Karvis
The Karvis Rebellion => The Rebel Alliance => Topic started by: GM Craig on February 26, 2016, 11:18:46 AM
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Trax is thoroughly searched and all his weapons and power packs are confiscated. His blast vest is stripped, and stun cuffs are placed on his wrists while his elbows are bound by a tether. Trussed up, twenty royal guards lead him away. His last look at Collan was seeing his haughty face locked forward, completely ignoring his former allies, as he walked with every appearance of calm towards the throne room.
In front of Trax, the limp form of Keshani is being carried. The former (likely once again) slave is being carried over the shoulder of a guard like a sack of flower. A silly error, forgetting your gun was on stun. But she didn't know that - the girl had fully intended to die there on the deck, by her own hand. Through all that Trax had been through in his life, one thing he had never done was stop surviving. You fought when you could, and bode your time when the fight was not winnable. He had never considered ending the struggle, and it was troubling that Keshani had been prepared to do that.
Had tried to do that, he mentally corrected himself.
Trax enters a large open area, and sees some free-standing detention cells ahead of him. Immediately, he recognizes Senator Organa, Senator Mothma and Senator bel-Iblis. There was the old blind Jedi there as well, apparently still alive. The old man turned his sightless gaze towards Trax, and seems to see him despite his lack of eyes.
Trax is shoved un-gently into a holding cell, and the energy barrier is engaged, separating him from the rest of the world. Then the stun cuffs are activated, and Trax is forced to his knees from the pain.
Keshani, still unconscious, is taken to the opposite cell and tossed without a care onto the floor. Her head his hard, but the guard does not care, and activates the security field.
Most of the guards depart at this point, though half a dozen remain to guard the prisoners.
A chuckle draws Trax's attention, and he sees over a large expanse of open area, Collan kneeling before a figure in a dark robe. They are too far away to hear anything being said, but Collan is kneeling in what appears to be supplication.
[Actions / reactions?]
The pain from the cuffs is severe, but you can speak or gesture / make facial expressions. The guards will hear any spoken words.
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Trax stared at the unconscious form of Keshani for some time. Part of him felt he'd failed her, just like he'd failed Mariah. The only reason Kesh wasn't dead was because her pistol was set to stun. But he hadn't failed her. Surrender didn't mean the battle was lost, it just meant it was time to change tactics. It was never an easy choice, it meant all other options were gone and you had to submit yourself fully to the enemy, but the alternative was never an option in his mind. What had such a young girl gone through to make that alternative an option?
His thoughts shifted to Nim. What had become of her? He'd been escorted out before he was able to learn of her fate. Was she lying unconscious somewhere too? Or worse, was she being interrogated? How could he have been so stupid. The discrepancy in life signs should have been a dead give away. This wasn't the first time they'd come across imperial cells filled with imperial troopers.
His eyes glanced briefly towards Collan. If she dies, so do you he thought. Actually check that, your dead regardless. The young man's deception had by all accounts been flawless. Trax had never given the man a second thought. Now he was giving Collan a lot of thoughts, and if any of them came to pass the bastard would die slowly and painfully.
The man's gaze shifted to the troopers and his eyes hardened. And you'll die too. But it'll be quick. Someway, somehow, the opportunity would present itself and he would kill them, with his bare hands if necessary. The man was seething at this point. It would pass in time, giving way to cold, calculated, thoughts and plans, he knew that well enough. But for now he found purpose and comfort in his anger.
Finally he turned towards the senators.
"If we get out of this," he said through the pain. "We're going to have to work on how you screen your friends."
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Bail Organa is the closest. "If we get out of this, we'll welcome your suggestions. How did you find us way out here?"
Beside Trax, Keshnai starts to stir, and her eyes open.
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"With the right motivation you'd be surprised at what people can, and will do." Trax half answered before turning to see Keshani. He let out half a sigh of relief, the other half cut off by the pain from the stun cuffs.
"For example. Right now I'm feeling pretty motivated to make the inside of some trooper helmets match the color on the outside."
[OOC: Are the stun cuffs always applying pain?
And are the troopers outside just carrying force pikes or do they have side arms as well?]
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.....and slowly, very slowly, the teenage girl became aware of her body. First to register was the searing pain in her head. It felt almost like it wanted to split in two. Or maybe it was split in two. She didn't really want to find out which was correct.
