Severance

[Khari Vestra]

What happened? What happened indeed! It was a question she wasn't sure if she should answer truthfully and risk wasting more time, or just make something up and risk the same. At least if she lied he wouldn't be able to detect it as well as organics might. This was all dependent on him not having some sort of in built interrogation software of course.

"I'm not entirely sure, he wasn't paying attention to where he was going, I guess he...slipped?" Khari tried, her expression as vacant as it could be, followed by a nonplussed shrug. "He must have hit his head, that's not important right now!"

First thing's first, they needed to get life support up and running again, that would buy them all kinds of time needed to get everything else up and running and away from that nebula. Not wishing to see just how close to destruction they were, Khari turned away from the viewport, hear heart hammering in her chest. This wasn't supposed to happen - sithspit, none of this was supposed to happen! It was her own fault, allowing herself to get caught up in that Mandalorian's diversion, and all the time she'd been working for that gundark slumped over the navcomp.

"Heir to the biggest shipping industry and you dont know your way around a ships systems. Imagine that." Bit by bit Bell's words filtered into her psyche and brought her out of her panic with a rising indignant ire. What was all this, then? A droid's cold hard truth, as clear as it came. But she wasn't the only one on Kuat wired this way, she'd never had to know her way around a ships internal systems. That was what staff and aides were for, there were far more important things that required her attention, menial tasks were beneath her. Or rather, they had been. Now probably wasn't the best time to learn, but it certainly piled on the pressure.

"I know enough!" Snapped the Kuati "Can I help it if your master decided to purchase something that looks like it is comprised of twenty different models of vessel, none of which came from any shipping corporation I have anything to do with, I might add."

The scene and it's little speech would have only been surpassed by her sticking her nose in the air, which she managed to make a point of distinctly not doing. Instead she crossed her arms and frowned disapprovingly, letting all her irked nature bleed across the distance and hoped that the droid would correctly interpret it as just that.
She failed. No, Bell was, just so, too busy with fixing the ship to notice her woman-sized strop.

"Not enough power, you try and life support will be deminished. Take him to the medbay, try to wake him, while i try to save us all."

"Take him to the medbay, and you expect me to carry him?" She stared at him disbelievingly, even though she knew he was being serious, "Myself?!"

Despite her incredulity, she was already moving towards the unconscious man. The bottom line was that Bell was the best one at fixing this problem she'd created for herself, and since the only person capable of helping him to a better degree was not in the land of the conscious, she was going to have to make do until a time where he could at least shout orders to his mechanical friend.

Hooking her hands beneath Tress' arms, she pulled him out of the chair and let him rest on the floor until she could get a good purchase on him. She was right, he was heavy, but not so heavy she was going to bust a gut moving him. She might break a sweat though, and as unsightly as that would be, it was better than dying. It took a few moments to drag him out into the main corridor, then locate the medbay, but with a little back and forth exchanging of words with Bell, Khari eventually found it.
Luckily, the bed in the medbay was one of those that actually lowered enough that she was able to haul Tress into it, then secure the sides before allowing it to rise up to a comfortable level. Feeling shamefully out of shape, and out of breath, she took a moment to look the man over. He'd hit his head alright, would have a shiner of a black eye in the morning, too, but it didn't look like he'd been so injured he'd lose the eye. He had to have a thick skull, she told herself, because he certainly hadn't expected what he'd gotten from her.
Likewise, she casually took a moment to search his pockets, and found the binders he'd used to truss her to the power conduit in the cargo hold. He wasn't going anywhere without her say so, not this time. If they got out of this, then she was going to live the rest of her days how she wanted, not as some prized dancing girl to some slimey hutt crimelord.

"Appologies Captain, but I have other plans."

Taking his wrist she snapped one end of the cuffs on him, and then attached the other to the guard railing that ran along side the bed. If he was getting up, then the whole bed, repulsors and all, was going with him.

Confident he was secure, she took a moment to lean back out into the main corridor and see how Bell was doing - less than an hour's worth of air was all fine and well, for him, but for her it was a little more pressing. "How are we looking?"

 

[Tress]

"Slipped?" Bell asked for clarification. Last time seeing Tress he had been sitting, but he could have gotten up and fell. Though that was a long shot, as he had never known Tress to fall before. He was sure footed.

"I know enough!" Snapped the Kuati "Can I help it if your master decided to purchase something that looks like it is comprised of twenty different models of vessel, none of which came from any shipping corporation I have anything to do with, I might add."he had to stop what he was doing as look incredulously or as much as a droid could give off that action. He looked at the console, then at her, back at the console and back at her. He didnt know where to start or if he should.

He pointed at each portion of the console. "Kuat Systems Engineering" he pointed again. "Rothana Heavy Engineering" again he pointed. "Kuat Vehicles" at last he pointed at at something that was different. "....CEC, but the ship is a Wayfarer-class medium transport made from which company...?" he waits for a second. "Twenty credits to anyone who said KDY."
He had been making fun of her, picking on her as he did Tress, not treating her like a hostage she was. "So my previous state meant of 'Heir to the biggest shipping industry and you dont know your way around a ships systems. Imagine that.' Stands I am guessing. "


"We will just pass if off as the stress of our current situation getting the better of you....
he left her there with orders to take Tress to the med bay, he had work cut out for him and had to hurry. He just hoped they had enough parts to replace anything that needed them. The rest he could repair in the ships engineering room and machine them up. Only time was of the essence.

Stuck in the engine room, the floor access panels were gone and cables laying everywhere trying to reroute power from the main power core to the auxiliary power reserves would give them a further day or two depending on the power usage they consumed. When he heard Khari he stuck his hand out from under the floor, "Hand me the hydrospanner...." but before she could move sparks from an exposed circuit panel erupted into flames. "Before you do kindly put that out, but dont feel the need to hurry or anything the ship just has three minutes of breathable air remaining..."

 

[Khari Vestra]

Bell was still whittling on about just how wrong she was when she had ducked into the medbay and secured Tress. It was a good thing he ran on something other than air, and Khari wasn't about to waste precious moments using up hers on a pointless argument that could have saved her embarrassment. Suddenly it wasn't hard to see why Tress seemed to get so irked by the mechanical perdanticness, informative or otherwise.

