Ask This Isn't So Bad

[Vizim]

Vizim had called Xio back. Granted, it wasn't quite a "date" but they were in a pretty place. That was almost a date. No, it wasn't.

Vizim had called her up for her expertise in killing people. They had that in common. Yaga Minor had been brought almost entirely into the Empire. The diplomatic arm had reached out to the people of Yaga Minor and most of its people were on board with joining and producing ships for a reasonable fee. There were still those who dissented, however. When the diplomatic arm failed, that was when Vizim came into play.

He and Xio were here to hunt down what had termed itself "the resistance." They weren't just simple political dissidents, but had actually begun a guerrilla war against the Imperial troops and support personnel that had moved in. These resistance fighters had already racked up a body count of 27 in the last three weeks. They'd taken to hiding deep in the forests and caves of the wild, and that meant finding them and killing them in whatever little pockets they'd hidden in.

For his part, Vizim was packed up for a hike. A pack on his back, lightsaber and blaster in place, and various other weapons hidden away, he consulted his datapad at the edge of the road leading into the forests, leaning against a speeder bike as he did so. Xio would be here soon. Hopefully.

@Logan

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

When Xio had first gotten Vizim's call, it would have been a lie to say she wasn't taken by a decent amount of surprise. Of course, it took about five seconds for the Sith Champion to make it clear he was calling because he wanted her help for a job, and that job didn't involve some food and figuring out who's house they were going to get naked in.

Oh well. Baby steps.

Xio arrived shortly after Vizim, though she had opted to walk to their meeting point instead of taking a bike or a speeder. A tactical move, somewhat, since they'd now have to share a ride if they were to be venturing into the woods not on foot. Despite being unsure of how long they'd be undertaking this assignment, Xio had packed relatively light.

A small pack on her back contained some food and water. She'd been on stake outs that lasted days more than once, and had become quite adept at fulfilling most of her biological needs with the force. Plus, she really didn't eat much anyway. She had weapons in the hidden places she liked to keep them; a couple of knives and a blaster.

Approaching Vizim as he studied his datapad, Xio looked out into the treeline, her mind shifting from its idle thoughts and focusing on the matters at hand.

Good to see you again, Oggdo. She said with a smirk, trying and failing to peer over the taller man's shoulder at what he was consulting. I heard the body count had risen to 30 when I was passing through the town back there. The dissidents are starting to become more brazen. Executions, this time.

She paused for a moment, wanting to ask him about something, but deciding to say something different instead.

Do we have any heading or this going to be the galaxy's longest game of hide and seek?

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

He sensed her before he saw her and glanced up from his datapad to see her approaching. She was traveling light and... on foot? That seemed impractical, but then who knew how long they'd be pressing through the forest.

As he watched her draw closer, he realized that he wasn't really sure why he had called her. Yes, it was wise to have backup on an operation like this even for someone like him who liked to work alone, but there were other Sith he could have called. So why her? Maybe he liked her in some way or maybe it was just the practicality that he didn't trust Sith not to stab him in the back. Most didn't have a reason to, but she had even less reason.

She called him Oggdo again and though he wasn't actually offended by it, he did counter this time. I have a name. Vizim, he said. They hadn't actually done introductions on the last operation and he still didn't know the blind girl's name.

The news that the body count had risen to 30 was not welcome, and he grunted slightly at the revelation. There was a moment's anger or annoyance and a momentary desire to take out revenge on those who had done it, but he shoved it aside. He was a professional and that sort of thinking was impractical and dangerous. She got a momentary side-eye as he saw her trying to peek at what he was doing, more of an "I saw that" than anything before he slid the datapad back in his pocket.

Hide and go murder is what we're being paid for, he said. Most triangulations had placed the terrorists in this area, and it was their best starting lead. Hopefully she knew a thing or two about tracking. This wasn't his primary environment - he much preferred cities and the like - but at least the Force-portion of tracking was the same here or in the wilds.

I guess we're both getting on this, then, he said, jutting a finger toward his speeder bike. He slung his pack over the back part of the speeder and climbed aboard, waiting for her to get on behind him before taking off into the jungle.

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

It only occurred to Xio that they had never officially exchanged names the first time they had met when VIzim mentioned his. The whole thing was just so.. typical Sith that Xio couldn't help but chuckle.

Mine's Xiomara, She responded with a small nod of her head. Glad to officially make your acquaintance.

