevy people. He didn’t want to be associated with those kinds of people, especially coming from the mouth of this bimbo whose boobs were practically bursting out of her top. To that end, he’d respond to that little statement with a simple pleading, ”Okay, Trixie, but you don’t get to call me Andy. Pick any other name.” Hopefully that was the end of that.

He leaned against the wall on other side of the alley across from Trixie, folding his arms over his chest as he watched the road. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her practically undressing him with her eyes, and his own gaze flicked back over towards her, his eyes narrowing in a squint as he studied her as well. Before he could say anything, she blurted out about his relationship status, sending a twinge of discomfort through his body. If she could’ve seen his face, she’d see the shock and disgust at her question, followed by the visible irritation. Who the hell asked that of someone whose wife died just a few weeks ago? It was pretty out of the blue and caught him momentarily flatfooted as he thought of a response.

”I don’t see why that’s any of your business,” he deflected, shrugging his shoulders, ”What does it matter if I’m single?” He was generally oblivious to the way others perceived him, especially women, and didn’t think much of Trixie’s statement. The only reason he even knew Raz loved him was because she showed it in her own way after some concerted efforts on his part, but other women? He was blind, deaf, and dumb to most of their advances.

Leandros kept looking towards the road, desperate for some sign of Imperial activity. Several times he thought he’d seen the lead vehicle of a convoy coming through, only for it to be some pizza delivery speeder or someone on their way home from work. Each time his heart skipped a beat, eager to get into violence and out of this awkward-ass situation, and each time his hopes were dashed upon the rocks, leaving him alone with Trixie. He looked back over at the woman and sighed, figuring he might as well engage her in small talk. ”So, you… spent some time in this prison?”

He wasn’t very good at small talk, so this was all he had.

@Sreeya

 

[Trixie]

Trixie simply started laughing when he seemed incensed by the name, “Okay LeANDros,” She rolled her eyes as she puffed on the cigarra, focusing her gaze back towards where the vehicles were coming through. She was entirely unfazed by his snappy answer to her question about being single. Truth be told, she forgot how long it had been since Raz died. Trixie didn’t think too highly of the woman anyway.

She stayed silent until he finished asking her about prison after a moment’s pause. Trixie decide to address his questions in order.

“Because, darling, you’re a deliciously eligible bachelor all about crusading and kicking the shit out of the galaxy,” She said without even looking at him, blowing smoke out her nostrils, “And many women want to climb you like a tree,” Trixie tilted her head to look at him and gave him a wink, “Present company included, babe.”

She looked forward again, “They tried kriffing with my head, but it did them no good so they stopped bothering. I broke out after some time,” Trixie shrugged. It was obvious she was leaving out quite a bit of the experience, but she wasn’t known to be the sharing type.

Trixie looked up as the revving of engines suggested a larger vehicle on the way. She moved closer towards the noise, confirming that it was a larger and packed vehicle that was intended for the prison. She waited to time it right, watching it creep closer before she finally hit the detonator.

At once, there was an explosion that reverberated and immediately disabled the vehicle. Trixie grinned as she flicked the cigarra away, “Show time.”

 

[Leandros Solus]

Leandros rolled his eyes and shook his head gently at the emphasis on his name, satisfied that she had at least listened to his request. They were getting somewhere if she was at least open to that. He remained quiet as she began to address his questions in kind. One of his eyebrows cocked upward as she described him as a deliciously eligible bachelor, surprised that people saw him this way. ‘Widower’ seemed a more fitting title, but Mandalorians had a good way of moving on pretty quickly from things. It’s just how they were.

