Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Half awake, half still dozing Noah laid in the too small bed, trying not to disturb the deep sleep of Tacita next to him. Noah wasn’t happy about the idea of a handful of strangers on board of the <i>Open Sky</i>. But he wasn’t in the position to disagree with a Kiraly. Asshur’s ship had been a safe harbour always in the past. Noah didn’t want to risk losing that connection. The thoughts kept him from sleeping peacefully. At least that was the reason Noah told himself, but a glance to the woman next to him made it clear that it wasn’t the only motive. Watching her, feeling her that close next to him, the spacer asked himself how long they would continue to play this game. Since Almania they shared beds like this. On Tatooine it seemed to become different. But both of them seemed too proud, too stubborn, maybe even too stupid to make the first step.

Tacita’s elbow hit his ribs as she turned around in sleep, letting him even less space in the already narrow space. With a sigh Noah slipped out of the bed. Maybe it would be better if he watched what Asshur’s tech crew did with the <i>Sky</i>. A cold refresher and a cup of hot caf later Noah felt almost awake as he walked into the hangar. The technicians were packing up their tools as he joined them. “Morning, Skipper.” One of them greeted him. “We fixed the patchwork somebody did to your <i>baby</i>.” Noah smiled dryly. “Well, the somebody has been me. I had not much time nor equipment after a crash on a remote planet.” The tech looked slightly embarrassed. “Uh, it was well done for an amateur. Especially with this old Imperial parts you used.” <i>Yes, and if the Imps on Tatooine wouldn’t have confiscated the other crates with spare parts, I even would have a cargo now. And not being in this situation.</i> Noah thought, but loud he said. “Thanks. Now show me what you changed…”

Two hours later, the tech crew was gone since a while, Noah sat in the cockpit, monitoring some of Asshur’s droids filling the tanks and cargo hold of the <i>Sky</i>. Fuel for a long journey, enough food and water for seven people as well as some equipment that Asshur thought as useful of for their search. The Kiraly was generous but he expected a result. And Noah had not even the hint of an idea where to find that lost ship, the <i>Heart of Shade</i>. Maybe it would be helpful to summon a meeting of the ones involved. “Hey, here you are.” A well-known female voice said behind him. Tacita entered the cockpit, slipping on the co-pilot’s seat. “You got up early.”

Noah shrugged. “Yeah, I wanted that everything is ready for our quest.” Tacita cocked her head, looking at him. “You have a bad feeling about it?” Noah run a finger over the controls in front of him as if looking for dust. “Maybe a little. After all I don’t know most of them.” He turned his head to her now too, meeting her eyes. “That tattooed guy, Sully, I met him on Yavin, just shortly before I rescued you. He was helpful back then. Good with a blaster. But I don’t know if I… we… can trust him. Especially not after Asshur said, I should keep an eye on him.” Tac leant a little closer. “I will watch your back. You can trust me.” Noah smiled carefully. “I know..” Slowly he moved closer as… BANG BANG BANG… a loud metallic knock at the ramp interrupted them. “Hellooo-ooo? Is anybody home?” a voice from the ship’s entry called. “Damnit!” Noah growled. With a frustrated sigh the Captain got up from his seat. “We are here.” He shouted back, leaving the cockpit to greet their new crew.

It was quite a ragtag gang waiting for him and Tac in the lounge. Noah nodded at the five people joining them. “Welcome on board of the <i>Open Sky</i>. It will be a little crowded while our journey, so nobody will get a special treatment. There are three quarters á two bunks. That means one of you will have to use an inflatable mattress…” Suddenly a slim arm moved around his waist. Irritated he looked at the female Zeltron smoothing her body against his as she purred: “I can share with you, Captain.” Noah noticed that Sully and Morgan changed a look, rolling their eyes about Dyles’ behaviour, obviously knowing her well, while Renn and Kier-Xan looked more as if they would like to take Noah’s place right now. Just Tacita crossed her arms with a dark look on her face. A little dizzy from the Zeltron pheromones buzzing through the lounge, Noah pushed Dyles gently away from him.  “I’m afraid that the second bunk in my quarters is taken already.” Dyles smirked, winking at him and Tac. “I can tell that.”

Now that trip would be a lot of <i>fun</i>…

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

“I can share with you, Captain.”
Renn felt his face blush slightly as he watched the Zeltron women with Noah. He felt light headed, maybe he was dehydrated or something. He scratched his head distractedly and tried to regain his composure. Conditions onboard this ship weren't exactly ideal. He'd been on several YT-2000 before, good ships: fast and manueverable but with seven of them it was going to be cramped.

"Ok so who sleeps on the mattress?" Sully asked. "You guys want to flip for it." He held a cred chip ready between his fingers.

"I'll take it." Kier-Xann Finn said. The Jedi had remained quite quiet up till now, Renn wasn't sure what to make of him. He seemed ok, he had this air about him of confidence and assurance. Not the cocky bravado of some of the other smugglers Renn had met. It was something more, deeper. Whatever, Renn shrugged to himself, these religious types were always weird.

"Thats fine with me." Sully smirked. Kier glanced at Renn.

"Sure, no problem." The mattress might actually have been the best option. The main passenger hold would be slightly cooler than the cabins and it was closer to the cockpit and the escape pod in an emergency.

"Right that is sorted then." Noah spoke up. "Go and get your stuff stowed away. Asshur wants us gear up as soon as possible."

"Yes sir." Morgan muttered to herself, tossing off a mock salute which drew a withering glance from Dyles. On reflection Renn thought, he was glad he wouldn't be having to share a cabin with those two.

The 'cabin' was little more than a large closet with two small bunks squashed into it.

“This is cosy.” Sully quipped as he manoeuvred his large bag in between the two beds. Renn took off his much smaller back pack and stowed it in the space under his bed. He hadn't brought much with him, didn't have much to bring. A change of clothes and that was about it. He turned for the door. It was weird being on someone else's ship and not being in control, he wanted to be in the cockpit for take off.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Slouching in the copilot’s seat, Tacita had thrown one leg over the armchair and was swinging it back and forth as she watched the last few preparations being made for takeoff.  Idly she watched the coordinates for their journey being fed into the navcomputer by one of Asshur’s tattooed men; presumably this was being done at the last minute to avoid them getting a close look at their heading, or changing their minds once free of the Sybarite.  

Tacita would have it sliced within minutes.  Knowing this, Noah grinned back at her from his position in the Captain’s chair directly in front of her.

His gaze shifted to her left, and Tacita realized someone else had entered the cockpit.  She twisted in the chair enough to see who it was, and nodded a greeting, proffering a hand for him to shake.  “Renn, right?”  He nodded and took it briefly before letting go.

“I’m finished here,” the tattooed man announced, stepping past Renn on his way out.  “You may depart when ready.”

“Woohoo,” Tacita replied, sounding less than enthusiastic.  She made no move to right herself in her seat.

“Excellent.”  Noah settled back into the pilot’s chair.  “Go tell everyone to strap in or find something to hold on to.”

Tacita glanced up at Renn, who remained where he was.  He gazed back at her, his expression impassive.

Frowning, she turned back to Noah, who was also looking at her expectantly.

“Oh fine,” she grumbled, reluctantly easing herself out of her chair.  “I’ll do it.”

Exiting the small cockpit, Tacita could already see that this was going to be a crowded journey.  Crates of supplies had been stacked against bulkheads, bags of what seemed to be personal items had been stowed in whatever crevices could be found.  There was a faint scent of perfume.

Everyone was grumpy.  Including Tacita.

“We’re taking off soon,” she called to whoever might be within earshot.  It was a small ship; she knew she’d be heard.  “Strap in or hold on!”

With that, she made her way back to the cockpit, to find Renn comfortably lounging in her seat.  “Um, no,” she said, her arms folded, one hip jutting out.

Noah had already powered up the engines.  “Tac, just sit over there,” he said, indicating a smaller plastoid chair anchored to the deck in front of the navcomputer console to the side.

“But–”

The ship lurched rather roughly off the ground and Tacita fought to keep her footing, grabbed at the chair back and threw herself into it.  When she was strapped in she looked up at Noah, who grinned fiendishly.