Xio slid on the back of the speeder bike behind Vizim when he motioned towards it with the intent to leave. Adjusting her pack, she hesitated just for a moment before sliding forward just enough for them to be touching. If he didn't rebuff her, she'd hold onto Vizim's hips for balance while they rode. If he did - which really wouldn't have surprised her, the man did seem eternally standoffish - she'd grip the sides of the seat instead.

As they pressed into the woods, it didn't take long for the relative sparseness of the treeline to give way into a much more densely wooded forest. The paths between the trees was wide enough for the speeder bike in most places, though there were a couple close calls where Xio would have pulled her grip tighter on whatever she was holding onto.

Eventually, they happened upon a clearing in the trees, but it would be obvious to anyone with a brain that it wasn't natural. The trees had been cut down with tools, their leaves stripped and left on the forest floor. Someone was gathering firewood.

Stop here, She said, tapping Vizim on his shoulder. We should look around.

Hoping off the speeder, Xio set to work quickly. Her eyes scanned the area for a few moments before finally settling on faint tracks left in the dirt.

See these? Xio called to Vizim as she walked over to the tracks and knelt down. Running her hand over them, she sort of tilted her head and lightly pressed her tongue into her lower lip, something Xio did when she was thinking. Treadspeeder tracks. Couple days old though. Wouldn't be surprised to find one of their outposts nearby, they likely wouldn't have wanted to drag their wood too far. Might be best to do the tracking from here on foot.

Returning to her feet, Xio started following the tracks out of the clearing and further into the woods. The trail wasn't the easiest to follow, but there were enough ruts in the mud and broken branches to keep Xio confident they were moving in the right direction.

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

They tore off into the woods, and Vizim didn't stop her grip on him, though there was a hint of stiffness nonetheless. He wasn't accustomed to a great deal of physical contact with people, and while he didn't dislike her touch, his instincts still railed against it.

She gripped a bit tighter at a couple of points through the woods, and Vizim couldn't decide if that meant he should drive more recklessly to elicit that response again or ease off. Probably the latter. Yeah, the latter.

She pointed out a clearing, and he brought the bike to a slow, suddenly quite glad that repulsors didn't leave physical tracks like the vehicles the rebels were using. He dropped down from the seat, grabbing his pack and pushing the speeder deep into some bushes as she mentioned proceeding on foot.

Agreed, he said with a nod, moving over next to her and running his fingers along the tracks. Dried out from what looked like it had once been fresh mud. Few days indeed.

He made his way along slightly behind her, easing the pistol free from his holster as they proceeded. Prickles trailed up the back of his neck and he stiffened ever so slightly. He didn't know what, but something wasn't right.

He reached out and grabbed silently onto her arm, not looking at her as his eyes began to scan through the woods. He dropped into a crouch, and it was probably the only thing that saved his life. A single blaster shot tore through the forest from some unseen location, sizzling and crackling the air where he had just been standing moments ago.

@Logan

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

The moment Xio felt the pressure of Vizim grab her arm her head instantly snapped in his direction, her hand instinctively finding one of her knives and nearly bringing it to bear. Her aggression was tempered the instant she saw him drop to the ground, mimicking his action without question.

She felt the heat of the blaster shot as it passed over them.

A dark grimace of anger gripped Xio's face as she brought up her nictating eyelids. Her vision changed from normal to infrared, morphing all the colors before her in shades of blue and orange. The vivid trail of heated air and burnt ozone the blaster shot had left still hung in the air, and Xio was able to follow it back to its source.

About thirty meters from them sat a sniper and before he could re-calibrate and get off another shot, Xio made other plans. Enveloping the knife in her hand with the force, she sent it firing off like a rocket. Within seconds it found its mark, burrowing deep into the would be assassins forehead.

They'll have heard the shot. We need to go now. Xio said, her voice barely above a whisper. Her eyes scanned the trees again, though she did not see anything out of the ordinary at the moment. Probably just a scout, it seems safe for now.

Standing to her feet by now, Xio had already pulled her knife back to her hand and wiped what blood remained off on her pants. Nice job not getting your head blown off, She said, glancing at Vizim to see that he was alright, tho Xio was sure he was.

Shortly after pushing further into the forest, the sound of idling engines caught Xio's ears. Motioning for Vizim to follow her, Xio silently crept towards the noise until they would reach a break in the trees. Just beyond, a group of terrorists were standing near their treadspeeders. Four of them looked to be intently listening to what the fifth had to say.

