Hours Later
Their landing on the planet is far from graceful, though Anika can hardly blame Kylo. The fuel gauge was already hovering on empty before they hit the atmosphere. She's actually impressed he managed to put the ship down in one piece. The rough descent and bumpy touchdown left her heart racing, however.
Anika stays buckled into her seat while the engines sputter and die, letting her pulse stop racing before she attempts to get up. Next to her, Darial seems to be on the same page. Her friend is still clinging onto the harness, looking faint.
"That wasn't the smoothest landing I've ever experienced," Hux comments from the copilot's seat.
Kylo stands, striding from the front of the shuttle towards the engine room. "Maybe you should put it on a fucking list," he retorts sharply.
Hux shoots a venomous look at his retreating back. "That doesn't even make sense…"
Kylo stomps into the engine room, and Anika hears him bashing something around a moment later. She closes her eyes, hoping he will stop. Unfortunately, the loud banging only continues. It sounds like he's taking his stress out from the rocky landing on whatever he can find.
Well, fuck…She sighs, unclipping her harness to stand on shaky legs.
When she joins Kylo at the engine room, the source of the noise is obvious. He's ripped the thermocouples out and trashed them, though it looks like they were already worse for wear. Both bear evidence of burn out, probably from running the ship on fumes. They were probably ruined before he touched them. One's laying, dented and smashed in on the ground. The other Kylo hurls into the metal hull of the shuttle while she watches.
Anika stays in the doorway, knowing from experience that it is best to give the commander space when he is having one of his rage moments. Before she knew Kylo as anything more than his reputation, she would have fled in the other direction. Standing at a distance is an improvement… She wants to do more, to say something that could cheer him up.
Anika struggles to think of anything that would lift his mood. Everything has gone to shit, after all, so she doesn't have much to work with. As she tries to think of a way to reassure him, he turns from her. His shoulders are hunched, fists clenched. Everything about his body language looks like he's closing himself off with his anger.
She frowns, getting frustrated with herself. She has no idea what she can do, despite the overwhelming urge to try to help. Isn't that how we ended up here? You tried to help and look how that went. Maybe if she'd stayed out of it… Maybe Hux and Kylo's original plan would have been better.
She can't help but consider that perhaps she's just a chaos magnet. Every time I try to help anything, it all seems to go badly…How long before he figures out he's better off without me? All I can do is shoot my mouth off and cause trouble-
"Stop it," Kylo snarls, rounding on her. She recoils at the anger in his expression.
"I-I just…" She stammers, then gives up. Kylo, furious, is enough to silence even her.
"You what?" he asks. "You were just trying to take the blame all for yourself?"
Anika searches his expression, shrugging. It only seems to irritate him further, as he narrows his eyes, crossing the engine room in three short steps.
"I haven't exactly helped," she mutters.
She gives a surprised yelp when he moves quickly enough to startle her. He grabs her to tow into the small room, out of sight of the main hold.
"You don't think you've helped?" Kylo asks lowly, pressing her into the wall. She doesn't get to answer him, cut off by his mouth finding hers. The fuck?
His kiss catches her off guard, and she takes a moment to react to his lips colliding roughly with hers. He growls with impatience, capturing her bottom lip with his teeth to earn a sound from her. The small gasp is enough for him to slide his tongue against her lips, finding entrance. She kisses him back, overcoming her confusion. I thought he was pissed, not wanting to make out.
She reaches up to find his face, caressing him, urging him to keep going. His tongue is soft against hers, some of his roughness dwindling. The longer they kiss, the more she can feel the tension leaving his jaw beneath her fingertips. He relaxes against her, his body pressing her into the metal.
"Ren, I must object to you mounting her on my shuttle," Hux complains.
Anika jerks backwards with a second surprised yelp, bumping her head on the hull. Hux is visible over Kylo's shoulder, lingering in the door way. He's got a smug little smirk on his face at getting to interrupt them. Ugh, hate him. Kylo just heaves a breath, letting it out with a low grumble.
"I will kill you," he threatens quietly.
Hux only rolls his eyes. "You've been threatening me with that for years. I'm afraid it has lost its edge."
