Ask Who Dunnit

[Altair Din]

It didn’t take long for Altair to smash and get rid of the last two infected. For being a diplomat, Celeste was surprisingly proficient with a saber and he was thankful for it. He didn’t think he could carry them both while he was still sporting an injury from earlier. He was not the least bit enthused about making their way up the stairs, but even he couldn’t spot any ways out.

The tiefling began to cough as smoke rapidly filled the room and he held his breath. However, he also gathered the Force and blasted it out to disperse the smoke back up the way it came. He quickly gestured for Celeste to do the same, forcing it to travel up and overwhelm the people that tossed the grenade to begin with. He could already hear some coughing up in the distance and he finally exhaled.

“Let’s go!” He shouted as he began to bolt up the stairs, using the small window of opportunity as the smoke began to plume up and back towards their attackers. Altair applied Force sight as he came up to the main level, spotted several figures doubled over and coughing. Clearly they didn’t expect the smoke to unnaturally turn and head back towards them. This meant the Sith had a brief element of surprise.

Altair channeled the Force and he thought of Celeste’s idea of explosives, quickly thinking on his feet. He unleashed the Force in a blast of inferno, the fire enhanced by the smoke and chemicals in the air. The result was a brilliant spew of flames that jetted right towards the people standing in the corridor, igniting them instantly.

“Burn, bitches!!” Altair called out gleefully as he practically danced around from his own brilliant plan.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

Celeste desperately tried to hold her breath but the burning inside her lungs made it impossible after a few moments. She coughed heavily, gasping for fresh, unpolluted air before she realized that Altair was right. Why not using the advantages they had? With the help of the Force they could at least disperse the thick, dark smoke that slowly wandered down and redirect it towards their ruthless assailants upstairs, and so she forced herself to hold her breath again while she simultaneously coiled the Force around her to release an invisible blast of her own that supported Altair's plan.

Once the Tiefling began to run she hurried after him, but as Altair had a head start she wasn't too close behind it, but this soon turned out to be a good thing as her companion suddenly came back at her prior idea. Without hesitation, Altair sent out a Force blast and the smoke deflagrated in an explosion that immediately said the attackers on fire. Celeste covered her face for a moment by bringing her left forearm protectively in front of her eyes while the right hand was still closed around the activated lightsaber's hilt, the blade's hilt pointing towards the ground before she defensively brought it in front of her body just in case it would become necessary.

After the bang, a few pained cries echoed through the corridor while the Tiefling stood amidst the flames. How helpful that Altair was so fireproof thanks to his very nature of his race. Celeste for her part had to keep her safe distance from the burning, screaming bodies, but as she lowered her left arm she saw how in the very back of the corridor a few more attackers were on their way again as she saw silhouettes approaching. It was adorable to see his younger companion so cheerfully, but truth was they hadn't had much time for any victory celebrations.

"Come!" she urged him hastily after she had moved around a burning, coughing body before she had to cough again herself. She grabbed him by his left elbow and began darting towards the emergency exit that was closest to them, but before she even managed to make the first three steps, she saw something silvery flying in their direction. She immediately let go of him to stop the projectile with her left hand mid-air, using the Force to let it drift off course and fly past them.

Her gaze flicked towards the unharmed attackers in the back, attentively observing whether they were shooting anything else into their direction, but Celeste suddenly spied another important detail: A fire door switch. How convenient. Without hesitation she charged forward and hit the button, desperately praying that it would work, but the durasteel door wings to their left and right didn't move. "You've got to be...kidding me" she furiously hissed under her breath while she repositioned herself so that she could observe what their approaching attackers in the back had up their sleeves, but it then seemed like they were even caught in a slight crossfire as some of the burning, battered foes still sounded eager to pursue them. 'Let's make a run for the door!" she telepathically exclaimed, even though she had no idea whether those assailants hadn't already surrounded the building and waited patiently for them to storm out of the emergency exits. Celeste kept her gaze on the foes in the back of the corridor while she hoped Altair would be able to deal with the crisply burnt ones that were now behind them.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair was absolutely thrilled his random spur of the moment idea worked out. In fact, there was a moment in time where he did a little victory dance in the hall while his arms sported some flames that slowly died down. He was distracted when Celeste pointed out that they had new people to deal with. He glanced over his shoulder as she yanked him by the armor, almost tripping over his own tail as he scrambled off.

He didn’t argue about dashing towards the door. Altair decided to send a burst of the fire down the corridor towards the new enemies. It certainly distracted them for a moment and he used the opportunity to slam open the door to the side to give themselves an out. His eyes went wide as he saw two hooded figures standing on the other side, dart guns pointed.

“Watch o-” He held up an arm across Celeste slightly behind him to shield her, but it was to no avail. He felt a light pinch at the base of his neck and so would she. Altair’s head began to swim and he stumbled back a few paces before falling with a heavy thud.

—​

Altair felt like vomiting when he blinked awake in a dark room. He felt chains on his wrists and ankles, along with an absurd amount of drugs in his system. He had indulged in enough of them to know when he had foreign drugs in his body. Alarmingly, this made it incredibly difficult for him to concentrate on the Force. The room was very dark and he blinked a few times before his eyes slowly began to adjust.

He could make out he was in a dark dungeon cell. This was the second time he was in a mess like this and he sighed. Why did this always happen?!

Altair slowly turned to look and could see make out an outline, “That you, Celeste?” He called out hoarsely, “You alive over there?”