“You did that on purpose,” she accused.

“Yes,” he replied, matter of factly.  “Now go do your magic and find out where it is we’re going, before the ship decides to jump us to hyperspace.”

Tacita rolled her eyes.  “Yes sir, Captain sir,” she said with a mock salute before turning her attention to the navcomputer console.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

With Noah, the one named Renn, and the brunette named Tacita settled inside the cockpit of the <I>Open Sky</i>, Sully, Dyles, Morgan, and the medic named Kier-Xan stayed behind in the main living section of the YT freighter. The pirate looked over to Morgan, who was still nursing her arm, but at least it was now in a bacta sleeve, in which the bone should eventually heal in mere days instead of weeks. The sound of repulsorlifts igniting and the sudden jolt confirmed they were now free of the Kiraly's ship.

"So I guess this is where the fun begins?" Dyles flatly stated, leaning back against the bulkhead.

Sully looked at his chrono as he settled in his netting. "Not sure how long we're going to be in hyperspace, but I suggest we find out what the Kiraly has given us for weapons and supplies." He narrowed his eyes to the half-Zeltron. "Because like hell I am going to step on some ghost ship, unarmed."

He got up, stretched, then began to walk through a narrow, dimly lit corridor that emptied into what appeared to be the freighter's storage compartment, worthy to fit a small army. Dyles followed behind him and minutes later, Morgan finally appeared cradling her arm.

"Looks like he loaded Noah quite a bit of stuff," Morgan observed.

The pirate shuffled past the doorway. "Gonna open up some of these crates and see what goodies Asshur has provided," he mumbled under his breath. Sully began to unlock each crate. Opening one of them, he found a massive collection of blaster rifles, pistols, and bandoliers of ammunition. Dyles opened another one to find an assortment of swords and knives, and yet another crate boasted an impressive collection of traps and snares. The last crate Morgan opened had a modest collection of clothing and armor. Dyles immediately moved there.

She thumbed through the various pieces of armor and camoflage. She rejected a chest plate that looked too heavy:if there was something lurking inside that ghost ship, she wanted something that wouldn't weigh her down. She found a jumpsuit of a light weave and dark color. She had just started to take her tunic and pants off when she sensed that she was being watched. She glanced over her shoulder and saw that Sully was over by the crate of blasters. But he wasn't reviewing the inventory. Instead, his eyes were riveted on her. She returned the gaze and then frowned. "You mind?"

"No. Not at all…" he grinned, gesturing her onward. "Please continue…"

Dyles rolled her eyes and dressed rapidly, exchanging everything she orginally had except her boots. Then she selected a pair of thin leather gloves to protect her hands and a pair of night-vision goggles to see in the darkness. At the crate with the knives, Morgan chose a light, single-arm sword.  She lunged forward a few times with it using her good arm, testing its weight and feel. The craftsmanship was superb, and she absently wondered where Asshur had pilfered the weapon from. Finally, she set it down in the crate, found a blaster and holster to slide onto her hip, added a small knife to her boot and, feeling suitably outfitted, turned around to check on Sully.

Obviously at some point the pirate had stopped watching Dyles and gone on to select an old DC-15A blaster rifle to add to his personal arsenal. He had also exchanged his shirt for a lightweight tunic and a matching dark cloak. Twin bandoliers of ammo crisscrossed his chest, and she saw that he had chosen a pair of hide gloves, too.

"Hunting rancors are we?" Morgan asked sarcastically. Dyles rummaged through the clothes until she found a visor. She pitched it to him. Sully caught it easily enough in his hands.

"It'll make it easier to spot one before he scoops you up to eat," she added, chuckling.

Sully tossed the visor in his hand once and looked at both women. "Wonderful," he said, mocking her earlier words. "I'm surrounded by comedians." He tossed the visor back in the crate. "At least <I>I</i> won't be the first one to get ghosted in there…"

"Having fun in here?" Noah chimed as he leaned against the doorway.

"Just trying on the merchandise…" Dyles answered in an embarrassed tone. Her face suddenly flushed.

"Well, we have a few hours before we arrive, so don't take everything in those crates." He narrowed his eyes to the pirate. "Leave something for the rest of us." He then stepped back into the corridor.

"He's quite friendly." Morgan replied.

"Oh yes, quite the charming man." Dyles added.

"Will you two shut up!" Sully barked. "Let's get back to work."

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

“<i>Okay, approaching in one… two… three…</i>” Noah’s voice floated over the ‘com system to the group waiting at the shuttle doors.  Dyles glanced over to where Morgan was fingering the gun at her hip and wondered if the girl was having doubts about their mission they were on.  

Despite her own positive nature Dyles felt something tensing at the back of her spine about entering this new destination.  Something felt too easy, too… safe.  

“Having second thoughts, Slim?”  Dyles looked over at Sully, who was watching her with careful eyes.

“No.”  She flexed her fingers in the gloves she had found earlier and looked over at the other members of the crew.  She wouldn’t let them know that she was having doubts; if they questioned her dedication it would reflect badly on her travel companions, and Sully at least had done well by her.  “What about you?”

Sully scratched the back of his head while watching the wide doors in front of them.  “I know this sounds clichéd, but I’ve got a bad feeling about this.”

“You’re right.”  He glanced over at her to find her grinning.  “That <i>does</i> sound clichéd.”

“Shut it, Pinky,” he retorted but returned her smile, albeit reluctantly.  Next to him the two other men, Renn and Finn she recalled them being introduced as, gave them incredulous looks as if frowning upon their light-hearted mood on this situation.

Suddenly a loud bang sounded through the hull and they all rocked forward into each other.

“<i>NOAH</i>!” Tac shouted at the top of her lungs.  “What was that?”

“<i>Ooops.</i>”

Dyles snickered to herself and helped herself up from where she had landed against Morgan.  “Sorry, Kid.”

“Don’t call me Kid,” Morgan grumbled but tossed her short blonde hair over her shoulder.  “I really don’t like this.”

“Aww, we’ll buy you something shiny once we find our loot.”  Dyles ignored the withering look tossed in her direction.

The doors opened in front of them with a creaking groan of protest, probably from the collision of Noah’s landing, and then they found themselves facing pitch black.  Dyles sighed and pulled down her night-vision goggles while stepping forward past the others.

“Smells rank,” she informed them after sniffing the air.  “Anyone got air freshener?”

“Must’ve left it in my other suit,” Tac replied.  She stepped forward next to Dyles with an air of expectation.  “Let’s go treasure-hunting.”

They stepped further into the murky darkness.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

With the halls of the ship as dark as they were, finding even a shred of light under these conditions seemed hopeless. That made it clear that the first priority would be engineering and Kier silently began advancing; he was at the front of the group as they had agreed earlier. He didn't seem to have brought any particularly specific equipment as they others had and despite the suffocating feeling of isolation the ship produced Kier could still navigate through his awareness alone. He didn't rush their pace and at the first junction the group was brought to a complete stop.

Kier only openly carried one weapon, a pistol on his left thigh when he was dealing with smugglers and pirates; the kind of people that often respected a displayed weapon. It sat awkwardly however, the handle facing forward but it was too low for a cross draw. The design of the pistol could rarely be seen from the holster but a series for trinkets that dangled from the bottom of the grip could be. They were metal of some sort, though they didn't seem to shine or jingle against each other; likely due to how they were forged. Kier slipped his hand under the trinkets to grip them and stepped close to a wall, using the last to mark the bulkhead at the junction well below eye level.

Although he took a moment to try and feel an appropriate path for them, Kier felt smothered. This ship was absolutely not simply what it appeared, a collection of metal and wires. He was familiar with death… and bodies; the Doctor could feel them both and it weighed on him. The turns they took always ended with a bulkhead marking at the next junction and before long Kier was running the exposed fingertips of his right hand over the wall casually to make sure they weren't circling themselves. He didn't bother to open the doors that lined the halls yet; they couldn't be engineering, they were too small. He was cautious about the rest of the group seeing what he felt while isolated and alone in the palpable darkness.

