Ask Coruscant - Purging the Past

[Alisaah Tila]

To Ali's surprise it was not Aska who responded to her message. It was Klied. Unsure what to make of this, the Togruta, still feeling weak from the grim scene she was now a part of, simply acknowledged the hunter's instructions and relayed the message to Teela and P5YK0.

"This is excellent news. Soon my traitorous brothers will meet their end. Forgiveness is between them and their creator. It is my job to arrange the meeting."

Looking at the disheveled and damaged security droid, Ali had just about had enough. She'd had enough of this lab, she'd had enough of zombies, she'd had enough of the pain and the misery this expedition had caused.

"No! There won't be any more violence P5YK0! They're supposed to be helping us! Give me your blaster!" she snapped. The YD-series looked at her. It did not have a face, but if it did, it would have had one of disbelief. No more violence? Surrender weapons? How was he meant to annihilate infected slime without his blaster? P5YK0 looked at Teela, presumably having some kind of internal process malfunction over Ali's latest command, but the astromech simply shook it's head at him and instructed P5YK0 in droidspeak to do as the Togruta asked. Reluctantly the droid spun his blaster around on it's finger, catching it on the barrel end and holding the handle out to Ali.

"Thank you. Now help me, quickly, we need to get Mr. Poffo upstairs" she sighed, taking the droid's weapon and clipping it to the back of her shorts. P5YK0 remained true to his programming and continued listening to the slave's instructions, though if it were possible for a droid to sulk, Ali believed that this one was.

The journey up to the second floor was perhaps the least eventful part of this entire adventure. Besides having to maneuver the stretcher over the mound of corpses in front of the staircase before heaving it up to the second floor, they encountered nothing. The silence that was left since Poffo's blood curdling screams subsided was unsettling and by the time the team reached floor two, Ali was feeling physically and mentally exhausted. The Togruta rolled the gurney towards the door but found that it was sealed shut. She hammered hard against it with her fists, growling in frustration.

"Can someone help me!? The door is shut, we can't get through!" asked Ali, speaking into her wrist comm.

"Affirmative, Miss Alisaah. Please hold your position, we are almost there" was the response from Kayto on the other end. In the background there was muffled gunshot and screeching zombies suddenly being silenced.

"Please just hurry Kayto we don't have much time!"

@Reyn @Tulos @Isen

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

"Aska..." Klied tried to warn his partner as she approached the two girls, fearing they could turn and bite her at any moment, but he decided to stop himself from continuing. It was clear whatever was going on here was a long time coming and he didn't want to interfere with... Family business. When he watched her interact with them it was the gentlest he'd ever seen her, it was almost unbelievable to witness. For God's sake, she was on the brink of tears.

He looked between her and Trench, uncomprehending of their conversation. Making them? A failure? Not what they were looking to create? Knowing this was a cloning facility the pieces finally started to come together in his mind, but it just didn't seem possible. It took Aska's own confirmation for him to believe it. A clone. Multiple clones. Of some long dead woman. Why? And what made Aska a failure exactly? What had they been trying to accomplish?

While this confusion went on in his mind outwardly the hunter just stood there like an idiot, mouth slightly agape. After a moment he snapped out of it and moved his jaw, trying to think of something to say. Anything to say. How was he supposed to respond to information like this? "I..." He tried to speak but just exhaled the rest of his breath, bewildered.

He shifted uncomfortably on his feet when Trench produced a blaster, not sure what the meaning was. But he quickly made his intentions clear. Or rather what he intended to foist on one of them. His responsibility. Perhaps it was because of what had happened to Poffo, or because it was easier then trying to process what he had just learned about Aska, but Klied very quickly shifted from a state of confusion to anger. Focused at Doctor Ryun. He would have walked right forward and clocked the man had Aska not asked her question. As things stood his free hand balled into a fist as he instinctually started to pace along the far wall of the office, scowling at the doctor. Make your explanation quick murglak. The hunter thought furiously to himself. You won't be able to talk when I'm through with you...

@Tulos @Bex @Isen

 

[Aska Ryun]

Aska didn’t know it’s origins. Not for certain, at least. Rumors had always circulated but there was never any true indication of where the virus had come from. It was unlike anything the galaxy had ever seen, at least in recent memory. And it was an absolute mystery to the clone. Looking back to the two girls, tears began to descend across her cheek as she simply shook her head to the Doctor’s question.

Trench could see the frustration and anger in Klied but he knew it was nothing he could stop.

