It was just a dream, she thought, just a nightmare. She started to get up, but remembered her promise to Corso, that if she woke up in the middle of the night, she would at least stay in bed to rest. She hugged her knees, hot tears streaming down her face, trying hard to make no sounds that might wake him. After the tears had slowed, she snuggled up to her sleeping husband, putting her head on his shoulder and her hand on his chest. He surprised her by grabbing her hand, kissing her palm, then placing her hand over his heart, holding it there with his own much larger, slightly calloused hand. She lay there feeling his heartbeat, so steady and strong. Just like him, she thought. He whispered to her then, "Same nightmare?" She nodded against his shoulder, using all her control to not cry again. "Mmmm sweetheart, feel my heart? You're there, you'll always be there, and I'll never choose to leave you."
Miriah woke with a start, instinctively reaching for Corso, her spirits falling hard when she touched only air. She slowly rolled out of the bunk she'd found on Frinn Mesa's Republic outpost, and saw that Akaavi had already gone in search of caffa. She stood, struggling to get the image of her dream out of her mind, pushing past the grief to center herself. She walked to her pack and slipped out of Corso's shirt, the only one she could find when she left the ship that the damn droid hadn't already washed. She folded it carefully and placed it aside.
Akaavi approached her with a mug in each hand. "Captain, I have located a set of targets that will be suitable." Miriah brought the Mandalorian along, knowing that among her crew, Akaavi would most understand the vengeance aspect. Miriah took the mug, and placed it next to her gear bag, untouched. She was barely drinking water, and had limited herself to one protein bar a day. Already, her leather armor hung on her small frame.
"Let's get moving then. Notify Bow that we may be calling for flybys." She took Torchy, Corso's beloved blaster, and placed it in the middle of her back, tucked in her belt. Somehow, just having it on her made her feel safer. They mounted their speeders and headed north, to a prison colony that the Regulators had made to hold Makeb citizens who resisted their offensive. They hid the speeders, and used stealth generators to enter the camp. The first guard went down quietly, the muffled thump of Miriah's shotgun fading before the body fell. Akaavi slashed one of the two remaining with her vibrosword while Miriah disabled the other with a kick, then dispatched him with a blaster bolt to his head. They looked at each other over the bodies, and with a nod, each triggered their stealth.
Methodically, they worked their way through the camp. When they had released the prisoners they found, they retrieved their speeders and followed the directions given by one of the citizens to another Regulator outpost. Miriah saw that there were crates of arms scattered around the area, some unguarded. "Let's see if we can get some of the crates out to the Republic guys," she whispered to Akaavi over their relays. "They could use the ammo if nothing else." Akaavi clicked once to tell her she understood, and they advanced.
Miriah sneaked behind the first guard, but failed to see the approaching sentry droid. The droid was programmed to break any stealth, and before she was ready, Miriah was seen. Oh well, she thought, just have to attack. She quickly had the guard bending double from a swift kick to his privates, and while he was bent over expelling the contents of his stomach, she blaster whipped him down. The next guard had started to shoot at that point, and she threw a thermal grenade at him, weakening him significantly. She triggered her relay, yelling, "Now, Bow, right here!" and she watched her ship in low level flight as it passed over them, reigning destruction on the group of Regulators there. She breathed a sigh of relief at the break in the combat, and took a few moments to assess the next moves.
Risha answered the holo absently, noting that it was the med station. "We have Mr. Riggs' personal effects here," the dry, efficient Twi'lek stated. "You'll need to come down here and get them. Also, we need to know what you want done with the remains." Remains, Risha thought. Problem is, nothing remains, especially of Miriah.
"I'll be there shortly," the engineer said, wanting to punch the secretary. She wanted to stay available for her captain, so the med station would have to wait. She rejoined the Wookie on the bridge, and settled in to monitor the relay comms.
Miriah stood on a low rise, her macrobinoculars sweeping over the camp in the distance. "I see an official of some kind, a high value target. Ready to move?" She repacked her gear and started off, not even looking to know that Akaavi had her back. As they approached the small camp, an alarm triggered and the sound was momentarily disorienting. Miriah staggered back, hitting her stealth a moment too late. She groaned as she was punched, on her knees before she could react. The Regulator stood over her, rifle ready. Miriah looked up at him just as Akaavi's blade came through his chest, and she had to roll out of the way as he fell. They retreated a few paces, just to catch their breath.
"Do you have a death wish, Captain?" The Mandalorian was completely serious, knowing her friend was suffering.
"Of course not, Akaavi," Miriah replied. "I haven't killed nearly enough of these people yet."
"Well then, let us move more cautiously," Akaavi stated. Miriah nodded, and they moved around the perimeter of the camp. When they got close enough, Miriah fired a tranquilizer dart at the official, and they started to clear his guard. Akaavi was deadly with her blade, but the shotgun and blaster combo Miriah used to maximum efficiency was cutting through the contingent quickly. In only a matter of minutes, they were left with only the still stunned officer standing between them.
"Who are you," the officer mumbled as he regained his senses and realized he would soon die.
"No one important," Miriah told him, not even blinking when she shot him in the head and he fell to the ground. She stood over him, wondering how many would be enough to make the pain go away, when she heard Akaavi call her name.
"This is not just a recon camp. There are victims here," she told her captain, nodding toward a small crate. "They've been tortured." Miriah's horror was reflected in her silver eyes, and she rushed toward the cluster of crates there. Together, she and Akaavi released the people being held there, giving medical treatment when they could and moving the entire group to a safe spot several meters away. The Republic evac teams rushed in, and Miriah watched as the victims were taken away. When the area was clear, she placed charges around the camp. When she was done, she called Bow to do a low flyby and sat on a rock with Akaavi, watching the entire camp burn in the twilight.
"What's the count?" she asked, not taking her eyes off the roaring fire in front of her.
"Seventy-four," Akaavi answered, trying to get her captain to take the bottle of water in her hand. Miriah ignored it, her tired eyes closing for a few seconds. How many, she wondered. She stood there, swaying with fatigue, for a few minutes longer before turning toward the speeders. They silently drove back to the Republic camp, where Miriah sat on her bunk with Corso's shirt, unable to relax or sleep but feeling some comfort from the soft fabric that she clutched, her husband's scent clinging to the fibers. Akaavi brought her a hot bowl of stew, and for the first time in several days, she ate. The hot food and the long day caught up to her, and she fell asleep still sitting on her bunk. Akaavi took the bowl and moved her friend to lie down, seeing that she never loosened her grip on the worn, soft shirt she held in both hands.
Risha approached the med station with some trepidation. I know Miriah isn't up to this, but what would she want done? She stopped at the desk and told the droid there what she wanted. Another droid brought a small box to the counter, and Risha put her signature on the datapad before carrying the box back to the ship. Once she was there, she gingerly opened the container and took out the familiar jacket that lay on top. She put it aside, and looked again into the box. She lifted out the blaster rifle, but something just wasn't right. This weapon is filthy, she thought. Not like Corso at all. She went through the box, but nothing else was familiar. The most glaring omission was his wedding band. I know Miriah is still too raw, but she will want that someday, and it's not even here. I'm going back there tomorrow, they can't get away with this!
In the medbay, the sealed bag that was labeled "Corso Riggs" was stored in a cooler. In the larger room, there were ten kolto tanks. Every one of them was labeled with a patient's name, except for one. The tall man who was inside, the healing fluid bathing him in a blue-green glow, had no family around, no one who had come to see him. He also had no name on his tank. His dreadlocks floated in the fluid, hiding his face.