Kylo brings his fist to the wall above Anika's shoulder, lining his knuckles up with the metal to slowly push his frustration into it. She looks up to catch his troubled eyes, burning into hers. On impulse, she raises her hand to his cheek. He doesn't object to the contact in front of Hux, letting her stroke his skin with her thumb. His gaze softens, his fist falling from where he'd been attempting to burrow it into the metal.
"We should check the atmospheric sensors," Kylo admits. Though he's speaking to Hux, his eyes stay focused on Anika. She swears she feels him press his face into her touch, seeking out more.
"Already done," Hux replies briskly. "Air is breathable, low particulate level. We should be good to open the hatch if need be."
Kylo pulls away from her reluctantly, turning to face the other man. "Any ID signatures turn up on the ground scan?"
The redhead shakes his head. "None. This truly does seem to be a deserted world."
"That makes it ideal for us to hide out while we wait," Kylo concludes. "It shouldn't be much longer."
Hux nods. "Good. Perhaps your Knights will be here by the time I'm done with my shower."
Anika raises her eyebrows with disbelief. A shuttle as small as this one has an incredibly small reservoir for water. A shower would probably drain it dry.
"You aren't showering," she says bluntly.
The general gives her a disbelieving look. "I'm not? Says who?" he retorts. "I stink like a cantina floor."
"She's right," Kylo agrees. "We need to reserve the water in case of emergency."
"What emergency?" Hux demands. "Aren't your lackeys coming?"
Anika stares at him like he's an idiot. Which he is. "We don't know that there is drinkable water on this planet, so just in case…" she points out. "I'm sure we won't be here long, but it's better to be safe than sorry."
Hux splutters with annoyance, and Anika has to bite her tongue. It's so tempting to point out that they are only in this situation because he didn't get his shuttle checked. But she doesn't want to antagonize when they're already all stressed out. She presses her lips together, ignoring his huffs as he marches back into the main hold. Nerfherder…
"I'm going out to check the landing site," Kylo says, heading towards the hatch. "Stay on board until I give the all clear."
She follows him into the main hold, curiously watching the hatch slide open and the ramp descend. The view out of the front of the shuttle is nothing but sand, so she's curious what she'll see with the door open. At first, she can make out nothing, the sunlight too bright. She squints as Kylo exits, letting her eyes adjust.
They're on a beach, or at least at the edge of one. She approaches the exit, pausing to take in the surroundings. Their loading ramp rests at the edge of a ridge. It looks like the terrain they're parked on is hard dirt with some scraggly plant growth. Past the little ridge, sand takes over, sloping down towards the water.
The water is calm looking, gentle waves visible in the distance. It's a greenish shade of turquoise, sparkling from across the expanse of tan, rippling sand. Anika steps out of the hatch, stopping on the middle of the ramp. The system's lone sun sits low on the horizon, casting the sky with an orange haze. It looks like they've landed close to what passes for evening on this world.
"Well, at least it's a pretty planet," Darial remarks, joining Anika on the ramp. She looks a little better now, less shaken up.
"If we had a couple umbrellas and some drinks, we could call it a vacation," Anika jokes.
"I'm sure our Supreme Leader will be thrilled that we're relaxing on a beach, while our base is being destroyed by our own weapon," Hux rants, squeezing past them.
Anika raises her eyebrows at the general's back as he stomps down the ramp and across the sand, heading towards the water. She gestures at him, giving Darial a questioning look. Her friend only shrugs, giving a tired sigh.
"Your boyfriend is in a mood," Anika points out.
"Yours kind of is too," Darial replies.
"They are a bit dramatic," she admits. Just a bit? Then again, she can hardly blame them. Hux is probably right about the Supreme Leader. Anika imagines Snoke is going to be furious at both the general and Kylo for what happened at Starkiller. Wouldn't want to be in that meeting when we get back…
"It's weird this planet isn't settled at all," Darial muses. "It seems so nice."
Yeah, that is weird… The sun is hot on her skin, but it probably wouldn't be so bad in the shade. It's surprising the planet hasn't been established, not even with resort towns. Then again, it was pretty far removed from everything. Before Starkiller Base, there would have been nothing else in the system. Still, seems kind of… fucky.
Hux has reached the edge of the water, and Anika wrinkles up her nose with exaggerated disgust as he peels his uniform shirt off. He wades in to where the surf is just gracing the sand, looking like he's trying to rinse the smell of alcohol off his clothes.