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

On the one hand, it was a good thing that Altair's idea had worked and that his high spirits somehow lightened her own hand, but on the other hand and it seemed like the Tiefling had lost a but of his focus. It took another second until he starting dashing forward again, but it had been no option to leave without him, so they made their run later than expected.

The bad thing, however, was that as soon as he had slammed the door open they were already cordially welcomed by yet two more and before Celeste could react in anyway, the Tiefling protectively reached behind him to shield her, but the dart had already reached its target. With a barely noticeable prick right across her collar bone her vision immediately grew blurry as she stumbled forwards. Landing on her knees she panicky reached to the spot where the dart still hadn't left her skin, but she couldn't even oull him out as she completely lost control over her nerves and senses and the whole world was just swallowed by an insurmountable darkness.

-----

She was woken by a voice that seemed to call her from a distance. Her thoughts were spinning, the head was buzzing and her limbs were aching. She had been drugged before, but this was a different kind of tranquilizer. The voice reappeared, but even if she somehow managed to blink she couldn't see anything.

Even though her limbs were in pain there was a certain amount of numbness to them, yet she could somehow feel that she was being restrained by a slight pressure around her wrists and ankles. Her head was hanging down as she couldn't gather enough strength to hold it up, after several more minutes her brain seemed to have finally processed the voice. "Al...Alt...Altair.." she wanted to reply, but there was nothing more but a feeble whisper leaving her lips.

She blinked and blinked, hoping to someone clear her vision, but progress was slow. "Al-tair" she tried again, this time slightly louder. She couldn't quite grasp what had happened or where her companion was, but she was beginning to realize that this this was the forth time now that she had ended up in a situation like this. "Don't...worry" she added weakly as she was trying to clear her thoughts.

@Sreeya

Spoiler

Roll 9/20 Attacker's Tiefling knowledge
Roll 3/20 Reaction at the dart

 

[Altair Din]

Altair exhaled in relief when he realized that Celeste was alive and not just a dead lump on the ground. From the sounds of it, she was not doing much better on the drugs. While he normally quite appreciated it when women moaned his name, this time it only gave him anxiety, “Try to conserve energy..” He called out to her. The only positive thing about this was that the captors clearly had no knowledge of his tiefling anatomy and physiology. With each passing minute, he was feeling strength returning to him as his dual livers got to work. While this wouldn’t be the case for Celeste, he fully intended to keep his recovery hidden until an opportune time to overwhelm their captors.

After a moment, there was bright light that switched on to bathe the entire cell. A big, gruff man entered the cell, a cover over the lower hemisphere of his face. He didn’t say a word as he plodded over and viciously grabbed Celeste by the arm and yanked her to her feet, practically dragging her out of the cell towards a different room. Altair grimaced at the sight, but he didn’t move just yet. He rapidly focused on regaining his Force strength. He knew he could break out of his binds and charge through the doors if he just had a bit of time.

The man took Celeste to a different room and plopped her down on a chair. There, she was faced with a robed individual that looked more like a cultist, “Who are you and why were you in that house?” The voice behind the mask spoke, venom dripping from their tone, “And what are you? Jedi?” Clearly someone had told the figure about the inferno and lightsaber use. Celeste would notice that someone else was standing by with a syringe to keep the suppressive drugs flowing if the Sith tried anything.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

Even though Celeste felt not only weakened but also fully dazed, she wasn't at all frightened. As dark as it sounded, she had become oddly used to such precarious situations and it wasn't hard for her to keep her cool anymore. Whenever someone aimed for capture, they needed information, no dead bodies. It was a good thing, however, that they hadn't put a shock collar around her neck, because those were not only nasty, but they still tended to awake the deep rooted trauma she still hadn't fully managed to overcome after Rattatak...

His comment even brought a weak smirk to her lips as the adorable attempt behind it washed over her softly. Even though he was supposed to lead this mission, she felt responsible, not only because she was older than him, but especially because she had been sent to diplomatically sort things out during their investigations. She reflected on each and every word she said exchanged with the diplomats, but in the end she had to admit that there hadn't even been even the slightest hint visible. This could all of been staged, the planet not wanting the Sith to help, but attempting to hurt them. It was still possible, but her gut feeling told her that this wasn't the case and they had rather been confronted with a decent portion of bad luck and additionally, it seemed like those cultists were much more organized than assumed.

She let out a sigh before the room was suddenly illuminated by a dazzling light that hurt her eyes. Softly moaning she squinted, hoping to see enough to assess the situation, but she merely spotted a silhouette before she was roughly yanked away. She didn't have a chance but to follow, but even though she was fully drained and drugged she did so reluctantly, merely to buy, or rather Altair valuable time. She might have had enough strength to someone put one foot in front of the other, but she prefered to let him drag her, even though this was more hurtful then walking. Once he shoved her towards the chair, she blinked a couple of times, nit only to let her eyes adjusted to the new scenery, but mainly to start of a convincing performance. "I..." she began feebly, painfully slow trying to reach up, trying to shield her eyes from the bright light. She had played thus game way to often to know exactly how to give a convincing performance. They wouldn't make her talk so easily. "I've asked you something", the tall man growled, a threatening note in his voice while she slightly forced herself to glance up to him. He suddenly stepped closer, squatting down next to her as he whispered into her ear, "Does your devil friend need his tail?". A slight, inner panic set it, but she didn't let anyone notice. So far, they were bluffing, wanting to get their information and so it was time to play. "The...orders" she whispered exhaustedly, slightly trying to turn her head into the masked figures direction to glare at him with a mixture of artificial awa and fright, while all she could really feel was fury.


