Early Afternoon
Anika pauses during their hike through the jungle to level a kick, aiming for the top of a little toadstool shaped mushroom. When it snaps off, she kicks it a second time to send the top chunk of it rolling across the ground.
"For the last time, stop kicking the mushrooms!" Ren grinds out from ahead of her.
He sounds super annoyed. Welcome to the party. She stomps along behind him, still feeling terrible. The medicine he gave her on the shuttle took some of the fever down, but she still feels warm. Her body aches all over, skin overly sensitive. Despite draining a second canteen worth of water, Anika feels incredibly thirsty.
"Are we there yet, Sir?" she whines, ducking beneath the draping membrane of some green growth.
"No."
"Are we almost there?"
"Yes."
"You've been saying we're almost there forever," she remarks.
Commander Ren doesn't even answer her, but she sees his hands curl into fists, his shoulders tensing up. She's testing every last bit of patience he must have, that much she's sure of. He must actually like me, to have not killed me yet. That's sweet.
A bit more walking, up a hill that is slimy with some sort of mold, and they crest the top to see the site they're hoping to scavenge parts from. It's a group of three shuttles, all brought down in the same clearing. The closest one is right at the bottom of the hill, the other two somewhat visible in the distance. Anika frowns when she recognizes the symbols on the side of the vessel.
"These are old Republic ships," she notes curiously.
"Indeed."
The commander starts down the hill, towards the closest ship. She follows, boots sliding on the slimy ground. Her mind is finally able to fixate on something other than her discomfort, which helps.
"They look like they haven't been here that long. Where do you think the pilots are?" Anika asks.
"Not here."
She makes a face at her commander's back, and the clipped answers he's giving her. Any number of insulting things to say spring to her mind, but Anika bites her tongue. She needs to focus on the goal, here. I just need to get off this planet… Without Commander Ren's lightsaber shoved up my-
"Don't step on those," Ren says harshly, stopping her before her foot can land on a broad, fleshy petal sprawled across the ground. "They look predatory."
Anika moves her foot, stepping clear of the thing instead. The ground in this little valley is covered in whatever it is. They look like pale, chunky flowers, laying flat against the dirt. Each one is wide, big enough across that she could lay down on it and still have space. The edges of each petal are lined with narrow, wispy filaments that project up, wavering in the air.
Anika makes a disgusted face at the life form, skirting around it and its friends to follow Ren to the Rebel ship. They round the crash site to find the stern, and she groans when she sees the damage done there. The dampeners are missing, the metal gouged from where someone apparently ripped them out of the vessel.
"Someone had the same idea we did," she says.
The commander looks angry, if she had to guess based on body posture. Since he won't show me his face. Why would he kiss me, but not show me his face? I mean, does he expect to always have sex in the dark? Her core spasms with pleasure at the thought, entirely too strongly. In fact, now that she's paying attention to it… What is going on with her body?
Anika heaves a sigh, but it fails to make her feel better. The sun is only making the moist air seem thicker, like each breath is a chore. Commander Ren stares at the ship for another long minute, before appearing to snap out of it.
"We'll check the others before heading back," Ren orders.
She marches after him obediently, struggling to control the urge to kick at random things like a misbehaving child. She studies Commander Ren as they head deeper into the valley, her gaze taking in the broadness of his back. How are his shoulders so wide… I could climb him like a tree…
She holds back an aroused groan, eyes widening as she realizes something very bad is happening. And yet… she can't stop imagining him under that menacing suit. Pale skin, dark hair… Who cares if he doesn't let me see his face. Fuck a face, literally, he can fuck my-
Anika winces, forcing herself to stare stubbornly at the ground, watching where she's stepping. What is happening to me!? Ugh… Stop it…
Yet she can't stop. Her imagination is way too amped up, urged on by a feverish fixation. What would have happened, if she hadn't said Matt's name? Would Ren have continued his violent assault on her? Her body responds positively, liking that thought. Anika scans his muscular frame from behind before she catches herself again, heaving a sigh.
Stop checking out Commander Ren… stop checking out Commander Ren…
She tries to think of something else. Anything else. She searches the jungle around them, meaning to take in the scenery. But it only makes her angrier, reminding her of their terrible situation. She squints her eyes at the sight of flesh-colored, tall fungi clustered nearby. Yep. Those mushrooms all look like-
The commander stops suddenly, and she nearly runs into him. "What are you doing!?" Ren snaps.