“The plans we saw weren't quite sufficient, it seems.” Kier's soft voice rattled around through the empty halls they found themselves in; it was difficult to understand but had he spoken any louder he felt the echo of his own voice would have blanketed the actual words or startled his company. “We should be in the correct area; perhaps it is time to start opening these doors.”

Kier planned to allow them to open the doors, he couldn't decide what would be more jarring but when he heard the hiss of the doors along the hall he knew they were revealing what he felt; the dried, leathery results of an encounter he did not want them to have to repeat. What he could not see was the dismembered limbs that assured them it was no accident, the failure of any sort of mechanics did not lead to this. The Doctor would soon find out if it would have been better to open the doors for them and possibly startle them as they passed by or to let them find out what they had stepped in to for themselves.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Sully felt the air around him was thin. Instinctively, he drew in a deep breath, but that helped little. He and Dyles stumbled onward further into the darkness as Morgan and the rest behind prodded them. The one named Kier seemed to be moving with deliberate slowness. The pirate breathed another lungful of the thin air, the cold of the ship bit into his chest.

"I think I have to agree with the Doc," Sully whispered, his words muffled behind chattering teeth. "If we can find the engineering area, we can get some heat going, along with a few lights." He pulled a small luma from his utility belt and ignited it. He saw openings in the bulkheads sealed off with durosteel doors.

"Looks like there's one right there," Dyles pointed out.

"But does it lead to engineering?" Morgan questioned.

"Only one way to find out." Sully replied, shrugging his shoulders. He pulled out the blaster from his holster, and nodded to Kier. "Alright, Doc. Make some room."

Sully cranked the hatch, and all four of them staggered into a small tiled chamber. The other three remained behind in the other room until one of them announced that it was safe. A tall bank of bunks ran along side one of the room. An empty eating section with long tables took up the central area. There was a large misshapen suit, that had once been worn by some alien creature that had three arms, laying by Sully's feet. Fear started to trickle into his limbs.

"Crew's quarters?" Morgan inquired.

"Looks like it." Dyles nodded. "Or part of a section of one."

A shiver went down Sully's back. He began to imagine that something deep inside this ship was alive and was probably preying on the helpless crew, snatching them unawares. It would explain the ship's disappearance. How could anybody run from an attacker while being confined inside a ship like this?

"Hey! Can we come in or what?" the familiar sound of Tac's voice rang behind them.

Kier spoke up. "I think we're safe in here. I don't sense anything." The remaining members of the explorer team entered into the chamber.

Dyles grabbed a loop on Sully's belt. "Just want to make sure I don't lose you."

She and Morgan kept staring at the pirate, wondering what he had in mind. Sully moved his hands slightly to quell their questions for the time being. Morgan, looking fidgety and uncomfortable, shifted her blaster from one hand to the other.

"Let's keep going. There's another corridor ahead." Sully said, and began to walk forward. He paid extra attention to the small noises he heard, building the best mental picture possible of where he and the rest of the team were standing at all times. That was something he would need to know if they had to make a quick escape.

Kier sealed his eyes briefly. "Death is all around us," he said. "Just as I thought, and the concentration seems even higher ahead…"

As they went farther, the corridors grew colder and colder. Sully's naked fingers crackled when he bent them. Dyles leaned closer to him, but her warmth comforted him little. Other than their own noises, the corridor seemed a mouth of silence…

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

The light from his rifles top mounted spotluma bounced back of the walls at him as Renn moved down the corridor. The place was completely and utterly dark. He had taken up position at the back of the group. Just ahead of him were Noah and Tacita and ahead of them were Sully and his harem sticking close to their Jedi pointman Mr Finn. The air was heavy and stank with the musty smell of age and decay, it was so thick you could have almost swam in it. Renn was'nt scared of the dark but this was different, this was I can't see my hand infront of my face dark not just your average low light.

However it wasn't the darkness or the smell that Renn noticed. It was the silence. The corridors were huge, wide enough for two grav sleds to pass side by side with ceilings 10 metres high, and they just seemed to stretch on and on into the darkness. After months hauling cargo Renn was used to living with the constant little noises of a moving ship. The hum of power lines, the whir of servos but this place was completely still and quiet.

What had happened? There had been 10,000 people on this ship when it had vanished but the corridors were deserted, there was no one here, no evidence of any damage or fighting. If some big disaster had befallen this ship then surely it would be obvious. A crash of some kind, a collision with a rogue asteroid. No, according to the initial scans they had taken before they left Noah's ship The Heart of Shade's hull was in perfect condition, as eerily beautiful as the day it left the shipyard. Maybe pirates, but there was no evidence of fighting, no blast marks from blasters or explosives, and no bodies. That was the thing, there was no people! Renn had expected corpses, had psyched himself up for the possibility of strolling through corridors littered with remains but there was nothing. Just the silence and the dark.

“Death is all around us.”  The Jedi spoke.

Thanks for stating the patently obvious! Renn thought as he cast a last lingering glance at the abandoned crews quarters before following the others further down the corridor. Despite his scorn the Jedis words had worried him. His heart was beating faster with every step. He forced himself to calm down and focus. The dead can't harm you, only the living can. His mother had told him that. There was no reason to be afraid. He gripped the cold metal of his rifle even harder and setting his face in a stern expression he pressed on.

The darkness just laughed back at him.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

The worry was palpable. Something wicked had done in everyone. Everyone's teeth chattered. So much for stealth. Morgan nervously rubbed the trigger guard with her finger. Dyles had wrapped an arm around Sully for warmth.

“They don't make them like the used to.” Tacita muttered.

“Yeah, they make 'em better.” Sully agreed and returned Dyle's gesture.

“D.d.d.damn it's cold.” Morgan muttered. She holstered her blaster to keep herself warm. Each hand rubbed the opposite arm, and then the opposite hand. They hadn't really considered that the ship had been loosing atmosphere, and Morgan especially wished she had a breath mask.

“I've been on Corellian junk that's older than this, and they hold atmo!” She complained.

“Me too.” Said the otherwise composed medic. The cold seemed to not bother him as much as it did everyone else. Something about the way Kier-Xan agreed calmed Morgan down a little. It made everything seem less out of sorts. Renn and Noah joined them a moment later, both with uncomfortable looks on their faces.

The corridor finally stopped, and turned right. Sufficiently removed from prying eyes of guests, the ship took on a much more unfinished tone. Bare metal floors, walls and ceilings substituted the posh interior they had originally seen. The air in here seemed a little more dense, but it also smelled more. Three skeletons lay in the corridor, one propped against the wall. There was another entranceway or connecting corridor thirty meters to the left. Kier again took point, and waived all clear a moment later. The group moved forward. Morgan sighed, disappointed that it was just a large kitchen instead of engineering. Her sentiment was shared.

“Let's keep going.” Noah insisted. Renn had already started to examine some of the cutlery. He figured good kitchenware was worth something. There was an antiques market for nearly everything. Renn had completely ignored the dead body on the floor. The corridor was long, going on for another hundred meters. There were bulkheads to the right, and various kitchens, laundry rooms and food storage. Kier stopped.

“What's it say?” Morgan asked. She couldn't make out anything in the oppressive darkness, even with Sully's luma. The small kinetic powered light she carried on her person was only for repair tasks, and wouldn't stand up to exploratory use, except in a tight, tight pinch. There hadn't been enough sets of goggles. Even if there had been, she couldn't read well, usually relating more to the sequence of symbols and what they were associated with than actual reading. Noah's bright torch would blind the goggle wearers, and Renn was keeping his rifle pointed behind them for now. Dyles squinted through the goggles for a moment.

“Engineering.” The taller blond said. Unfortunately, below that was a massive, metal door.

“Fantastic.” Tacita said, her voice laced with potent sarcasm. The sentiment was shared by nearly everyone.

“Hrm.” Sully pondered aloud. “Morgan, see if there are some door controls.”

Morgan didn't respond. Instead, she pulled her kinetic light, and jittered it as she walked. The beam wasn't very bright, and it was erratic. There was a console next to the door, sure enough. It looked pretty standard, but wouldn't respond to any input. She wedged a driver between the door control's frame and the wall, and popped it loose. She dug her slender fingers beneath the edge and pulled it free. A cursory inspection of the wiring showed it was still good.

