22 BBY

Abregado-Rae Spaceport, Abregado-rae

The hem of her black cloak swept the ground behind her as she walked down the poorly lit street towards LoBue. It wasn't unusual for the two to seek each other out when they were in the same system, or even just relatively nearby. They both had their own jobs, their own bounties and responsibilities but they did enjoy a little respite every now and then. It did wonders for the stress they often found themselves under.

This time was a bit different though. She could feel it and hear it in his voice. Something had happened. On the last job she'd just finished, she caught wind of rumors of recent events on Geonosis. Something to do with Jedi and Separatists... a battle of sorts. She'd heard rumors of casualties, but it varied widely among the tellers and she wasn't inclined to believe any of it until he told her.

She passed a group of Trandoshins, two of whom were waking a bit awkwardly as they were supporting a third between them. A chill feeling crept down her spine and she paused then turned back to better look at the group. It was then she realized the third one between them was not a Trandoshin, but a Twi'lek... and an unconsciousness one at that.

Vexla knew it was none of her business, but she couldn't turn away. The woman was clearly drugged or severely intoxicated. Either way, she couldn't defend herself and the Trandoshins took that to their advantage. The woman glanced in the direction of LoBue. She knew it annoyed him when she made him wait, but oh what the kark. Sometimes it was good for him to have to re-learn patience. The woman pulled up her hood the followed along after the gang as they traveled deeper into one of the many the seeder sections of the city.

"We need to be quick. Her ssstupid friendsss gonna notice ssshe's missing before long. Don't need no damn law enforcement on our tailsss," one of then hissed as they stopped in the shadow of a rundown building and one of them pushed the Twi'lek against the wall and her head merely lulled to the side. Another reached to start tearing off her dress before letting out a hiss as a there was a clattering sound at the opening of the alleyway. The entire group turned to look at the offender and saw a figure shrouded in a black cloak.

"You better kriff off if you know whatsss good for you," one of the Trandoshins snarled as five out of the six moved towards the figure in a threatening manner, the remaining staying with their victim. Vexla moved forward as well, her hand resting above her westar 35 blaster pistol. "I'm only going to give you one chance to release her," Vexla said coldly, gesturing towards the unconscious woman. Rather than seem alarmed, the gang burst into laughter upon realizing it was a woman beneath the cloak and as such deduced she wasn't a threat. "Oh look here! We got a ourssselvesss a little fighter," one called while the human remained stationary. "Hey, we take her too and we'll have two femalesss to ssshare instead of-" The Trandoshin hadn't seen it coming. The woman had pulled the blaster and shot him right in the jaw, blasting a good chunk of it off. The group was momentarily stunned and then all hell broke loose.

Vexla had thrown off her cloak while rushing at the Trandoshins. She fired twice more, killing one more of them before they entered close combat range. The woman pulled a vibroknife in a reverse grip while dodging the punch of one adversary and plunging the object into the throat of a second that had grabbed her shoulder. She then gasped as the third landed a solid punch to her side, briefly knocking the wind out of her. She moved back out of range of the second punch and baited the Trandoshin to charge her. When he did, she ducked below his fist then brought her knee up between his legs. He cried out and fell to the ground and Vexla fired off two shots into his head before rushing backwards again as one more came at her. A quick glance told her that the remaining one was leaving with the Twi'lek in tow and she made a face. She wasn't going to let that happen.

The last fighter was upon her and she moved quickly to block the blows while trying to get back out of range. Trandoshins were physically stronger than her and she knew it. If he got ahold of her... Vexla cursed loudly as a blow was landed to her stomach and knocked her to the ground. She rolled to the side to avoid his boot as he attempted to stomp down on her. She then kicked him hard in the thigh but he then grabbed hold of her foot. Before he could break it, however, Vexla pressed a button on her gauntlet and the rocket thrusters on her boots came to life. The Trandoshin let out a roar as he was burned and relinquished his hold on her. Three blaster shots found their mark and the Trandoshin fell. Vexla groaned then she slowly got to her feet. Now she just needed to get the last one with the Twi'lek.

The woman turned to the direction he'd gone and her eyes went wide. He hadn't left at all but was standing with his blaster pointed at her, the tail head on the ground beside him. The blaster was smoking and it didn't take her long to figure out why. There was a searing pain in her thigh, Vexla had been shot. An unnatural rage took over the woman and she reached her hand out towards him then constricted her fingers. The blaster fell from his scaled hand as he began clawing at his throat while his feet parted from the ground. He had started rasping out words, but his pleading fell on deaf ears. The crack of his bones echoed through the silent alley and he dropped to the ground, dead.