@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

The cultist was getting impatient and he exhaled before abruptly hitting her across the face. It would leave a bruise and a thin cut just below her right eye, “We will deal with your little friend shortly,” He stated, “You aren’t Jedi,” He declared, “You are Sith. And you will start talking and tell me what you have planned. You will tell me why you are meddling on this planet. Tell me about your connections to Governor Dorn,” The man that the two Sith had met at the beginning of this mission. The one that had asked for help.

The man drew back and nodded to the other person in the room, “Keep her drugged,” He said, “Can’t have her trying to toss us around,” Within moments, the other would step forward with a syringe to do just that, resetting the fuzziness she felt and keeping her connection to the Force near impossible to bridge right then. If she continued to resist, the physical blows would continue.

Meanwhile, further down the hall, Altair felt more of his strength return. He despised the thought of whatever was happening to Celeste while he was stuck in the cell. However, he closed his eyes and meditated to recuperate his strength. After several more minutes, he tugged his arms in opposite directions, the chain breaking as he applied intense pressure. He did the same with the chains on his ankles.

The tiefling next rose up and grasped at the bars of the cell, focusing on where the joints were the weakest. He knew he couldn’t be too loud, but he focused the Force. After a moment, there were quiet snaps as the bars came loose. He slipped through the gap and was finally out in the open.

Altair snuck past any guards where he could, moving past rooms that looked like little offices. He paused at one of them as he spotted Celeste’s confiscated saber. He quickly grabbed it but paused when he saw an insignia on a document on the desk. It made his blood run cold. He stared at it for a moment, and it informed a lot of things just then. He turned and quickly continued along where he could hear voices.

Within moments, the door burst open to the interrogation room and Altair stormed in. He first whirled in with a punch imbued with the Force that collided with the large man that dragged Celeste away. The impact resulted in a sick crunch as the man’s face shattered, a hit to the temple killing him instantly. He next saw the cutlist that began to reach for a weapon and his gaze flickd to Celeste, spotting the injuries on her that weren’t there before. The sight infuriated Altair and he channeled it into lightning, unleashing it at close range at the cultist. His agonized screams filled the room as he cooked and dropped.

“H-How?” The last remaining person with the syringe asked as he panicked and was backed into a corner. Altair simply glared at him and coiled the Force around his neck till he choked his last breath. Already he could hear commotion behind them as he looked back at Celeste, “Can you walk?” After being injected twice, it was highly unlikely. Altair tore through her binds and gently helped her to her feet, putting one of her arms around his shoulders to support her.

He clearly hadn’t thought through an exit plan and he had no idea what they would have to fight through to escape. Nonetheless, he bolted from the room, half carrying Celeste.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

She glared at him tiredly, still completely overpaying the fire that was smoldering on her inside. She felt extremely weak, not even capable of commanding the Force anymore, yet she was feeling rather optimistic. She was slightly surpised at how fast he decided to become so violent, but since she was drugged so badly she didn't even feel more than a burn on her right cheek bone. But it obviously seemed like he wouldn't play nice now and so she adjusted her time buying strategies. "Seems like... you had been quick... to change your mind" she remarked with the slightest hint of amusement in her voice before she glared up more feistily. "Wh-what...gave us away? Perhaps the crimson saber....or the Force choking". Her lips turned into a weak, sarcastic smirk as she tried her best to keep her head up.

She had played this game way too often. When they gave her the clarity that they wouldn't kill her yet, because they were apparently in desperate need of information, she didn't even have any regrets or second thoughts in terms of her defiance. They would surely hit her again or hurt her even worse, but the tranquilizers made her numb enough so that she wouldn't even feel much of it. Of course she hadn't had the strength to stop them from injecting her again and once the needle penetrated her skin, her whole vision grew completely blurry again. This was indeed something that enormously bugged her as this meant she was utterly unable to defend herself, but while her head was slowly falling to the side, the door suddenly burst open and Altair stormed in, immediately dealing with the cultists inside. "Al..." her voice trailed off as she was already struggling with remaining conscious now that the second dose was enfolding in her bloodstream, so that she was even doubting whether Altair had actually managed to break himself out of that cell or whether she was hallucinating.

However, once someone, hopefully her companion, carefully helped her up, she was suddenly starting to feel noticeably better and even if her blurry vision was a huge problem, she at least felt like there would be the possibility of her still being able to command the Force. With every step she took -or rather with ever step she was being half carried- it was easier to sort her thoughts and to assess the outlines she could still perceive, but she still wasn't sure of how much help she could still be now in case they had to exterminate more of those cold blooded bastards. She could sense commotion, but Altair had been rather silent in his assault, so she was hoping they would find an exit soon. At least she had now noticed that this was Altair after all. Still, he probably also had no clue about there whereabouts, so they had to come up with something real quick. She blinked and blinked and tried to focus on the Force and on her anger in order to keep herself conscious, but the situation was still bad. They took a turn around a corner and ended on a new hall and surprisingly, she spied an elevator. A lift into the unknown, but it seemed like they were under ground again so perhaps this was their chance. "There..." she whispered weakly, trying to at least nod into the direction and so far she couldn't spot any enemies, which was a good thing.

@Sreeya

Spoiler

Roll 18/20 for how she is holding up

 

[Altair Din]

Altair had no issues with half carrying Celeste, especially when the drugs had almost entirely filtered through his system. Very few knew about tiefling anatomy and it saved him once again. Between this and immunity to extreme temperatures, he was thankful for his traits and it almost made the prejudice bearable.

