Food…

Water…

Sex…

Three things he had gone without for days. The last, well, he hadn't had any of that for weeks. He hadn't really kept track. He'd guess about three weeks, five days, six hours and forty-five minutes. That was estimate anyway. It felt like a whole hell-of-a-lot longer. Food had stopped coming a few days ago and he hadn't had any water for a bit less than twenty-three hours. He was suffering. In a containment cell – for what? A petty crime people got overly worked up about.

But damn, being arrested was boring. There was nothing to do but to count the rivets on the ceiling and play pazaak with himself. It got old fast. The only stimulation he got was sticking a finger in the electric field to get that quick jolt of pain to shoot through his system and the minor burn. The glittering electric field sparked, as if welcoming the idea of torturing him.

He had a feeling that his finger would remain scarred forever. But hey, the ladies liked scars, right? He'd get the whole hot-macho-hero-thing going… if only on his right index finger.

Thinking of women led to his lack of sex and that led him to thinking of—

The doors to the prison opened, revealing a scantily clad woman. Short blonde hair, dark blue eyes, and a body that would put a twi'lek bar dancer to shame – something out there must like him. A lot. Ironically, this was the exact rescue party he had planned.

"Wow - since when did the miners get new uniforms?" She rolled those gorgeous blue eyes at him.

"I'm not a miner. And please address my face when you talk to me." Ouch. The rescue… wasn't going to plan.

"I'm Atton Rand. Sorry if I don't shake hands – the field only causes minor burns." The woman brushed a stray hair out of her eyes.

"Call me Mærin. What are you doing here?"

"They threw me in jail for some reason. Trumped up charges really – they had no proof!"

"Alright, alright. Don't hurt yourself. What happened here? Where is everyone?" She looked worried and a bit more worn out than when she walked through the door.

"I have no idea. They stopped feeding me shortly after they stopped talking to me – now that's criminal! Anyway, there was some panic about a Jedi being onboard – wait. You're the Jedi, aren't you?"

"I'm not a Jedi any longer."

I didn't know that it was a job you could quit… "Anyway, since Revan's deal I guess they got anxious. She was one angsty chick. After Malak betrayed her, she went all out on him."

"She killed Malak for the Republic – and it was only because he wouldn't turn from the darker path." Her tone had softened and quieted

"Still, I heard that nothing and no one stood in her way. That just goes to show you what an imbecile Malak was. You'd have to be an idiot to cross a woman, especially a dark Jedi, because they tend to get a little crazy in the revenge thing – no offense." She smiled half-heartedly.

"None taken. Have you heard anything about the sedatives on the miners?"

What is this woman talking about?

"I—what?"

"Never mind. Just asking." Her eyes darkened with…something. Uh-oh. What did he say?

"Listen, as much as your half-naked interrogation is fulfilling my darkest fantasies, I'd kinda like to get out now."

She laughed. It was a nice sound, and it lit up her whole face. "Right. Come on, follow me."

Atton wasn't about to complain.

-

Mærin led him to the main computer under the huge flickering facility map. The window behind it was huge, giving the pair a glimpse of the glittering stars and the broken Peragus planet. Atton turned his attention to the computer and grinned.

"Pure pazaak. I'll have a ship ready to leave in—damnit! The whole station's on lockdown with no reversal. Something about the main hub being severed…"

The woman frowned. "That's not standard procedure."

Atton glanced up at her. "No, it's definitely not. And it makes everything a bigger pain in the ass. We don't have a way out."

"There has to be some way. Here, I'll check the rooms for anything we could use."

Atton sighed angrily. "Be my guest." He watched as she scanned the rooms, and he began to lose hope until her eyes lit up. She beamed up at him.

"T3-M4 is near the Ebon Hawk. If he can open some of the fields for us, we'll be home free!" It couldn't be happening. They were going to trust a droid?

"A utility droid?" he groaned. "This can't be good." But she had stopped listening to him in favor of the trash-compactor-on-wheels on the other line.

She swore. "I lost the connection. The droid mentioned something about the mine shafts though…"

Has she lost her mind?

"Are you trying to tell me that you're going to get to the hangar by going through the mine shafts? You're either crazy, brave, or both."

She grinned. "I'll take that as a compliment. Listen, it's our only choice. You can stay up here, just in case—"

"—Just in case you don't make it. Right. There's only droids down there because of some explosions earlier, so don't go overboard with the heroics and get yourself killed. I mean…because I don't want to have to get off this station alone." Mærin nodded. And, unexpectedly, leaned up and kissed him.

"For what you've missed while you were in jail."

He was stunned. "How did you—" But she was already running off to the mine shafts.

Yeah, something out there really liked him.