Data Log: 7 - Tatooine (Desert Rats & Droids)
As she slowly began to gain consciousness she began to hear voices. "What the hells a matter with you bringing this twi'lek woman on board?" said a growling voice. "We'll we all know how much Twi'lek women catch his eye. she is beautiful after all. Even the pattern on her lekku is exquisite" suddenly she felt a smooth touch as if someone was stroking her right lekku. Without thinking and as if by instinct her hand grabbed the hand and squeezed as tight as possible. "Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhh let me GOOOO!" yelled a small voice. Still unable to see completely she could visualize large blurred figures around her. All at once they began laughing. Then someone opened the door and walked closer. She didn't know why but she could sense that this person was the same one who saved her. She gently let go of the small arm and the creature backed away shouting at the man "She's insane! The hell's wrong with you Marphelo!?" 'Marphelo' that must be his name she thought."Give it a minute dear" he said calmly. "Drink this..." he said as the blurred figure held a cup to her mouth. She drank and the moment it touched her lips, her sight, smell, hearing, and all other senses began to return along with a sharp pain. She gasped with pain as she began to sit up. Looking up again she saw 4 figures behind Marphelo. A Wookie, a Human, a Geonotian, and what looked like a protocol droid that had been modified and with a rifle on it's back.
The wookie had light brown fur and a blaster bow along with a sash around it's chest which appeared to have tick marks on them. From what little she knew about Wookies she knew in their culture they usually marked themselves or an object based on the number of kills and this Wookie had a lot. It's eyes however were a bright blue. Never seen or heard of in the history of the Wookies she knew. The human was a averaged sized human woman with a large black tattoo across her face. It went from ear to ear to where it looked like a mask over her eyes. But the eyes. Her eyes were a constellation of colors. As if her eyes themselves had a star cluster inside. She carried a large sniper rifle on her back and had a face of someone with a history. It was stern and unmerciful. Another thing noticed was this peculiar wooden necklace she wore. It was comprised of small squares which had gibberish written on them. The Geonotian was small but wore a large backpack, had on a helmet and a look of kindness. She could tell immediately that the thing on his back was a medical supply pack. The protocol droid while resembling most appeared to have had extensive additions and modifications. While most protocol droids moved fairly rigidly, this one's movement as it sat down and tapped it's feet on the floor was extremely agile. "We should just kill her" said the droid coldly as it looked at her. With this sudden change of feeling she immediatly moved to grab her blasters but they weren't there. "Looking for these i'm guessing" said the human as she held up Malana's belt. "Those are-" Malana began saying until the woman cut her off "You know your husband went to a lot of trouble to make sure we didn't kill you. I almost went ahead and did it anyways but looking at you now it would have been a shameful waste" she snapped as she gave Marphelo a piercing look. "Cmonnnnn Chara. Cut me a little slack here" he said with an annoyed voice. "I don't like her" Chara began ranting pointing towards Malana "Her whole species are deceitful and lowlife slave scum who would turn anyone in for a handful of credits!" Normally Malana was used to the negative view's of Twi'leks throughout the galaxy but something about the way she said it struck a nerve. "If I wasn't so badly injured..." Malana said looking up at her piercing gaze "I'd put that blaster down your throat and keep firing till there was nothing left to fire through" Everyone in the crew started laughing "Wroaaah arrr waaawaaa" laughed the Wookie patting Chara on the shoulder. "Hmmmmm *click* Tatao is *click* right. Mmmmmm Let em *click* have a moment" said the Geonotian.