“Just hang on,” He told Celeste, though he was happy to see her up on her feet at least. If anyone popped into his purview, he blasted them back with the Force. He spotted the elevator and rapidly pressed the button, jumping into it to allow them to ascend up. He could hear commotion behind him, but they were already going up.

Pumped full of adrenaline, Altair stormed through the path till he saw a window on the side. Without hesitating, he shielded Celeste and rammed his horned head through the glass, shattering it open. He helped the other Sith carefully step over it and broke out into a run in the open street. He knew they would be chased and they needed to find an immediate shelter.

From the looks of it, they were in some poor and run down districts of the planet. Drunkards and homeless people littered the streets everywhere. He spotted what looked like an abandoned apartment complex and found a way in, kicking down one of the doors to enter.

“Let’s chill here for a bit and figure out a game plan,” Altair said. He also needed Celeste to recover from two pumps of drugs and have be combat ready. The tiefling was exhausted, lined with sweat and still feeling hints of nausea from the drugs.

It was late at night and a storm began to brew and churn above. Altair sighed as he plopped down on a sofa in an abandoned living room. Furniture was scattered everywhere in this house and he had a feeling this had been a community riddled with AMS at some point. It was the only explanation for people hastily abandoning their dwelling.

“I can see why you wanna leave the Sith,” Altair said quietly as he turned to look at Celeste, “It’s always like this. You’re always the enemy. You always gotta fight for your life.”

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

Unfortunately, she had been drugged before and so she knew way too well how horrible this could feel. Even though those drugs were different, the dizziness and the nausea was similar. However this extreme exhaustion was different. She felt unbearably tired, yet she felt like if she would allow herself to doze off, she'd never wake up again and the sole thought of it frightened her.

There was no time for a nap anyway since they had to escape this hell-hole before any pursuers would be able to catch up, so it was definitely a good thing that she could at least move and she was overly grateful for Altair's help. The lift was a ray of hope that slightly lifted her spirits, but not her overall health, so she could still barely keep her eyes open while her vision was blurred beyond belief.

They somehow managed to reach the elevator, but Celeste hadn't been able to pay attention to their journey. The next thing she suddenly perceived was how they ascended and then they had suddenly reached the outside after the shattering sound of glass. Was she hallucinating? It felt as though she underwent a few mental blackouts, but she let out a breath of relief when they had suddenly reached something like a refuge. Or was this even a refuge? And how had she managed to reach the apartment anyway? Perhaps this didn't even matter....

" I love diplomacy" she remarked with a hint of amusement even if she was barely conscious, but she still somehow managed to approach the couch and tiredly let herself drop down next to him. She nodded as they had no choice but to wait. Hopefully she would feel better soon.

"Hm?". It took a moment for her to process his words, but as she managed to makes sense out of them, she couldn't even keep her head up. She slowly started to slump, her weakened silhouette dropping towards the side, right where Altair was seated.

Her head softly landed in his lap while she closed her eyes for a second, trying not to drift away but it was getting harder. "No...I mean yes. You're right. We are hated. But that's not why. I don't need praise or glory. I feel like I could achieve more if I'd leave. I can...actually change something. Peace. Actual peace...between the factions. All I want is to help...like here. We could have improved our reputation. Yet those cultist bastards assaulted us..." her voice trailed off as it was hard to keep focused.

Suddenly, another thought crossed her mind and they had to pass time anyway. "Have you ever actually met a Jedi in a non-combat situation?". She opened her eyes and turned her head so she looked up at him, too weak to push herself back into a seated position or to even get her head off his legs, so he had to endure that body contact now.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair was staring off at nothing for a moment when he felt Celeste shift and abruptly drop on his lap. He glanced down in concern, his vibrant purple eyes visible even in the low lighting, “You all right?” He asked as he eyed her for a moment. He hadn’t ever actually taken the time to really look at her until now. Through the exhaustion and the dizziness she was rather pleasant to behold and his own expression softened in turn. Altair reached into his pockets where he had packed a mini medkit on account of the various injuries he often sustained on the battlefield.

Without thinking too much about it, he gingerly brushed aside a strand of hair from her forehead and gently dabbed at the wound on her cheek to clean it before applying bacta. He listened quietly as she spoke, the storm beginning to come down hard now. He didn’t doubt that the streets were still being patrolled by the cultists. Altair glanced at her eyes as she mentioned that the cultists got in their way. Once she asked if he had met a Jedi out of combat, he froze entirely. It was difficult to read his face then, a flash of unmistakable pain crossing his eyes in a fleeting moment before it passed again.

“I saw their insignia in that dungeon,” He said quietly, a dark expression on his face, “They were part of the rebel alliance. Part of a group led by the zealot Jedi and extremist named Emilia Vuth,” Altair gazed off for a long moment, “I was captured by them on Dantooine, a Sith planet, and imprisoned on New Alderaan. Their soldiers tried to take a vibrosword to my horns to drill them off just for fun. They were going to cut off my tail next,” He looked back down at Celeste, “All in the name of the rebellion, freedom and support of the Jedi in decimating all Sith.”

Altair finished cleaning her wound, his touch very gentle, his skin a bit rough against her smooth face. He moved onto applying the bacta salve now, “And…” He paused for a moment, suddenly feeling a lump in his throat, “I loved a Jedi once,” Altair admitted aloud, “You ain’t gotta tell me to see things from all sides,” He smiled sadly down at her, “I know they ain’t monsters. But they have monsters amidst their ranks just like we do, Celeste. Every rose has its thorns."