Likely a party sent out looking for the sniper after they didn't radio back, Xio said through the force. Vizim would feel the words float out on the force and touch his mind, though he would only hear it if he let them in. Xio would not try to force it. If we can kill them swiftly, we can follow their fresh tracks to a compound. Or we can sneak by and risk them returning at the least opportune time. Up to you.

Xio would follow whatever decision Vizim made, even if she disagreed. Despite her naturally independent nature, they were only going to succeed her if they worked together.

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

Vizim watched her move with deadly precision, his own hand wrapping around and pulling free the pistol from his holster. He didn't see in the infrared, and so she managed to bring down their attacker with much greater speed than he did.

He nodded as she said they should get moving, and started moving at once. Their element of surprise may well have been gone, and for a team as small as them, that was a real problem.

One of my many skills, he muttered back as she said that he did a good job not getting shot.

As she started wiping the blood on her own pants he just looked down and frowned with a vaguely disapproving look.

Couldn't you use a leaf or something? he asked. Sure, sometimes he stabbed someone and blood went everywhere, but he didn't intentionally wipe it on himself. What kind of a crazy woman was he out here with?!

Deeper they went into the forest until they came against the next group. She reached out to touch his mind, and he once again found himself uncertain of how he felt about that. It was practical, though, and he was all about the practical. Fine!

He didn't directly respond but instead simply ran a finger along his neck to indicate he opted for killing them. They were out here to remove terrorists, and that's who these people were.

With pistol in one hand and a saber hilt eased into the other one, he crept closer, trying to keep quiet until they were nearly on top of the group of enemies. The Force was a powerful tool for keeping once concealed, and he used it to its fullest extent.

He glanced over to make sure she was in position before raising his pistol and firing into the closest man. The shot pierced straight through the man's back and his sights moved on to the next man, taking the element of surprise to squeeze the trigger once again. The second shot was on point, but the man's quick movement turned it from a direct hit into a graze.

With his position now given away, the crimson saber in his hand ignited as he lunged forward.

@Logan

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

Xio nodded in affirmation to Vizim's way of telling her with option he had chosen. She suppressed a smile, though, because it was also the option she would have chosen. Using the force to keep her movements as silent as possible, Xio stalked from the trees along with Vizim.

As soon as the shot left the barrel of Vizim's blaster, Xio was moving in tandem. The knife in her right hand was let loose with deceptive strength and found its home at the base of one of the terrorist's skulls - the one that had seemed to be giving orders to the others. Xio had fought enough groups alone to know that often if you killed the leader, the others were rattled to the point of doing most of the work in ending their lives themselves.

Her feet never stopped moving once her knife had been thrown, and with a swift movement aided by the force, Xio leapt into the air and onto the back of one of the others. She swept the blade of her knife across the man's neck, opening it up completely before pushing back off him like a spring board.

Once she was back with both feet on the ground, Xio looked over towards Vizim and out of the corner of her eye spotted the one terrorist who hadn't been engaged with yet diving towards one of the treadspeeders and fumbling with its side bags. There had to have been a commlink inside. Not good.

The one buy the speeder! She shouted towards Vizim, who was closer. The guy had a lightsaber, surely he'd be able to dispatch both of the nimrods left in short order. Right?

Of course, Xio had been disappointed by men many times in her life so it really was likely a toss-up.

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

She had dealt with two of the men, and there were two more to be dealt with. The first was an easy solution. Vizim had already closed in with him and carved his saber cleanly through the man, his arm, and his blaster.

He didn't even look as he fired his blaster a second time into the man he had grazed earlier and continued running on. She heard him shout about the last man and he sent another blaster shot pounding down followed by a second and third until there was a large enough hole in the man's chest that you could see over halfway through.

His pistol snapped back up and scanned over the area before being satisfied that there was no one else here.

Nice work, he said, genuinely appreciating the grace with which she killed people. It was a rare thing in a woman who wasn't entirely unhinged. His saber snapped back out and he began picking over the bodies, scavenging useful supplies before finally pulling out a small dataprojector from one of their vests and turning it on.

This is useful, he muttered, holding it up so she could see that it was maps to various locations: stashes of weapons, hideouts, and patrol patterns.

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

You too, Xio responded, pulling her knife from the back of the one man's skull. This time, casting a sideways glance towards Vizim, she wiped the blood on her weapons off on the clothes of the deceased instead of her own.