"Don't get your wings clipped again Mazan" Chara said coldly as she walked out the room. As everyone left the room Chara turned around before leaving "These belong to you" she sneared throwing Malana's blasters and belt in her lap. "If I see so much as a finger go 1 millimeter towards them, your head and bones are mine" she said clenching her fists. Finally she left the room. Upon everyone leaving she realized how cramped it was. It was a bright white room with the black mattresses providing the only color. "Sorry about the crew" said Marphelo apologetically while scratching his head. "They're a little difficult at times but they mean well. Chara especially. You'll never meet someone more dedicated to protecting those she cares about. She just got a thing about Twi'leks. Toydarians too. I don't why. She still hasn't opened up about it much" While he talked Malana was thinking every way possible as to how to kill everyone and get off wherever she is. "Don't bother" Marphelo said as he raised her head with his hand. "You'd need another 2,000 years training to beat me and Chara... She could kill all of us if she wanted to but she has more important things in mind." Malana couldn't explain it. Her mind was screaming 'Grab the blasters now you fool!' but her body didn't do it. Her hands didn't even move. What was wrong with her? She never hesitated killing before. She would kill whole families and burn villages to the ground but against this man and his crew she couldn't even speak with a defiant tone. It was as if their presence could be physically felt. Especially Chara and Marphelo. "So what are you guys?" She asked leaning back. Marphleo leaned back as well, looked up and began speaking "Well, to some people we're just theives and smugglers. A couple of us have a lot of blood on their hands. But now with the advent of this new so called Empire... I'd like to think our ideology has begun to switch. We are now becoming an alliance. Against all that the Empire has done." he said defiantly. "So then you're just another group of Old Republic schemers who are looking to sit on their thrones again" Malana said looking down. "No..." He said calmly "I have no love for the Old Republic or it's methods... Just thinking of the things done in it's name to maintain control makes me sick. If there is to be something new it must be something different. A vessel for peace not war. Democracy has failed us then tyranny will fail us now. We must find another way.
"It had been a long time since Malana heard someone talk like this... It brought back many feelings she had once thought destroyed. Including hope, belief, and pride. "So you aren't part of the new rebellion?" she asked him this time looking into his eyes to see his reaction. Looking back he said "No. They want a return to the Old Republics form of democracy that got us into this mess in the first place... Besides" before making his final statement he said "- their methods of obtaining victory are no different than the Empire. They lie, manipulate, and place the very people they intend to rescue at risk. The Imperials are traitors to the Republic... But the rebels are traitors to morality itself." Malana sighed and looked through a small window near her. All she could see was desert stretching into eternity. "What ship is this?" she said looking out the window. "It's model number is GTR-9928... But you can just call it The Voyager" He then sat back down beside Malana. Rummaging through a bag on his side he pulled out a wooden art piece. "I'm sorry... This was all I was able to salvage from the ship before they destroyed it" He said as he held it in front of her. She instantly recognized it. It was her families Kalikori. It was a prized heirloom passed down by her people where each generation would make a mark detailing the family history. Malana thought she had either lost or destroyed it but there it was. "Where did you find this?" she said somberly. Marphelo spoke quietly "It was underneath the cockpit, and lodged between wires and cables. It looked like it had been there for awhile. To be honest... I'm surprised it hadn't been damaged of anything. I mean it was right next to wires and-" he stopped before he could finish as he noticed a tear fall from her face. Malana had for years tried holding in the emotions of loss and everything that had plagued and haunted her entire existence but something in her felt safe now. As if now she could release. Let go. Express the anger, hatred, pain, and sorrow she felt. She couldn't explain it. It was like the feeling of needing to throw up but through tears and before she knew it she was gripping the Kalikori tears streaming as a wimper turned into a full scream as she broke down. If someone had told her she could do this in front of a total stranger she would have probably laughed and shot them. But now she couldn't stop. The tears jsut kept streaming down. The agonizing weight of her memories were so great she was having trouble breathing. Without warning Marphelo held her close to his chest and whispered to her "I'm sorry my love..." His chest was warm and strong. Her instinct was to hit him and push away. She tried all she could but he just held tighter. Finally she stopped as his grip tightened and he held her head to his chest while her tears soaked his shirt. They sat there for what seemed forever and, most likely due to the sudden rush of emotions, she began to lose consciousness. "Malana!... Malana!" he yelled holding her as her eyes rolled back. Hitting a button on the wall he yelled into an intercom "Chara! Get Bailey in here RIGHT NOW! She's going into shock!" And again she closed her eyes. As she did she had hoped it would be for the last time. The embarrassment of having revealed her feelings after all this time, and to a stranger no less, was inexcusable. Death now could be the only thing she could hope upon hope for... But for some reason the feeling went as soon as it came. along with everything else as the Geonotian ran in opening his med kit... She closed her eyes and left into a sleep she had hoped she would never return from.