"N-Nothing," she insists. Trying to not undress you with my eyes, Sir… Looking at the phallus shrooms instead, Sir…
His helmet cocks off center as he stares at her, taking a step closer. "If you're feeling worse, you need to tell me."
"Nope. I'm good," Anika bluffs.
His hand comes to under her chin, turning her face up to look into his mask. Arousal flushes through her body intensely, making her gasp, lips parting. She feels like she's ready to rip her nails into his pants, shred them apart to reach- Fuck! Stop it, Anika!
"Y-You don't want to do that right now, Commander. Trust me," she stutters out, her fingers wrapping around his thick wrist. Oh, kriff, is everything on him thick!?
Whether Ren has read her mind, or can literally see the arousal on her face, she has no idea. But he drops his hand from her, stepping back quickly.
"Oh."
That's the highest pitched his voice has ever managed to sound, she notes. "Right," Anika breathes. Her eyes fall down his body, lingering at the bottom of that stupidly long top he's wearing. She has the urge to drop to her knees and wiggle up under it, to paw at his crotch like some demented, horny gremlin. I always knew it. I'm going to die of horniness.
"That's a new symptom," he remarks quietly.
"Sure is…"
"The infection must be increasing your sex drive, similar to its effect on aggression," Ren theorizes. "It also seems to be progressing rapidly…"
"We should hurry," she suggests. Otherwise you're going to have to tie me up… Actually, maybe we should take our time…
"Hurrying sounds like a plan," Ren agrees. He starts for the second shuttle, the one they're halfway to.
But Anika looks off to the side, where the third shuttle is sitting a distance away. "Why don't I go check that one? To save time?" She doesn't add that it would also give her some space to hopefully cool off.
Ren hesitates. "We should stay together."
But Anika's already stubbornly marching to the third ship, trying to walk off the newest, most awkward symptom. "It'll be fine, Sir. I'll yell if something tries to eat me," she calls back to him.
Not Long After
Anika isn't sure if Commander Ren's had any luck with his shuttle, but hers has exactly what they need. She gets to work quickly, relieved she brought the proper tool. She's loosening the bolts to release the first dampener, focused on working quickly and getting off Planet Hell. But her hands are a little shaky, her mind distant. Her tongue is dry with thirst, and it doesn't feel like the fever reducer is even working anymore.
"Well. What have we found?"
She jumps at the male voice, distinctly different from Commander Ren's tone. Anika turns around, her grip on the wrench tightening. Three men stand behind the shuttle, watching her. They've snuck up on her, and something about their appearance reassures her they don't mean well.
"I don't want any trouble," Anika says warily.
The middle one grins, but it's not the friendliest expression. The longer she surveys the men, the more she realizes they look sickly. Their faces are flushed a deep red, a rash creeping up their necks. She would bet there's more rash underneath their dirty scavenger clothing.
"You crash here too?" the oldest looking one asks, stepping forward. "We're almost done fixing up our ship. Maybe we'll give you a ride."
Anika takes a step back, bumping into the metal hull behind her. "Um. No, thanks."
The guy in the middle laughs, his smile growing wider. "Aw, don't be like that," he taunts.
Her patience snaps, and with it, the fragile bit of control she'd been clinging onto. Her temper rises as quickly as her voice. "Do you not understand Basic? I said no," she snarls. "Fuck off, you Gamorrean nutsack."
The smile falls from his red, sweaty face, and the man lunges for her. In any other situation like this, Anika would have run. If the decision was fight or flight, she was firmly a flight kind of girl. But the resurging fever has burned her last shred of self-preservation, and she finds herself raising the wrench when the guy dares to come at her.
She cracks the man across the face, pleased when he staggers back and she sees blood. She raises the tool to hit him again, surprised by the violent urge. She's never really hurt anyone before in her life. First time for everything.
But his companion is too quick, and she cries out when he snags her arm, bending it painfully back. The wrench comes free, falling to the dirt. She struggles, attempting to kick at him, but he's much stronger. Anika can only flail and scream when the man begins dragging her, backwards towards the open garage bay of the crashed ship.
He tugs her up through the garage door, hand sliding up near her chin as he manhandles her. She angles her jaw, rewarded when she can sink her teeth into his hand. His strangled yell only makes her chomp down harder, coppery blood meeting her taste buds.
"Bitch!" he grunts, shoving her hard. She loses her balance at the way he flings her, colliding with a repair bench and falling.
