Ran watched as Kadira finally slapped her hand against the jetpack victoriously. It had taken her a good two hours of work, but apparently she had discovered whatever glitch the system had.

"I have a question," Ran spoke up, leaning back against the wall. He had finally stopped pacing when Kadira had thrown a hydrospanner at him.

"Ask away," Kadira replied, glancing up at him as she began to piece the jetpack back together.

"Laniff's armor colors. I would think he'd want something a bit more… camouflaged."

Kadira laughed softly. "You haven't spent much time around Mandos, have you? We don't tend to worry about being inconspicuous. Actually, we have a saying, 'It's one thing to see us coming, it's another to do something about it'."

Ran chuckled slightly. "I can understand why. But do the colors have meaning, or do you just pick at random?"

Kadira tightened a bolt on the jetpack's casing, considering her answer. "It depends. Some Mandos just pick colors they're fond of. Others choose the colors for symbolism. For Laniff, the red stands for honoring a father and the goldish-orange stands for both vengeance and a lust for life."

"Vengeance?" Ran asked, but Kadira shook her head.

"Not my story to tell," she responded, pounding the side of the jetpack to be sure the panel was held securely in place. "Maybe if you two could get along for more than five minutes you could find out why he chose his colors."

"It's not my fault he doesn't like me," Ran said, shrugging.

Kadira shook her head slightly. "It's not that he doesn't like you, he just doesn't trust you yet. After all, he was correct in saying we don't know much about you," she raised her hands as Ran opened his mouth to retort. "I'm not saying we need your life story, Ran. I'm just saying that if you're going to keep secrets then it'll take some time for Laniff to trust you. But he will come around."

"…And what about you?" Ran asked quietly. "Do you trust me?"

Kadira sighed and set the finished jetpack aside, removing her helmet so she could rub her face with one hand.

"I trust you to tell me what I need to know. I trust you to watch my back, to keep me from getting shot," she studied him, seeing the dark look that crossed his face for a moment before disappearing. "But Ran? …I think if it came down to it, you'd put the mission before anything else. And I don't mean these individual scattered missions. I mean whatever the big picture of all this is. Whatever you're working towards, or for, I think that will always come first." She smiled slightly, lifting one shoulder in a shrug. "So I just have to make sure I don't get in a spot where you have to choose. Because if I find myself relying on you to find a way out for me, but you have to make a choice between your ultimate goal and getting me out…" Kadira shrugged again, seemingly unwilling to finish the thought. "So I guess the answer is yes, I trust you, so long as I don't put you in a position of having to choose. If that ever happens, I know I'm on my own."

Ran opened his mouth to answer, then closed it again, pain in his eyes. "I wish I could say none of that is true," he said finally.

Kadira smiled slightly, shrugging again. "It's ok. I'm a Mandalorian, Ran. We've fought other people's wars for generations. If worse comes to worst, I'll always have my vod at my back."

Ran nodded slowly, letting out a long breath. How he'd managed to hire a pilot with Kadira's insight, he would never know.

::Reporting in,:: Laniff's voice came through the comlinks, causing Kadira and Ran to breathe a sigh of relief. They had both been getting anxious about Laniff's long silence. ::What, did you miss me?::

"Usually, reporting in means you actually have something to report," Ran pointed out, irritation coloring his voice.

::Calm down, aruetii. Good news is I've managed to locate Blok. Bad news is he's being kept in a holding cell.::

"What does security look like?" Kadira asked, smiling slightly as Ran rolled his eyes skyward, obviously fighting the urge to fling a comeback at Laniff.

::Nothing too fancy. Thankfully the Empire seems to lack imagination as well as good armor. Problem is, busting Blok out is going to make some noise.::

"How much noise?" Ran asked suspiciously.

::Oh you know, detonator against the wall. I'm guessing I'll need three in order to bust through the block's walls, but after that it's a straight shot into the jungle. The Imps will be chasing the alarms for a few minutes, especially if Kadira can use the Vanguard to hack their systems, set off a couple extra alarms.::

"One problem. There's a reason Iziz is the only major city on Onderon," Ran said, grimacing.