“Noah, light.” She asked, her kinetic light in her mouth. Noah walked over and handed her the large, sturdy torch. It clicked audibly, and she had to turn away at first from the light. She squinted, and slowly her eyes adapted and was able to glean information from the wiring. Two thick wires protruded from the console. Obviously security hadn't been of the upmost concern, otherwise the motivator wiring wouldn't have been so accessible.

“Hah! Renn, you got a spare power cell for that blaster?” Morgan asked. It would probably damage some of the regulation circuits, but it would likely get the door open. Renn approached.

“Yeah?” He asked. Renn wasn't especially keen on giving up ammunition.

Morgan paused. She decided against commenting on the obviousness of her request. “I need it to open the door.” Morgan said, while she worked the motivator wires loose with her multi-tool. The light was wedged between her face and shoulder.

“Here.” He reached forward with the cell.

“Thanks, leave it by my feet?” She asked while she stripped the ends of the wiring. Renn seemed a little paranoid, but that was understandable. No one here knew each other besides a few select pairs. Renn seemed familiar with the medic, Kier-Xan, and Tacita certainly knew Noah. Of course, there was the three of them, all total outsiders with their ship held hostage. Finished with the wiring, and with the control console hung from it's own wires, she grabbed the power cell after another minute of fiddling.

“Ah hah.” There was a crackle and a pop of electricity arcing from the cell contacts to the wire. The door groaned for a moment, and then slid smoothly into opposite wall. Morgan clicked her light off, and the door stopped moving with a satisfying clunk.

Just inside, a skeleton bore evidence of desperation. The rodian skull had a blaster burn through the side. Even with their small victory, it was a grim reminder that the Heart of Shade were not to be taken lightly. The party gingerly stepped around the remains.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Tacita grimaced as she stepped over the Rodian’s body, then turned her attention to the rest of the engineering room, partially lit by peoples’ various lumas and other devices.  There was a certain smell in the air, one that she wasn’t sure she wanted to identify.

As her eyes adjusted, she made her way across the room – and over another body – toward a control panel.  “Now let’s see if we can fire this baby up.”

The rest of the group meandered around the room, studying what they could with their limited lighting equipment, as Tacita’s hands danced across one control panel, then another, booting up the system and accessing reserve power.

Slowly, a rumbling could be heard, rising in volume, and many heaved a sigh of relief that the oppressive silence had ended.  The Heart of Shade sounded like a real ship again.  Air began to flow through vents as the ship’s systems came online one by one, beginning with circulation.  Finally, the lights flickered on.

The sight was not a pretty one.  Dried blood of various alien colors was literally splashed over the walls, and desiccated corpses were scattered here and there across the room, even on the controls Tacita had been in contact with.  She quickly wiped her hands on her pants.   As monitors came to life along the walls, they showed similar scenes all over the ship.

It had been a massacre.

“Maybe I should turn the lights back off…?”  Tacita’s hand hovered over the controls.

For a long time nobody answered, as if they were really considering it.  They probably were.

Finally, Noah spoke, shaking his head.  “No, leave it on.”

Tacita nodded and withdrew her hand.  “I guess now we explore the rest of the ship?”   The idea didn’t sound very appealing to her anymore.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Noah nodded slowly. “Yes, that’s why we are here.” Feeling as uncomfortable as the others did obviously too, he moved his blaster rifle in his hands adapt to the weapon. Like most freelancers he knew how to use blasters, but this rifle was bigger than the most he had used before. The BlasTech A280 blaster rifle was build for troopers normally. Noah had never been a soldier. He was a pilot and mechanic. But nevertheless he tried to look confident as he peeked into the next corridor, pressing the rifle’s butt against his shoulder.

“Let’s go this way.” Noah half-ordered, half-suggested. Except Tacita, who walked into his direction, the others were hesitating. He sighed. He wasn’t keen to be the leader of their group, but the others seemed too passive to act at the moment. And Asshur expected results. If the group didn’t accept him as leader, Noah would need some persuasion. “Well, you can wait here in this slaughterhouse then. I locked up the <i>Open Sky</i>, so better get comfortable until Tac and I return from our exploration. And if we find something of worth, she and I will share the credits. “ With a shrug Noah turned around, ready to leave the engineering room.

“You locked your ship?!” Dyles prostested. “What if something happens to you?” Noah looked over his shoulder. “Then better make sure, that I will return safely.” As he started walking, Noah grinned as he heard the steps of the others following Tacita and him.  

They shivered by the cold pervading the whole ship. The lights of their glowrods illuminated the hallway, but didn’t help to make them feel more at ease. Like in the engineering room the corridors were like catacombs. Every few meters they found a corpse. Some looked slaughtered, while others looked like suicide. The cone of light produced by Morgan’s luma hit one of the walls, exposing some writing on it. “What’s that?” the girl asked. The rest of the group stopped their march. The letters of the hand-written aurabesh looked like a kind of rusty paint, but they realised quickly that it was dried blood. “I’ve got a bad feeling about this.” Sully muttered, expressing what everybody thought.

<i><b>HELP ME! HE IS COMING TO</i></b>

The sentence was uncompleted. Renn pointed to an old puddle of blood on the floor underneath the writing and to the smeared trace of the same liquid leading away from it, farther into the ship. “Looks like somebody didn’t want them to finish it and dragged them away…”  All of them startled as suddenly a bulkhead behind them closed without warning, blocking their way back to the <i>Open Sky</i>.

Kier looked concentrated, then he whispered. “Somebody is here. I can feel a presence.”  Tacita moved closer to Noah. “Maybe a ghost in the machine.” Noah suppressed the urge to put an arm around her shoulders. “You think this ship is an AI out of control?” A growling sound vibrated in the utility shaft above them, made them aim their weapons to the ceiling. Somebody… something was moving up there. Without any spoken command or further thinking they all did the same.

They ran. Deeper into the core of the <i>Heart of Shade</i>.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Morgan, for the moment, wasn't feeling as cold on her skin, but her spine had icicles. They had run nearly two hundred meters, and everyone was sucking wind in the thin air.

“Does… anyone… know… what… that… was?” She asked.

“No.” Kier said. He was the only one that wasn't gasping for wind. What was his deal? He was still composed, somehow. Dyles shook her head.

“Ok.” Noah said, and sucked one last deep breath in. “We still need to get this ship back to Asshur, and we're not going to get anything done by worrying about something crawling in an access shaft.”

It took a moment, but there were murmurs of agreement and nods.

“Tac, Ren, with me. Kier, go with Dyles and Sully.” Sully was about to say something but stopped himself. The pirate wasn't usually one to be ordered about, but Asshur had left him in charge. There was a potential for a big haul from this ship, and Sully wasn't going to pass up the opportunity.

“It's warming up a little.” Dyles remarked.

“We could warm it up more.” Sully grinned. He had not lost his sense of humor. What Morgan noticed, was that the air was circulating. Backup power had never been engaged.

“Find me some jewels and I'll think about it.” She said, with an equal grin before playfully pushing him towards the nearest set of quarters. It was corpse free. Morgan and Kier headed to the next suite.

“Whatcha thinkin' about?” Morgan asked. The Jedi seemed distant to her. Kier took more than a moment to answer. Morgan gave the room a cursory glance before turning on the lights. She held her breath. No surprises. It had luggage, and some various goods placed about by a passenger. She opened the fresher.

“Eeeuugghhh don't go in there.” She said and closed the door behind her. Morgan's face had contorted , and she coughed. It took a moment to regain composure. Soon she systematically began to ransack the desk. Nothing, there. So she moved on to under the bed. Nope!

“There is something on this ship. It's… very, very old.” Kier said.

“This ship is pretty old.” Morgan remarked, tearing through the clothes in the closet. It was a woman's suite, and she found a ridiculous fur jacket, and put it on. It was loose around the middle, but the sleeves were the correct length. It was still colder than she liked.

