Posted by Darth Krzysztof, with jillyfae

After scouring Silent Destiny’s outer hull in search of homing beacons, listening devices, or any other Imperial surprises, Zeva and Kaylani started searching inside the ship. Zeva knew that she couldn’t afford to say “Jedi” aloud even once until they’d made certain it was safe to do so. Her brief time as an outlaw among outlaws had sharpened her fear into something useful… something that might help to keep her alive.

She now felt familiar with the cockpit, lounge, and crew quarters – familiar enough to be sure that those area contained nothing out of the ordinary, especially with Kay aiding the search – but had yet to explore the rest of the ship. Finding nothing amiss in the stifling confines of engineering, or in either boarding ramp, Kay led Zeva by the hand to the main cargo hold. The double doors squeaked open when Kay pressed the button, and the lights flickered to life, illuminating the cold, dusty bay.

As they searched every centimeter of the cargo hold, a queer sensation gradually came over Zeva. A knot formed in her stomach, and she began to perspire in spite of the chill. She managed a smile every time Kay looked in her direction (which seemed to happen pretty frequently), but she wanted nothing more than to finish this room, to move on to the forward airlock and the secondary hold. Then she could lie down, wait for this feeling to pass…

Zeva tilted a large cargo container toward the light and spotted something wedged inside. Unable to identify it in the dim light, she reached into the container and, with some effort, pulled free a lump of fabric and rubber. She peered at it in the dim light until she recognized it as a tiny shoe… What a strange cargo, she thought.

This isn’t cargo. Look how scuffed it is… this belonged to someone. Someone who died… Can’t you feel it? That’s why you want to get out of here.

I’ve felt loss before, though. There’s something else…

by DarthKrzysztof

Zeva allowed Kaylani to lead the way – the Jedi had never gone ‘shopping’ before, but the pilot seemed to know exactly where to go on the crowded orbital station.

They purchased some supplies to clean the ship, and some functional second-hand outfits. Zeva wanted a new jacket -hers had already been shabby when the Council gave it to her, and she’d mended the blaster-burned right shoulder with electrical tape – but she couldn’t find anything she could afford. It was just as well, really; shiny new clothes might attract more attention.

The two women stopped to look at weapons. Zeva kept an eye on their surroundings while Kay looked in the display cases. To her relief, no one paid any attention to them; there was simply too much going on.

Still, the Imperial presence was oppressive. Squads of stormtroopers stood at nearly every corner, and tiny security droids flitted above, monitoring the crowds. Zeva found some comfort in Kay’s calm, and used that as the foundation for her own peace of mind.

“Could I see this one, please?” Kay asked the droid behind the counter, which took a flimsy-looking blaster pistol out of the case and placed it in her hand. Kay held it up and drew aim on the back wall, frowning.

“You don’t like it, do you?” asked Zeva.

Kay sighed. “I’ve been stung by bugs that’d hurt more, but I ain’t going into that meeting unarmed.” Earlier, Captain Varn had made it clear that bringing illegal weapons to sit-downs with Very Imperial Persons was unacceptable. She tried a different gun. “This is about as good as I’m gonna find, though. Did you want one, too?”

Posted by DarthKrzysztof, from a conversation with jillyfae

Zeva finally let go of her seat’s armrests once it became clear that Silent Destiny wasn’t about to be destroyed – not yet, anyway.

Kaylani Seren sat next to her in the pilot’s seat, talking to the ship in a low, soothing tone. “Aww, my poor girl. Knew you could do it. Don’t worry, Captain and I’ll get you all better soon, I promise.” Leaning back with a sigh, she added, “That was so not the fun times. You all right over there?”

Kaylani caught Zeva staring – and not just because she’d been talking to her ship. The Jedi had seen spacers doing that all her life. No, Kaylani was the first thing she’d been able to see at all since she’d been freed from the carbonite. And she was a welcome sight, a bit smaller than Zeva, with long black hair and rich golden skin. Captain Fann would have found her pretty… But not me, Zeva told herself. I’m just glad to see anything.

But she was still staring. Zeva broke it off and turned her attention to the shining blue tunnel of hyperspace outside the ship. “I think so, yes. That was… impressive flying back there. The last ship I was on couldn’t get away from three fighters.”

“Thanks. We try not to go boom. One of our big goals in life. Cause, otherwise, you know, no life. Usually the Captain’s a bit more help with that goal than she was today. Hope she’s all right…”

“I’m fine, Kay,” Captain Varn announced over the headset communicators. “Sort of. I’m gonna go and clean up.”

“Okay, Captain, " Kaylani said. “You feel better. New bandages. Happy drugs.” Kaylani slid her headset off and turned her attention back to Zeva, who was doing the same. “Speaking of, do you need anything? I mean, we did just wake you up from carbonite and all…”

Zeva’s brow wrinkled as she shrugged her right shoulder, where the Twi’lek pirate had shot her. “I should see to this at some point.”

“You got shot too?” Kaylani leaned forward, apparently seeing the wound for the first time. “Oh, dear. Oh, boy. I am so not good with the patching up of people. Let me grab something or other…” As Zeva drew breath to object, Kaylani stood up and started to root around the cockpit. “Not that I’m that good at the patching up of anything, really; I just tell the tech people what my girl says…” She paused to pat a bulkhead absent-mindedly. “Ah, here we go.” She pulled a medikit out and turned back to Zeva. “Let’s see what we can figure out here…”

The Jedi started to slide her jacket off, wincing, but Kay stopped her. “Wait. Let me do that; you’re gonna make it worse. Bad as the Captain, you are.” Zeva stopped struggling, but wasn’t happy about it. “Get you patched up, make you and the Captain some soup, tuck you both into bed…” Kaylani paused once she’d eased Zeva out of the jacket, eyes widening as she studied the scars on Zeva’s arm. The Jedi saw a hint of blushing on her golden skin.

“A reminder,” Zeva said, a little embarrassed herself, “of the last time a ship got shot out from under me.”

“Wow,” Kay said. “You’ve had that happen more than once? No wonder you were surprised when we didn’t go boom.” Now she was the one staring.