Oh? What is it? she asked him before walking over and glancing at what Vizim was looking at. See now that's just fucking sloppy. What kind of moron keeps something like that on their person?

Xio's eyes studied the dataprojector intently for several minutes before nodding her head slightly in affirmation to herself. Memorized it. There might be a tracking FOB in there, so its probably safer just to ditch it. Unless you have something you can copy the data down onto, but we don't really need it anymore. She said, her tone confident and matter-of-fact.

Looking out into the woods, Xio couldn't feel any movements in the force that told her their position was compromised. If they were going to take the time to coordinate, now might be the only real chance they got. Pondering it for a moment, Xio looked at Vizim and gave him a shrug.

The base deeper into the forest is probably the main HQ, She said, digging around in a few of the deceased's pockets for keys to one of the treadspeeders. We could go there first and if we cut the head from the snake, the rest of the body will probably die on its own. Ah, finally she found a pair. Xio tossed them to Vizim. If we hit the small one first, might prevent backup. But it might also go sideways and make the main base a suicide run. Doesn't seem worth it to me.

Standing next to one of the speeders, Xio shrugged at Vizim again. This was technically a Sith operation as far as she understood, so she was willing to default to whatever approach the man wanted. Failure here didn't mean a likely painful and potentially deadly punishment from some Sith master for her.

If you wanna take out the auxiliary base first, we should walk. If not, we should just take one of these. Looking towards the sky, Xio noted that the sun was fairly deep in the west by now. Should wait for dark either way.

Whichever choice he made, Xio would follow. She sort of hoped he'd pick going for the main base, but that was mostly because she wanted to ride on a speeder with him again.. but that was neither here nor there.

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

It wasn't the Vizim didn't trust her and her memorization when she confidently professed that she had memorized it, but he didn't trust his own memory that much, let alone someone else's. He pulled out his datapad, snapping a holostill of it and replacing the device where he had found it on the dead man.

It was only now that something struck him and he physically paused in his tracks before looking back at the dead and frowned.

He was so used to killing humans, near-humans, and humanoids that it didn't even resonate with him that he should have been killing Yagai instead of humans.

Are there off-worlders stirring up this dissent and resistance? he asked aloud. He didn't really expect her to have an answer, but the realization was... profound. Perhaps rather than hunting and killing dissenters, they only needed to kill these off-worlders that were misleading the locals. Or perhaps not.

Hm, he grunted before turning his attention back to their next step along the way.

Agreed, he said in response to the comment about waiting until dark, but then began to ponder the best route. He wasn't sure he wanted people getting away, but she had a point about cutting off the head of the snake. If there were off-worlders stirring it up as well, then that only leant more credence to that.

Main hub, then, he said, climbing aboard one of the speeders and then looking back at her in confusion as she started climbing aboard the same speeder. This was just... very impractical.

Shouldn't we be taking two in case something happens to one? he asked. Was she trying to get close to stab him after the job was done or something?

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

Xio sat with Vizim's question hanging in her mind for a long moment, mulling it over like you would roll a ball of gum around your mouth when you were bored. It hadn't really occurred to her that they should have been fighting locals, not humans.

Possible someone lost a large sum when the government agreed to make ships for the Empire. Whenever their was money to be made or lost, Xio had found, there was likely to be bloodshed not too far away.

Vizim agreeing with her opinion on the mission - at this point, more than once - was strange to Xio. In her experience, men - especially Sith men - often didn't respect what she had to say. It was part of the reason she never had any interest in joining the order, despite her clear aptitude and family name.

Alright, Oggdo. Xio said, rolling her eyes as Vizim balked at her riding tandem with him again. This time, she would be willing to oblige the man's.. mildly annoying, touch averse demeanor. Your driving leaves something to be desired anyway.

After a moment or two of looking, Xio found another pair of treadspeeder keys and hoped onto her own. The sun was almost fully behind the horizon now, so it was time to go. She left the lights off of her own speeder, comfortable enough to drive in the dark with her infrared vision.

You'd make a lot more money doing this shit outside of the Sith, Xio said over comms as the two drove towards the main terrorist HQ. What do they give you that you cannot get on your own?

It may have been a too personal question for Vizim, but Xio wasn't afraid to ask it. She had the opportunity to be a Sith, probably still did, but she just didn't understand the appeal. The force, the dark side, worked without the shackles of an Order. Xio's only master was herself, and at the end of the day, wasn't that the entire point?

