After much delay, here's the next part of my Star Wars story. There are some terms in here that I realize one wouldn't know unless they were a Star Wars fan. Feel free to ask what something is if you don't know.---------------
“I am really beginning to hate her…”
“I was under the impression that your hatred for Nevara was already quite unparalleled, mistress.”
Visona Ketra glanced at the petite human in the blue officer’s uniform standing at her side before turning her attention back to the sight in front of her. “When I think that disliking that one eyed witch anymore than I already do isn’t at all possible, she proves me wrong time and again Sonia.”
Captain Sonia Wen-Karri looked up at the statuesque, gray skinned Twi’lek with a smile on her round face. “She can’t keep running, mistress. We’ve cornered her out here and it’s only a matter of time before she has to face us.”
“I’m willing to bet that’s all part of some outlandish scheme she’s conceived, possibly while having more Corellian rum in her than any human should. I’ve fought enough battles alongside her to know when she’s toying with her adversary.” Visona explained.
“Huh,” Sonia shrugged, figuring Visona’s observations made sense enough. “I suppose its good fortune that we have adequate cannon fodder, then.” The senior officer motioned a gloved hand to the large bacta tank roughly ten feet away.
“Why didn’t you tell me what I was really up against?” An unclothed and heavily scarred Ronis Kraal spoke through his breath mask as he floated idly inside the tank.
“I didn’t have a chance to.” Visona started. “When I told you the size of the bounty my master was offering you promptly took off. Your failure was your own fault and no one else’s.”
“I could have prepared better if I had known how strong she actually was.” The bounty hunter responded. “Once I’m out of here-”
“The meddroids say you’re going to be in there for at least three more days.”
“All the more time to think about what I’m going to do to her.” Kraal assured Visona.
“You’ve proven what you can do, Mandalorian. Your chance has passed.
I will handle this like I should have from the beginning.”
“You get between me and my bounty and I swear I’ll-” Kraal started until Sonia’s smiling face quickly called his attention away from Visona’s challenging glare.
“Mistress Ketra is a bit...lacking…” Sonia spent several moments fishing for the right word. “…in dealing with others socially. It isn’t her fault, really. She spends most of her time cooped up on this ship instead of seeing the galaxy like I constantly ask her to.”
“Maybe it’d do her some good to go planet side and take in the fresh air.” Kraal added, glancing at Visona.
The gray skinned Twi’lek remained stoic near the medical lab’s entrance, eyeing the two closely but showing no emotion as they continued to banter.
“Heh, it seems like the only sort of contact with another sentient the mistress is ever interested in is combat. I never did understand why Jedi can be so damned anti-social sometimes. Sometimes she’s an absolute drain to be around.” The captain said with her own self-congratulatory chuckle.
Ronis Kraal laughed with her until he was cut short by a mild coughing fit that echoed through his breath mask. He looked down to Sonia and pressed his hand against the inside of his bacta tank. “You seem like a pretty interesting lady. Certainly the kind of person who’d make good company at a cantina. What do you say you and I lose Ms. Congeniality over there for a few hours once I’m out of here and go hit one?”
Sonia’s smiled widened. She put her own hand against the bacta tank where Kraal’s was and looked over the Mandalorian’s bare form and warrior’s physique before biting her lower lip and looking him in the eye. “Well now Mr. bounty hunter, it almost sounds like you -GYAH!!” She yelped in surprise when an unseen hand suddenly lifted her, pulled her away from the bacta tank and back through the air before placing her gently on her feet near the entrance.
Visona lowered her hand once Sonia was right next to her.
The captain took a moment to stare at her mistress in disbelief before straightening invisible wrinkles in her officer’s uniform and fixing her dark brown hair.
“Gather whatever information you can about this rock we’re orbiting. I want to know why Nevara’s here.” Visona ordered, never taking her cold glare off of the recovering bounty hunter.
“Of course,” Sonia complied. She spun on her heel and promptly exited the medical lab. The automated door hissed shut behind her and, save for the periodic beeping of medical instruments, a dead silence hang in the air as dark Jedi and Mandalorian stared each other down.
“Want the little firecracker for yourself, huh?” Kraal finally disrupted the peace.
Visona simply turned her back to him and took a step forward causing the door to reopen. “The bounty still stands, in case you’d like to try again.”
“I’m stuck in here for the next three days, remember?” Kraal reminded her.
“2-1B.” Visona paused and called to the humanoid shaped droid that had been quietly droning away at the monitoring equipment connected to Kraal’s bacta tank.
“Yes, mistress Ketra?” The charcoal colored droid spoke with a deep, hollow voice while turning its glowing yellow optics away from its duties and onto the Twi’lek woman.
“He can leave whenever he feels he is ready.” She motioned a hand to Kraal.
The 2-1B meddroid turned its head to Kraal for a moment before going back to its monitoring duties. “Understood.”
“Fine, what about my stuff?” The Mandalorian asked.
“The engineering bay has your armor. They should be finished with the repairs by now.” She half turned her head and looked back over her shoulder, the three heavily tattooed lekku on her head snaking and shifting accordingly. “Though I’m expecting the same results, it should be interesting to see what happens, nonetheless.”
“I’d love to see her wipe that smug look off your face, alien!”
Without so much as another look, Visona continued on her way.
“Tch…she’s a sensitive o-” Kraal began to mutter to himself when a powerful gripped suddenly grabbed his throat and cut off his breathing.
Monitoring instruments connected to his tank began wailing and their signals pulsed rapidly. The bounty hunter thrashed wildly but 2-1B went about his programming as though nothing were out of the ordinary.
Hollow thumps echoed through the lab when Kraal pounded a fist against the inside of his tank once the onsets of panic began to take hold. He felt his lungs burning and his heart threatening to burst inside his chest. The hold on his airway tightened as the invisible hand cruelly and slowly constricted. Kraal’s fist stung and ached, but he persisted in trying to shatter the impenetrable glass containing him. He tried to yell for 2-1B to help him, but the droid focused only on the monitors in front of him and kept his back to his charge.
Just when it seemed like all it was lost, the ghostly grasp that had the bounty hunter at its mercy let go. The cacophony of high pitched whines from the medical equipment halted and Ronis Kraal’s signs began to stabilize. He hungrily choked down the sweet air being fed to him through his mask once again and relaxed when he realized the danger had passed.
“Looks like I’ve got
two Jedi witches to take care of…” He muttered to himself while rubbing his neck and glaring at the doorway to the medical lab.
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