“It's far older than the ship. And it's utterly evil.” Kier said with finality. Morgan paused from removing jewels embedded on shirts with her vibroknife,  but kept going a moment later. This guy was starting to sound more pessimistic than she felt.

“Aren't you going to look for something?” She asked. She tossed the last stripped garment back in the pile of clothes and pocketed the gemstone. Kier shrugged. Morgan went back to work, and opened the last suitcase. Jackpot! It had a jewelery kit loaded to the brim with various bits of gaudy metal and crystal. Morgan thought it looked terrible, but it was worth a lot to someone else.

Tacita kicked the panel next to the bridge door controls. Metal on metal clattered as the panel skittered away.

“Damn it.” She swore. She couldn't make heads or tails of the interlocking mechanism. “What sort of idiot would wire a door this way?” She asked aloud.

“Idiots catering to rich idiots.” Renn answered with a snort. He checked the safety on the rifle for the 10th time.  Noah's body was halfway into a lower access hatch in the floor.

“Tac.” Noah said with a grunt.  He finished extracting himself from the hole in the floor. “I need your slender fingers.”

“Did you find something?” She asked, and pulled her hands away from the wiring.

“I think so.” Noah pointed at a small metal box under some smaller wires that could be moved aside.

“I traced the colors, I think that's the door override.” Noah explained. Tac reached down. Most of her body hung into the access hatch.

“Yeah, I think…” there was a click from the metal box, and then a heavy clunk as the door unlocked. “…that's it.”

Noah turned as the door opened.

“Gods.” Renn choked out.

Bodies littered the bridge. Blackened marks dotted the floor and walls from exchanges of blaster fire. Skulls had been caved in with blunt instruments.

“What are you guys… oh Gods.” Tac closed her eyes.

“Sully?” Noah managed to gather some wit, and use the communicator. If nothing else, they'd need help clearing the bodies.

“Go ahead?” He said as Dyles modeled an absurd jeweled headdress. A corridor down, and they'd hit the the big money travelers.

“Sully?” Noah asked again.

“Go ahead?” Sully said, again. He wondered if the problem was on his end. He switched channels.

“Kier?”

“Yes?” The Jedi answered.

“Just a radio check, thanks.”

“You're clear.” Kier said. “Is it Noah?”

“Yeah. He might have a problem with the receiver.”

“I checked everything before we left.” Morgan said, her face disbelieving.

“Morgan says she checked everything.” Kier relayed to Sully.

“I know.” Sully said with a sigh. “Thanks Kier.” He switched the comm back to multi-channel standby. It would squawk if anything came through.

“That doesn't make any sense.” Morgan said.

“I suspect the comm works fine.” Kier explained. “I think it feeds off fear.”

“Oh.” Morgan blinked stupidly. She didn't understand this mumbo jumbo. All she wanted was money to get another ship.

“We need to find it.” Kier said firmly.

“Uhhh… ok. Do you know what you're looking for?” Morgan stopped stuffing her new tote's pockets with fire rubies. They'd taken the outer side of the big spender corridor and Sully and Dyles had taken the inner.

“I've got a solid idea.” Kier's assurance didn't stop Morgan's skin from crawling.

“Why me?” She squeaked as Kier went out of the suite.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

"Most of your fears can be easily managed." Kier glanced to Morgan, checking to make sure she was following before resuming on his path. He wanted to make sure they encountered this entity away from the bride to give the others time. "I'm gathering you're fairly inexperienced for this crew."

The statement wasn't meant as an insult, though Morgan would certainly take it as one; any pirate would. "You'd be surprised." She retorted.

"I hope not." He replied sincerely. Sarcasm seemed to be the highest form of humor for some of the other Jedi he had met but not for Kier.

They pressed down a hall, Kier in the lead, for an inordinate amount of time. The darkness pressed in, palpable in a sense entirely different from the rest of the ship. Even for a pair familiar with space travel and the dark, cold reality of the emptiness between comparatively tiny pockets of life; this was suffocating. The Jedi checked again on his companion, taking her hand somewhat awkwardly and guiding her to grab the back of his jacket. "So you don't get lost." He couldn't remember the last time he had actually touched a person outside of medical duties.

"I think we already are." Even with her glowrod Morgan could barely see and while Kier reached out with his senses all he could feel was her. Her and the darkness.

It was time to confirm what Asshur had eluded to during their preparations. Kier produced the sleek hilt of his lightsaber, each part designed specifically for a function, lacking all excess. The blade ignited, producing a soft blue glow, intended to announce not just their presence but also their refusal to leave.

"What is…" Morgan began but Kier interrupted. "You thought you were coming with me but that's not the case. I'm here with you." She could barely see the Jedi look at her when they paused. The hall couldn't have been this long.

They pressed on further, the halls around them no longer even visible. “Do not let go.” Kier warned just before Morgan's glowrod caught movement. The beam couldn't pick up the halls but it did catch what was in front of them. The bodies shambled, shuffling awkwardly on their feet, under their own power. They appeared for a moment to be survivors but they were gaunt and pale. As they moved closer it became clear that the blue tint wasn't from the blade of Kier's lightsaber but from the cold.

“Are they…?” Morgan's teeth chattering and the hum of the incandescent blade were the only other sounds in the darkness. “No, they are not survivors.” A gruff, dehydrated voice responded.

The shriek produced from Morgan was other bodily, as if she was hearing someone far off; as if she was someone far off. The clothes and weapon of Kier remained but in his place was the eerie figure of a refugee, just like the others, left and forgotten in the emptiness of space, alone. “Do not let go!” The figure nearly screamed the command into Morgan's face, pulling her back to the moment.

The young woman began firing into the crowd, bodies falling to the floor, tiny pillars of smoke rising from the blaster marks left in their paper thin skin and meager flesh. Their numbers were too many, those that fell stood a moment later, still mangled but undeterred. Kier grabbed Morgan's arm as the urge to run began to overtake her. “Be here, there is nothing else. There is only one thing that exists, this very moment.” The voice of the figure that was Kier began to clear and focus. Her companion began to fill back out into his former self.

“See them. Be attentive, aware.” Kier continued to talk Morgan through the event as her eyes returned to the Abandoned that dragged their own anemic forms toward their pair. “What am I looking for? What are we waiting for?” Her voice was still filled with panic. This beast fed on it, induced it, and she was it's entire focus.

“No. There is nothing to wait for. There is nothing to look for. The future is not a thing to be expected or seen.” Kier was cryptic, like the Jedi had a reputation for being. Morgan managed to quell her fear better then even she could have expected. She gripped the jacket tightly and focused on the figures as they grew closer. “Live in the moment… this moment. Do not hold expectations or desires.”

The glowrod cut through the forms in front of them. The beam of light revealed the glowing red eyes of a shadowy beast, cutting through the Abandoned and revealing them for the mirage they were. Kier dashed forward through the remnants of the cloak that the Beast hid behind as the fear inducing darkness receded. Although he slashed across the inner corridor the Beast had retreated with unbelievable haste. The pair stowed their weapons and grouped back up.

“I could have hit him.” Morgan protested to the Jedi blocking her line of fire.

“My apologies.” He replied, having no desire to debate the point. They'd have to find out it's weakness soon enough.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Sully frowned as they entered into a new section of quarters while Morgan, Kier, and the others vanished to explore the rooms. He turned and gave Dyles a quizzical stare. The half-Zeltron almost smiled. "Well, at least we're alone again. Where else should we get started?"

The pirate started for one of the entrances, then paused. "Just stay close to me. Whatever that was we all felt, I'm feeling it again. It's making my hairs stand on end." He gripped the handle of his blaster tighter. Sully wasn't quite sure if she was amused or not as he waited for her to join him. Dyles followed him through the entrance, then turned down a long metal corridor on their right. He led her halfway down before he paused in front of a door and opened it.

"Here's go nothing…" Sully raised his glowrod high and entered, waving his blaster around. Dyles whistled low as she caught sight that this was some kind of training room. It was huge, and held a variety of punching bags, mats, and dummies. One in particular looked like it had been seriously abused.

There were also a large bite mark on it.

"I hope what chewed this up isn't here anymore. You see anything?" Dyles asked as she also noted the stab wounds to the dummy's head.