”Some time ago, a member of the Hutt Cartel had funded the creation of a serum with the intention of creating an army of super soldiers. As we both know, however, criminal sciences are rarely funded appropriately or with the right minds at the helm of research. This serum, it… Well, it worked in creating beings with superior strength but the side effects proved to be terrible. It over-heated the body and caused the organs to expand at an exponential rate. After these effects killed each test subject-“

Aska glared at Trench through her tears. Now was not the time for a history lesson, nor did she care about the backstory to his little experiment here. He immediately recognized her rage and gulped before shooting a cautious side glance to Klied to see if he had advanced on him.

”I’m sorry,” he apologized for rambling. ”I managed to get my hands on a sample of the virus. I believed, in my naivety, that I could isolate the genome that produced super strength in test subjects while eliminating the inevitable rot of the mind. I was wrong. While the virus variant you’ve seen here is not like that of the more wide-spread pandemic, I was unable to entirely diminish it’s threat,”

”Let me guess… You planned on injecting the girls? On making them your ‘super soldiers’?” Aska queried. She hated discussing this in front of the two children but she couldn’t even be sure they still existed. How much of them remained was impossible for her to tell.

”It was Aria’s idea, I’ll admit. But as we began to administer the virus to another clone… She herself became infected. We placed her in quarantine, observed her. Tried to design a cure but…” Trench paused, looking to the floor.

”But… But what?” Aska demanded.

”Aria, she… Transformed. Before my very eyes. This variant travels slower through the body and creates a weaker form but does so in a far more painful method, not waiting for the infected to die before transitioning. This was a week ago. She tore through the genetics lab and infected many of our scientists and their aides. As well as,” Trench pointed towards the two girls. It was beyond a doubt that they were beyond saving and something that needed to be dealt with… But there was a more important matter at hand.

”Look, what I came here for… It can wait,” Aska spoke solemnly as she stared at the two girls before returning her attention to the Scientist. ”One of my friends, some one who came down here to save your sorry ass, has been infected. My droid’s removed the flesh where the infection had entered the body and scans show that it’s been removed but… He’s in bad shape,”

”I can help. If we get to the medical lab, I can stabilize his condition and ensure he survives. With luck, we can possibly replace whatever appendage he has lost,”

”Yea… I doubt you have any of this ‘appendage’ on hand,”

@Bex @Reyn @Isen

 

[Alisaah Tila]

After what felt like an age, finally Kayto and the team of seven security droids arrived at the entrance to the second floor. It had been sealed by Klied earlier so the droids on the other side had to slice it back open again. The first thing Ali saw was Kayto.

"Quickly, Kayto, pull the stretcher through and we'll follow after" said Ali, pushing it towards the welcome party at the other side of the doorway.

"As you wish" was the droid's emotionless response. The droid looked down at Poffo, his optical censors lingering on the enormous wound that Poffo had received. "It is times like these I am truly thankful not to have a sense of smell."

The Togruta sighed. She wasn't in the mood to deal with the callousness of droids who clearly did not understand the pain even just being witness to this caused, let alone being in Poffo's boots in that moment. Ali could barely stand to look at him laying there, she just felt awful. Regardless of how he had acted at times on this mission, Ali could tell the Coruscanti was not all bad and he certainly didn't deserve to be in this position.

Kayto took the gurney through, followed by Ali, Teela and then P5YK0 in that order. Just when everything had seemed to have calmed down however, the day threw up another unwanted surprise.

"I will have my vengeance, in this life, or the next" came the sound of P5YK0's voice from behind the Togruta. She felt the droid's metal hand wrap around the blaster she had clipped to her shorts. Initially the slave was going to turn around and slap the droid for placing it's hand somewhere it shouldn't, but within the time it took for her to turn around, P5YK0 had raised his blaster and shot two of the YD-series droids straight through the face plate. Eyes widening, Ali threw herself at the droid, knocking him off balance easily due to P5YK0's dented leg. He dropped his weapon in the scuffle and without the use of both arms, lost out to Ali in the race to retrieve it. The remaining five YD-Series droids aimed their weapons at the two of them as they grappled on the floor. Teela was forced to intervene, instructing the droids she had so successfully programmed for their benefit, not to shoot.

"Are you quite finished?" asked Kayto, clearly unimpressed.

"Ngh, yes" responded Ali, uncomfortably as she rose to her feet, "Can the rest of you restrain him so he doesn't cause any more trouble?"

"Roger roger" was the response as two of the security droids swooped in and lifted the disheveled P5YK0 off the ground. The patchwork droid tried to get away but the others were in much better condition than he was now and they were able to contain him. "You'll get this back when you behave" said Ali, frowning and waving the blaster at the droid. P5YK0's head dropped, defeated.