"What is your man doing?" she asks, putting on an exasperated tone.
Darial laughs slightly. "He's… particular about cleanliness."
"For all we know, that water could be full of microscopic parasites," Anika points out.
Darial's smile fades. "Do not tell him that, Anika."
Anika grins devilishly, ignoring the warning look her friend gives her. "Fine, whatever. I won't."
"I heard what you said about reserving the water… You don't think we'll be here long, right?" Darial ventures.
"I'm sure we'll be off this planet in no time," Anika assures. Famous last words.
Kylo appears, rounding the front of the shuttle. He stops when he notices Hux out by the water, staring at the redheaded man trying to splash his hair clean.
"What is he doing?" Kylo asks flatly.
Anika walks the rest of the ramp, stepping down onto the dirt. "Being particular about his cleanliness. See anything interesting in the area?"
He shakes his head. "There's what looks like jungle behind us, but-"
He's cut off by sudden screaming. Anika snaps her head around at the sound, spotting Hux thrashing in the water. He is screaming his head off, flailing in the waves. Kylo starts running immediately, towards the general. He's quickly followed by Darial.
Anika groans. I fucking hate running. She takes off, following them down the beach. The sand is hard to run in, making her leg muscles burn far faster than they should. Ahead of them, Hux has managed to extract himself from the water and is dragging himself up the beach. He's grasping at one of his legs, still howling like he's being murdered. Kylo reaches him first, but the two girls catch up moments later.
"What is it?" he demands.
"Something-something bit me! Something fucking grabbed me and bit me!" Hux yells.
Darial drops down in the sand beside him, bumping his clawing hands out of the way to roll his pant leg up higher. There is a strange marking on the calf of his leg. It's a welted, red injury that almost looks like a burn. The wound branches like lightning, wrapping up towards his knee. As they look at it, it turns an angrier red shade.
What the fuck… Anika stares at the innocent looking waves just a few feet away, the setting sun glittering off the water. Guess that means we should stay out of the water.
Kylo cocks his head, examining the injury while Hux huffs and chokes back on a scream. "That looks more like… a burn or sting, than a bite," Kylo offers.
"Bite-sting-who gives a fuck!?" Hux screeches.
"What if it was a jellyfish? The ones on Trandosha can be deadly to humans," Darial says fearfully, looking between Kylo and Anika.
"Will the bacta gel work if it's a jellyfish?" Kylo questions. Darial shrugs, the fear growing in her gaze as Hux winces his eyes shut, shivering with pain.
Kylo looks at Anika instead, and she can only hold up her hands with uncertainty. I'm not a jellyfish expert. Though she is relatively sure she'd heard about an unusual method of handling jellyfish stings while watching holovids. I'm so not going to be the one to suggest that…
"Bacta is all we have, so let's try it," Kylo decides firmly. He reaches down, roughly yanking Hux to his feet. The two hobble back towards the shuttle, Kylo supporting most of Hux's weight.
Darial hovers close to Hux's other side, and Anika brings up the rear. Aww! If you didn't know any better, they'd almost look like friends. At least at the moment, Kylo and Hux aren't acting like they hate each other. But then Hux stumbles, swearing angrily at Kylo for going too fast. Never mind.
"I will throw you back in the water," Kylo huffs under his breath.
"I'll drag you in with me," Hux hisses back, before swearing again. The mark on his leg is even more swollen looking, and Anika worries that it might cause more than just the pain he is currently experiencing.
What do we do if he goes into shock? Roll him up in a blanket like a Hux burrito? They don't have a med droid on board the shuttle, and none of them have any medical training. It kind of does look like a jellyfish sting, doesn't it?
Kylo and Hux start up the ramp, and Anika waits for them to maneuver their way through the hatch. Now that she's looking at the shuttle from another angle, she can see the tree tops rising behind it. It looks like further inland is denser with green plant life. Large, broad fronds cluster together just beyond where they'd landed.
She follows Darial through the main hold, towards the refresher where Kylo has dumped Hux onto the floor. Darial squeezes into the tight space with him, so Anika hovers in the doorway. The general looks like he's barely keeping himself quiet, that infamous vein popping out in his forehead. Normally it only shows when he is angry.