"You don't have twenty credits." She shot back when she arrived at the aft of the ship, finding the droid in question rerouting everything and anything in a bid to save them. There was no sense in irking the droid, she wanted all his attention on the job at hand, because she was getting out of this alive one way or another. And it wouldn't be in the clutches of either of these two. Stage one; they restored power to the ship. Stage two; get the nine hells out of here. Stage three; make sure Tress was arrested for his troubles, but she might just keep her promise to Bell, there were countless repair droids of the same persuasion that would have been delighted for the perdantic company, all of them, thankfully, out of earshot of her, when she deigned to grace the KDY orbital array.
Holding out the hydrospanner for him to take, she pirched at the edge of the upturned floor panel, and peered in. What she saw was a total mess. Wires and displaced conduits lacing the floor, some wrapped around the landing gear's hydraulics - it was a wonder this crate managed to get off the ground.

"Are you sure it should look like thi-"

A shower of sparks errupted from one of the cicuit boards he'd been working on, making Khari retract her hand as quickly as possible before the burnt embers flecked her skin. The smell of burnt wiring was almost overpowering, causing her to cough and come up for waning air in a bid to try and reduce the respratory discomfort. The air, she realized concernedly, they were fast running out of air.
Dropping down through the service hatch, she took to smothering the flames with whatever she could find. Not wishing to stamp on them with one booted foot, for fear she might damage the circuit boards more, she unwrapped one of the swathes of expensive cloth she had been wearing, tearing it from the main body of fabric and then patted down the flames. What they could have done with, was internal coolants, but in the absence of those she supposed her method would have to suffice. The fabric it's self was fire resistant and the flames minimal because of the thinning air, but that was cold comfort when the dizziness had begun to set in.

"I don't feel so great..."

She passed him the hydrospanner anyway, trying to mentally calm herself down - the slower and more controlled you breathed, the less air would be used up each time, so she hoped. And the irony of it all? She hadn't felt great since the moment she had been brought aboard this ship.
The air was rapidly getting colder, too, and it wouldn't be long before it would become a case of just what would get them all first. The lack of air, or hypothermia?

"...No rush...really." This was her doing, if she hadn't have hit Tress like that, he wouldn't have face-planted that console and they'd still be here alive and somewhat well. But there wasn't an ounce of humility she felt in regards to her decision to hit him like that. Death might be better than a life spent on the end of a chain as entertainment for a Hutt. And far be it from her to judge, but she highly doubted Anara would be willing to pay this Pirate for his troubles, the old hawkbat didn't work that way.

 

[Tress]

"Are you sure it should look like thi-" great it was as if she brought bad luck along with her. A foreshadowing of impending doom she was, as the sparks erupted into flame. The good thing it meant power was running through the hasty interconnected wiring he had been forced to assemble, but fire meant oxygen depletion. As it was they were running out of time as it was, he would send her to the Medical bay and reroute life support to only that room. It was his only chance, and would extend their time to a week.

"You dont feel great cause my sensors are showing a severe drop in breathable oxygen in this room. My only chance of keeping you and Tress alive is to reroute all life support to the med bay. The room is small enough to hold enough air for the two of you, but it will be getting cold in there...." he dropped everything and scrambled out of the access tube he was in and helped her to the med bay. On the way he grabbed emergency food supplies and a portable heater. It would still be to cold in there, but maybe it would pull them closer in a life or death situation.

When he got to the med bay, the automatic door opening revealing Tress on the medical pull out gurney cuffed to the wall. Bell looked over at Khari. "I assume that is so he doesnt fall off the bed?" He was amusing her, knowing it wouldnt be used for that purpose but thats all he said about it. Let them figure it out together in that small room. Tossing everything he had collected in behind her he shut the door as he stepped out. Locking the door, behind him he spoke into the comm system. "Keep him alive and i will do my best to keep you alive...."

On the way back a plan formed in his cognitive functions and logic processing core, to keep them together in there with only themselves for company. He would fix the ship, but not tell them until he felt they had worked things out. It would do Tress good, and Khari seemed to be smart and beautiful by human standards. Was this match making? He didnt think so, he saw it as character building for some reason.

 

[Khari Vestra]

"You dont feel great cause my sensors are showing a severe drop in breathable oxygen in this room. My only chance of keeping you and Tress alive is to reroute all life support to the med bay. The room is small enough to hold enough air for the two of you, but it will be getting cold in there...."

"You don't say?" Khari replied flatly, it didn't seem to matter what the situation brought, she never lost her sarcasm, ever. Things were dire though, she hadn't ever imagined going out like this, more from some disease brought on by the onset of lassitude or a life lived in luxury. Of course every sentient being wished they could die peacefully in their sleep and in essence, she would. But this was a horrible place to go in.

She wasn't going to argue with Bell when he called the course of action, there was no way she was pretending she knew what she was doing when her life was on the line - and not just hers, Tress' too. But did that actually matter to her? Yes, she supposed it did, she wasn't a murderer, a scoundrel out to get what they could by any means necessary. That was his forte, she might have said, but these were extenuing circumstances, and she really hadn't intended to injure him quite that badly. The droid helped her to the medbay, and never had such a short trip seemed so long, every step meant a new lungful of half-air, and a nauseating fight against the encroaching darkness around the edges of her vision. Her limbs had never felt so heavy, but they made it eventually, she entering the medbay ahead of Bell, and then the droid closing the door behind her, sealing them in.

At first, the sound of the locking mechanism cycling didn't really trigger anything akin to concern, if this was the best method of keeping them alive, then that would have to do. Tress was still secure, as pointed out by the maintenance droid, she figured his innocence was feigned, he knew why she'd cuffed him to the guardrail, it was probably just as well, because when she woke him up, he was going to be angrier than a gundark with a sore head!

"Keep him alive and i will do my best to keep you alive...." She heard Bell say through the ships intercom. So that was his plan? She was a lot of things but as she'd agreed earlier, she wasn't a murderer.

"Try?! I sincerely hope that was an inappropriate joke."