The Medical Facility was in fact very close to the entrance to the second floor so it took a matter of seconds for Kayto to push Poffo's stretcher into the room. The droids had clearly done a thorough job of clearing the rest of the floor of infected before unsealing the door as, though there were some bodies scattered around, none were moving.

Spoiler: Dice Rolls

P5YK0 shoots two droids

@Reyn @Tulos @Isen

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied remained silent as Doctor Ryun informed them on the events that led up to this disaster, pacing like a caged animal in the background throughout his tale. Aside from scoffing when the man insisted "It was Aria’s idea" he offered no input of his own. As the topic turned to Poffo the hunter finally stopped, bouncing restlessly on his feet as Ryun claimed he could save his partner.

"Then hop to it." The Onderonian ordered coldly. "We've wasted enough time already. Alisaah should have gotten Poffo up here by now, or she's at least close. Make your way over to the med lab and save him, or the infected will be the least of your problems." He would proceed to shoo the doctor out the door, getting uncomfortably close to the man and giving him a glare that was likely to make him soil himself, not allowing him to make any protest. After he left the hunter would let out a ragged sigh and turn around. He gave a pitying glance at the two young girls before turning his attention to Aska. His features were clearly mournful, but carried a certain hardness to them indicating he completely understood what was necessary.

"I'm sorry." He finally managed to say to the clone. Even though he had nothing to do with any of this he felt it was something Aska deserved to here. "For all of this." He glanced again at the girls before taking a few steps closer to Aska, putting his hand on his blaster. "Why don't you go to the others? I can take care of this." By no means did Klied consider Aska weak willed. She was probably tougher than he was. But he could tell this whole thing was hitting her different. It was a kind of situation she had never been in before. Her personal connection to the clones would make this much harder on her than killing anyone else. He wanted to spare her that if he could, although the choice remained hers. He was prepared to do whatever she asked. It was a terrible thing that needed doing. But someone had to.

@Tulos @Bex @Isen

 

[Aska Ryun]

More Sad Shit​

Aska watched as Trench turned and left the office with Klied breathing down his neck, finally slumping to the ground in defeat. She had done it. She came here to find her creator, a father in the most practical sense she could possibly imagine, and find him she did. Only she had found much more than she had bargained for. Not only had she nearly lost one of the men she had brought down here and put Alisaah through an unimaginable hell that she was no doubt unprepared for, but now she was faced with a task she wasn’t sure she had the strength for. It obviously was hard for someone to miss just how painful this had been for her as Klied turned back to face her and offered to do the deed for her.

Looking up to the Onderonian, she found that she was incapable of forcing the signature smirk she so frequently used to hide any of her struggles. All she could muster was a neutral stare of remorse. Remorse for what had taken place here and remorse for what she had left to do. Even after everything, Klied still remained. Poffo was his best friend in every sense and the man should have been overcome with pain and worry. Yet here he was. Still at her side.

”No,” the woman struggled out finally as she wiped the tears from her eyes. ”No. Go and make sure Ali and Poffo are okay. I’ll… I’ll be along shortly,” Turning away from Klied, she focused on the two girls. The pain in their faces cut her so deeply that she was unable to contain a single heavy sob. ”Get out of here, Klied,” Her tone deepened, indicating that she couldn’t do this with him watching. She needed to be alone to do what she needed to do…

As the door slid shut, leaving Aska alone with the two children, she shuffled closer to them. Despite the infection, it was clear to her that some humanity still remained inside. They were afraid, knowing full well that their lives had come to an abrupt and brutal end.

”Come here,” she whispered to them with open arms, tears falling down her cheek. They remained still only for a moment before doing as she asked, crawling into her grasp.

“Are you… Are you… our…” one of them tried to whisper but their voice was too hoarse to successfully finish the question. Looking into the eyes of one girl and then the other, Aska finally found herself able to smile, forcing it as she tightened her arms around their necks and pulling them in tightly.

”We’ve known each other for a very long time. That’s all you need to know,” she forced out as she struggled to keep from weeping. As she embraced each of the girls, her right hand came in to reach of the dagger on her belt, looping her fingers around the hilt.

@Bex @Reyn @Isen​

 

[Alisaah Tila]

Inside the Medical Facility there were three large bacta tanks and an operating table which Kayto wheeled Poffo beside. As gently as possible the group worked together to lift him up onto it and removed the gurney to clear some space. P5YK0 was still being apprehended by two of the security droids who held him off to one side. The patchwork droid did not appear to be making much of an effort to escape, which was a relief to Ali. The Togruta had been through enough that day and did not need to add 'gunfight in an operating theatre' to her list.

