To Greener Pastures

[Azreala]

She was finally free. For the first time in her entire existence, she was free. Azreala squealed for joy. "I can't believe I'm finally out of Boboqueequee!"

Azreala couldn't think of what to do first. She wanted to dance, and sing, and scream, and cry, and laugh, all at the same time. She spun around the cockpit in wild abandon. Letting all of her emotions go, that she had been hiding for so long.

Settling down she began to try to think up a plan. The only clue about the people who took her was that whoever it was, was based off of the planet Fresia. She wasn't even sure where it was, but she was sure there was a star map on this ship. The plan was now to be made up as she goes.

Lost deep in thought, she almost forgot her new companion. But she was sure, he would continue to help her, I mean wasn't he curious too? Finally breaking her long silence she piped, "We need to go to Freshia."

[Rogue]

Attus steered the vessel in a wide arc away from Nal Hutta, readying the engines for hyperspace.
"So where are we head--" he started before the Angel spoke.
"Fresia, you say? All the way in the core worlds? That's quite the distance, it'll be no short trip." He paused. "Why do you need to go all the way to Fresia? I don't normally head anywhere deeper than the mid rim.
He swiveled around in his chair after punching in the coordinates and letting the autodrive take care of navigation. He stood up abruptly, closing the distance between himself and Azreala in the blink of an eye.
"Seems like you owe me, Angel. You owe me big time."
His hand reached out, almost menacingly, and grabbed her hip.

[Azreala]

Azreala quickly backed away and tried to wrap her head about the situation she was now in.
The only home she had ever known was gone for her forever, and now she was alone in a ship with a man she thought cared about her. Did he even remember her name? Or was she just the Angel. Well she was tired of being a thing, a myth. It was people like him that turned her off from men completely. Speedily she devised a plan. She just needed to get him to fall asleep.

"Don't you think you should show me around first?" She said with a smolder in her eyes. Her look was well practiced. Hard to resist. Impossible even.

[Rogue]

That smolder hit Attus like an asteroid, and no matter his intentions, he couldn't resist the otherworldly beauty of the Angel. "Yes, indeed. I will show you around my humble home." He bowed with a flourish.
"B2! my-LOM!" A Blastromech droid and an insectoid -LOM-series found their way to the cockpit and stood, awaiting orders. "I believe you've met B2 already. He's helped keep this bucket of bolts functional and fended off unmentionables more times than I can count. Very useful little guy, this blastromech. And this is my-LOM, who helps with... negotiations."
A tinny, echoey voice emitted from the head of the taller droid. "I know 4 million plus forms of communication, as well as the language of Hutts and gangsters." my-LOM brandished a long rifle attached to his metallic hip with a thin cable.
"my-LOM has also helped me out of more binds than I'd care to count. I took stories of the bounty hunter 4-LOM and--you'd be surprised how well these old protocol droids can be refitted as person partners in my line of work. Hence," he gestured, "my-LOM.

B2, make sure everything stays sailing smooth in here."
He walked out of the room, leaving the droids behind. B2 let out a few sharp rattles and squeaks, and set to work keeping the controls in equilibrium.

"Here's the relaxation area. Not much to do here, I don't normally have time to relax. Food is stored there--" Attus pointed to a large refrigeration container. "You can count on it being terrible most of the time.

Bunks are that way." He waved his hand in the direction of a hallway across the room. "Anything else you'd like to see, Angel?"

[Azreala]

Ugh this man seriously just wouldn't back down! Azreala was getting more anxious to get rid of him now, he made her feel slimier than a hutt's backside. He never even said her name anymore. Back on Nal Hutta, he used to call her by it all the time. How special it made her feel! But now... now she was just ready for him to be gone from her life, in the quickest way possible.

She slowly grazed her hand across Attus' belt line. Successfully covering her discovery of his blaster location.

"I feel dirty and tired from all this hard work, is there somewhere you can show me to freshen up, and maybe lay down for a spell?"