She heard the sounds of police Droids nearby and her rage slowly began to ebb away. She needed to go. Now. She grabbed her vibroknife from the neck of the one it was embedded in, then her cloak and limped out of the alley. She didn't stop till she was just outside of LoBue and she began searching through the various pouches on her belt until she found what she needed: bacta spray and a med pac. She sighed and tried to spray it before grimacing when nothing came out. "Karking piece of... ugh." She threw the canister aside then simply placed the med pac over the wound, hoping it would make due for now. She put the cloak back on, making sure it covered the hole in her trousers and the wound. She did not want to hear what he'd say if he found out she'd been shot by a mere street thug.

~

LoBue Cantina was one of the more popular spots in the Spaceport city. They had food, drinks, gambling and holoprojectors dotted about, depicting news from various core systems. Vexla lowered her hood as she walked in and took a quick glance around the place. There was a mix of patrons from all over the galaxy as she had expected. Some were just there with friends, some on dates, and some were quite clearly smugglers or worse. Nothing more could be expected from one of the only backwards worlds in the Core area.

It didn't take her long to spot him. The hat was always a dead giveaway, no matter how much he argued the opposite over the years. Vexla slowly made her way towards the corner booth, taking care not to limp and tip him off to her injury. She slid into the seat opposite of him and made a slight face. He was definitely pissed that she'd kept him waiting. He had his toned arms crossed, his hat pulled down enough to cover his eyes as he leaned back and a wooden toothpick between his lips. He didn't even move or otherwise acknowledge her when she sat down. It did annoy her that he would be that way sometimes, but she often would use it against him to tease him. Eventually she'd get his stoic facade to break, of course that then often came at the expense of a long night where neither would end up getting much sleep.

"Get me one of whatever he's having... well, bring two. And uh, that," she said as she half-heartedly pointed a dish on the rather filthy menu and the Droid worker nodded once then he rolled away to get as she had asked. Vexla's eyes raked over the Duros then she exhaled and turned her attention to the holoprojector that was closest to their table. It was set to a news channel from Coruscant, the helm of the Galatic Republic. "It's true then... the galaxy is now in open warfare," she said quietly.

Bane finally tipped his hat back to look at the woman before him. Her platinum hair was as messy as ever, some falling over her shoulder and the rest hung halfway down her back. She was alert, but something in her expression made her seem tired. "S'true," Bane confirmed in his uniquely accented voice as plucked the toothpick from his mouth and tossed it carelessly to the side. "Why do ya think I wanted ya here s'quickly," he continued, a bit of a growl poking through as he spoke.

Vexla turned back to look at him, her fingers resting on the table and idly drumming. "If you had said something to that effect, I probably would have gotten here sooner instead of purposely making you wait," she said, a ghost of a grin appearing of her face as she watched his hand clinch into a fist. He wasn't truly angry at her, she knew, but it did please her to see him get worked up.

The Droid set the drinks down on the table and the steaming bowl of whatever the hell that was. Vexla groaned then she pushed the bowl away and picked up the drink. She finished it all in almost a few gulps. It was strong and served to take a bit of the edge off of the pain growing in her leg. She licked a few drops off of her lips and set the glass down. "Do you know what happened on Geonosis? I've heard... many things," the woman grimaced, "About the Jedi too."

"Ta put it short, the Jedi forces took on the Separatists' Droid army with their own damn clone one. Lost a lot of Jedi warriors through before the clones got there... ov'r a 'undred, I heard." "That many were lost?" Vexla raised an eyebrow. It was stupifying to think that many Jedi had been slaughtered. She'd grown up fearing the Jedi, and what they could do. They always seemed too powerful and untouchable. Of course the man opposite of her had proved more than once that that was untrue and Jango Fett had also done so countless times. Still, she personally didn't want anything to do with the Jedi... or really any other Force-wielder for that matter.