He didn’t even realize his hand was lingering against her cheek as he spoke and he quickly withdrew it away, glancing ahead towards the window where he watched the smattering of rain against the glass, “You’d be happier if you left. But it’d still be running away from where the help is actually needed. But it also shouldn’t be on you to fix everything.”

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

As her eyes were closed for a second she felt like she was drifting away into the unknown. It's not what she wanted, but it was like the poison in her veins was forcing her to fade. Only Altair's voice kept her from off and she reopened her light blue eyes, locking onto the Tiefling's violet. "I'm okay" she replied softly, but that was only half the truth. She had been beat up before, even worse, but those drugs were terrible...

She strongly hated this helplessness, but she was more than glad that Altair had not only managed to free them, but that he was here with her now. She was not alone and he even started to carefully tend to her wounds, which was extremely sweet of him. It might have been the drugs in her system, but the way he carefully started cleaning her cut made her heart melt in this exact moment, her faint heartbeat even slowly accelerating as his skin brushed against hers.

She watched him attentively, repeatedly blinking to ensure her vision was remaining clear but it didn't fully work. Yet, she could at least sense the sudden pain her question had caused him and she furrowed her brows worriedly as she continued listening. She had been nauseous thanks to the drugs in her system, but his story made it worse. She appreciated the honesty, but as empathetic as she was she immediately shared the pain that accompanied his severe words. It was not her weakness that left her speechless now, but his sad words that sank in deep.

She slowly reached up, carefully placing her hand at his cheek while her own emotions were all stirred up. "I am terribly sorry that you had to go through something that horrible, Altair" she began softly, a slight hint of goosebumps on her skin as she was quite shaken. "I'm not quite sure whether it leaves me devastated or just furious. I know quite well that there are monsters in each faction, but I would have never thought you had made such terrible experiences...I'm truly sorry".

It was hard for her to find the right words or even any words at all, but the hand that softly cupped his cheek was meant to comfort him. As he finished his story an actual shiver ran down her spine was his words touched her deeply. "You're a good person. You've got a pure heart...", she added and she honestly meant it just like this. She appreciated his honesty, even that he shared his little sweet secret with her, but it also left her extremely sad as was speaking in past tense. She would have loved to ask for details, but she didn't want to push him and so she waited for now. She briefly closed her eyes and breathed deeply, the hand still resting on his warm cheeks while her heart was still beating fastly, yet faint. "I know I can't fix everything even if I wanted to...but it still feels like I would need some more leeway...my thoughts are still confused, especially now, so my decision isn't final...but we shall see. For now I just pray we will survive this nightmare" she sighed as her eyes still rested on his. "And thank you. Not just for freeing me, but also for your help". A warm smile crossed her lips as she was still glancing up at the Tiefling, her body now feeling as though it was floating in a warm pool. "You seem quite alright...that's a relief".

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair glanced back down at her when she spoke, almost surprised to feel the surge of empathy through her. Her touch against his face was soothing and he couldn’t help but lean slightly into it. His skin was rougher than that of a human’s, but it was especially warm to touch. His expression softened even more as she spoke. When she mentioned that he was a good person and had a good heart, he added a few words to finish her sentence, “And I’m a Sith,” Altair reminded her as he gazed into her eyes, “I’ve killed under that banner, just as Jedi have under theirs…and I haven’t yet surrendered my humanity.”

He made no move to draw away from her touch or to move from the couch, his mind lingering on the paths set ahead of him. She sounded on the fence, but he had a feeling she had made up her mind. Altair had felt it before himself and even considered Sith a temporary home until that fateful day on New Alderaan. Until he saw multiple Sith put their own lives at risk to save him from a prison. Altair focused back on the present as he placed a small bacta patch on her cheek to cover the wound.

“I wasn’t gonna leave you there,” Altair said, “And I hope you wouldn’t have left me either,” He watched her close her eyes, saying nothing for a moment. She looked content in many ways and almost peaceful. There was no tormented or concerned look on her face and it almost made him forget they had been in danger and were likely still being chased.

“You look mighty cozy there,” Altair said very quietly as he gazed down at her with a smile. He was getting used to the feel of her weight against his lap and the warmth she brought.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

Their little endeavor had become everything but pleasant, an unnecessarily dangerous adventure packed with way too much violence and twists that complicated and threatened their mission like crazy, but the oddly tender moment they now shared was somehow beautiful.

People always claimed that hardships would not only make you stronger, but if someone withstood them with you, you'd always end up closed to them and this delicate moment proved the saying right. Even though they hadn't shared much time with one another, their mission had been intense and perhaps that was the exact reason why she suddenly felt so close to him.

His skin was warm under her soft touch and the sensation was quite unique as she had never touched a Tiefling before. Unlike many others she wasn't afraid, deterred or whatever, but her natural curiosity even made her slightly fascinated. "I know. I would never glorify a faction. I've carried the Imperial banner for all my life as well, so I know exactly what you're talking about. We should never surrender our humanity...regardless of our banners. Some tend to forget...". She let out a sigh as she softly ran her thumb across his cheek, her light blue eyes still not leaving his violent.

She reopened her eyes as he finished with the bacta patch on her cheek, gratefully glancing up to him again before his remark made her chuckle softly. "I wouldn't have left you either. I've always been an extremely caring person and even though we've barely spent time with one another, I would have protected you with my life....I'm sorry that those bastards have thwarted my plans. Those drugs are nasty...".