Second to register was the cold floor that was pressed against her body holding her up.
She groaned a bit, not really wanting to open her eyes.
Then, suddenly, her eyes shot open and she sat up in an absolute panick.
The last thing she remembered was holding a blaster to her head and pulling the trigger. At least she THOUGHT she had...
But....
Frantically she looked around, her heart pounding in her chest.
She almost threw up as the cold, hard realization of where she was hit her.
No, she wasn't dead. Somehow she wasn't dead.
Where she was was much much worse.
Living Hell had returned.....
She fought the very strong urge to vomit and instead curled up into as much of a ball as she could (her body wasn't exactly cooperating very well) against the back corner of the cell, trying to withstand the sudden torrent of emotions that was threatening to tear her apart:
Frustration - she had been so close to getting out of here!!
Anger - at believing there might actually have been a chance to escape, to have something of a "normal" life again. She should have known better.
Despair - she knew they would keep to their promise from before and make sure she kept living, only to live out each day in absolute, utter misery....
Desperation - she needed to find some way to finish what she had started before, but obviously had botched. She could not keep living the life they had in mind for her. And they would make sure as hell that she never had a chance to escape again....
There should have been fear. She waited for it to hit her. But it didn't come. What did she have to be afraid of? She had already tried to kill herself. Apparently she couldn't even do THAT correctly. What did she have left to fear?
She waited for the tears to come. But they didn't come either. She was spent. She had no emotions left. Just...calm acceptance that she was not willing to continue to live this way. She would not allow herself to go back to the Living Hell....
Slowly, more calm this time she turned her head to take in her surroundings. It was cold and glowed with the orange light from an energy field. She could hear other voices nearby.
Trax.
She curled even more tightly into a ball (or at least she tried).
What would he possibly think of her now?
A few slow tears did come to her eyes at that. She still didn't understand why he seemed to care so much about her, but it seemed apparent that he did.
She didn't want to look at him, to see his reaction.
Instead she focused her attention on studying the cell that she was in and the surrounding area, trying to remember anything that she could about two things:
1) The very unlikely possibility that there WAS a way to get out. Or at least help Trax to get out, so he could finish the mission they had come here to complete
and
2) Any way that she could finish what she had started with the Blaster. She was NOT going back to being a slave. She couldn't....
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[OOC: Are the stun cuffs always applying pain?
And are the troopers outside just carrying force pikes or do they have side arms as well?]
Yes, though the pain increases depending on the movement you're making. Standing still makes them generate a mile discomfort.
They all carry Force Pikes, though they have sidearms as well.
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OOC: Is there a limit to how much pain they cause? Example, if I use a force point, does their damage then equal Trax's new strength?
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OOC: Is there a limit to how much pain they cause? Example, if I use a force point, does their damage then equal Trax's new strength?
[OOC: You'd need to experiment to find out.]
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OOC: Trax didn't pack his white lab coat or safety goggles for this mission.
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Ooc: safety goggles are overrated
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Trax watched as Keshani woke up and quickly balled herself up.
"I don't know what you've been through but it's not over yet. You've got to believe me on that."
Trax let out a sound that was something between a grunt and a growl as he tried to push through the pain and stand up.
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The girl slowly looked up at Trax but stayed curled up in a totally defensive position.
"Are you mad at me?", she asked. Her voice was slurring and she looked groggy but her voice was calm, almost flat.
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"If I was mad at you you wouldn't have to ask." Trax replied to Keshani as he tried to stand. It took some time while he learned how quickly he could move before the pain stopped him.
Finally standing up right he took at look at his surroundings and the situation.
[OOC: How far are we from the throne itself, how big are the cells, and how spread out are the guards?]
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[OOC: Guards are every 10 m or so. You're a good 100m from the throne. Only guards in sight are the ones watching you.]
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Trax began to slowly move about his cell trying to formulate a plan. Something that struck him as odd, the old blind jedi was locked in here with the rest of them. Why wasn't he locked up where ever Ch'lana and Niil were taken? Did Vader consider him that little of a threat? And if so, why wasn't Niil in here? Even this old jedi had to be more of a threat than Niil. The man stopped and looked at the old jedi.