Kayto remained stood at the end of the operating table as if he were guarding Poffo. The three remaining security droids that were not already engaged were instructed to stand outside the room as guards in case any infected had been missed and attempted to break inside. Ali approached a stool which was propped against the wall and sat down, resting her back against the wall. Raising her wrist comm up to her mouth she said "We've made it to the medical lab Mr. Klied, what do we do now?"

There was no reply. The slave, instead of trying to reach him again just put her head in her hands. She was unaware of what was going on in Trench's office, she had no clue if Aska and Klied had achieved what they came here to do. Ali had been focused on Poffo since the ceiling fell through and she knew they were both desperate for him to be saved, but likewise the Togruta was concerned for their survival and well-being too. What if nobody responded because they'd been infected too? It wasn't worth thinking about. She had to believe they would get out alive.

As she considered trying to contact Klied and Aska again, the door to the Medical Facility opened. An unfamiliar face emerged. The man Aska called Trench stepped inside, though Ali had no clue who he was.

"Running diagnostics... Scan complete. Subject confirmed friendly. Greetings, Doctor Ryun" came P5YK0's robotic voice from the corner of the room. Though restrained, clearly the droid was still dedicated to it's assignment. What Ali found odd about this interaction was how he had not addressed him as 'meatbag' like he had done the others, up until Teela had told him her name. This meant that he must be a surviving member of the lab staff.

"Doctor...?" asked Ali, a little surprised. She hadn't expected anybody else to be alive down here, let alone someone that shared the same surname as her mistress. Aska had mentioned this was her childhood home; did that make them family? Was he the head scientist who they were here to find?

"Yes, Doctor Ryun, this is my laboratory" he said in a matter of fact tone, immediately answering that question. He had a troubled look on his face and he was red around the eyes.

"But you have--" Ali began to say, before being interrupted.

"Yes yes, now is not the time for that" he said, waving his hand at the slave dismissively, "Aska told me I'd find your companion here, this must be the chap..."

@Reyn @Tulos @Isen

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

After Aska finished speaking Klied gazed back at her for a few long moments, his expression unreadable. "Okay." He finally answered her softly, giving one last look at the two younger clones before turning to leave the room, shutting the door behind him. Once he was alone the hunter paused, lowering his head as he raised a hand to rub his eyes, running his fingers back through his hair as he looked up at the ceiling. He took a deep breath in and then out again, then returned his face to a more neutral expression before beginning the trek back to the medical lab.

He entered the room some time after Doctor Ryun, whom was already getting to work on stabilizing Poffo. Klied approached the table to take a look, causing the doctor to flinch, although the hunter did nothing but stand there a few moments. His brow furrowed as he looked down at his unconscious friend. How the hell did you do this to yourself you idiot? He thought, although sincere concern for Sauvage's health was fairly easy to see. Klied glanced at Doctor Ryun once before backing off to give him some space.

"Hey..." Klied acknowledged Ali with a nod as he paced away from the working doctor. The hunter remained restless even as he stood near the Togruta, shifting back and forth on his feet and rubbing his chin as he watched Trench work. "You did a good job down there," He praised the girl as he forced himself to glance in her direction. "Thank you for helping my friend. I mean it." Klied had done his best to maintain a professional demeanor throughout their operation but was now showing a markedly softer display as he worried over his partner.

@Tulos @Bex @Isen

 

[Aska Ryun]

As the door to the lab slid shut behind her, Aska fell to the floor in a fit of uncontrollable and erratic tears, the clatter of steel ringing out as the dagger slid across the hall. The front of her body was covered in the blood of the children and soon a pool of both blood and tears began to form below her head. This entire trip had broken her, left her feeling an empty shell. Watching the life fade from the eyes of what could only be called her sisters was an image she would not soon forget and one that left a foul taste in her mouth for what Trench had done down here. What he would continue to do if given the opportunity… Some time would pas before Aska finally found herself able to stand again. How much time, she didn’t know. She was cried out, her eyes puffy and red, but she knew what had to be done. This ended here. Today. And she had just the thing to see justice served.

Approaching the med lab, three of the security droids turned their attention towards her as they scanned her.

"Running diagnostics... Scan complete. Subject confirmed friendly. Greetings, subject AC-004,"

Ignoring the droid, Aska made her way into the lab and finally saw the gargantuan Coruscanti face down on the operating table. His entire lower body was naked and covered in blood, both sides of his bottom cut away by the impromptu surgery on the floor below. Had she not already shed every tear she had for the two girls, this would have been enough to send her spiraling into another episode of bawling. Instead, she remained emotionless. Neutral. She did not meet the gaze of Ali, Klied, Trench or any of the droids. She simply walked past them all, soaked in the blood of her sisters, towards one of the bacta tanks, furthest to the left. Her movements were empty, almost droid like. No longer did she have her typical casual demeanor.