::…And that reason is?::

"Onderon is known for its rather... aggressive wildlife. In the Mandalorian Wars criminals were placed outside the walls of the city as punishment. Apparently most of them didn't last long without the protection the walls offered. Granted, the jungle's population has decreased since then, thanks to a couple breakouts of disease, but the locals still warn outsiders not to go past the treeline," Ran explained.

::Lovely… Either way, we'll have to risk it. I'm not seeing another way that doesn't end with me getting shot in the back.::

Ran nodded slowly, seeming to agree. "Alright, but move as fast as you can through the jungle. And I want you in constant comm contact."

"I can make it to the jungle and cover him," Kadira offered. "He'll need all the weapons he can get, and he won't have his armor or HUD to feed him information."

Ran nodded. "Good idea. Laniff, you catch that?"

::Sure did. I'll set the charges and meet you in the jungle just after nightfall. Kadira, can you control setting off the alarms with your HUD?:: Laniff asked.

"I can. And this way I'll have eyes on the base, so I can direct the stormtroopers away from you more easily."

::Sounds like we have a plan. I'll check in again right before I blow the charges. Stay safe, Kad'ika. Don't get eaten before I get to you.::

"Copy," Kadira replied dryly. "Oya!"

::Oya!:: Laniff repeated the cheer that was often spoken at the beginning of a hunt before signing off the comm.

Kadira hunkered down in the semidarkness, waiting for Laniff to make his move. Her new jetpack was strapped to her back, its status light glowing green within her HUD. Her DC-17m rifle was wedged firmly against her shoulder, the sniper attachment already in place. She had switched her HUD's systems over to voice command, allowing her to control the hacked alarm system without having to let go of her rifle.

"Anything on Coorta?" she asked, activating the comm channel that allowed her to keep in contact with Ran.

::Nothing yet. I'm starting to think she might already be here.::

"Wouldn't surprise me," Kadira responded with a grimace. "She's known for staying a step ahead of everyone else."

::Watch your back out there.::

"Copy," Kadira replied, glancing up at her HUD's 360 view. So far the only life signs it had picked up were keeping their distance.

::You two ready?:: This time it was Laniff's voice that came through the comm. Kadira adjusted her rifle slightly, pressing her helmeted cheek to the stock.

"Ready when you are," she responded.

::Ready here,:: Ran confirmed.

Kadira's HUD adjusted sharply to the sudden blinding flash of light, her helmet's audio dampeners working hard to shut out most of the noise from the blast. Two figures darted out of the newly made hole in the base's wall, making a dash for the jungle. Kadira fired two shots at the security droids that appeared behind them, sending both to the ground in smoking heaps.

"Alarms, east quadrant." A second set of alarms began blaring alongside the ones the blast had originally set off. She could hear the shouted orders of the stormtroopers over the comm channels she was listening in on, giving her a good idea of the response the alarms were creating. When the first troops reached the east quadrant and reported a false alarm, Kadira set off three more quadrants. She knew protocol required each alarm to be checked before it could be discounted. Finally her HUD picked up two running figures headed directly towards her position. As Laniff and Block burst through the trees, she saw Laniff raise his weapon.

"Laniff, if you shoot me I swear I will make you find your own ship to get home," Kadira warned, rising to her feet. She kept her rifle pointed towards the ground, but never far from a firing position.

"Just being careful, vod," Laniff responded, lowering his weapon. "Kadira, meet Zul Blok. Zul, this is an old friend of mine."

Blok nodded sharply, glancing towards the base. "We should keep moving," his voice was calm and deep, showing no nervousness over his hasty escape.

"Ran's waiting for us on the Vanguard. We'll use the jungle for cover as long as we can. After that, we'll move as quickly as possible through the streets."

Zul nodded, seeming to accept the plan without question. "Two things. One, there's information hidden on Dxun that I need to access before we flee the system. Second, I'll be needing a blaster."

Kadira tossed him one of her pistols at a nod from Laniff. "We'll talk to Ran about getting you to Dxun once we reach the ship. For now, let's get moving before something large decides we look like a tasty meal."

A/N: Thoughts? I really do love reviews! :)