After awhile, the two would approach the perimeter of the compound, able to see it from a safe distance, hiding in the thickness of the tree line. Hoping off her speeder, Xio moved to the very edge of the trees and peered through a set of binoculars that were in the sidebags of the speeder.

There are posted sentries in a couple different spots, She said, handing the binoculars over to Vizim if he wished to take a look for himself. Not too many foot patrols though. Sneaking inside shouldn't be that difficult, but its hard to say how many we'd find once we got in there.

Looking around, Xio could see a couple of large tanks dotting the the area around the compound. Gas, probably. Maybe for fire, might have been tibanna for blasters. Oh, well that gave her quite the idea.

If those big tanks are tibanna gas, we could use your love of blowing shit up to solve problems just like we did on Raxus Prime. Looking around the grounds again, Xio shrugged. Might be safer than trying to fight and kill them all one by one, but I do love a challenge so I'll leave it up to you.

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

Yeah, that's why you keep trying to jump on the back of my speeder, he retorted as she said that his driving was bad. He didn't believe that for a moment.

He took off right after her, and though he didn't have infrared vision, he had the Force. "Your eyes can deceive you, don't trust them" was one of those phrases that he had definitely heard no less than a hundred times during his training. It was practically ingrained into him.

He let the growing darkness swallow them up as they drove on toward the base, and he didn't expect her question to ring out in his ear.

The question actually caused him pause and he didn't answer for a moment. It was only a recent thing that he had begun to wonder at that exact question. Why remain a Sith? But more than that, what did he really want out of life? He'd already fought and killed for the Sith, but why? What was his end goal?

Sometimes he wondered if he was just here because he'd been born and indoctrinated for it. Still, there was a prevailing fact: he loved the hunt. He liked what he did, though he could have done it for someone other than the Sith. But there was one thing that was far harder to do outside the Sith.

Potential. After five or ten years of killing, you'll have lots of money and live in comfort. Maybe you'll have enough to hire your own private army. In five or ten years of killing, I'll have all that same luxury and a Lordship or Council spot with a massive army, maybe a few planets, and real power, he said. There was simply far, far more upward potential in the Sith. These operations were under his command, and with it would come a certain level of authority over those worlds. He was already far closer to that power than most ever got in their lives.

They came to a stop and he slipped off his bike, moving in next to her as she looked over what was going on in the area. He didn't have binocs, but he could see... okay.

He took a long moment to think about their options. Going inside was more dangerous and potentially messier, but it was also more thorough. It would also provide more answers.

Let's take down the sentries and move inside. We don't have enough information to just blow it and leave people alive, he said. He almost asked her if she had a knife but remembered that seemed to be her primary tool.

He slipped away his pistol and pulled out the vibroknife at his hip, not activating the mechanical portion so that it was just a simple, silent knife.

Time to go to work, he thought as he slipped into the jungle to find the first sentry.

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

Vizim was right, of course. The scorched earth option, while much safer, did leave them with the potential of completing the mission halfway. Any dissident left alive would only become more entrenched in their fervor and become a bigger issue down the line. They would have to kill them all.

You have the same aspirations as every other Sith, Xio said, her mind still on the answer Vizim had given to her question earlier. She drew her own knife and stared off towards the complex, Nearly all of them end up toe tagged before they ever come close. Bold of you to assume you're so different.

With silent movements Xio moved to the perimeter of the compound, keeping to the shadows where possible and the force where speed was necessary. Her target was one of the few foot patrols, two guys walking a path they've walked a hundred times by now. They passed by Xio without noticing her, chattering idly about how they'd rather be sleeping than walking.

She waited for them to pass her completely before slinking out of her hiding place, knife gripped firmly in hand. With a single swift motion, Xio lashed out with the force and gripped one of the patrollers around their neck and with a violent twist, snapped it and killed him nearly instantly. Just as the second man noticed his compatriot's untimely death, Xio was already within striking distance.

A swift slice to achilles brought him down to one knee, and with silent violence, Xio jammed her knife into the side of his neck. Blood spurted out almost impressively far and she finished him off by tearing the knife back out and burying it again. Calling on the force, Xio floated both of the dead bodies and concealed them in some nearby foliage.

Falling back into the shadows, Xio pushed further into the perimeter, hoping Vizim's hunt was going just as well, and they hadn't decided to walk head first into the nexu's maw.