"I've heard some jedi can read other people's thoughts. What do you suppose these idiots are thinking," Trax indicated the troopers.
"Man I've got an itch I really need to scratch but can't?"
[OOC: Trax is trying to somewhat nonchalantly probe for information on the jedi's skills.]
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"If I was mad at you you wouldn't have to ask".
His response wasn't cold and wasn't meant to be mean, at least she didn't think so, but she felt momentarily surprised by how his words made her feel.
No, he wasn't angry at her and had still promised to try his best to get her out of here. But....was it disappointment? And was it coming from him? Or from within herself?
She wasn't quite sure and trying to think too much about it right now made her head swim.
She watched the man as he struggled to stand up instead. She knew from experience the pain that he was feeling and couldn't help but wince in sympathy.
As a matter of fact....
She suddenly realized that she did NOT have stun cuffs on. She supposed that mean that they didn't really consider her a threat...not yet, anyway.
Her wrists stung at the thought of the cuffs. She was really perfectly happy with OUT them....
Her head twinged plaintively again and a soft groan escaped her lips, reminding herself that she had to move VERY slowly to keep the room from spinning.
"Hey," she called out to the guards outside her cell, "Since I'm not already dead I'm assuming that someone wants me alive. So how about a medpack so that my brain doesn't bleed out before whoever wants me gets me?"
She tried to throw some spunk into her voice, but she wasn't still totally convinced she wanted to play this game anymore....
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The Jedi does not get up or anything. He just stays there kneeling. But Trax thinks he may have seen him give a tiny shake of his head.
One of the guards looks towards Trax. He doesn't say anything, but produces a control. He holds it up for you to see, then activates a button on it.
Immediately your stun cuffs fire - not enough to knock you out, so you are aware when your body collapses to the floor of the cell and spasms in pain for several seconds. When it is over, you hear a synthesized voice say, "The Emperor does not want to risk injury to the others. We have no such orders regarding you."
The same guard turns to Keshani and says, "Escaped slaves do not get medpacks. Sit quiet or you'll get cuffs as well."
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"Son of a..." Trax mumbled, letting out a mix of a cough and a laugh. He'd been shot and stabbed countless times and taken more than his fair share of injuries from blunt objects but these cuffs, they were a whole new kind of pain.
Slowly the man sat up and leaned himself against the wall and looked at the trooper.
"Alright, alright. I'll be a good little kitty." Trax took a few deep breaths before leaning his head in Keshani's direction.
"Just listen to the nice trooper for now. No sense giving him any reason to use these things on you too." The rebel indicated the cuffs. "I'm sure you've had more than your fill of these kinds of devices anyway. Try to get some rest, it's going to be a long day."
"Must be one hell of an itch." he said quietly to himself as his gaze moved across the senators, and then the old jedi.
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?Escaped slaves do not get medpacs. Sit quiet or you?ll get cuffs as well"
Her blood began to slowly smolder again, she could feel it. But still, somehow, it stayed under control. She had no idea how.
She bit her lip hard and just glared at the Guard. She knew not to expect sympathy from them. They were barely human, afterall. But that didn?t help to make her feel less angry at everything that was happening; any less trapped.
?..just listen to the nice trooper for now. No sense giving him any reason to use these things on you too. I?m sure you?ve had more than your fill of these kinds of devices anyway. Try to get some rest, it?s going to be a long day?.
Kesh let out an audible sigh and curled back up in a ball, trying to get as comfortable as possible.
?Sure. Because it?s totally right in the galaxy to turn kids into slaves for trying to steal the stuff they need to survive??
?Fraking Imps?. The last part was totally mumbled under hear breath, barely audible and easily ignored if desired.
(Edited to fix formatting)
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The guard stands for a moment looking at Keshani. He's not sure how, but Trax is certain he is contemplating how best to remind her of her place.
Then, the old man starts a coughing fit, and Trax can see he is coughing up blood. It is enough to distract the guard, who goes to the old man's cell to check on him, leaving Keshani alone.
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Kesh let out a soft breath as the guard moved away to check on the old man.
She knew she shouldn't mouth off to the guards. She knew just how much pain they could cause first hand and NOT kill her. But she was so fraking frustrated right now!!
To be so close...to something - anything other than here.