Glancing to the remaining two tanks, she could see the bubbling healing fluid inside and turned her attention back to the one ahead of her. With blood soaked fingers, she began to key in the sequence required to drain the bacta from the reservoir as Kayto approached behind her.

”What is it you’re doing?” he asked quietly. Aska simply ignored him as she watched the fluid levels drop with dead eyes.

@Bex @Reyn @Isen​

 

[Alisaah Tila]

Ali fell silent having been dismissed by Doctor Ryun. She simply watched on as he set about working on Poffo, attempting to do whatever he could to follow through on the instructions given to him by Aska. Watching him, Ali wondered how it was that someone had managed to survive so long down here under the threat of the AMS zombies. It had been bad enough for their group just getting down here, let alone having to live down here day after day. Ali considered whether if Doctor Ryun was alive, perhaps it meant that others were too.

A little while after the head scientist had arrived, the door opened again and a familiar face stepped inside. It was Klied, however he did not have Aska with him. "Running diagnostics... Scan complete. Subject confirmed friendly. Greetings meatbag" piped up P5YK0 from his corner of the room, vigilant as ever. The hunter understandably went to observe what happened to his friend before doing anything else. Doctor Ryun appeared to be put off by Klied's presence. Ali assumed the hunter had something to do with the scientist being here to work on Poffo, but knew nothing of what had transpired between them in Trench's office.

Eventually Klied left Poffo's side and came over towards Ali. "You did a good job down there. Thank you for helping my friend. I mean it" he had said as he restlessly shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

"Thank you Mr. Klied... It was a team effort" said Ali, gesturing towards Teela, who having done all she could do for now was stationed next to the Togruta on the stool, "We did the best we could... I'm sorry we weren't able to do more..." The slave's voice was still hoarse having been violently sick only a few minutes earlier, but looking at Poffo and the visible effect this was having on his hunting partner, the sadness started to choke her up a little too. She placed her hands on her lap, wringing them together and hanging her head.

Any questions Ali had about the whereabouts of her mistress was soon answered. The droids outside the door could be heard greeting someone. The figure of Aska filled the doorway. She did not look in a good way at all. She looked distraught. The clone's eyes were puffy and red, clearly having been crying, but to add to this, she was drenched in blood and had clearly picked up some kind of injury since last they had seen each other. Ali's mistress had immediately looked towards Poffo laying on the operating table but did not say a word, or even meet the eyes of Ali, Klied or even Kayto as she stood there. It was almost like they did not exist to her in that moment.

"M-mistress?" asked Ali tentatively. She looked from the blood-soaked clone to Klied, hoping he might give her some answers. What had happened to her? Why was she in this state? Had she not achieved what she set out to do? Taking her eyes off Poffo, Aska had then, without a word to anybody, strode over to one of the bacta tanks furthest away from the others and started draining it of fluid. Kayto had marched over to speak to her, but Ali was afraid. Though she was relieved to see her mistress alive, it pained her to see her in this way. The Togruta had seen what the murders of Deskar, Quinri and Boola had done to Aska, but this... this seemed somehow worse in a way. She wanted to be there to support her mistress but without knowing what had happened and judging by just how fresh this new torment was, knew better than to start asking any questions. Now was not the time.

All Ali could ask herself now, was how much more pain and sorrow would this ill-fated expedition have in store for them?

@Reyn @Tulos @Isen

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied listened to what Ali had to say, and nodded in gratitude towards the little astromech droid afterwards. As the Togruta lamented not being able to do more for his partner the hunter tapped his fist gently against her arm and forced a hollow grin.

"There's no need to apologize." He assured her. "He'd be dead if it wasn't for you. You're both life savers." His grin dissipated as he turned his attention back to the unconscious Poffo on the operating table. Doctor Ryun was remaining silent as he went about his work. Despite the gory mess he seemed relatively calm and in control. That gave the hunter some hope that Sauvage would pull through.

He glanced at Aska as she entered, and as expected she looked like a mess. The clone didn't bother to look him or anyone else in the eye, just making her way over to the bacta tanks. Klied sighed but did nothing. When Ali looked to him questioningly he just shook his head, as though to say Give her some space. The emotional stuff wasn't really his thing. He wasn't quite sure how to help Aska. Losing his uncle on Tatooine he figured was about the closest thing to what she was experiencing right now, but he hadn't been the one to kill Odo. He just didn't know how to respond to this. Instead he kept his focus on the doctor, watching and waiting for any sign of Poffo's fate.