What she also wasn't, was a medic and that presented a whole new set of problems, what to do about that nasty concussion of his. One thing they weren't short of was ice, it had begun to collect on the coolant conduits and around the edges of the ships framework, so before the heater could melt it all, she wrapped her hands in the ends of her sleeves and set about pulling fragments of it away. Piece by piece the shards came away, and using the same, tattered piece of cloth she had to put out the fire, she wrapped the ice in the remainder and tied it at either end.
Khari turned back to where Tress was laying, peacefully unaware of the dire situation unfolding around him, and gently slipped a hand beneath the back of his cranium. Slowly she raised his head, placing the cold compress against the nasty swollen lump still rising. Seeing her handiwork close up just made her wince, was that guilt she was feeling? And if that was correct, why should she, he was going to sell her to a hutt.

Turning away again, she padded softly across the floor to search the nearby storage lockers and containers, there was a cut on Tress' forehead that needed cleaning up and sealing with a bacta strip.

"You're very lucky I'm in a good mood, Captain." She said, deciding that talking to him might help bring him out of his unconscious state, "Because where I am from, most captains go down with their ships."

That was true enough, centuries before she had even been born, one such leader had tried to go out with the entire Kuati orbital array.
In the midst of rummaging through one container, her hands found what she was searching for, some swabs, bacta patches and steristrips. Grasping her prize, she laid them out on the edge of the bed and began to dab the cut just above his brow ridge. The sting alone should have been enough to wake him completely, it looked pretty nasty from where she was standing. He had been, as yet, unresponsive, but when she had checked, he was still breathing on his own, that was something at least.

"You might wish to reconsider your plans when you wake up, you know." He didn't owe her one as such, but this definitely evened up the score a bit. Seeing him laying there she couldn't help but notice - and not for the first time - quite how ruggedly handsome he actually was. She had an eye for these things, like most Kuati women, but wouldn't have admitted as much to herself, much less him. Her volatile nature had been all born of the situation he'd forced her into, that automatically overrode everything until he gave a reason for it not to.

 

[Tress]

Nightmares of pain and loss, were of his lost family. The death of his father, after his mother left him with the families finical ruin. She had ended up remarrying a close friend and forgotten her past life.

Dreams or nightmares, he wasn't sure which they were. There was pain in them, transferred from the injury he had taken to the back of his head. one was of his ex-fiance dumping him before the news of his family ruination effected her families standing in the social order of things. Once he was considered a catch, handsome, wealthy and from a lesser branch of one of the TEN. Then that fateful day he said no to some woman and his life came crashing down around him.

Then there was the dream of him being in bed, his beautiful fiance standing there at the side of the bed as he beckoned her closer. The sheer fabric of what she wore cool to his touch. "Come here, love" he said in a husky whisper. Still lost in his own world, as he reached for Khari herself. He pulled her closer until she was up against him in the small medical bed. That's when he kissed her, at first just a brush of his lips against hers, then deeper as he got into it. "Dont ever leave me...." it was also when the fiance turned from being herself into the infuriating kuati woman he had revenge plans for, but somehow he didnt stop kissing her.

Back in the engine compartment, Bell was busy at doing nothing. He had accomplished his goal and they were safe for now. Well, the ship was to be exact. Power had been rerouted from the auxiliary power cells to the Medbay. That was almost close to done, when Khari had come to see him. As soon as he got back, it had taken a few more adjustments to finish that. With them save and sound in one room together, and him not needing breathable air in the rest of the ship he was home free. Like a small vacation away from it all. Later on he would finish repairing things, but there was no hurry now.

 

[Khari Vestra]

"Come here, love"

"Excuse me?!"

In the second it took him to say that sentence, she found herself wondering if she'd actually heard that right, or was simply still suffering from the lack of air. It was said that could have adverse effects on people, so it was possible, wasn't it? But when he reached out to her with his one free arm, she instantly pulled back. All this did was cause him to slap his palm against the back of her head, hells bent on doing whatever it was he thought he was doing and being too shocked to resist it in any determined way just yet, the inevitable happened.
It was just the barest brush of his lips against hers, soft, not yet committed, but it quickly blossomed into more. Too stunned to react, she stood there, wide eyed and outrage rising, but it was the slight slip of his tongue that made her snap out of it.

Grabbing his arm she pulled it away and made to rise, hearing the immortal words "Don't ever leave me...." mid recoil. That was it, she didn't know what kind of ransom this man was asking, but she would be damned before she became a part of his deluded fantasy. Drawing her arm back she brought it forward, slapping him hard across the face with a skillful flick of the wrist to make sure it stung him. If he wasn't awake before, he would be now, and she stood there seething, glaring down impertinently at him for his indiscretion.

"What in the nine hells do you think you are doing?!!" She shrieked, the words coming out far more high pitched than she had invisioned them. But she was wound up now, the anger and surprise bared for him to see, and she wasn't going to calm down either. "Now I don't care what you may have heard or read about me, but you aren't fooling anyone with the nice act and you certainly won't trick me into committing any base acts with the likes of you!"

Had he engineered this whole thing, did the droid know this was the plan? She was going to sell him for scrap if that was the case, the first chance she got when she escaped, his days were numbered too.
"I have standards, Captain Odak, and I assure you, you can't so much as see the bar from how low you rank on that scale. Or is this how you get women to fall for you now, kidnap them, threaten them and tell them you're going to sell them to a Hutt? A Kriffing HUTT for stars sake!"

Turning away from him, because he really had no way of getting far from that bed without dragging it with him, she marched stiffly up to the door, and hammered on it with the side of a balled fist.

"Bell? BELL! Let me out of here, right now!" The droid clearly had a sense of humour, that or he knew what awaited him if she really did get out of there. She wasn't an engineer, and she certainly wasn't a technician, so taking him apart meant an indefinite state of deactivation. But she didn't move, because facing the door meant she could hide her face from Tress, the profoundly dusky blush that had taken residence on her otherwise pale cheeks and the fact that for a while there when he was kissing her, she had responded.