And had her insisting on rescuing Danny caused the others to get captured? Had the delay in looking up her name contributed to this?
She hugged her knees more tightly, as if trying to physically ward off the galaxy around her.
She was feeling lost. And defeated. And trapped.
And she hated it.
She hazarded a look in Trax's direction, trying to see what his reaction was to her mouthing off.
She couldn't get past this feeling of actually caring what this man thought of her. She had no idea why she cared, but somehow she did....
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Trax couldn't help the bemused look that came across his face. The girl was feisty, there was no doubt about that. But when he saw, or was it more felt, what the guard was contemplating the look on his face turned deadly serious. There was no way he'd be patient if the guard decided to punish Keshani. So it was with some relief that he heard the old jedi cough and the guard turn his attention away from the girl.
He watched the guard as he checked on the old man. Something was going to happen sooner or later. Trax felt certain of it, and he would bide his time and be ready when the opportunity presented itself.
Turning his head slightly he looked at Keshani, who had curled herself into an even tighter ball. I will get you out of here. The man closed his eyes for a few seconds and when he opened them, for a moment there was no doubt it was Mariah curled up in that cell. I won't fail again.
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Trax wasn't sure how much time had passed, it likely wasn't much at all. But the constant 'stimulation' from the stun cuffs made getting comfortable difficult.
"What'd you steal?" he asked turning to Keshani.
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She jumped a bit at the sound of Trax's voice. It seemed like she had been lost in her own thoughts for so long....
Slowly she turned to look at him again, eyeing the guards outside her cell before she answered, trying to decide if it was safe or not.
What'd you steal?...
Her cheeks flushed a bit red, feeling caught in a lie. She hadn't EXACTLY stole anything. At least, not the time that had started THIS whole thing....
She also felt a bit taken aback at the question and she immediately felt a bit wary. She still didn't know this man very well. Maybe this conversation would be the one that would make him not want to waste time on her anymore...
"Hey, sometimes it's hard for people to get the things they need respectably. At least where I am from. A girl's gotta do what needs to be done to survive...", she retorted back, a bit more hurt and pain in her voice than perhaps she meant to show...
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Trax started to chuckle but the sudden movement caused the cuffs to fire a jolt of pain through his nerves which quickly halted his show of amusement. He cursed under his breath at the damn things.
"There was no judgement in the question." he began, although he did find it odd, her choosing to say she had to do what was needed to survive. This coming from the girl who had tried to kill herself.
"Doing what you have to in order to survive is a pretty universal problem. You're not going to find any glowing recommendations of my legal respectability or morality. I've liberated more than my fair share of things, anywhere from food, to small arms to...well much bigger things. To be completely honest, the bigger things were team efforts.
I was just wondering what you tried to nab that was high profile enough to land you here. But you don't have to answer."
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She audibly let out a breath, thinking for a minute, taking in what he had said. Then finally,
"An Officer caught me in the act and took offense to my presence.", she mumbled, frustration at what had happened seeping into her voice. "If he hadn't walked in I would have been fine."
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"Whether it's an officer or a bum, everyone takes some amount of offense when you're caught stealing something of theirs.
It's how personal that something is that tends to dictate how offended they get."
Trax couldn't help but notice the girl still hadn't answered his original question. He gave a mental shrug, if she doesn't want to share she didn't have to. The man slowly balled his left, artificial hand, into a fist for a few moments before relaxing it again. Sometimes people weren't ready to share, or even acknowledge some things.
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"There's nothing wrong with bums", she retorted back, perhaps a bit more sharply than she meant.
"Not everyone can have things handed to them in life....and sometimes you gotta make do with what you get. "
Her face flushed a bit as she spoke, although whether that was caused by the aftereffects of the concussion she surely had or the topic of conversation would be anyone's guess...
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"Never implied there was anything wrong with them. Just meant that no matter who you are or your station in life, if someone steals from you, you're going to take it personally."
Trax replied wondering why the girl seemed to take his comment how she did. He was obviously dancing on the edge of something very personal for her. Ch'lana had mentioned she'd been on her own since she was young but for whatever reason he never translated that to her possibly living on the street.
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She shifted position slightly, uncurling herself just a bit and moving a bit closer to the side of the cell Trax was near.
"So about this person I remind you of..."