@Tulos @Bex @Isen

 

[Aska Ryun]

As she continued to watch the bacta levels of the tank drop, the injury to Aska’s side throbbed and caused her knees to buckle. The strength she had carried throughout this ordeal had finally waned and she was no longer able to keep herself on her own two feet. Kayto proved once again that he was good for more than being a thorn in her side, slipping his arm around her and under the shoulder, keeping her upright.

”You are injured. Perhaps when he is done operating on the hairless baboon, the Doctor co-“

”He’s not laying a ****ing finger on me,” Aska interjected softly, finally breaking her silence only to be met by a lack of response of Kayto’s own. Anger and despair swelled within the clone, but the emotions were still far too overwhelming for her to even begin to comprehend them. Instead, she retreated to silence once more as Kayto guided her away from the bacta tanks and placed her on a stool at Ali’s side. Looking to the Togruta, meeting her gaze of sorrow and confusion with her own of pain and agony, Aska said nothing. All she could do was rest her head on the girl’s shoulder. And wait.

--------------------​

Minutes turned to hours as Trench operated on Poffo but finally, after many gut wrenching moments, the Doctor stepped back from the operating table and looked to the group of people around him, anxiously awaiting his final verdict.

”Your friend here will be okay now. I must say, this was not the sort of injury I had been expecting. Still, you four have my eternal gratitude,” Forcing a smile as he spoke, Trench turned and began to wash the blood from his gloves. Aska could almost feel the pressure of the med lab shift as everyone undoubtedly let out a sigh of relief. Not her, however. She was relieved that Poffo would survive, of course she was. But there was too much going on in her head to compute anything that was taking place around her.

”Four? Well I never,” Kayto complained, followed by a series of agitated sounding beeps from the astro mech at his side. ”Once more we are cast aside it seems, my tiny friend,” Trench continued on, however, ignoring the Security droid.

”Aska… My child… It’s… It’s done then?” Trench asked cautiously as he turned from the sink. As he looked to the woman, she finally found her focus. Standing from Ali’s side, she limped ahead to stand directly ahead of Trench and staring him in the eyes. After everything she had done here in this lab to save his life… After everything that everyone had risked? After Poffo nearly paid with his life?! And that’s all he could ask of her? Rage dominated her, growing with each passing second, before she finally poured every last ounce of strength she had into a devastating head butt, breaking the Doctor’s nose with her forehead. The man fell to the ground, blood pouring from his nostrils, as Aska leaned down and grabbed him tightly by the collar of his lab coat with her left hand.

”I may be the one wearing their blood… But it’s entirely on your hands!” Striking him with her right hand, she prevented any sort of a response for her statement. Then she hit him again. And again. And again. She continued to assault the man responsible for her creation and her despair until she could barely lift her arm any longer. It was only then that she finally pulled a vile of infected blood from behind her breast plate. ”I think it’s time the Doctor got a taste of his own ****ing medicine. What do you say?” she growled as she popped the lid and moved to pour it into his mouth.

@Bex @Reyn @Isen

 

[Alisaah Tila]

The response from Klied suggested that the Togruta should not interfere by asking questions. Ali looked sad. She was worried about her mistress, she looked as though she had been through something truly awful, but then again they all had. Ali herself was exhausted, Klied was worried sick about the well being of his friend and now, over the other side of the room Aska's constitution had finally given way. Kayto was there to support her, propping her up so that she did not fall. The droid walked her over to the stools and sat the blood splattered clone down next to Ali. The pair looked at each other for a moment, not saying a thing, before Aska then rest her head on the slave's shoulder. In that moment, the Togruta was filled with a sense of relief. Despite her injury, her mistress had made it through this ordeal and the nightmarish vision that haunted Ali's mind subsided for the time being. The slave would hold out her hand to Aska's and hold it in an attempt to comfort her in what little way she could.

--------------------​

When Doctor Ryun announced the operation to save Poffo had been completed, the atmosphere in the room lightened, at least for a second, until the head scientist decided to offend the droid population. Kayto had turned to Teela and voiced his discontent, whilst the astromech screeched angrily at being omitted from the doctor's statement of gratitude. Ali furrowed her brow too, she did not take kindly to her mechanical friends being snubbed like that.