His cheeks flushed a little red as Trixie went on to bluntly state her desires for him. His people were straight to the point, if nothing else. Raz had told him the same thing years ago when he first visited her and he still didn’t really register that, but it made sense after a while. His eyes returned to tracing Trixie’s body up and down for a brief moment as he tuned out the rest of her answer before he realized what he was doing. Thinking of other women left him feeling dirty for some reason, even though his wife was dead. He still felt a sense of loyalty to Raz and he wasn’t sure if he’d ever love someone the same again. A little romp might not be so b-

These idle thoughts were cut short by the sudden explosion as Trixie initiated their ambush. Leandros cursed himself for being distracted and pushed himself off the wall, rolling his shoulders to get ready for some action. The explosion rocked the vehicle and it slammed into the road, completely immobile. A thick plume of smoke immediately materialized and the fire in the cabin of the transport forced its driver and passenger to evacuate it or risk being burned alive. The black cloud and the darkness of night concealed their approach for the most part, but things were about to get real loud, real fast.

Leandros stepped forward – Trixie’s cigarra crunching underfoot – swung his arm down to draw his quickdraw, and fired a shot at the driver. The pair of bolts slammed into his chest and knocked him back against the side of the vehicle. Two sizzling scorch marks and the towering figure of the Mand’alor were the last things he saw before the light of life left his eyes. Transports like this often had a sizeable contingent of guards and officers, and he knew the surprise of the attack wouldn’t keep them stunned forever. The soldiers in the back began to rally and get ready to repel the attack, unaware of what was going on outside. He heard the shouting from within and knew they had scant moments to get ready for a firefight.

The vehicle’s passenger ran over to the driver side with his blaster, dazed from the explosion. Before he could get a shot off, Leandros drew his other blaster and fired a pair of bolts into him, sending the body into the flames of the engine block. He turned his attention to Trixie, ready to coordinate their attack and shouted out, ”Remember, we need one alive!”

@Sreeya

 

[Trixie]

Trixie jumped into the fray at once, drawing out her pistol and pumping a few bolts into a man that rounded the corner confused. She ran up and placed her hand on the side of the vehicle, springing up in one smooth motion. She felt the heat from the explosion, but she knew not everyone was dead just yet. Trixie peeled off a piece of metal off the top and felt a blaster bolt graze the side of her arm.

“THIS IS EXPENSIVE LEATHER, YOU SHIT!” She screeched as she pointed her gun and fired off a shot directly into the face of the man inside. Trixie brought up a grenade from her hip and pulled the pin, dropping it into the hole she had created. In all the commotion, the soldiers inside didn’t realize what happened. Trixie rolled backwards and off the vehicle, landing behind it as an explosion went off.

She grinned at the sight before she remembered she was supposed to keep someone alive, “Oh shit,” Trixie grimaced, everyone inside very much dead. She turned back around and saw another vehicle rushing towards them. Trixie extended her gun out and aimed carefully as she watched the man in the passenger seat take aim at her. She fired quicker, putting a bolt in the head of the driver.

The vehicle promptly crashed into the side of the alley. Trixie remained where she was, smiling now, “There! There should be one alive in that one,” She turned to Leandros with puppy dog eyes, “Sorry baby,” She blew him a kiss and gestured for him to walk ahead, “He’s all yours.”

@Painus

 

[Leandros Solus]

Leandros watched Trixie spring into action right as the fun began. Without armor, she was impressively dexterous, and he observed with idle curiosity as she sprung up on top of the transport. While she was busy getting shot, a bolt grazed the back of his pauldron, and he swung around to see a checkpoint guard firing at them. He fired a single burst at the man and put him down pretty much right away, cutting short his valiant defense for the Empire. When he turned around, he saw Trixie drop the grenade into the vehicle.

Leandros tried to step forward and put his hand out, crying out with a ”No, you fuc-“ The grenade’s blast drowned out the rest of his sentence, and soon the transport was a smoldering heap of scrap metal. He dove out of the way of some wayward debris, the red-hot metal passing within a foot of his head. The heat radiated off of it for a brief moment and he began to thank his quick reflexes for avoiding death by shrapnel.

He was about to lay into her for ruining their shot of getting into the prison, but another vehicle came speeding at them. With expert precision, Trixie put down its driver and sent the vehicle careening into a wall. The passenger was dazed and about to catch on fire, so Leandros rushed over, rolling his eyes at Trixie’s remarks, and pulled him by his armor out of the vehicle. He pinned him to the ground, removing any weapons he had, and slapped the shit out of the man to rouse him from his daze.