 

[Tress]

The most pleasurable dream one could have, all the right things to make it unforgettable and then with a jolt of awareness you awake and looking around confused. Blinking seemed to help the cloudy, blurry vision right before the pain hit and it hurt to open his eyes. What was that, he thought to himself, as he took note of himself mentally. The noise or buzzing din was starting to make sense now after getting his bearings.

"What in the nine hells do you think you are doing?!!" She shrieked, the words coming out far more high pitched than she had invisioned them. But she was wound up now, the anger and surprise bared for him to see, and she wasn't going to calm down either. "Now I don't care what you may have heard or read about me, but you aren't fooling anyone with the nice act and you certainly won't trick me into committing any base acts with the likes of you!"

It cost him to much to swing his legs over and peer up at her squinting with one eye open, while he rubbed the back of his head. "Who are you? And what are you talking about, lady?"

She went on again, as he fought the quizzy feeling and the cold feeling one feels just before fainting. He never did notice the hand cuffed to the bed, as he looked at her dumbfounded.


"I have standards, Captain Odak, and I assure you, you can't so much as see the bar from how low you rank on that scale. Or is this how you get women to fall for you now, kidnap them, threaten them and tell them you're going to sell them to a Hutt? A Kriffing HUTT for stars sake!"

"Bell? BELL! Let me out of here, right now!"

"Who is Bell?" The look of confusion she would have noted in his expression was there plain to see if she hadnt turned and started banging on the door. The sound of it echoing in his head bringing on a migraine, he almost whispered though it was loud enough for her to hear. "And who is Capt Odak, and who are you?

"Who am I? Where am I?" When he asked he stood, but was stopped short by his cuffed wrist. "Are you a Law Enforcement officer or were you taking advantage of me....."the questioning look spoke volumes.

 

[Khari Vestra]

"Oh please," Khari hissed back over one shoulder at him, her eyes said it all, she was not being taken in by this childish act "what do you take me for?"

It had to be the oldest trick in the book, losing his memory. He knew exactly where he was, exactly who he was and everything in between, he must have thought she was supremely dense!
She quickly resumed hammering her fist on that door and creating a loud din in between her haughty shouting and demands. Tress had other ideas, nearly making her laugh and pitch over with what he asked her.

"Are you a Law Enforcement officer or were you taking advantage of me....."

Stunned and frankly confused, she put two and two together when she followed his eyes down to where she'd cuffed him to the bed's guard rail, and this time she did laugh. He couldn't be serious, could he? Had he really no recollection of what he was doing here, who he was? A moment ago, things had been so surreal, he had woken from his unconscious state and actually kissed her, she, the woman he was supposedly holding for ransom! Khari might have hit him over the head, might have done it way harder than she had meant to, but could she have quite literally knocked the sense out of him? Oh vaping moff's that was a horrible thought. One that had stilled her completely, trying to figure out what in the nine hells she was going to do now?
This was a unique advantage, if she played it off right, but would that meddling droid just put the kybosh on her plans? Possibly, so better they actually remain in here until a time came when she could take control of the ship, and get out of here.

So why did she feel so awful about doing this?

"Advantage of you, law enforcement? No no, Captain, far from either. That was for your own protection, you became quite fitful in your sleep. I had to be sure you wouldn't damage the ship further." She said pleasantly enough, though in her head she had been forced to push back a blush, her whole demeanour changing in the blink of an eye. Had he seen her irate before? Almost certainly, so she needed to explain that away too. "You are aware of what happened, aren't you? Excuse me for before, you went a little crazy earlier, I was concerned I might need backup."

As tales went, Tress being a crazy person could be plausible, she supposed, he was crazy enough to try and kidnap her, for instance.

"I suppose crazy is a little harsh, you did say something about having Ewoks up your nose there for a moment, but luckily we were able to restrain you before you did any more harm to yourself or anyone else for that matter. I believe you're suffering from a bad case of space sickness. One of the worst I have seen, in fact." Nodding astutely, the dark haired woman watched him carefully, guaging that look in his eyes, searching for signs that he was bluffing, "That is why we're heading to Kuat, they have the best facilities on the array for their staff who suffer from this debilitating sickness. Months at a time those engineers are out there, it's rife, a real problem. Mmhm...and what are you doing out of bed? You need your rest."

Should she approach him? It would lend credence to her story, but at the same time put her in danger. More danger than she had faced? Doubtful, so with that in mind she took tentative steps towards him and reached out in an attempt to guide him back onto the medbay bed.

 

[Tress]

He was busy his face down as his fingers lightly probed around the bump the back of his head was sporting, but as she hissed out he looked up trying to understand.

"Oh please,"

The look he gave was one of being lost and confused. What was she going on about? Did she really not believe him?. Would she prove her personality and use it against him? The next words out of her mouth showed she was just such a person, imagine that, here he was a man with memory loss an uses it to her advantage.

She would spend the rest of the time in the cargo compartment tied up and forgotten until they got to their final destination, he vowed.

"Advantage of you, law enforcement? No no, Captain, far from either. That was for your own protection, you became quite fitful in your sleep. I had to be sure you wouldn't damage the ship further." She said pleasantly enough, though in her head she had been forced to push back a blush, her whole demeanour changing in the blink of an eye. Had he seen her irate before? Almost certainly, so she needed to explain that away too. "You are aware of what happened, aren't you? Excuse me for before, you went a little crazy earlier, I was concerned I might need backup."


"Who is this Captain you refer to?" he said still feeling the bloody bump at the back of his head.

"I suppose crazy is a little harsh, you did say something about having Ewoks up your nose there for a moment, but luckily we were able to restrain you before you did any more harm to yourself or anyone else for that matter. I believe you're suffering from a bad case of space sickness. One of the worst I have seen, in fact." Nodding astutely, the dark haired woman watched him carefully, guaging that look in his eyes, searching for signs that he was bluffing, "That is why we're heading to Kuat, they have the best facilities on the array for their staff who suffer from this debilitating sickness. Months at a time those engineers are out there, it's rife, a real problem. Mmhm...and what are you doing out of bed? You need your rest."

Then the blood drained out of his face with a forced prod to the bump helping him appear concerned. "I'm crazy? Did I hurt anyone?" he had to lay down feeling that cold dread spread through his body before the loss of consciousness. Did it come off as worry, guilt if he had hurt anyone. Whatever it was it seemed to work as she got closer.