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Trax's head dropped slightly as the image of Mariah lying in the stasis pod flooded his mind. He took a slow deep breath as he worked to calm the surge of anger that was rising within him. What's taking that sign he's supposed to wait for before taking action so long? Trax's eyes looked at the senators and the old jedi. Were they paying any attention to the conversation?
"What about her?" he asked, trying to keep his voice sounding detached from his emotions.
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Her vision was still slightly blurry and her head still threatening to split into two. She couldn't see that far yet and any facial cues that Trax may have displayed were lost on the girl.
But the change in his voice, the pause as he drew in a slow deep breath....those cues were clear as day. And as detached as he was clearly attempting to sound, it was all too easy to see right through the guise.
'Right', she thought to herself. 'Not a care in the galaxy...'
"Why do I remind you of her?", she asked.
And there was a slight shift in her tone of voice, as well. A bit more curiosity. A bit....gentler, for want of a better word.
She wasn't trying to attack or cause pain here. That much was clear....
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"Similarities in appearance...even skills and attitude. Although your attitude has a lot more of an edge to it.
That's not a shot or anything, just an observation."
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It was almost comical the way the girl was so obviously warring with herself over Trax's comment.
Her face flushed red and her jaw set in a manner that just shouted out "Trouble".
But her shoulders slumped at the same time - a universal sign of surrender/dejection....
It was a while before she spoke, her brain obviously struggling to sort some things out.
"Sharp edges tend to protect better than dull ones...," she finally muttered.
There was a hint of something new in her voice. Envy? Longing? Trax couldn't be sure. If only Nim was here.....
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"True." Trax replied, wondering what was going on with the girl. Her expression and her body language seemed to contradict each other. One made it look like she was going to fight, the other like she was giving up.
"The problem with using sharp edges for protection is you risk hurting yourself even when there's nothing to protect against."
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"What if I don't care about that risk anymore?" she asked softly
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A concerned look came across Trax's face. Such a hopeless response from someone so young.
"Then I guess you spend your life not only hurting yourself, but anyone that tries to help you."
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Her expression went blank at that and her hands unconsciously balled up into fists.
"I never asked for any help", she shot back way too quickly. It was obviously a reflex response - one that had been used many times throughout the years.
But she realized as the words almost flew out of her mouth on their own accord that maybe, just maybe, this time they weren't quite true.
She took a slow breath and forced her hands to relax.
"Sorry...", she mumbled, not daring to look at the man to see his reaction.
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"No, you're right, you didn't ask. We...I just assumed you wanted help instead of asking. You don't need to apologize, but I do, and I'm sorry.
If you do want help, you don't have to ask, just let me know that you're willing to accept it."
Trax smiled a bit.
"But uh, try not to judge the quality of that help by the current situation. Not exactly a result I'll be putting on my future resume."
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There was a frown on her face, but there was a change in her tone again.
"I...." she stopped. Were there tears in her eyes? It was hard to tell from this distance.
"All I am is a burden." she finally got out, again, not looking at him.
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"Are you so sure about that?
The girl I saw power up the lift, or turn a pair of droid cores into grenades, or come up with a plan to use those grenades to fry a pair of mechs didn't look like anything close to a burden to me."
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"And what about the girl that you end up risking your life to try to protect? You don't even KNOW me!"
There was so much in her voice and expression. Again, if only Nim was here...
Frustration at FEELING like a burden, confusion over the fact that he WOULD risk his life to protect her and perhaps even some fear that it would mean she owed HIM something in the future....
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"I hope that by trying to protect her I succeed in doing so. That way maybe I get the chance to get to know her.
And if she decides I don't get that chance, it still doesn't make her a burden to me and it was still worth any risks I took."
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"Why?"
One word. It was almost a plea. No one had ever cared about her in her whole life. Except for Mikki. But that hadn't been real, either.
Why should this be any different?
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Because he'd failed Mariah, because he'd probably failed Nim, and because he felt Keshani was Mariah giving him a second chance. As stupid as that sounded.
"Because it's important to me."
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Who was she?
Someone important.
There was that word again...
Because it's important to me...
And then, out of nowhere, a name came to her mind. A name that he had called her. She hadn't even really registered it at the time - she was too lost in everything that had been going on. But it had stuck there, in her mind. One name -
Mariah.