The woman then blinked suddenly. Jango Fett. That had been the rumor she disbelieved the most. "Bane, I heard something else. About Jango. That he was-" "Killed," Cad Bane finished the sentence for her and confirmed it at the same time. "By the Jedi with the lightsaber colour similar to yers," he added on, thinking of the amethyst bladed staff she carried hidden. "Mace Windu." Vexla briefly closed her eyes and put her hand to her forehead. Jango had been the best and for so long. It was sobbering to think that someone like him had been killed. Bane snapped two of his long blue digits and ordered two more drinks from the Droid. Once he had them, he pushed one over to Vexla and then raised his own in front of him. "In memory of Jango then..." he grunted and Vexla nodded once, took her drink and clinked it to his before downing it in its entirety, just as Bane did. At this point she was definitely starting to feel the effects of the drinks, but after the day she'd just had it was most welcome.

Another thought crossed her mind, but this time it was of the younger Fett. "Boba... was he with Jango?" She asked, a slight grimace on her face. She'd only met the boy a handful of times, but she did care for his wellbeing. She knew Jango didn't often let him too far out of his sight, but in this case she'd hoped Boba had been safely away. No child should have to see that.

"He was there... Sing and Bossk got 'em out. He's with them. Safe," Bane grunted as his red eyes flicked over her face, taking in her expression. He knew her well enough to tell that she was worried for the young boy. He wouldn't exactly say that he was worried too, well at least he didnt outwardly show it like Vexla did, but he did owe Jango for making him into the bounty hunter he is. If it wasn't for him taking the Duros under his wing to mentor all those years ago, he wouldn't be nearly as successful as he is now. As such, it was only right for Bane to look after Jango's clone son to some degree in return.

The human woman's voice soon drew him back out of his thoughts. "Hmm... well since Jango's gone, that means that you're now the top hunter," Vexla noted and by the sudden prideful smirk on Bane's face, she realized he'd already been thinking about it. The woman rolled her eyes at him. "At least with this war, there will be plenty and of work and opportunities for me or someone like Embo to surpass you." That briefly wiped the smirk from Bane's face. "Better watch that mouth of yers, lil' lady," he warned as he reached across the small table and first one of his long fingers traced over her lips slowly, then he gripped her wrist, the tips of his digits digging into her skin. It was then Vexla's turn to smirk at the Duro and she batted her eyelashes in a mocking fashion. "Oh? Don't tell me you're threatened by me, Bane," she teased as her green eyes stared right back into his red ones.

The male bared his teeth at the woman, each one of them pointed and lethal-looking. Vexla merely kept smirking and the two stayed like that for a few moments before they were interrupted by the service Droid to see if they needed more drinks. Bane started to snarl something at it, but Vexla stopped him. "Bring us a whole bottle," she said as she pressed some credits into its' servo with her non-captive hand. "Are you planning on staying at your safe house here for a while?" Vexla asked idly as she watched the Droid wheel away once more. "A few days... was gonna invite ya to stay, but not if yer gonna be a brat," The Duro growled as he tightened his grip, hard enough to the point that it was surely going to leave a bruise.

A soft gasp left Vexla's mouth and she looked at the Duro, but then infuriated him further by rolling her eyes once more. "Empty threat, Bane. I know you want me to stay." The Droid returned with the bottle but before she could open it, Bane stood from his seat and took it from her. "Hey!" "Nope... were finishin' this at the safehouse."

The woman cursed lowly under her breath at his audacity then stood from the booth and the pain that suddenly shot through her leg made her cry out. Had he not been there to grab onto her shoulder, she would have fallen. The drinks had started to numb her senses, but now the blaster wound was back to the forefront of her mind. Bane glanced around at the patrons with a low growl emitting from deep in his throat before putting an arm around her and leading her out of the Cantina. The moment they were outside, he turned her to face him. For a brief moment she thought she saw a flicker of genuine worry in his eyes. "What the kark happened?! Ya didn' tell me yer injured, woman!" "I'm not- it's not that ba-" Bane's large hand covered her mouth to silence her and his eyes narrowed as he heard a quiet dripping noise. The red orbs traveled down her frame until he spotted trickles of blood gathering on the ground by her foot. He took the hem of her cloak and pulled it back then let out a feral sounding snarl as he zeroed in on the blaster wound that was only partially covered by the small med pac and had started bleeding profusely.