With that she let her hand sink for a moment, a still exhausted grin on her lips as she turned a little bit. She had turned her body around so that she was facing his body with her front now. She pulled her knees closer to her chest, her head still bedded on his lap while she couldn't help but to chuckle again. "Oddly enough, yes. It doesn't look like it's the same for you though. I'm sure you can make yourself much more comfortable as well...it looks like we've got enough space on this couch" she then suggested softly, her mind still foggy but she felt like she was able to rely on the Force again. She felt quite confident about being possibly able to sense approaching enemies, but she couldn't be fully sure, that was why neither of them could have fully started to let their guard down again. There was, however, nothing wrong with getting some much needed rest and she was willing to share that soft, but dusty couch with him if he was willing to lay himself down as well.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair wasn’t used to quiet moments like these on missions. He didn’t even realize how soothing it was and it allowed him to withdraw into his mind or slow down time. A part of him wanted to analyze and assess this entire sequence or the way her touch felt against his face. Another side simply wanted to surrender to it and sink into the moment and think nothing beyond it. The tiefling chuckled softly as she turned to face him, getting even cozier in using his lap. He was vaguely reminded of a cat curling up warm and soft and refusing to budge. He wasn’t moving and that was that.

“I’ll keep watch,” He said quietly as he gently brushed aside some of her hair that fell over her face as she turned. Altair gazed ahead out the window again, watching the rain. His mind ran through everything that happened and the clues he spotted. From the looks of it the ‘cultists’ were a splinter group of rebels that were actively sabotaging any attempts at Sith getting traction on the planet. They were going as far as to weaponize AMS and take out sympathetic diplomats and other terrorism tactics to keep the public afraid. It left a bitter taste in his mouth and reminded him that not everything Jedi affiliated was rosy. He had even heard about a group called Shadows that had more extremist Jedi that acted more like the worst Sith to get the job done.

Altair’s ‘watch’ only lasted for a short while before he unwittingly felt exhaustion take over. He didn’t even realize when he slumped over at some point and got himself comfortable on the couch. At some point, his arm was draped over Celeste, holding her close and even his tail lazily coiled around her. The tiefling was having a wonderful dream about freshly made jogan fruit pies and just barely cutting into a slice.

There was a loud thud, followed by another. Altair jerked awake and moved - unfortunately a bit too much. His movement sent both he and Celeste rolling off the couch and him landing with a heavy thud on the ground on his back with her on top. He blinked at her with wide eyes, not even remembering when he fell asleep. Clearly he was absolutely worthless at keeping watch.

“Fuck fuck fuck!” He blurted out as he gingerly eased himself up to his feet and helped Celeste up if she needed it. The tiefling rushed towards the door, peeking through the little hole in the center to spot infected. Altair grimaced, wondering if the group had purposely corralled a horde this way. He walked towards the balcony, stepping out into the rain. A glance below showed a massive group of infected clawing and attempting to climb over one another to get to the level they were on.

“Oh…no…” Altair whispered as he frantically looked around for a way out. He spotted a balcony across and looked up towards the roof, “We’re surrounded,” He called back to Celeste, “We’ll have to make for higher ground!”

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

As Celeste had started the mission this morning, she had had absolutely no idea that the mission would turn out this way. She had either expected to be assaulted like this, nor that she would end up on an old couch, curled on her side while her head was softly bedded in the Tiefling's lap while her body and mind were severely drugged.

The mission was supposed to be of diplomatic nature, yet those extremist cultists had shown absolutely no mercy. It was even worse that they were an offspring of the Jedi's resistance branch, which left Celeste absolutely shocked. However that handsome Tiefling somehow managed to let her forget all that had been for the moment.

Despite his youth, he managed to radiate a calmness that soothed her immensely. Even though she still felt terrible, it was not just their body contact that warmed her, but also his soft words and tender gazes that made her heart melt a bit. She had also absolutely not expected that they would get along so well, but she was positively surprised.

As his hand softly graced her skin again she closed her eyes, simply savoring this moment before she nodded. "I'll...rest and take the second watch" she answered in a genuinely grateful tone before she reopened her eyes and glanced up at him another time, a soft smile on her lips and with that she almost immediately dozed off.

She had no idea how long she had passed out, but she was roughly woken by an unmistakably loud thud. Slowly blinking she glanced around, her head still buzzing, but she somehow found herself in Altair's soft embrace, even his tail affectionately wrapped around her. As much as would have loved to savor this moment, Altair moved and so they suddenly rolled and ungently landed on the ground, their warm bodies pressed against one another.

It welt as though time was frozen for a moment while she worriedly held eye contact with the started Tiefling, until another thud sparked her alertness. "Oh no..." she muttered as she thankfully took his hand, immediately heading towards the balcony.

It was weird for her to stand again, and she was still feeling rather dizzy, but at least well enough to stand without staggering too much. Her gaze quickly observed the surroundings of the abandoned district in which they found themselves in before she landed on that horde below. "No...no no no. They haven't actually send a horde after us, have they?!" she frantically asked him as the Tiefling appeared next to her before she hectically looked around.

Could this get any worse?! Seemed like it could. She instinctively moved closer towards Altair, her left arm brushing against the muscular chest as she glanced up. "We won't die here and we won't get bitten. We've got this" she didn't just say that to him, but also to herself. They couldn't give up now and he was right about not having another chance.

For a brief second she closed her eyes, trying to suppress the panic while regaining her focus. "I'd say we first jump to that balcony across and then upwards", she suggested, forcing herself to breathe. She was indeed worried, worried that he might get hurt, but even if this was looking everything but good, they would somehow make it.