”Your name and rank!” he shouted into the man’s face in heavily-accented Basic. The terrified trooper looked up at the T-visor and fidgeted, but Leandros had him firmly pinned. ”Now!” he punctuated it, causing the man to try and make like a turtle and retreat inward. Eventually he sputtered out a, ”S-s-sergeant Garrick! I-I’m a guard at the p-p-p=” before Leandros cut him off with a curt, ”Prison?”

”Yes!” the man exclaimed, then followed Leandros’ helmet as it looked up at Trixie. ”Found our way in,” he said, smirking beneath his helmet, ”What happened to ‘don’t blow them all up?’”

 

[Trixie]

Trixie walked back towards Leandros after he was done interrogating the man. She had picked up different pieces of armor from the crash site. If he turned over, he would notice she had taken out a nail filer and began to file her nails, checking out to ensure they were all square instead of round. When he spoke, she rolled her eyes, “You got what you needed in the end.”

She walked over to the man, yanking his ID badge from him which had the prison’s name and contained a keycard. Without even looking up from it, she leveled her pistol and shot him in the face, “Cool, we have our entry cards,” Trixie looked at Leandros, “You know we can’t go in there dressed as Mandos, right babe?” She grinned at him, very clearly recalling the stories of him having once lost his armor.

Trixie didn’t even hesitate, walking over to unzip her clothing and rapidly changing right there. She was entirely ashamed of him seeing her in her underwear, her lithe body sporting numerous scars and tattoos on the thigh and lower back. It was the only evidence she had seen combat.

She pulled on the Imperial clothing, ignoring that it was slightly baggy. Trixie stashed her clothing behind a nearby dumpster, pulling on an Imperial helmet to complete the look. Trixie then looked over at Leandros to see if he actually changed or if he was going to be a stick in the mud.

 

[Leandros Solus]

Leandros grumbled to himself as Trixie pointed out that they still got what they were after anyways. While true, he wondered what they would do if she had blown up everything they needed to get into the prison. He stood up and looked at her while she snatched his ID card. ”It’s the-“ she shot the whimpering man on the ground, and he looked at his corpse with apathy, ”-principle of it.” He shrugged listlessly, knowing that they were still on track to get what they both wanted from this operation.

”I’m not your ‘babe,’” he pointed out, shaking his head. His eyes panned over to the various dead guards, most of whom were… smaller than he was. He’d need to scrounge together enough pieces to actually cover himself if they wanted to sneak in. Great. ”And… I know that. Just… give me a second.” It still irked him to remove his armor, and even though the jokes were harmless now, he still grew irritated at them. He bent down and began unclasping pieces of the man Trixie shot’s armor, assembling a small pile. While she changed, he went around and gathered his own pieces of the uniform. He gave her a passing glance as she stripped down nearly nude in the middle of the street and sighed, hoping there wasn’t going to be another Imperial truck coming down to see a naked Mandalorian surrounded by bodies. She sported her fair share of scares and tattoos, but it was unsurprising given the nature of their lives.

He intentionally paid her no mind as he went to the alleyway to change and drop off his armor in her speeder, stripping down to his own underwear. Where her body was lithe, his was bulky, and his beefy frame sported a significant number of scars earned over the decades. He’d been shot, stabbed, blown up, blown down, thrown, tossed, lifted, dropped, and all manner of things in between, and still came out no worse for wear. He took off his helmet and looked at Trixie while she was pulling on the baggy uniform, debating how well their plan would actually work. It’d be dicey once they got inside, especially without their gear, but the element of surprise their uniforms afforded them, alongside the masses of Mandalorians they’d free, they’d put up a hell of a fight. While he was pulling on the uniform, he spoke up with a, ”Once we’re in, we’re going to need to move quickly.” He locked in his armor plates and walked over to her, sliding on his helmet to complete the look as well.

”And no kriffing blowing shit up until after we get what we came for.”

With that, it was time to head out.

//end thread