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

He listened and thought about what she said, but she would note as she said it that there wasn't even a stir of doubt within him. He was confident in not only his own skills but also the structure of the Empire. Perhaps he would yet lure her into joining the Order. Though, more and more he did wonder if striking out on his own was worth something.

As she crept off after one pair of guards, Vizim pursued another. He came upon them on the path like a ghost. A wave of his hand and a touch of the Force left the further of the two guards baffled and confused for a moment. He knew the proverbial "stun" move wouldn't last long and he moved accordingly. His vibroblade triggered for just a moment, the terrifying buzz burning through the night as it slashed.

He cut deep through the side of the neck, his other hand reaching up to yank the man's head to the side as the blade shoved deeper. It was a gruesome display that covered much of his clothes in dark red blood.

He released the man with a kick to the back, letting him bleed onto the ground as the knife came around to plunge through the throat of the stunned man, sending him clutching his throat to the ground.

Vizim quickly wiped the knife off and sheathed it before dragging the bodies into the bushes and heading out to find Xio again.

It didn't take long before they had regrouped and he turned his attention to the main facility.

Quick and quiet on the pair out front and then we move inside, he suggested, pointing to the two guards standing at the door. If she didn't object, he would start to move forward, ducking behind the tibanna crates as he made his way closer.

He didn't have much by way of throwing devices, but pulled his lightsaber off his belt, signaling to Xio that he would take the one on the right and she could take the one on the left.

He counted down and threw his saber, the hilt guided by the Force until it was nearly atop the man and the blade ignited, slamming into the chest, through the heart, and pinning him to the wall behind.

@Logan

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

A quick nod to Vizim was all Xio gave to confirm she understood the assignment. She couldn't help but raise an eyebrow of surprise when the Sith Champion withdrew his lightsaber. So much for quick and quiet. No matter. Her quarry was the man on the right side, and his time on this world was quickly running out.

On Vizim's mark, Xio sent her knife screaming through the air. It flew straight and with the precision of a guided missile, slamming into chest of the man on the right, dead in his heart. It impacted in nearly the same instant that Vizim's lightsaber found its own mark, both men keeling over in death with solid fwumps and the billowing of loose clothes.

Crossing the distance to the now dead men, Xio riffled through their pockets for a keycard but there was none to be found. Looking around, Xio noticed that the door had some sort of retina scanner on it and not the typical key badge security, or even a punch code.

C'mere, look at this. Xio said, motioning for Vizim to join her near the door. This kind of security tech isn't normal for jungle dwelling insurgents. She said, looking over the retina scanner, racking her brain on if she'd ever seen one like that before. Xio had experience entering many places that tried to keep her out, but there were few times she had to contend with advanced tech like that. Someone is definitely funding these guys.

Turning around, Xio knelt down next to one of the dead bodies and pulled out her knife. There were a couple of options they had to get through the scanner. Slicing was the slowest option so Xio decided to ignore that and take a more... practical approach. Using her knife with the skill and deftness of a professional surgeon, Xio removed an entirely intact eyeball from the man, its optic nerve still hanging off the back.

Walking over to the scanner, Xio held the eyeball up to it and after a few tense moments, the door panel turned green and granted them access. Looking over at Vizim, Xio shrugged her shoulders. She didn't have anything to put the eye in for any future needs, but she didn't think finding a new one would be that difficult. She'd just have to not focus on stabbing people in their faces, which while unfortunate, was totally doable.

After you, love. Xio said, motioning Vizim ahead while she intended to bring up the rear.

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

Vizim recovered his lightsaber and looked at the technology for several moments. He was going to suggest... you know, normal people things like holding the head up to the scanner. Before he could do that, he turned around to a sickening squelching sound as she dug someone's eyeball out.

While he didn't actually say anything or make a noise, the look on the uncovered portion of his face told its own story of his discomfort. A slightly horrified and disgusted face looked down as she carved out the globe and held it up.

Why didn't you just... hold his head up to it! he objected, trying not to look too closely at the optic nerve hanging off the back side. Vizim was not a squeamish man, but this was deeply unsettling.

Hrng, was the sound he made with his scrunched up face as he passed by her and into the building. He would have made some flirty comment about being called "love" but he was still a bit too taken aback by the eyeball she was holding. Hopefully she wasn't going to wipe her hands on her pants again...

