Panacea

[Reidly]

It had been a few weeks since Ryth and Valia's last adventure, with their life slowing down considerably. His healing had taken longer than expected, so he had spent most his free time regaining his strength. On the fifth week, the two had to stop at another station to refuel and resupply. As Ryth moved a few crates into the cargo hold, he heard someone shouting.
"Darkness comes! You all think you're safe, but soon, the abyss will coe and devour you all!" A crazy old man screamed.
@TheHook1

 

[The Captain]

Valia stepped out onto the loading ramp, watching with an amused smile as a crazy codger shouted at her beloved mate. Stepping out to help him, she grabbed one end of the crate and tapped Ryth's shoulder.

"Making friends, I see." She smirked and nodded at the crazed old man shouting down the hanger.

 

[Reidly]

With a laugh, Ryth gave a glance to the man before shaking his head.
"Maybe I'm just that likable. C'mon, lets get this medicine to.... Where is it we're going?" The job they had been hired to do was simple, take some medicine to a disease-ridden town and help with the cure. As long as they didn't lose the stuff, it was quick and easy.

 

[The Captain]

"Some farm-town on Dantooine, apparently there's some infection in the water supply." She helped Ryth ease the crate onto the ship. Ever since their little spider debacle, she'd done everything she could to help him out.

"Hopefully this goes better than our last farm visit."

 

[Reidly]

He chuckled softly and nodded, rubbing his sore arm.
"I hope so too. How's Wyit holding up anyways?" He asked, their new pet had settled in well. As Ryth walked past Valia, he couldn't help but shudder at the circumstances of their last trip to the farm.

 

[The Captain]

"Wyit's doing all right, spends most of his time sneaking around in the-WAAH!" Wyit dropped out of an air vent directly onto Valia before scampering off into the ship, hissing and chittering. Valia hated it when he did that.

Valia noticed Ryth shudder out of the corner of her eye, knowing he must be thinking about the farm. She walked up to his side and put an arm around him, brushing her tail against his before kissing his cheek.

 

[Reidly]

He sighed again, turning to face his mate with a look of concern.
"I'm not holding you back, am I?" He asked quietly. Maybe it was his most recent brush with death that had gotten him so nervous. Some nights the nightmares kept him awake, and his stamina and confidence were suffering because of it.

 

[The Captain]

"A little, but you're completely worth it." All jokes aside, Valia had a good idea where this was coming from. Ever since the incident Ryth had been suffering from nightmares, his injury had hampered his strength, and he was becoming more and more withdrawn. She wrapped her arms around him and coiled her tail around his, rubbing his back.

"I love you Ryth, and I always will."

 

[Reidly]

At those words, Ryth seemed to relax, if only a little. He offered a weak smile to his mate, leaning against her shoulder.
"I love you too..." It was the first time they had said such out loud, and it felt right to him. He loved her with all his heart, and he wouldn't shut down because of some stupid nightmares.

 

[The Captain]

"C'mon then, let's get those farmers their medicine and water purifiers." As she turned to take her seat in the cockpit, a realization hit her, this was the first time they had said they loved each other. Sure, they had showed it in other ways, lots of other ways actually, but this was the first time they had said it to each other. Taking a second to savor the feeling of warmth and comfort this brought to her, she headed to the cockpit and sealed up the hold.

 

[Reidly]

Ryth put away the last of the supplies before the hold sealed before running a hand through his hair. He had seen worse things in his life, but the glowing eyes of that... thing got to him. Shaking away the memory, he headed back to the pilot's cockpit, petting Wyit and Creespa on his way there.
"How far out are we from dantooine?" He asked.

 

[The Captain]

"Not far, the jump should be fairly brief."

As she entered in the coordinates for Dantooine, the deranged old man continued to shout blindly at their ship, screaming vague threats and profanities at them as they jumped to hyperspace.

 

[Reidly]

"I wonder why he got so worked up about us." Ryth questioned, leaning back in his chair.
"Maybe he was seeing things."

 

[The Captain]

"I dunno, maybe he was off his spice or something." Nervous laughter hid the fact that Valia was still concerned not only about this operation but about the safety over her mate. The spider incident had been weeks ago, and yet everytime she jumped from one planet to another she began to fear for the safety of everyone on the ship. And the inane shouting of that old man had not helped.

 

[Reidly]

Ryth nodded again, closing his eyes.
"We really need something to help destress." He suggested, rubbing his forehead. He head a headache, maybe this medicine would help with that.

 

[The Captain]

"Really? I have an idea." She smirked as she shooed Wyit and Creespa out of the cockpit before shutting the doors. "But we'll have to be fast."
-------
As the ship dropped out of hyperspace over Dantooine, Valia stretched and returned to her seat, looking out over the stars.

"I never get tired of this..." The majesty of space, the serene silence of orbiting a planet, it always put her at ease.

 

[Reidly]

He laughed softly, throwing on his shirt again as he saw the planet.
"Which part?" He teased, punching her shoulder lightly. "I know its not just orbiting that you enjoy. Landing, all that jazz, that's what I like."

 

[The Captain]

"I just like floating up here with you, all alone, and quiet." She smiled warmly at him and playfully slugged him back. "Besides, you only like landing because you don't have your space legs yet."

She piloted the ship down toward the planet, aiming for the small equatorial farming village that had ordered the medicine. Just to be safe, she warmed up the Sun Runner's guns and ordered Ryth to the underbelly cannons. She was not about to get ambushed again.

 

[Reidly]

"That's because I have no legs." He grinned and walked down to the door before glancing back at his mate. "And with you, it's never quiet." He headed down to the underbelly cannon, getting himself situated.

 

[The Captain]

As the Sun Runner cruised overhead, Valia and Ryth saw that the entire town was in shambles. Buildings were in ruins, small fires glowed in the fields, and corpses of both farmers and animals littered the area. It was a horror show. Valia had to suppress her urge to vomit, and nearly lost her grip on the controls, causing the ship to briefly dip down toward the ground.

"R-Ryth...can you...can you see anyone down there?"