When he saw his change he snatched at her hand with his free one and pulled her down on the bed with me. "Why you little minx ! Where are your scruples? Your moral and ethical principles trying to lie to a victim of memory loss...." he wrapped her arm behind her holding her under him now. "Before i am through with you, you will wish..." he didnt finish, as his eyes dropped to her lips as he remembered the kiss they shared. He could still taste her on his, made evident as his tongue darting out to taste her still there.

"Release me.." he said with a voice husky with to much need and he damned himself for it. What was that? In a clearer tone, he bite out. "Let me go now or else"




"

 

[Khari Vestra]

He seemed genuinely shocked that he might have done what she'd accused him of. Maybe he was, but she never completely trusted him, it was hard to when someone had stunned you and left you to wake up bound to a conduit in the cargo hold of some rust bucket. But the way the colour drained from his face, that couldn't really be faked, could it? It could be if they were in a state of shock, as one might be when waking up from a hallucination and realizing someone had beaten you about the head, forcefully, with a blunt object. Khari had grown foolishly brave though, willing to turn to just about anything in order to secure her freedom, and now she was within reaching distance, Tress had made his move.

It didn't even surprise her when he snatched up her wrist and clenched it in a vice-like hold. She twisted, turned, and fought him every step of the way, but that was the thing about anger, it sometimes gave you the edge. He was much bigger than she was anyway, and while not completely defenseless, she wasn't exactly the type to have undergone any combat training.

"Why you little minx ! Where are your scruples? Your moral and ethical principles trying to lie to a victim of memory loss...."

"Victim?!" She shrieked, bemused as he pulled her down against the slightly padded surface of the medical bed, "Are you forgetting the small matter of why you ended up here to begin with?"

"Before i am through with you, you will wish..."

He'd managed to get her arm twisted up behind her now, and the more pressure he applied the more uncomfortable it became. Not that being in close quarters with him had actually worried her, since until this point he'd seemed to have an aversion to so much as looking in her direction. But his unfinished threat left her pausing for thought. What, exactly, was he capable of? Vengance did terrible things to people, and he was looking for a way to get back at her mother, there was no telling what lengths a person would go to to do that. Just how deep did that wound go? What would have been useful here, would be a smidge of diplomacy, what she gave him was actually the first thought to enter her mind.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Khari had seen that look before, right before he'd snapped out of his dream, reached up and they had kissed...
-No, she tried to remind herself, he had kissed her, she hadn't responded, she had far better scruples than he gave her credit for. But of course, that was a blazingly bad lie. She had kissed him back, if only for a moment.

"Release me.."

The kuati opened her mouth to speak, but stopped short of making a sound, her eyes searching his again, not quite believing her ears. Apparently he'd noticed his tone too, and was quick to rectify it with a more, certain sounding one.

"Let me go now or else"

Oh this was just perfect, idle threats, they had to be. What was he going to do, pin her here for all eternity? He had no means of getting out of that bind easily, she had tried herself down in the cargo hold. The release she had put somewhere for safe keeping and right now he didn't stand a chance of getting it, because it was keeping her alive.

"Or else what, Captain?" A smile tugged at the corners of her lips, vanished just as quick when she realized she was looking quite so intently at his. "What are you going to do about it, where are you going to go? There's very little breathable air out there. You see, when you decided to unceremoniously slam your thick skull into something vitally important, you got yourself into this mess."

Now this was delicious, wasn't it? How he must have been regretting ever laying eyes on her. In better circumstances, she might have errupted into laughter, but she didn't want to thin the air anymore, nor disturb Bell from his work to do so.
Trying to untwist her arm, she attempted to sit up, pressing for the advantage, and indeed against him. "So why don't you just accept that you're stuck here," The kuati was almost nose to nose with him at this point, never breaking eye contact, she could feel his breath fall softly against her lips as they brushed his, "And let. Me. Up."

 

[Tress]

Why he ended up there to begin with? Did she so easily forget then? "You hit me! That's why we are here. "

What happened next was something he would think of hard later. One moment she was on her feet near the bed, the next he had pulled he on the bed and fought for dominance. Somehow twisting and capturing her arm behind her so she wouldn't strike at him, but having her so near where her scent surrounded him, distracted him. Then the realization of her body close to his, softer but lethally tempting his body to respond.

"Why are you looking at me like that?"

His eyes drifted up to her lips as the moved, he never understood what she had said, just her supple lips. When he looked up into her eyes he was lost, then something snapped in him and he shook his head as if to clear it.

Tightening his hold on her he went back to his old self. "Release me now, or else."he felt he had to repeat himself to cover up what had just almost happened. He was not attracted to her, he had just not had the company of a beautiful woman, not that she was beautiful. No, neither was she sexy. By that time he was only kidding himself lying like he was.


She blamed him, and even caught that smile she tried to hide. Was she seriously blaming things on him? As if she wasn't partially responsible for this situation they were in. They would have to make the best of it, would they? No, this was her doing and he would take advantage of it tormenting her every step of the way. With little warning he swooped down and claimed her lips, capturing the small gasp of surprise as he did so. His free hand up and cupping her chin keeping her from turning away, he wanted a kiss...a full kiss from her and would get it.

 

[Khari Vestra]

"You hit me! That's why we are here. "

Laughing aloud at his sudden rush of memory, she even shook her head while trying her best to untwist his grip so he'd have no choice but to let her go. It didn't work.

"I wouldn't have had to hit you if you hadn't kidnapped me in the first place. That, Captain-nerf-herder, is your fault!" Khari chipped back at him with clipped tones, even going so far as to lean up defiantly towards him. But then he began looking at her with more than the expected surprise, almost expectant. What was he doing?

It almost looked like the pair of them were suspended in time, on pause, caught in a moment - she put a stop to that last thought before it had time to bloom into anything else. No, it didn't matter if he was kind of rakish when he wasn't trying to ignore her, he was still what he was, a no good filthy criminal, who had clearly gotten in over his head. Handsome though, yes, he was that, temper or not.
Now angry at herself, she did her best to appear indifferently unamused with him. Whatever he was up to, it wasn't going to work, because she wasn't going to release him. Not until they were back safely on the ground and she was several miles away. The authorities could deal with him then.