The inside of the facility was deathly quiet. No signs of anyone here except for the lights still shining in the hallways. That would make their job easier, but more than killing everyone here, he wanted some answers, and that meant finding a computer terminal or something of that sort. He wanted to know what was really going on here.

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

Xio couldn't help but cast a sideways glance at Vizim's bellyaching about the eyeball, a coy smirk creasing her lips, before she threw it into the bushes and wiped her hand on one of the bodies. You didn't often see trained killers like Vizim get squeamish around a little blood and guts, let alone be so willing to show it. It was fucking adorable.

A whole head is heavy, Viz, She said, following him into the complex. And I didn't see you offering to heft up the old boy to the scanner. Guess they don't teach you Sith how to be gentlemen anymore.

As they entered the facility, Xio couldn't help but feel a little suspicious that it seemed so quiet. Granted, it was the middle of the night and she and Vizim had incredibly stealthy in their approach.. but still. Looking around, there were multiple paths they could take, which one likely didn't matter much.

Should be safe to split up for a faster sweep, Xio said quietly before starting heading down the hall to the left. We should have a codeword for if things are about to go loud. I'll let you come up with it, since if anyone is gonna turn us sideways, I'm sure it'll be you. Her tone was playful and mostly lighthearted, and Xio stole another glance at Viz that had just the faintest hint of filtration behind it.

Gripping her knife tightly, she set off down the hallway, keeping to the shadows where she could, her Firrerreon ears listening for the sound of booted footsteps.

@Phoenix

 

[Vizim]

Vizim frowned at what she said. You were already carving out his eyeball by the time I had a chance, he grumbled in response, trying not to think any more about the eyeball carving she seemed to do in her spare time. How many had she cut out before to get it so clean? He didn't want to ask that. Some things were better not to know.

They headed inside and she suggested splitting up. He gave her a glance back that said he was skeptical and paused. Hm, fine, he said. Hopefully they wouldn't come to regret that.

I don't know, "going loud?" he said. He wasn't very original, which really shouldn't have come as any surprise to her. Was she looking for some sort of safe word like... well, what kinds of safe words did people use? Vizim didn't even know.

Be careful, he muttered begrudgingly as they parted ways. He still intended to try to find a data terminal to access, and that was what he went looking for first. He pulled his knife into his hand as he moved through the facility, still hearing nothing. Maybe Xio would find a generator to overload or something. Detonation from the inside to guarantee everyone was wiped out while he grabbed the data.

Or so he hoped.

He slammed a knife into the throat of someone on security watch and dragged him to the side, pulling the seat up to the terminal that was still unlocked for its dead master.

@Logan

 

[Xiomara Drast]

_______________________

Xio couldn't help but smirk when Vizim didn't seem entirely enthused that they were splitting up. Was it more likely that he just thought they stood a better chance together than apart? Yeah, probably. But Xio would pretend it was because he would miss her presence instead.

Vizim, honey, that might have been the worst attempt at coming up with code word I've ever heard. She laughed, something akin to almost a giggle, and Xio was fucking mortified. Choosing to ignore it, she moved on quickly and started talking again. You be careful too.

As she moved deeper into the complex, Xio eventually happened upon a single foot patrol. With nexu-like movements, Xio crept up behind him. A hard kick to the back of the knee brought the man down so that his neck was more easily accessible, and without second thought Xio buried her knife into the back of his neck, severing the spinal cord. She stuffed his body into a nearby trash chute.

Eventually, the hall Xio was following opened up and lead into a large central area, something that might have been a hanger at some point. It was filled with a bunch of electronics, terminals, and oh.. now that was interesting. A massive generator about the size of a star ship. Likely provided power for the entire complex, which also meant it was more than big enough to make the entire place go up in a giant molten ball of slag.

Crouching low behind some crates and in one of the darker shadows, Xio peered around before activating her com. Found something interesting, should be an easy way to level this place. Xio paused for a moment, holding her breath as a couple more foot patrols walked by her position, though they didn't seem to notice her. You almost done with whatever it is that you're doing?

Spotting an access terminal on the side of the generator, Xio's eyes narrowed in contemplation. You think you could talk me through overloading a generator? She asked, though it kind of embarrassed her to do so. Hopefully Vizim didn't think she was stupid.

Alternatively, you could just get your ass over here already.

Taking out her knife, Xio started to stalk the patrols that had just walked by, ready to take them out just like all of the other morons she'd encountered in this stupid place.

@Phoenix