"Nothing."

Dyles shook her head as Sully headed over to a closet. Inside was an arsenal Dyles was sure Noah and the others would have some issues with.

"Vibro-axe?"

"And a few other weapons too," Sully said. "Looks like whoever was here was stashing weapons for a last stand. Guess they never had the chance to use them."

"Apparently so. Who needs blasters when you have all this?"

Sully gave her a wicked grin as he strapped a long, lethal blade to his forearm. "What's my lady's choice?"

Dyles pulled a small sporting blaster off a hangar on the door. "This is quite a cute thing. I remember seeing old holopics of Princess Leia sporting one of these in her youth."

Sully stood back while Dyles picked up more weapons. He had to admit that he enjoyed seeing a woman who knew how to take care of herself. She weighed and examined each one carefully with the precision of a pro. He would never have believed such a thing could be a turn-on and yet his body was already lusting for her. it was all he could do to not take her right now in the closet.

"Here," she said, handing him one of a set of vibroknives she found. He stepped back and slid it into his utility belt. Before he could comment, the half-Zeltron nodded to the exit. "Let's see what's down the end of the corridor."

Sully and Dyles left the training room to follow the corridor to the other wing. They ended up facing another room at the end of the hallway. Dyles opened the door and entered, sporting blaster gripped in her hand.

She gaped at the palatial room. It was, after all, the very best. She wouldn't expect nothing less from a luxury liner and still the room was awe-inspiring. It was decorated in dark blue and gold.

Sully noticed an intercom and headed to it, then stopped himself. "I don't suppose there will be anyone to answer it if I called…" he said under his breath. Dyles crossed the room to discover there were clothes scattered and unpacked. A few things had been placed neatly in drawers, the armoire, and in the bathroom.

<I>Wow… a woman could get used to this kind of treatment.</i>

She was pulling on a long-sleeved sweater to cover up her arms when she spotted Sully signalling her. "Let's get moving. There's no time to be scavenging clothes."

"I'm ready." She watched the pirate widen the opening to the door and raised his glowrod as he led the way again.

As she recalled the Jedi's words of warning going through her head again, the comlink chimed in Sully's belt. She was relieved the second she heard Noah's voice. "Hey, you two," he said, trying to sound normal. "What are you guys up to?"

"Not much. Found a few things of interest, but nothing worth reporting."

"Alright. I think you two should start heading back to where we are. Use the tracer on your comlink to find us. And be careful."

"Yeah, I know. See you guys later."

Dyles sighed as Sully hung up and her stomach contracted with sudden unfounded fear.

The pirate noticed. Why was she so nervous? "We're getting out of here, Dyles. Don't start to lose it now."

She gave an imperious nod. Sully took her hand as he started away. "Whatever it is that is out there, we'll get it. Don't worry."

The sincerity of his voice cut through her. "You would protect me from it?"

He glanced away. When his gaze came back to hers, it seared her. "I <I>will</i> protect you. Yes."

Before she could stop herself, she pulled his lips down to hers and kissed him fiercely. The taste of him permeated her head. How Sully wished he had nothing more to do tonight than to pull her back to the <I>Open Sky</I> and make love to her.

If only he could…

Sighing regretfully, he nipped her lips and pulled back. She felt his reluctance as he released her. Forcing herself to let go of him, she stepped away. Sobering, she looked back at Sully. "I didn't mean to–"

Sully suddenly frowned and raised a hand. "You smell that?"

She gave him a menacing glare as the pirate began to sniff around. "What? I'd rather not." She then gave a disgusted look that he took in stride.

"Just smell the air, Dyles, or your nose might be the only part of you that is in working order tomorrow!"

Dyles wasn't sure if she should obey him or not, but she found herself reluctantly doing so as she drew up short.

"Now take a deep breath," he said, his sultry voice in her ear. It sent a shiver over her as she did it.

"Do you smell it? A dampness, almost as if Death is coming. A hint of rotted flesh."

She gaped at him. "Yes… I do. I can almost touch it. More like rotted flesh of a thousand corpses."

Sully growled at her as fear settled into them. His gaze turned serious. "Move it, Dyles! It's coming for us!"

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Renn tried for the fifth time to get the nav computer to reboot, with little success. He sighed. It was obvious it was fried beyond salvaging. The barrage of blaster fire that had torn through the bridge had ensured that. However he tried again. He didn't want to turn around. Didn't want to see them. There must have been a dozen of them, he couldn't count, all different ages, different species. They had all died together. No, they had all killed each other. Blown each other to pieces with blasters, stabbed each other with vibroblades, punched, ripped, torn and slashed each other to bits with hands, claws and teeth. Renn had seen nothing like it.

He had heard tales about space pirates in wild space. Stories about some of the horrible things that they did. Maybe those stories were true. Maybe pirates and other criminals were capable of killing, of slaughtering in this animal fashion. Maybe that would have explained it. Maybe, if all the bodies weren't wearing the same uniforms. Uniforms with the Heart of Shades name emblazoned on their chests. What could drive normal civilised sentient beings to this? Renn wasn't sure he wanted to know the answer.

"Hey, you two." Renns thoughts were interrupted as Noah spoke into his comm link.. "What are you guys up to?" He listened for a second to a reply. "Alright. I think you two should start heading back to where we are. Use the tracer on your comlink to find us. And be careful." Renn noted a slight shake in the freighter captains voice. It worried him, although he wouldn't have said anything, he had been looking to Noah as the natural leader of this little expedition. He had obviously been working the space lanes for a long time and been round the rim a few times. Renn had been counting on him to know what to do. To hear the first hint of fear and uncertainty in his voice was unnerving. Your on your own now. You always have been. A voice whispered in his  mind. He would have to look out for himself. He turned suddenly as Tacita moved next to him.

"Still not working?" She asked, tapping the Nav computers flickering screen with a long slender finger.

"Nah its totally fried. We aren't going to be plotting a course out of here with this thing." Tacita sighed and lent against the console, as if all the energy had been sucked from her. She held her head with her hand as if in pain for a moment. “You ok?” He asked.

“Yer I'm fine. Just got a headache, thats all.” With an obvious effort, she straightened her back and glanced at Renn, her gaze once more business like. "Ok. Maybe I can rig the Nav comp on the freighter so we can slave this one to it and use it to plot a jump for both ships." She suggested.

"You think it can handle that?" Renn asked.

"Dunno but its worth a try." Renn who didn't have any other ideas, simply nodded in agreement. Tacita turned to Noah.

"Noah, what do you think." He was standing in the middle of the bridge, his back to them, gazing at the opposite bulk head. He didn't appear to have heard her speak. Renn stepped over and patted him on the shoulder. The freighter captain jumped, as though he had been hit with a stun baton. He spun, his blaster rifle up, its gaping muzzle inches from Renns face.

"NOAH!" Tacitas frightened cry seemed to pierce the spacers confusion. His eyes which had been glazed over and vacant, snapped back into focus and a little colour returned to his pale face. He blinked several times then glanced at Tacita, then at Renn and finally his eyes rested on the rifle in his arms.

"I…" He began.

"Look at you." Tacita continued, she had begun to shake slightly, her hands clutched at her sides. "Both of you! What are you doing?" Confused Renn followed her accusing gaze downwards to his right hand which was by his side, clutching his blaster pistol and pointing it directly at Noahs stomach. He would have been impressed with his quick draw if he hadn't been so appalled. He gazed at the blaster for several seconds. He had no conscious memory of reaching for it. A haziness lay over his thoughts, clouding his mind. He glanced about, the staring eyes of the dead watched knowingly from all around.

"This is how it started. This ship is cursed. It turned them against each other." Noah had regained himself by now and throwing the rifle to the floor in disgust, he moved across the room to where Tacita stood looking as though she was about to burst into tears.

"Tacita, I’m sorry.” He began. She shrugged dismissively.

“So what now?” she asked.

 "Remember what the Jedi said. Whatever this thing, this entity is, it feeds on fear. So we're not going to let it scare us. We not going to let it turn us against one another. We're gonna stick together and we're going to beat it." Noah glanced up at Renn. The young pilot met his gaze and nodded solemnly in agreement.