"Because of her."
It wasn't a question, not really. But she forced herself to look over at Trax as she said it, to try to read what he was thinking.
Who was this girl that this man, who by all accounts was a hardened soldier, had cared so much about? Was she his daughter? His sister?
She shivered at that thought. But at the same time as the thought that he was somehow putting her in the place of this other girl absolutely terrified her, something else was starting to emerge inside of her, as well. A feeling she hadn't felt in a long time. Something close to.....hope?
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Trax only shrugged slightly, but by his overall body language it was obvious the answer to the question that wasn't a question was yes, because of her.
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She stopped for a minute, considering.
Part of her needed to understand why this girl had meant so much to Trax. But another part of her realized just how much she was pushing. She wasn't the best with "social skills", but it was pretty obvious how...uncomfortable Trax was with the current line of questioning. Should she keep pressing?
"What if I don't care about that risk anymore?"
"Then I guess you spend your life not only hurting yourself, but anyone that tries to help you."
Was she doing that now by pushing? Hurting someone who very clearly was trying to help her?
She let out a slow breath. She really wanted to know who this girl Mariah was. Needed to know, even, to understand and maybe begin to come to terms with and accept Trax's help and protection.
But maybe now wasn't the time.
So instead she closed her mouth and just nodded slightly.
"Ok," she said finally.
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Trax wasn't exactly thrilled that he'd shown, in his mind anyway, a fairly significant amount of vulnerability in front of so many. But if that's what it took to open Keshani up to accepting his help then so be it, and he'd deal with any potential consequences when they arose.
Meeting Mariah had changed the man, he just wasn't entirely sure if it was a good change or not. She'd opened him to being concerned about others. Okay, so it was more than just concern, he actually cared. That would have been a significant liability in his days as a hunter. You had to be cold and calculating to do the job effectively. One had to be able to not look back and worry about how your actions affected others. A contract was a contract, that's all that mattered.
Caring about people meant being open to making unwise decisions and taking potentially risky actions that were otherwise unnecessary. Trax wasn't sure if that made a man weaker or stronger. But he was pretty certain it would get him into more trouble than he probably cared to get into.
Thankfully it appeared that the girl let things go. He wasn't sure he'd ever be able to explain it to her. Maybe he'd luck out and never have to, but he was pretty sure they'd gone far enough down that road that sooner or later the topic would come up again.
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She saw what she interpreted as relief in Trax's body language when she didn't push the issue, which made her feel a strange feeling. Was it...gratification?
She really had never cared much before about what others thought about her.
Well, no, truth be told that wasn't exactly true. She pretended to not care. That was survival. But in truth she always really had. And that care had come back to bite her more times than she would have liked to remember.
But she seemed to care more about what this man thought about her than anyone else before. Well, almost anyone else.
Would this turn out just as disastrous as those other times?
That thought there was enough to almost make her open her mouth again - to spurt SOMETHING out to make him angry - to make him decide that whatever this other girl had been to her she was not that person and that he should just give up on her.
Because she wasn't sure that she could deal with rejection again.
But she forced herself to breathe in and out slowly and hold her tongue.
"Then I guess you spend your life not only hurting yourself, but anyone that tries to help you."
Damn him for saying that.
Somehow that phrase had dug its way inside of her, through her carefully constructed barriers that had allowed her to survive these past few months if not years.
Because the one thing she had NEVER been able to bring herself to do, despite how much she had loathed some people in her life, was to intentionally cause them permanent harm. Justice yes. Intentional malicious harm, no. It just wasn't who she was.
She closed her eyes for a second and part way curled her body back up, hugging her knees to her chest.
"I just hope that you're not too disappointed when you finally realize that I am not her..."
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Some time passes, each of you busy with your own thoughts. Then, there is a large kaboom from the area of the throne, and you hear the sounds of fighting.
The guards look towards the sound, and at a nod from the leader, four of them break into a run and head that way.
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Trax took this distraction as his sign. Acting as if he wanted to get a better look at what was happening the rebel stood up and moved to the barrier.
Steeling himself for the pain he was about to subject himself to he took a deep breath and drove his cuffs into the barrier in an attempt to fry them before trying to physically force his way through.
[OOC: Use a force point.]