Kylo pulls the med kit out of its storage compartment, opening it on one of the seats. He finds the bacta quickly, coming over to hand it to Darial. She smooths the bacta gel on Hux's leg gently, before they all commence staring and waiting for it to work. After a minute, however, Hux groans with frustration.
"It's not working," he pants. "It feels like my whole leg is dipped in carbonite."
"Well, give it a minute," Kylo suggests.
"I don't need to give it a minute because it isn't working, Ren!" Hux retorts quickly, hissing in a breath and trying to hold it.
"Maybe it just has to soak in," Anika tries suggesting.
"I can't believe this," Hux whines. "I'm going to die of a fucking fish bite."
"Isn't there anything else we can do?" Darial asks, sounding pained with worry.
Kylo returns to the med kit, pawing through it uncertainly. "I don't think sedatives will help, unless we want to knock him out until the pain passes."
"Yes! Yes, that would work," Hux agrees quickly.
Anika, however, is distracted looking at his leg. "Um… Is it just me, or is that getting worse?"
The red is nearly purple, it is such a dark shade. And new tendrils have appeared, branching out from the original injury. His entire lower leg is covered now.
Kylo looks alarmed as he notices it too. "What did you see, in the holovid?" he demands.
Anika blinks. I really project my thoughts that loud? She needed to work on thinking quieter, as it is beginning to unnerve her how much Kylo always seems to know. She'd really prefer to keep some things to herself. Besides, she was hardly considering it as an option.
"We don't know that it was a jellyfish," she points out. "And I can't remember if that was a myth or really worked."
"We have to try something else, it's spreading," Kylo insists.
"What holovid?" Darial asks hopefully. Hux gives a groan of pain and she grabs his hand, trying to comfort him.
"Well…" Anika hesitates, unsure how to phrase it. Ah, fuck it. Spit it out. "I'm pretty sure they said to piss on it."
Darial's eyebrows shoot up, as her face turns incredulous. "What the fuck?" she whispers.
"Urine. Pee. I'm running out of synonyms for piss," Anika says, frustrated. "I can't remember if it actually works, I think I fell asleep halfway through the show."
Kylo shakes his head, looking like he's ready to put his fist through a wall. "Are you fucking kidding me?"
"I get tired during documentaries," Anika says defensively.
"Not the falling asleep part."
Oh, right. The piss part. That had seemed a bit weird to her too, now that she thinks about it. Maybe they would have explained it, had she just made it to the end of the show.
"I mean, I'm not saying we do it," she points out. It's not like I'm the chairperson of the golden shower committee. "I'm sure Hux doesn't want-"
But she's cut off by a wail from the general, the skin of his face now devoid of color. His complexion looks drained of blood, his eyes screwed shut tightly. He looks close to passing out, sweat beading on his forehead.
"We have to try it," Darial says firmly. "I can't believe this is real life, but it's worth a shot. Best case scenario, it works. Worst case scenario, we're in the same spot."
Kylo's eyebrows raise, and he firmly takes a step back from Hux. That one step seems to communicate his thoughts on the matter clearly. Darial looks from him to give Anika a pleading look.
"Anika-" her friend begins, and Anika frowns at the desperate tone. Still, there are some lines that she cannot cross. They are few, and far between. But apparently, this is one of them.
"I'm sorry, Darial. But if you want your boyfriend pissed on, you're going to have to do it yourself," Anika says apologetically.
"I'm dying," Hux whimpers faintly. "I'm dying and now I have to piss on myself, because none of you will do it for me."
"To be fair, I don't think you want me doing it," Kylo points out.
"Fuck you, Ren," Hux snaps.
"Exactly," Kylo retorts, turning back to the med kit. He picks up a syringe of what Anika assumes to be sedative. "Do whatever you're going to do, before I knock you out."
"I'll um… Just step outside…" Anika says, using the excuse to slip through the exit of the ship. Judging by the sounds of defeat she hears a minute later, the holovid must have been wrong. If anything, Hux's pained sounds get louder. Oops… That's awkward.
The sounds of agony fade after another minute or two passes, and Anika hesitantly steps back into the hold. She can see Hux on the floor in the refresher. He looks like he's passed out, Darial still holding onto his hand from where she's sitting in the doorway.
Well…This is getting off to a bad start.