"Release me now, or else." Another laugh from her quarter, she wasn't giving him ground, did he really think threats would make her change her mind?

"Threats now, is it? I shouldn't have expected anything less, but no, let me hear it. Or else what...you'll kidnap me again? I do hope you make a better job of it next time, your inadequacies are showing rather spectacularly at the moment."

Something flashed across his eyes then, something unbidden and rogueish. What it was she had not the time to consider, because when she opened her mouth to ask what he found so amusing, she was silenced almost instantly with what amounted to a searing kiss. His anticipating her fighting it was spot on, because she did try and turn away, he held her fast with one hand though, she wanted to slap him again and really make it hurt this time. His persistence was commendable, had she considered him actually having any sense, she wouldn't have thought he'd try this again, but with every breath she took she also drank in his scent, the way his lips worked pliantly, soft and sensually over her own - it wasn't as if he was actually trying to force this on her whatever his intentions. And at that moment she realized why she wanted to pull away so much, because if she left it any longer she would...

With her free hand she reached up to him, slipping it round the back of his head, her slender fingers tangling in the unkempt hair and making sure she avoided that rather prominent sore sport she'd dealt him. All the while her heart was hammering in her chest, her mind in total chaos when she did anything akin to thinking sensibly, it simply wouldn't work. So instead she gave herself to instinct, kissing him back, hotly, deeply. If this was a ruse he'd give up, surely, but right now Khari didn't much care. At the very least she could commend him for his interesting method of conserving air.

 

[Tress]

He hadn't meant to kiss her, but he would be lying to himself if it wasn't the best kiss he had ever had. Her lips soft and smooth under his as he brushed his across hers. He had to taste her, deepen the kiss just that bit more. The tip of his tongue slid across her lower lip before he deepened the kiss fully. The hand on her chin tilting hers just barely so they could enjoy it while it lasted.

Finally he pulled back and just looked at her, his thumb brushing her lower lip as he caught his breath that had been taken from him with the kiss. What had he done? Should he let her go now, or still demand to be let go? Should be kiss her again like he wanted, too?

Whatever he did it had to be now, he was still holding her. His hands acting as if they were caressing her were actually feeling for the key to the cuffs he was in. When his head cleared he remembered it was a coded lock and undid it himself, instead locking them over her wrist. "Your to forward for my tastes. How can you kiss a strange man, a man that kidnapped you?" he looked at her accusingly, but his eyes kept dropping to her lips and his thumb still there feeling her full lower lip.

"So now that the shoe is on the other foot, so to speak.....what should i do to you know?" His eyes trailed down her body suggestively. Honestly, he was thinking along those lines but his better judgement got the better of him and he only teased to scare her or if she said yes. Well, better for him. "What to do ....what to do." he said leaning closer to her as to kiss her again.

 

[Khari Vestra]

What was she doing? Her conscience screamed at her and to no avail, she knew exactly what she was doing, and moreover why she was doing it. Although she would have bluffed and stated that this had been an attempt to put him off guard, appeal to him in another way, Khari knew she wasn't like that, wouldn't sink that low. She was outnumbered but not outgunned just yet, he was still stuck to the bed's guardrail, and unless he felt like taking the whole thing with him, that would be where he remained for some time. So why was she continuing to kiss him, then? And why make it so...enjoyable?

Apparently she wasn't the only one enjoying herself, because as he slipped her the tongue, she was quick to respond accordingly, even going as far as to reach up with her one free hand, slipping it around the back of his neck while her fingers tangled in his unkempt crop of hair. They could have stopped at any moment, it wasn't as if he was preventing her from kicking him in the shins - or anywhere else for that matter - so she kissed him back just as deeply, the barest reaches of a smirk when his tongue dared to run the length of her lower lip, just teasing her for the time being.

The last thing she was expecting was for him to pull back and act all accusatory.

"Your to forward for my tastes. How can you kiss a strange man, a man that kidnapped you?"

The Kuati woman blinked, taken aback to say the least, but he managed to stave off the frown that was tempering her brow when his thumb travelled the path of her bottom lip, just as his tongue had done mere seconds before. Now all she felt was confused, was she imagining what just happened? No, no she still felt heady with his scent, could still taste him on her. That had just happened, whether he liked it or not.

"Excuse me?" She asked, utterly astounded, was he trying to take the moral high ground here? "You kissed me, Captain, or did your lips just happen to slip?"

By now she had let go of him, her free arm hanging limp by her side, but that wasn't the one she needed to have been paying attention to. A resonating 'click' reminded her of just what situation they were really in, and the soul reason why she had found herself brave enough to make her way over to the bed in the first place - the binders, the coded binders that he almost certainly had the code for...why hadn't she reset it?
Stupid, stupid woman!

Almost as if to divert her attention from what he'd just been accusing her of, he was now taking the route of revenge, it really shouldn't have surprised, nor indeed hurt, her as much as it did. A scowl darkened her expression and wrinkled her brow in deep, disdainful furrows.
"Oh you're a piece of work, aren't you?"

So that was it, get her here, make her vulnerable and then what? Judging by the way he was looking her up and down, eyes full of suggestive promise, she really didn't want to be tethered to one spot to find out. Almost instantly she began curling her fingers round to grip the coded part of the lock, if luck would have it it would take her a few moments to work out the combination. If luck wasn't on her side, as seemed to be the case, this would take a while, too long, in fact.
"Touch me and i'll..." do what? Now who was the one making empty threats? Except her's weren't empty, were they, she still had full use of her legs. He'd be expecting a slap, she'd given him enough during their duration here. Careful not to reveal her intentions through her gaze, she did her best to remain calm while she worked out just where his legs were placed, then drew back, leg crooked beneath the raised surface of the bed, before swinging her leg forth and driving a knee up, as hard as she could, between his.