"I think its time we were leaving.” Renn said checking his blasters powercell as he spoke. “We can regroup and get back to the freighter then use the nav computer on board to jump both ships back to the rendezvous. Right Tacita?"

"Not exactly. Someone would have to be here to modify the comm unit to receive the hyper coordinates and manually plot them into the nav comp. Plus, its so unstable that it could fail at any time. So someone would have to stay to monitor it and make almost constant corrections."

"Not necessarily." Noah chimed in, a victorious smirk creeping across his handsome face. "When we loaded all the scanning and salvaging equipment, we also picked up an astromech droid. Brand new, still in its delivery pod."

Renn laughed."Thank you mister Hellesponte. The droid can monitor the Shades nav comp. We'll equip it with a com link so you can instruct it from the Open Sky "

"That should work." Tacita agreed.

"Great". Renn replied. "Now all we need to do is wait for the others to get back and then we're out of here." He picked up Noahs rifle and handed it back to him. "You might need this." The two men exchanged a look which said more than any spoken mutual apology ever could have.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Noah was quiet as the trio walked through the hallways back to the place the <i>Open Sky</i> was docked. “Are you alright?” Tacita whispered next to him. The freighter captain just nodded brusquely. He didn’t want to talk about what he had seen instead of Renn. Flashbacks of his time in the spice mines of Kessel. Five long years full of slave labour in darkness. Five years full of fears. Energy spiders, guards or the other inmates: It was hard to tell who had been the biggest threat. But also five years that had taught survival to Noah. That had strengthened not only his body but also his will. And he knew one thing for sure since then: He would die rather than become a prisoner again. And for sure this ship of demons wouldn’t become his warden.

The hissing sound of the <i>Sky’s</i> hatch sounded like a sigh as Noah typed in the entry code. Renn and Tacita followed him on board quickly. “We should leave as long as we still can.” Tacita declared, rubbing her arms to get rid of the cold she was feeling. “It wouldn’t be good for our reputation, if we don’t finish this job.” Noah remarked as he kneeled down in the cargo hold, next to the delivery pod of the droid. “I know, that Asshur seems like an amiable guy but I can tell you that he’s a tough-as-durasteel-businessman. He has too many connections as that I would want that he’s pissed off. I would never ever get another transport job.”

Renn agreed. “Never tick off a crime lord. That’s my politics as well.” He started to help Noah removing the wrapping of the astromech. It was a red-white model of the R4-series.  Its <i>eye</i> was still dark as it waited for its activation. “May I?” Tacita asked, a smile on her face like a kid in a candy store. “Sure.” Noah had to grin as he saw her enthusiasm. He knew that she loved everything related to computers and slicing, so Noah wasn’t surprised that it included droids as well. Also he enjoyed to see her smile again. It seemed to be a while since she had done that.

With a melody of beeps the astromech awoke as Tacita began the set up. “She’s pre-programmed. She should work fine for our needs.” Tac patted the droid’s dome like the head of a little child. “She?” Noah asked amused. “How do you know? Did she show you her droid parts?” Tacita ell-bowed him hard into the ribs. “No, but I will programme her with a female personality. There’s enough testosterone on board.” Noah changed a look with Renn. “An astromech with her issues? Now we are doomed for sure.”

Their good-humoured mood changed quickly again as they returned to the <i>Heart of Shade</i>. It seemed as if the ship’s name was a kind of omen. “We should contact the other group to tell them about our plan with the droid.” Renn suggested as they walked through the corridors towards the bridge. “I’m sure they are looting, but yes, do that.” Noah replied, looking over his shoulder to the other man. “Maybe they…”

“WATCH OUT!” Tacita screamed suddenly. As Noah turned around he saw it. A huge something blocked the corridor in front of them, claws like a rancor, fangs like a nexu. A nightmarish mix of all kind of creatures, none of them friendly. The three of them levelled their weapons and opened fire. But none of the blaster bolts left any scratch on the thick hide of the being. “Retreat to the <i>Sky</i>!” Noah shouted over the noise of their guns.

As they started to move backwards, they realised for the first time that the droid didn’t stop at all. The astromech continued her way along the corridor towards the monster. She didn’t stop in front of it, but rolled right through the creature as if it would be nothing but a hologram.

“What the Frak???!!!” Noah cursed, stopping his path. Tacita and Renn next to him stared as well. Their heartbeats slowed down again, as they found time to breath. Their fears were replaced by other emotions: curiosity and confusion.

And the being disappeared into thin air.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Sully winced and focused his thoughts on other, much less painful things. There was an odor in the air that announced the stench of Death would be here soon. Not that this cursed ship didn't carry the stench of Death, compared to what he'd been used to back on Kessel. Tilting his head, he listened for the thing that chased them, blaster in hand, and stopped.

He heard something laughing at them.

And then Sully heard Dyles utter something out of her mouth…

"Laugh it up, you piece of chizk! We're not afraid of you!"

Sully whirled on his heel and grabbed her by the arm. "Are you kriffing nuts?! Are you trying to piss it off?!"

She was going to reply, until her eyes trailed to the sounds ahead. "Uh oh.."

Sully was so stunned he couldn't move. Of all the planets he traveled in the galaxy, he'd never seen or heard of anything like this. Not even the energy spiders that tormented him and his co-pilot, Angus, back on Kessel, could compare.

It appeared behind Dyles. It flashed bright and swirling. A chill, cold wind swept through the corridor before the pirate could react. The creature stepped out of the shadows.

Sully went rigid at something even rarer than any creature he had seen. Dyles turned slowly to see it. <i>To the Hells…</i> She'd never seen anything like this– claws like a rancor, fangs like a nexu. A nightmarish mix of all kind of beasts.

"Shoot it!" Dyles spat out, as she fumbled to find her own weapon. Sully raised his blaster and fired.

The thing moved its hand and deflected the blaster bolt before it reached him. Then it slung its arm toward the pirate. Something invisible and painful slashed through his chest as he went flying head over heels.

Dazed and scared, Sully lay on the ground. Horrible memories ripped through him of the day on Kessel, when he and Angus fought for their lives. The way the energy spiders had torn through the prisoners they tried to rescue…

No, no, no.

They were dead. They had killed them all.

His panic tripled as he struggled to right himself. He was dizzy, his vision blurry as he pushed himself to his feet. Where was Dyles??!

"Oh, shavit!" she breathed, rushing to his side. "Please tell me you're not dying or holding your insides in." She checked his breathing. His eyes were partially opened, but he wasn't speaking. He held his jaw clamped firmly shut as he groaned deeply in his throat.

Terrified, she still wasn't sure if the creature was still roaming nearby or had left. She didn't see it anywhere. Her heart hammering, Dyles pulled up his shirt to see the nasty-looking slash wounds in the center of his chest.

And then she saw what she had hoped for…

"Oh, Good novas!" she breathed as relief poured through her. The wounds were not deep enough to be fatal. If she could get him back to the <I>Open Sky</i>, she could probably patch him up good. But she needed help to carry him.

She grabbed her comlink and called Noah to let him know Sully had been hurt, but he didn't answer.

"C'mon! Someone answer!" She began to comm Tacita and Renn in hopes one of them would respond…

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Two hallways back she had finally ripped off one of the heavier pieces of armor and her boots, their weight tugging her down and slowing her pace with Scully.  Grasping him more firmly around the waist she secured her hold.

"Stay with me, stay with me," she murmured as she looked both ways, holding her breath.

No sounds… no skittering or anything like that demon-beast that looked like her worst nightmares come to life.  Letting out a whoosh of air she closed her eyes and tried to concentrate, picturing the layout from their path back to the ship in her head.  Noah hadn't answered her yet and she wasn't even sure the damn com was working at this point.  She had to find a way out.

A moan escaped Sully and she looked over to see his eyes open in a dazed expression.

"C'mon, Pirate, don't quit on me," she murmured, letting her free hand move to brush his hair out of his eyes for a moment.  She let her pheremones brush over him, just faint enough to give him a burst of adrenaline.  "You with me?"