It didn't take a force user to sense that the Duros was actually angry now. He hated being lied too. She'd done the same damn thing when he mentored her. If she got hurt, she'd always try to take care of it herself and avoid telling him at all costs, even if it was serious. He had always assumed it was pride that was behind it... or shame that she'd gotten injured on jobs, especially when facing off against those that should've been easy to defeat. He did often give her a hard time when the latter happened, but how else would she learn and get better?

"Todo, need ya to find my medical kit and the damn bacta spray," he spoke now into his comm on his gauntlet. "Oh! Mister Bane, what happened? Are you in-" "Just do it. I ain't got time to listen to yer yappin'," Bane growled as his eyes flickered down to Vexla's wound. The bounty hunter then shifted the woman and he put one of her arms around his shoulders and his free arm around her waist. "Safehouse ain't far. Can ya still walk?" he asked gruffly and the woman merely nodded once and with him supporting her, they made their way slowly out into the city.

~

The worst part about the whole ordeal was getting her pants off. The heat from blaster shot had caused some of the cloth around the wound to partially melt onto the skin. In the end, Bane had ended up cutting the cloth away before he could finally tend to the wound. Many curses and groans of pain later, the hole in Vexla's thigh had been cleaned, disinfected and covered with a properly sized med pac. Bane had found some of her clothes in one of the small closets and helped her change, blatantly ignoring when she protested that she could do it herself.

The woman was now lounged on the coach, her leg propped up on the small table in front of it. She'd turned on the holoprojector and was watching another news broadcast about the outbreak of war. Soon, however, her attention was diverted as the Duros re-entered the room holding a single glass filled with some sort of liquor. He sat down on the other side of the couch and Vexla pursed her lips.

"Couldn't be bothered to get me a drink?" She asked, sarcasm dripping from her voice. Bane immediately shot her a look then for emphasis drained the entire glass in one go.

"Right... how did you last job for Jabba go?" Vexla asked after shaking her head a little at his antics.

"Well enough... not much outta the usual. Jus' another skug bandit bitin' off more than he could chew... encroaching on the Hutt's territory," Bane said as he flexed his long, blue fingers. "Didn't put up much of a fight..."

Vexla watched him out of the corner of her eye as he spoke, finding herself inadvertently studying his features. It was rare to see him so unguarded and she couldn't explain it, but she loved seeing him this way. Times like these were too far in between.

"Izrin." His voice broke her from her thoughts and it was only then she also realized he'd been watching her. A soft sigh escaped her lips and her cheeks had turned a faint pink from having been caught staring. "Are you ever going to tell me what that means?" Vexla asked and the Duros gave her a wry smile. "And ruin the fun? Nah." His expression then became unreadable and he gestured to her bandaged wound. "Ya gonna tell me what happened? It's too fresh to have been from yer last job. So how the kark did ya manage to get hurt in the distance from yer damn ship to LoBue?"

While he listened to her explanation about the events, he couldn't help but be mildly impressed... which was saying something considering it took a lot to impress the Duros. It wasn't just anyone that could take on six Trandoshins in close range and escape. Of course he had been responsible for teaching her, but even so. If only he could have seen it all unfold with his own eyes. Watching her fight was something he took pleasure in, though he'd never admit that outright... especially not to her.

Bane turned his eyes back to the holoprojector and there was silence for a moment. "How's yer leg feeling?" He then asked, his tone suddenly shifting to one that was low and husky. Vexla blinked then she pressed her lips together. She recognized the change in his voice instantly. "Uhh... it's not as painful as it was." "Good." "Bane, wha-?" The woman never got to finish her sentence as he'd forcefully yanked her into his lap and kissed her hard, hungry for the taste of her lips.

~

It was either very late at night or very early morning when Vexla woke. She shifted a little on the bed then let out an audible groan. Nearly every part of her body ached but it wasn't a bad feeling. She took a deep breath then slowly shifted herself into a sitting position and she stared around before grimacing and blinking at the light from a holo communicator from across the room. Bane was sitting in a chair, his legs propped up on the table the device was set on, a slim toothpick hanging out of his mouth and talking quietly to what she knew was a new client. Not even one full day of rest and he was already being called out for another job. Just when she was about to flop back down, she heard a familiar beeping coming from somewhere nearby. She pushed herself out of bed and searched through the discarded clothing on the ground before grabbing the offending object: her own holo communicator. She brushed her finger over the top of it then looked over and her eyes met Bane's. The same feeling had washed over them both and it was unshakeable and daunting. This war was going to change everything and it was only the beginning.