With him hopefully dislodged for a second or two, she could potentially untwist her arm and try and free herself again. But where would she go then? They were on a ship, a damaged ship, in the middle of a karking nebula! And it wasn't as if she could go to the ship's droid for help, no, he seemed far too honour bound, if such machines could be, and dead set on helping his master, not her. Natrually, being who she was, the first thing that came to her was petulence.

"Serves you right, pervert! You might have kidnapped me, you might even be able to make some credits out of me, but you will never, ever have your way with me, or anyone else for that matter if you try that again!" It was insult to injury, or rather, insult from injury, in her mind, she'd been duped rather than diverted, and all he cared about was getting his way, her own stupidity embarrassed her. But that wouldn't happen again.

 

[Tress]

"Excuse me?" She asked, utterly astounded, was he trying to take the moral high ground here? "You kissed me, Captain, or did your lips just happen to slip?"

He got a kick out of that, but didnt show it. She was really kinda beautiful when it came to her being angry. Should he keep it up and see where things went or should he just stop and ignore her.? He guessed the reversal of situation would do that for him. When he took the cuffs off himself and placed one end on her so she was not in his place he smirked liking the idea of her bound.


"Piece of work am I?" he said chuckling. "I wasnt the one who cuffed me to a sickbay bed after kcocking them over the head with....what did you hit me with, woman?" he felt the back of his head again and winced. "Whatever it was you have what you asked for now. Cuffed to that bed is where you will be for the next week or so if i wanted."


He reached for the wall comm system and tried to call Bell. "Hey, whats the sitrep!?" he waited for a response then noticed outside comm was powered down. "Just great, I can just imagine what trouble and damage you have done to my ship."he said looking her way. Dammit, all this wasnt going as planned. What else could go wrong and what was he supposed to do now?

He smiled as he caught sight of her. He could think of a few things to do all alone in here with her, but would she be willing?

Why not try, he was already close to her what was the harm in......his eyes bugged out as he was hit. She must have seen the intention in his eye and reacted, but he was to busy trying to breath as he curled up.

"Serves you right, pervert! You might have kidnapped me, you might even be able to make some credits out of me, but you will never, ever have your way with me, or anyone else for that matter if you try that again!" It was insult to injury, or rather, insult from injury, in her mind, she'd been duped rather than diverted, and all he cared about was getting his way, her own stupidity embarrassed her. But that wouldn't happen again.


There goes the other damage he was talking about, though not to his ship but to his own self. That is when the door opens and closes behind Bell. "I brought you some foo....seems I might have come at a bad time." he said hastily and delivers the tray with food and drinks then leaves just as quickly as he came in.

"You will pay for this...." he said in a hiss, not sure if he meant her or the droid he was thinking about scrapping.

 

[Khari Vestra]

Tress went down like a duranium weight, curling in on himself while biting out hissed curses and damnation to her and her entire sector, for all Khari actually cared. It didn't make a bit of difference to her, only that she now had a limited ammount of time to untwist her arm from behind herself and attempt to tug her arm free of the binders while he was still rolling around, nursing his particulars.

A sharp tug on the metal guardrail told her what she had already known, without a hydrospanner and a large portion of elbow grease, that thing wasn't budging, so it was break the binders or nothing. The hiss of the medbay door opening startled her into turning round abruptly. But instead of seeing Tress trying to make a hasty getaway - for that would have been particularly astounding, considering - there stood the ever-attentive Bell, holding a tray of something that smelled vaguely like food. Her stomach growled in protest, food would have been good right now, but this was hardly the time.

He wasn't intent on staying though, one look at Tress was all it took, and he'd placed the tray down as quickly as possible, and to his credit, he hadn't spilled a drop of the beverages he'd added to the spread, but he was out of the bulkhead like a bolt of lightning.

"Wait! You can't seriously leave me in here with...with him!?" It was useless, however, Bell wasn't listening, and even when Tress tried, as weakly hissed as it sounded through the pain, there was no response. The blasted droid had set them up, it seemed.

"Wonderful crew you have, just fantastic. It's nice to see that you have such an expert command...this wouldn't be tollerated on any decent vessel." Pausing dramatically, she turned her nose up for effect, "I'm guessing you've never been on any of those."

A quick glance around the room had yeilded next to nothing she could have used to free herself, at least initially, so when she remembered having disarmed him earlier, her gaze immediately flicked to where she had placed down his blaster pistol. It wasn't within reach, not easily, but with a bit of careful groundwork it was as good as hers...

"You will pay for this...."

Looking down at him, still trying to deal with his pain, it was a rather sorry sight, if not a mildly triumphant one for her. She wasn't going to be sullied with the stain of guilt when he had quite blatantly made it obvious what he was interested in getting from her. Kidnapped, Used for extortion, and now just used?! Not while she still drew breath.
What she couldn't explain, especially to herself, was why she felt mildly bad for having done what she did. It was instinct, a quick reaction, she hadn't exactly thought it through and a kick to the pills had got the job done, but he was already injured. Was she going to have to kill him to get out of this intact?! The grumble from her stomach that brought forth, had nothing to do with her hunger. She felt sick at the thought, appalled.
Khari turned away from the sight, but she could still hear him down there, moving about and cursing, so busied herself trying to force her hand through the small apperture in the binders. He'd closed them tight, but it was worth a try, even if it hurt.

Tress was still on the floor.

"Look, I don't like you, you don't like me, so let's not ruin a great thing with anymore violence...deal? And I'm sorry about that..."

 

[Tress]

Why did woman always go for a mans tender bits. The pain was breath stealing as it traveled up your midsection seizing everything from properly functioning for minutes. When your brain cleared the fog of shock, it wast only to met the pain still radiating up from ....things. He was aware of Bell entering with a tray and leaving just as fast. He couldnt even get out the breathe to curse him into a smelting pot. That droid would be getting what was coming to him.

Least he was reasonably safe from the Kuati witch and more damage to his valuables.



"Wonderful crew you have, just fantastic. It's nice to see that you have such an expert command...this wouldn't be tollerated on any decent vessel." Pausing dramatically, she turned her nose up for effect, "I'm guessing you've never been on any of those."