"She's feisty," the older man remarks appreciatively as he joins them in the garage. Gag.
Anika scrambles to her feet near the workbench, scowling at the two men that block her exit. The one she bit is raging, his expression near murderous. The other one looks like he's having fun, and he takes a leering step closer. She hasn't managed to hurt him yet, but her eyes fall to the repair bench. Don't want gizka brains to feel left out…
Someone's left tools dumped in a mess across the bench, and she grabs up a screwdriver. The uninjured man creeps closer, eyeing the tool in her hand.
"It doesn't have to be like this," he suggests. "We all need to burn off some steam, that's all."
The only person I want burning my steam off is Commander Ren. Or Matt. Or both. She's going to need to file that away for a future fantasy.
"No. Not after she bit me," the other man interjects. "I'm killing this little bitch after we have our turns."
Anika growls aggressively, fingers tightening around the screwdriver. She's ready to throw herself at the man recklessly, but she doesn't have to. They are interrupted by a scream from outside, all of them turning to look back towards the garage door.
The third man who had remained outside suddenly appears, slamming into the wall across from the open door. He crashes into a heap on the floor.
"What the…" the man closest to her breathes, and it's her turn to smile.
"You guys are so screwed," Anika laughs.
Commander Ren appears, stepping up into the garage of the ship. He says nothing, just stands there like a hulking mass of fury. Oh, that is so hot…
The man nearest Anika grabs at the tool bench, taking a torch and charging the commander. He makes it halfway there before Ren moves, raising a hand in the air. The man is swept upwards off his feet, the torch clattering onto the metal beneath his toes. He splutters and chokes, hands grasping at his own throat as if he can claw the force off.
Commander Ren's head tilts, his fingers and thumb drawing closer together. The noises stop, the man's already reddened face turning purple.
"Fuck this," the last man swears, eyes round with fear. He takes off running, shoving passed Anika towards the front of the vessel.
Oh, not so fast! "Where do you think you're going!?" she shouts after him, taking off to chase him. She's operating in a blind, feral rage, and follows him through the ship's compartments.
He scrambles to open the main hatch, leaping out of the ship into the jungle. Anika pursues, hopping down and racing across the dirt to try to catch him. Logically, she has no chance of stopping the man. He's much taller and stronger than her. What am I doing…? I hate running.
She hesitates, coming to a stop and panting to try to catch her breath. Her clothes are soaked in sweat thoroughly now, and she feels like her insides are a dehydrated sponge. The man keeps running, right onto one of the translucent, meaty flowers that sprawls across the ground.
Anika's jaw drops open when the whole structure snaps up, folding in half the moment his foot falls in the center. The man is caught as the petals seal closed, the filaments tying together neatly at the edges. Most disturbing is that she can still see him inside, flailing. That is…not right. That is so not right.
She stares, horrified, as his motions continue, growing less frantic. Commander Ren comes to a stop next to her as the man falls still.
"I hate this entire planet," Anika says weakly.
"I agree."
For a long moment they're both silent, watching the grotesque thing begin moving rhythmically. It's sloshing about, the petals slowly tinting pink, then red. Commander Ren turns from the sight as if to head back towards the shuttle, but stops. His glove raises to her face, hovering near her mouth.
"You're bleeding. Are you hurt?"
"Oh, no. I bit him," Anika explains, waving towards the man-eating fungus flower.
Evening
They get the dampeners back to the ship, and Anika starts work on repairs after another canteen of water. It does little to quench her thirst, but she feels better now that escape is in sight. Most of the repairs are simple enough, and she does those first along with removing the safety constraints on the engines.
Installing the dampeners, however, is challenging because of their location. They're tucked behind the hyperdrive, and she'll need to strain around it to reach them. She sets up her flashlight to give some extra light before looking around the engine room. The commander has ducked out, apparently. Where did he go? Ugh, I can't stand this humidity anymore.
Anika peels her shirt off, following with the undershirt to leave only her bra. Her skin looks flushed, practically swollen with blush. The muscle aches have stopped though, that much she's grateful for. Of course, that could be a bad sign…
She has to lean over one of the metal guard pieces for the engine, but finds the metal is cooler than her skin. She sighs, letting herself practically lie against it. It feels soothing as she gets to work loosening the remains of the old dampeners out of place.