"Doctor Ryun... now that I am free of your service thanks to the great and glorious T7-L4, I can finally state, that you are a pompous, arrogant, puss-filled, ERROR, ERROR, ERROR, meatbag with a steel rod obstructing your charging port" piped up P5YK0 from over in the corner. Clearly the droid felt unity with Kayto and Teela.

The Doctor paid this no mind and was clearly more concerned with some other business. Something that Ali did not understand. What was done? Did it have something to do with why Aska was so upset? The conversation continued with the clone talking in ever more cryptic sentences, at least to those in the room who were unaware of what had happened in Trench's office. Within seconds, angry words turned into violence. Ali yelped and winced upon seeing her mistress strike the doctor in the face. The Togruta rose to her feet.

"Mistress? What's going on? Why are you hitting him?" she asked, starting to panic. It was clear to those in the room that the slave was trying her best not to draw the ire of her mistress, but did not understand why she would turn on the man that just saved her friend. The man, Ali thought, was Aska's father - at least based on the evidence presented to her. The scene only began to get much worse however, when Aska produced a vial and moved to force the contents of it into Trench's mouth.

"Running diagnostics... Scan complete. AMS virus detected. Subject AC-004 - you are handling a substance dangerous to organic lifeforms. You must cease this action immediately and surrender the virus to me for controlled destruction" came the robotic voice of P5YK0 once again from the corner. For the first time since being restrained, the droid was attempting to break free from his captors. Clearly he was serious.

@Reyn @Tulos @Isen

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied watched silently as Aska had her fit before being escorted over to sit beside Ali. His outward expression remained neutral, set like stone. Between her and Poffo there was too much going on, too much to think about. So the hunter just fell into the reliable method of standing back and waiting patiently for things to develop. It took several excruciating hours, each feeling like a thousand years. Klied remained restless throughout the entire ordeal, pacing back and forth obsessively even as his legs began to shake from exhaustion, eyes fixed solely on the doctor as he did his work. When he finally received word that Poffo would pull through the hunter let out a heavy sigh, feeling an immense weight lifted from him. But of course Trench just couldn't leave it at that.

Klied ignored the droids' protests to being left out of Doctor Ryun's words of gratitude, he really just couldn't muster up the strength to care at this point. It was what Trench said next that really set him off. The coward that had been so quick to slink away from the tragedy he created now meekly asking Aska if she had done his dirty work for him. As though that wasn't already blatantly obvious. When the clone stood up he could tell exactly what she was about to do, and did nothing to stop her. As Ali yelped in shock at Aska's head butt, Klied only grinned to himself with satisfaction, hands balling into fists and shaking. Give it to him. Was the only thought crossing his mind.

It was a strange sensation. He normally only felt this way when he was fighting, the excitement and adrenaline of being in a life threatening situation. This time however he felt happy just seeing this man being beaten to a pulp. And his mind was too torn up by all that had happened here to even notice. He was snapped out of that however when Aska revealed the vial. Even as P5YKO started identifying the substance Klied was already reacting. Without thinking he simply moved, rushing forward to grab the clone's wrist that held the vial with one hand. He brought his other arm around to grab her under the arm and yank her off of the doctor.

"Don't!" He blurted out as he looked between her and the vial, he looked shocked by his own actions. He glanced back at Trench, moaning and writhing on the ground as he held his battered face, and then looked back at Aska. He hesitated, frowning as he tried to think of why he had even stopped her. "It's not worth it." He said finally. "He's not worth it. It won't make you feel any better about what happened." It was easy to tell Aska was grieving over the loss of her 'sisters', looking for an outlet for her anger. But as much as laying into Trench may have been deserved, it wouldn't alleviate the clone's misery. They all just needed to get out of here and put the whole thing behind them.

@Tulos @Bex @Isen

 

[Aska Ryun]

Loss is a part of life. Non-negotiable. Unavoidable. Inevitable. This much Aska, as well as anyone else, could not deny. When your entire life is dedicated to bringing about that loss then it is assumed that you would have the necessary disposition to deal with it when it’s your turn to feel that pain. For the clone, no amount of training or experience in her field had prepared her for what she had come to see today. Holding the limp bodies of the closest thing she could have ever had to true family in her arms or seeing her friend teetering on the edge between life and death, these were the catalysts to a whirlwind of emotions that dominated Aska’s mental state. They kept her from seeing things with a pragmatic outlook and instead offered her a reaction of fury and madness. The Doctor would find himself in Klied’s debt once again as a level head had finally prevailed.