"Slim…"

"I got you.  I got you."  The radio at her hip crackled with a faint noise.  "Oh thank fra-"

"<i>Anyone out there?  Hello?</i>"

She shoved her thumb onto the ON button.  "This is Dyles.  Everyone get back to the ship, now!"

"<i>What the frell happened?</i>"

And a loud crash sounded behind her.

"<i>What was that?!</i>"

"Get everyone back on the ship!" she yelled and started moving as fast as she could, dragging Sully with her.  He groaned and tried to protest weakly, saying something about being too tired, and Dyles squeezed him hard at the ribs.

"Dyles, can't-"

"Unless you want to end up like the people who were last here, move your ass!"

The hall rocked with the vibration of approaching feet and a deep roar.  Sully's shock evaporated instantly and he was on his feet using her as a crutch, moving as fast as his wounds would let him.  "Never say I didn't give you enough excitement, babe."

"Shut up and run, Pirate."

Lungs burning, vision blurry… Dyles tried to inhale, exhale, remember the sensation of being on a bike and beating other targets.  <i>Focus, focus, you can make it, focus,</i> she tried to coach herself, but for the first time since she could remember she felt the cold dullness of fear weight down in her belly.

Sully managed to help her piece together their route, from the way he would shove her down a hallway or grab her and swing her around a bend.  Soon the ship was in sight.

"Run!" she shouted, letting him go and turning with her guns pointed behind them.  Did it follow?

She hurried, backing towards the open door, and before she knew it the door slammed shut behind them.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

Noah, Renn, and Tacita broke into a run at the sound of Dyles’ frantic shouting over the comlink.  “They must be seeing the same visions,” she concluded as they made their way down dimly lit corridors back to the ship, the astromech trailing behind them.

Nearing their destination, the three skidded to a halt.  In front of them was the same creature they had seen before, and behind it Tacita caught a glimpse of Dyles and Sully on the other side of it.  They were clearly afraid, but Tacita had seen the droid roll right through the illusion.  

“It’s not real!” she shouted to be heard over the snarling of the creature, but the two were clearly too distracted to pay attention.  The creature turned to face the new arrivals, and Tacita could almost swear that what she saw was real – she could even feel the heat of its breath as it let out a loud roar and snapped at them, causing everyone to leap backward.  To Tacita, the thing seemed to shift in focus, becoming even more realistic as they watched.  Now she could see saliva dripping from its fangs.  Strange…

“Dom, see if you can get that hatch open!” she ordered the astromech, pointing toward the closed hatch behind Dyles and Sully.  The droid rolled dutifully down the corridor, through the creature as before.

“What the…?” asked Sully as the thing abruptly vanished.  The hatch opened of its own accord seconds later, causing the droid to whistle curiously.  Everyone stood in the corridor a bit longer, calming themselves, before boarding the Open Sky, Dyles helping the injured Sully.

Once inside, Tacita made her way to the cockpit and powered up the ship’s computer.  

“Hey, hands off,” Noah called behind her.

Tac continued, rolling her eyes.  “I’m just going to see if I can use the ship’s sensors to find whatever might be projecting that… thing.”

“The Open Sky is too small to scan this whole ship,” he argued.

“I know,” Tacita replied, “but we can do small portions at a time.  Or send a pulse out in all directions and see what bounces back.”

Dyles approached from where she’d been helping Sully.  “You think that creature is being… projected from somewhere on the ship?

Tac nodded, continuing to work at the computer.  “It’s obviously not real, at least not at first.  But the more I looked at it, the more real it became.”

“What does that mean?”  Renn asked.

“I have no idea,” Tac confessed.  “But based on what we’ve seen, it doesn’t take long for the thing to be really real.”  She sat back in the chair.  “First scan is running.”

Then she realized everyone wasn’t here.  “Where are the others?  That Jedi guy could probably find it faster if it’s some kind of Force thing.”

“Aren’t you scanning the ship?” asked Renn sardonically.

“I’m not scanning for people,” Tac retorted.

Dyles was wringing her hands.  “Well, shouldn’t we go find them?  They didn’t respond earlier when we called everyone.”

Everyone looked at each other.  Clearly none of them wanted to go back out there, but it wouldn’t be right to leave the others wandering the ship, especially if they hadn’t figured out the creature wasn’t real.

“We could draw straws?” Tacita suggested helpfully.

Re: Bravi'os: Requiem

“That’s not necessary.” Noah said, still cradling his blaster rifle. “I’ll go.” He was very aware of the four pairs of eyes staring at him now.

“Alone? That’s crazy.” Sully remarked was all of them were thinking.  “No.” Tacita shook her head. “It’s more that HE is crazy. “ Noah already knew that look she was giving him. “I’ll come with you.” She added and he knew that she was as stubborn as a Tauntaun when it came to get her own way.

“Tac, can I have a word with you?” Noah grabbed her elbow, leading her out of the cockpit. Tacita followed him, a pout on her face. He stopped in the cargo hold, where he was sure that he could tell her something in confidence.

“I know you are mad.” Noah started as she glared at him, her arms crossed. “Oh, really?” Tacita sounded as annoyed as she looked. Noah sighed. “And you are right that you are. But I need you on board of the <i>Sky</i>. Listen, I don’t trust all of them. What if you and I go to do the dirty work and in the meantime they steal my ship? They are pirates and smugglers. Believe me, I met enough of such people in my life.”

“Private and smugglers, huh?” Tacita wasn’t convinced. “What if they kill me then when I’m alone with them? Or what if you are killed when going alone?” Noah’s face softened as he heard the true concern in her voice. “They will not kill you. They may be thieves, but they are no murderers. And if I’m killed, the <i>Sky</i> is yours. She’s not the fastest ship in the galaxy, but she has it where it counts.”

There was something in Tacita’s eyes, Noah couldn’t interpret. Then she gave him a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. “Don’t talk like that, Noah. Take one of them with you. They may be thieves, but I’m sure they would cover your back.” Noah looked surprised, but returned the hug. “I think I can trust Sully with that. I had met him on Yavin before.” Tacita nodded, stepping away from him again.

As they returned to the others again, Dyles, who was treating Sully’s injury, rose an eye-brow. “Already back from your hanky-panky? The cargo hold isn’t that comfy, is it?” Tacita rolled her eyes at that. “Don’t get excited.” Noah on the other hand ignored the Zeltron simply. He just planted himself in front of the others.

“Tac and I discussed the next move. She will stay here and supervise the sensors. Dyles and Renn, you’ll stay here and assist her. Maybe trying to reach Morgan and Kier over the comlink. Sully, put a bacta patch on your wound, take a stimshot. You’ll come with me and we’ll find the others and then we’ll be out of here.”

They were quiet for some seconds. Then they realised his orders. And started to talk all at once. But Noah was already back in the cargo hold, opening one of the many crates, Asshur had given them. Explosives of all kind. Noah started to fill a bag with as much as he could carry.  He hadn’t told him the whole plan, that he wanted to blow the <i>Heart of Shade</i> back to the hell this ship had come from.

***  

Sully winced his face slightly as he and Noah jogged through the hallways. Even with the stimshot and the bacta patch he could feel his injury. So he was relieved as Noah slowed down finally. But then Sully frowned as he saw the other man opening the hatch to a utility shaft, placing a thermal detonator into it. “What the frak are you doing?” Sully asked confused.

“I’m activating it, so I can ignite it via remote when we are back on the <i>Sky</i>.” Noah answered almost laconic. Sully rubbed his face. “Don’t tell me now, that you want to place more of these to blow up the ship.” Noah nodded. “That is indeed correct.”

Sully grabbed the bag with the explosives, trying to snatch it from Noah’s grip. “You’ll not do that. Asshur want this ship.” Both men wrestled some seconds for the bag, before Noah growled. “Stop that. Or do you want to kill us immediately?” With a deep sigh Sully gave up. “I’ll tell Asshur that it was your plan.”

Noah shrugged as if he wouldn’t care, but he knew that the Kiraly would be beyond mad if he learnt about this. But Noah preferred the wrath of  a crime lord to the thought that this ship would continue to kill other spacers.