She reached up with her hand, softly cupping his cheek while she tried to calm him, her voice softening as she repeated "We will be fine", but as the last word had left her lips, she suddenly heard a shout. It was just a quick, 'HEYA FUCKERS', immediately followed by a barely audible beeping that left Celeste wide-eyed as more beeps followed. The beeping picked up speed as her still foggy mind began to understand. "Get back inside!" she urged him loudly as she grabbed his hand and hectically pulled him back in, the beeping accelerating faster.

They had barely left the balcony as the Thermal Detonator exploded, sending a forceful, scorching pressure wave loose down below. The complete building shook, the ground rumbling strongly while screeches could be perceived. Celeste had pulled Altair with her once she had dived towards the ground, trying her best to coil the Force around them in order to shield them from possible damage, but after a few seconds she glanced up again, realizing that the TD had not been used against them, but against that feral horde of infected. Someone had helped them...or so it seemed.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair took a pause as they were briefly out on the balcony. He looked at Celeste as she repeated the sentiments around how they would be okay and how everything would be fine. Through it all, his gaze never budged from hers. It was then it dawned on him how genuinely terrified she was and how she was saying things almost like a chant to pull courage. He felt her hand against his cheek and he raised his own to layer over hers, “I ain’t gonna let anything happen to you,” Altair said quietly in turn, an almost unwavering calm in his eyes as he spoke to her. He had faced overwhelming hordes before with Cairo before, and he had come within inches of death. He couldn’t fall apart now - not again - not when he saw the fear in her eyes.

The tiefling whipped around to look when he heard the voice below. He wrapped an arm around Celeste and bodily launched them both back inside the apartment, landing away from the massive explosion that rocked the building. Altair coughed as the smoke cleared, debris landing all around them. Parts of his armor was slightly shredded around his legs. Altair helped Celeste to her feet and glanced back to find that the entire balcony was simply gone.

“That fucking idiot,” He hissed, knowing what a giant explosion like that meant. The sound would have been heard for miles and it would draw even more infected. Altair helped Celeste to her feet and ran towards the door of the apartment, kicking it open. He blasted back the horde of infected that were gathered there, sending them tumbling down the stairs. Altair looked over and spotted a window further down the corridor that could be smashed open with a fire escape leading up right outside of it. At the same time, another giant horde was coming down the opposite ends of the corridor and up the apartment stairs. He knew they wouldn’t stop coming.

Altair exhaled and turned quickly to face Celeste, “Listen,” He said urgently, “Take this and go up to the roof while I buy you time,” He handed back her saber that he had rescued from the dungeon, “Ignite it and wave it around when you get up there and my men will know to come extract you,” Altair glanced over his shoulder and looked back at her, “Don’t argue please. I’m a soldier and there are millions of me. People like you are the real voices in the galaxy with the power to shape and change it. You’re worth ten of me,” He bodily shoved her towards the window, “Don’t look back and just go. Kick the stairs off so you can’t be followed.”

It was clear he wouldn’t listen to any debate as he turned back to face the horde that now almost overwhelmed him. Celeste would see nothing but a sudden burst of inferno as flames ignited into the corridor through which he rushed and disappeared. There was another explosion as the attackers outside launched more grenades and detonators against the other side of the building.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

To claim that she was freaked out was an understatement...Until their little trip to the basement, she had not been in contact with those infected before and what they witnessed now was material straight out of horror holovids...The way this infected, feral horde had started to pile up was not just inhumane, but utterly unbelievable and Celeste had had no chance of catching her breath once this shouting individual had decided to throw his TD in the midest of the wild crowd, the chaos that followed swallowing Altair's soft words.

As they both dived towards the ground the building was still shaking and Celeste could sense that massively strong and hot pressure wave shot through the room. Who the hell had thrown that Detonator?! And how could someone have possibly thought that this had been a good idea? Had this person even tried to help them or was that just some maniac who tried to blow up a few feral corpses?

There were literally a thousand thoughts that raced through her mind while her heart was still wildly pounding in her chest. She soon found herself covered in dust and debris, her clothes slightly torn and burnt as she confusedly looked around. The poison in her veins was still befuddling her senses while she tried to make a meaning out of this. Simultaneously she hectically tried to come up with any good solutions.

Once back to her feet she glanced at Altair wide-eyed. It was obvious that the balcony was no longer an option and it seemed like everything on this god damn planet just tried to mess with them. "We should definitely grab a drink once this is offer" she joked sarcastically, hoping to slightly lighten that tense mood before they were already storming out again.

Altair's Force Push seemed efficient for now and so Celeste concentrated on regaining focus before the Tiefling suddenly turned to her. He had not even fully articulated the first word and she already knew what he was trying to do. Of course he wanted to sacrifice himself selflessly. It almost amused her that he seemed to know so little about her.

"Listen Altair, I'm not trying to be rude but it is against my very nature to never leave anyone behind. If one soul is worth saving it is yours" she argued sternly, not giving him a chance to argue. There were in no position to start meaningless discussions anyway as they were literally running out of time and so Celeste grabbed the lightsaber, but she would not make a run for it and leave him behind.

Knowing this was still a stupid idea, she rushed after him, carefully avoiding the flames while at the same time risking a few burns as well. She hissed in mind, but her now ignited lightsaber cut through the infected that came piling in. She had soon reached Altair and started dissecting the infected near him, the flame dancing around both of their bodies while she was somehow trying to coil the Force around her to shield her body from the flames.

As the chaos became slightly more sorted she shoved the next wave of approaching infected away with a strong Force Push Blow, immediately grabbing Altair's elbow with her free hand. "Come now!" she commanded him as she yanked him back forcefully, emphasizing her words with the Force, and she knew that it would be rather hard for him to resist her order as she was quite skilled in the arts of mind manipulation. She was naturally not acting with bad intentions, but she was literally trying to save the Tiefling's little ass.