"He's not worth it. It won't make you feel any better about what happened,”

Wouldn’t it? They were face to face with a man who dedicated his career to creating life; life designed to steal that from others. To watch him die at the hands of his own creation, his ultimate weapon armed with the chemical compound of a virus that he altered? A victim of his own hubris, a poetic end. One Aska felt he deserved. She didn’t have the strength to fight against the Onderonian, however, as he pulled her away from the beaten scientist. Between her emotional turmoil and her open wound, she was physically, mentally and emotionally depleted.

As Klied pulled Aska off Doctor Ryan, saving him from his untimely demise, she could only blubber out nonsensical words as she continued to try and assault him with the heel of her boot. Tears once again began to form in the corners of her eyes as her lips turned downwards in an open scowl. She had come here for answers but was leaving with nothing but more questions and new mental scars. This was over for now but the long term game was only just beginning. Like Ali, Aska and the two children she had ‘removed’ from the lab were nothing more than slaves, test subjects, to this man. People like him needed to be swept from the galaxy and while she had not come to this conclusion in this moment, she would soon.

”Sir, perhaps it is best if you and the others begin making your way back to the surface. The other droids and I will secure Mr. Sauvage as well as Doctor Ryun and follow along shortly,” Kayto stated to Klied as he reached down, pulling the vile from Aska’s feeble and weakening grip. ”I believe the time we’ve spent in this lab is one we’d do well to leave behind us all,”

@Bex @Reyn @Isen​

 

[Alisaah Tila]

Everyone in the room seemed to be opposed to Aska's actions. Though Ali felt powerless to do anything, Klied was less restrained. The hunter managed to physically prevent the clone going through with her plan, though looked incredibly pained to do so. The man had seemed perfectly content letting the doctor take a beating, but the introduction of AMS was clearly a step too far. Ali remained terribly confused. She could not comprehend everything that was happening and felt totally helpless. Klied's intervention seemed to make her mistress more distraught and the Togruta saw tears pooling in the corner of the clone's eyes as she continued to lash out at the injured doctor. Kayto moved to give the Onderonian some advice. The droid suggested they leave, which Ali thought was the most sensible thing anyone had said since they had arrived in the Medical Facility.

Before leaving the room, Ali walked over to the two droids keeping P5YK0 restrained and addressed the damaged machine.

"We are going now. If you come with us to the exit and promise not to cause any more trouble, I'll let you have this back" she said, gesturing to the blaster she had confiscated. The droid hesitated for a moment before saying "I will comply with this request." His captors then released him from their grasp. The trio of Alisaah, Teela and P5YK0 then departed the Medical Facility and made the journey back to the first floor, taking the turbo-lift up to the platform that the Togruta and her mistress had staked out before embarking on this fateful adventure.

The slave was relieved that both she and her mistress had survived the ordeal, but what damage it may have caused to the pair of them psychologically remained to be seen. Much like they had done on their escape from Nar Shaddaa the two women would need to speak again to truly understand what had happened to them both in that laboratory. Ali's mind was now preoccupied with the identity and actions of Aska towards Doctor Ryun. This mystery would soon be revealed to her.

[Exit Thread]

@Reyn @Tulos @Isen

 

[Kliedden Raxx]

Klied maintained his unreadable, dour expression as he held Aska firmly, allowing the woman to expend the last of her strength before letting her go. He was conflicted about this whole thing himself. A part of him wanted to kill Doctor Ryun just as much as she did after all that he had seen. Some kind of justice needed to be done. But this just didn't feel right. He had to believe there was a better way to conduct themselves. That certainly didn't mean Trench was off the hook, just that he'd been granted a temporary reprieve.

Fortunately things were calming down now. Kayto came and offered a good plan, the hunter nodded along with him. "Yes, thank you Kayto." He said in a haggard voice as he helped Aska up. His gaze drifted to Poffo's unconscious form on the table once more. "Take extra care with him. Please." He emphasized his words before glancing at the doctor. "And him too. We're not finished yet." There were still things they needed to know. And while he hadn't sorted it all out just yet, the 'justice' for the atrocities committed here almost certainly involved Doctor Ryun's death. On that he felt almost all of them would agree, once they were fully informed. He could only imagine how Ali and Poffo would react to the truth of this nightmarish place.

Klied would then make his way to the exit, providing support to Aska if she required it, or just to stop her from taking another swing at Trench. So much had happened. To think he had only come here as a favor to the clone... Well, he was in it now, as deep as one could go. He was wrapped up in all of this, and Poffo too. This was exactly the kind of thing Klied wanted to avoid more than anything. But now that he was here, he was strangely content. If these were the people he was with, even if it was trudging through the most horrific of things, he could stand it.

/Exit Thread
@Tulos @Bex @Isen