"You should take another dose of the fever red-"
Commander Ren stops short, and Anika pauses in her work to look back towards him. He's hovering just inside the hatch to the engine room. It's then she realizes how ridiculous she must look. She's sprawled out, ass up, topless, laying on top of the hyperdrive.
"I uh… I got hot."
The commander says nothing. She spots the medication in his hand. "Did you bring that for me?" she tries asking.
He's still silent, and Anika turns herself into a more modest position, reclining on her back instead. But that results in her exposing her front, and a noise issues from his mask at the sight of her chest. He jerks, so slightly that it's barely noticeable. But her eyes fly to his hips, to the way he shifts them, suggesting sudden discomfort. Ooh…
Anika wets her lips. "…Sir?" she asks, toying with the strap of her bra.
"Don't-Don't do that," Ren stutters in a growl.
She pouts with irritation. "Why not? I've been wanting you all day."
If she had any ability to feel embarrassment, she'd be cringing right now. Who am I? I don't say things like that. But she doesn't care that she's acting unusual. Her brain is a rabid mess screaming for an outlet.
"You're sick," Ren snaps. She lets the strap slide down her shoulder, lips parting at the angry noise of frustration it draws from her superior. The cup of her bra is barely hanging on, hiding her nipple from view.
Ren drops the container of medicine, storming towards her. Anika gasps when he grabs her hips roughly, dragging her down the curving metal guard. He pulls her thighs against his body, only their pants in the way. She's all too happy to wrap her legs around his hips, arching her back and pulling him towards her. His fingers travel down, digging into her bottom, groping her flesh hungrily.
Anika's eyes slide closed in bliss. Yes, yes… I need this… Make me feel better… She opens her lids, reaching out to search for the buckle to his pants. Ren stiffens, his hips abruptly jerking back from where they'd been pressing into her a moment before. He releases his hold of her rear, grabbing her hand to stop her.
"Your chest," he says weakly.
"What about it?" Anika asks hazily, trying to shake his grip. She snakes the fingers of her free hand up his thigh, searching, but he growls.
"Look at your chest," Ren hisses.
She rolls her eyes, looking down at the tops of her breasts. But her brow crumples at the sight of the rash there, curving up her cleavage, spreading itself over her skin. That's not good…
"I think I'm infected too," the commander admits. "Though it doesn't seem to be advanced yet." He pulls away from her, attempting to gently untangle her legs from his waist.
Anika makes a noise of protest, trying to cling onto him. Wait! I'll feel better if you just- She searches his mask with pleading eyes, but he must not be as far gone as she is. Ren loses his patience, prying her legs from around his waist and staggering back once free. Asshole!
"I have to get you off this planet, not fuck you in the engine room," he snarls furiously.
"Does it have to be an either-or situation?" she argues.
"That's it."
She scrambles back in alarm when he grabs for her, but the commander doesn't let her get away. He grabs her arm, towing her from the engine room.
"What are you doing!?" Anika demands, jerking her arm angrily.
"Injecting you with an anti-fungal and a sedative," Ren snaps.
"You don't even know that it's a fungal infection," Anika points out hotly, mostly for the sake of arguing. They've both reached a flash point in their tempers, she can tell Ren is about as livid as she's been. I knew it. He's not a fungi when he's sick…
He tugs her into the tiny medbay, shoving her down to sit on the table. "We're on a planet overrun with fungus, anti-fungal is a reasonable guess," he rants, yanking open drawers until he finds what he's searching for.
Anika yips in pain when he injects her without warning. "Okay, but you can't sedate me," she snaps out. "You need me to install the dampeners-"
"I'll figure it out," Ren interrupts. "I've done it before."
A more sensible version of her would be curious about that. Why would the Commander of the First Order do his own service work? Anika doesn't even question it though. It's not important. All that's important to her overheated mind is that he rejected her poor attempts at seduction, and it makes her cantankerous. She hops down off the table when he tries to come near her with the sedatives.
"I don't want to be sedated," she insists, narrowing her eyes at the visor of his mask.
"Too bad. If I get distracted by you, we'll end up dying here," he says, prowling closer. She dances back, out of the medbay.
It's like a childish game of tag, and he's It. She feels compelled to be difficult for him, to punish him for not giving her what she wants. She gains ground, backing down the narrow corridor. Ren makes a noise of irritation, stopping his pursuit.
"You're forgetting that I don't have to use sedative to knock you out," he threatens. "I was just trying to do it the nicer way."
Anika stops, eyes widening with understanding. "Wait-"
Everything goes black.