Finally, he was able to roll on to his back and look up at the ceiling. His body was still feeling the residual effects, and had a weak stomach cause of it, but he did answer. "I served in the Kuati Defense Force as Commander of a corvette, called the Hindsight and later as a law enforement officer" he said rubbing his stomach to settle it. "That was before your mother came across me and slyly asked to share her bed with her. Turning her down resulted in the ruination of me and if that wasnt bad enough she targeted my family...."

"Look, I don't like you, you don't like me, so let's not ruin a great thing with anymore violence...deal? And I'm sorry about that..."

Looking over at her by turning his head he couldnt help the sadness in his eyes. "I was engaged, did you know that? She left me over this. My father...." he couldnt finished, just ended looking back up at the ceiling. "....since then i have had to fight everyday just to survive and feed myself and keep Bell running. She owes me.."

 

[Khari Vestra]

It seemed to be the day for surprising revelations, situations aside, and she was surprised to hear he'd served in the Kuati defense force. Not least of all because he seemed so unlikely, but more because she couldn't ever see someone getting so down and bitter on their luck that they'd need to resort to kidnapping someone as a means of scraping together a few credits. Credits, Khari thought, had never been a worry, until yesterday.
She wasn't at a low ebb enough, that she would resort to extortion, not just yet.

Even she couldn't masque her disappointment when he'd mentioned her mother's involvement. How she'd propositioned Tress didn't surprise her in the least, but his refusal had resulted in this? She hadn't thought Anara had it in her to go that far, but hell, whichever of the nine it was, hath no fury like a woman scorned. And now this man was scorned too.
A snort of derision eminated from her direction and she blinked when she realized how wrong it would sound that she might have been laughing at his misfortune. That was not the case.

"I'm sorry, it's not you it's just...well, I thought she would have learned by now. Old habits die hard, but listen to me. Sometimes I feel like her mother, not the other way around." There had even been questions regarding Khari's own parentage, oh Anara was her mother and that was all that mattered on Kuat, but the telbun who had taken charge of her young-self's care hadn't exactly resembled a striking likeness. People talked, and children overheard things, Khari had been no exception.

Observing him, he didn't seem as pained as he had when she'd delivered the low blow, but he was distant and the pale-complexion that had taken place of a well tanned one, remained nevertheless. It wasn't helping her feel any less guilty, even if her haughty inner voice was screaming at her that none of this was her fault.

"I was engaged, did you know that? She left me over this. My father...." he couldn't finish, just ended looking back up at the ceiling. "....since then i have had to fight everyday just to survive and feed myself and keep Bell running. She owes me.."

Khari hadn't, but then she hadn't heard of a one Captain Tress Odak before now either. They both belonged to different social circles, even if he had been in the defense force, she would have unlikely come into contact with him on anything more than a brief 'how do you do' basis. A pity, she found herself thinking, because he was, on some odd level, an interesting person, his charm offensive needed a lot of work, though. If he tried his luck again, she would be ready. Ignoring the fact she had kissed him back, and that she had, whether she cared to admit it, actually enjoyed it, she found her attention drawn away from her immediate plight to get free, and just perched on the edge of the medbay's bed.

"I did not, no. But then I didn't know anything about you until some hours ago." She admonished, if not meekly, then at least not sarcastically. "And it would appear that she does. I won't excuse what she did, but I can tell you that I wasn't privy to her dealings. Those are her business, and mine are my own."

It really didn't have to have come to this, not so far as she was concerned anyway, this whole debacle could have been avoided if he'd just listened. But here they were, and out there was Bell - stars, what was taking the droid so long?

"What I do know, is, you won't get to her by doing this...there are other ways, Tress." persuing the conversation gently seemed to be having some effect on him, but perhaps using his first name was a step too far. It never hurt to try, particularly when she was speaking the truth. Anara wouldn't crack, not this way.

 

[Tress]

He hated remembering the past, it always made his chest tighten with thoughts of losing people he loved. His father, his mother, the fiance he once loved. Each of them gone for one reason or another leaving him alone to bear the shame of it all. One refusal led to all this, one denied offer and it came to this.

No, he only had vengence in his heart now, only the plan to get the one responsible back and make her pay dearly just as he had paid. The plan had been to kidnap her daughter, make it about a ransom, though he wanted her to suffer....to plead for the return of the daughter who was her heir. Either she paid the full sum or pieces would get sent back. Thinking more on it now could he go that far? Could he actually hurt someone innocent for his vendetta on her mother. Would he just be lowering himself to Anara Vestra's level and attack his family. He once thought, fair was fair, she targeted his family so he would do the same, but could he now?

He barely heard her as she spoke to caught up in his own thoughts and anguish he was feeling over all this.

"I did not, no. But then I didn't know anything about you until some hours ago." She admonished, if not meekly, then at least not sarcastically. "And it would appear that she does. I won't excuse what she did, but I can tell you that I wasn't privy to her dealings. Those are her business, and mine are my own."

That exactly is what it came down to. How could he use the daughter to hurt the mother when she wasnt to blame. That he couldnt go against his teachings and personal honor to hurt an innocent in his quest of vengence.

"What I do know, is, you won't get to her by doing this...there are other ways, Tress." persuing the conversation gently seemed to be having some effect on him, but perhaps using his first name was a step too far. It never hurt to try, particularly when she was speaking the truth. Anara wouldn't crack, not this way.

"How? What other ways? The only thing she cares about is her name and reputation in the TEN. Something i cant do anything about without wealth. Without help. That is why i was going to ransom you. Get the starting capital I needed to begin the second part of my plan." he said sitting up finely, his feet touching the floor and he just stayed there running his hand through his hair until he felt the bump still there. "I lost my father to shame at losing everything, my mother soon left to marry her wealthly lover....my finace left me for my shame wouldnt touch her family. Yes, there are other ways like attackign directly but I cant do that. My target is Anara, not the innocents just doing their jobs in protecting her. I want to ruin her. I want her to know it was me in the end. I want he to realize she brought this on herself......" he sighed and didnt say anything else for several minutes.

"I need credits to do all this...thats where you were to come in, but if she doesnt pay i know now I cant hurt you over what she did. So as soon as whatever Bell is fixing is done and we land for repairs. I will set you free and just disappear." he said looking at her.