After she yanked in backwards, she starting rushing towards the window with him hopefully in tow, her gaze landing on the approaching horde that was storming at them from the opposite site of the corridor. "Go!" she hissed loudly while she slid to a halt, gathering all her concentration to immediately establish a Force barrier right next to the window. It wouldn't hold long as she was still not fully stable and there were just to many infected trying to rush towards them, but it would allow the Tiefling to slip out of the window and onto the fire ladder, before Celeste would hopefully manage to follow him.

Just as she was, however, stretching out her left, free hand to establish the barrier, the beginning began to rumble once again as another thermal detonator had apparently blown up. The walls on both sides began to crumble as the floor shook and the infected began the barrier starting staggering while they were slowly losing their footing. Those freaking idiots were tearing the building apart and they wouldn't have much more time to reach the roof if the building would soon implode. "GO!" she belowed loudly again, hoping that the stubborn Tiefling would listen.

@Sreeya

 

[Altair Din]

Altair was convinced his dramatic speech had done the charm. He didn’t even stop to listen to what she had to say as he was fully convinced she was on her way out. He rushed right into the raging inferno that was the corridor. He had no issues with the flames and the infected were screeching as the fire melted through their skin and bones, fusing them to the ground. Altair was able to use the Force to crush and disintegrate them, fusing them in the way so more couldn’t come down this way.

This was when he whirled around to spot Celeste next to him. His eyes went visibly wide, “The fuck?!?” He yelled, the shock settling into irritation at seeing her. Why the hell was she here instead of escaping? Altair kept fighting the infected, feeling her grasp his elbow. At some point he heard her scream at him to go and he felt an overwhelming compulsion. He loosened in her grip, turning and rushing back the way she wanted.

His training kicked in as he slowly began to realize what happened. Altair rushed up the fire escape, the entire thing shaking and rocking as more explosions erupted. He grabbed the top of the roof and hoisted himself up, pulling Celeste up as well. Altair turned on her then, scowling.

“Why the fuck didn’t you listen, Celeste?! You could’ve been killed!” He shouted at her, his fingers curled into fists, “And you fucked with my head, I know it. One second I was focused on fighting and the next I’m following you. That was not cool,” He was visibly angry and glaring at her. It took a moment for him to calm down as he realized she had just refused to leave him behind. Why the hell was she so much like a Jedi?! Nothing she did ever made sense.

His expression softened a bit as he finally had the chance to properly look at her and assess the fire damage they both took. The entire left side of his torso had the material burned off, revealing his chest underneath. It was then that his eyes widened as he looked at her, “Celeste…your hair…” His eyes widened even more in shock at the sight.

Altair didn’t get a chance to say much beyond that as another explosion rocked the building. He quickly snatched the saber from her hand and began to wave it around like a beacon. He followed up by sending lightning streaking towards the sky. He knew his men would see it. After a moment, the distant humming of a zooming airspeeder could be heard.

@LadyRen

 

[Celeste Stythani]

By the time she had dragged the Tiefling alongside her and shoved him towards the window she had already started coughing intensely. Her muscles and joints ached from the poison that had still not fully left her system, the sedative not only dulling her senses but also still weighting her down. It was only the adrenaline that pumped through her blood that allowed her to be still able to stand her ground and start following Altair after his tail had fully left the corridor.

She followed him, each and every step of the ladder costing her immense energy though, but as she finally reached the top with his help she let out a sigh of relief. She had been too focused on this hell that had been set loose again that she had not even considered that he might be pissed at her mindtricks...but then he started.

She immediately rolled her eyes, grabbing him right by the chest, digging in what was left of his uniform while she pulled him forward. "Altair you are in absolutely no position to command me! I would never leave a friend behind, even if it would threaten my own life! I am alive and so am I, I'm pretty sure I saved your ass and I do not care about a few burn marks or...burnt strands of hair!" she snarled, twirling a strand of hair around her index finger kf her free hand as she had not paid much attention before.

Now that he had mentioned it, she was also feeling the burnt flesh that was weakening her body further. She had not let go of his uniform yet, his muscular chest close to her as she was furiously glaring up at him. However her gaze soon softened as she realized that arguing was definitely not their main concern now.

Once he grabbed the Saber the moment was gone again. They had to leave this hell hole now or never or they would possibly collapse with the building. She didn't protest as he grabbed her saber, but she released him as she needed her hands to balance out her stance as the building began to start rocking again.

She gasped while she immediately grabbed his uniform again, holding onto him as if he would be her safe haven. The skies were still dark, but the humming was surely a good sign, even though she couldn't get overly excited in her panicked state. She glanced into the direction of thr ship, however not seeing the outlines yet as another rumble filled the air. The ground beneath their feet began to crumble and she was frantically trying to come up with some solution. "The building is collapsing!" she exclaimed, wondering whether they should either try to brace themselves for a possible fall, or whether they should try leaping towards a different building.

Unfortunately for them, the other roofs were indeed further away as assumed and they were literally running out of time. She glanced up, her light blue eyes meeting his violet while she was asking herself whether this would be the last thing she would ever get to see and whether they should try to make the best out of those last seconds. "I'm sorry" she breathed softly, wanting to at least apologize for the mind game and the yelling while she pulled him even closer, eyes wide in fear, her body about to betray her again with its weakness. She was dearly hoping that she would not faint again, but it was obvious that she couldn't hold on much longer.

@Sreeya