[Rogue]

Attus let a sly smile grace his entranced mouth. "'Fresher is right near the bunks, this way," he carried himself across the room and into the other hallway. "Right through that door. Right across the hall you can... sleep... if you need to."
He backed away from the hallway heading towards the ladder to the lower maintenance level. "I'll let you fresh up, and be right back. Don't fall asleep around my-LOM, he's been known to leave a trail of broken hearts and ticked off broads in his wake." He laughed.
"If you want to--lay down, I can show you something more comfortable you can wear other than those-- He coughed "Dirty slave rags."
He stepped down the ladder and out of sight.

[Azreala]

Azreala worked quickly. She really was tired, exhausted even. She splashed some water on her face to help her focus, no way was she gonna fall asleep around this kung.

"Stoopa skocha kung.." Azreala muttered.

<That's no way to talk about the master.> -Lom stated in Huttese.

Azreala jumped a little at the sound of the droid's voice. The point of her speaking in her 'native' tounge was so that she could speak freely.

<Ah I see the young new master has already forgotten my programming abilities.>

Azreala tried to think of some way to explain herself out of this potentially messy situation. Wait-

<Why did you just call me 'new master'?>

<You are confused. Allow me to clarify. It is obvious that you are bent on destroying the current master, am I correct?>

Azreala hesitentally answered, <...yes.>

<So I thought. I know you will be successful. I am preparing for the new ownership. I only ask that you do not wipe my memory, as I will be far more helpful to you knowing how the life-form known as Attus operates.>

<How do you know I will be successful?>

<The master has caused this unit difficulty. He is a hard human to take orders from one could say.>

-LOM handed a small model 434 blaster pistol to Azreala.

<Take this and go lie down. Do not fall asleep.

<Wasn't planning on it.>

<The master will go to lie down with you. When he see that you are unresponsive he will fall asleep. You will then be able to dispose of him.>

<How do you know he will come?>

<He has done this with other female life-forms.>

Azreala became angrier with the low-life known as Attus, and her heart was filled with darkness at the thought of him. Trying to push it from her mind she asked, <What about his blaster?>

<This unit will handle that. The new master shouldn't worry.>

<I'll be waiting for him.>

Azreala ducked into the bunk room. Noticing the lack of other bunks. It made since if your the only life-form on a ship, but it irritated her nonetheless. She took off her robe and smooshed into into a ball to hide her new blaster, and prop up her head. Then she waited.

[Edit by Lents: fixed bbc coding issue]

[Rogue]

Attus climbed back up to the living level after taking care of some maintenance work in the lower levels. The spell of the Angel had kept him back for a moment, but the anticipation and desire had just built up to insurmountable levels in that time. Heading to the back of the ship, he peeked in the 'fresher. Empty.
Looking then at the bunk, he saw her sleeping into a tight ball. His lip curled into a sly smile.
He hummed softly to himself as he reached down and grazed his fingertips over her glowing form.

[Azreala]

Azreala dreamed of a far off home. Glowing and bright, full of love, and kindness. She had often visited in her sleep. Here, her wings were, not slit, and useless appendages, but beautiful graceful extensions of herself. A song was playing, soft and slow, as she came up to the planet. It was here that she saw the family she never knew dressed in dazzling fashions that made them look even more beautiful. Azreala gracefully landed, dressed in similar fashion, smiling came up to them and embraced, hoping the moment would never end. What she assumed was her brother held her tightly and lightly caressed her arms. Then it got warm, too warm. They were all burning into a blackness, Azreala tried to reach for them as the burn of her brothers caress became unbearable, and let out a terrifying scream.

Azreala's eyes popped open quickly as she tried to register where she was. Her eyes immediatly looked to the spot where she had felt the searing warmth, and saw Attus' hand. Her memory having returned, a frighting rage, filled her, as she pulled out the blaster, tightly glued to her hands. She pointed it directly at his family jewels.

"Put your hands up! And don't you dare try to reach for your blaster or so help me I will shoot you straight through your precious shockballs!!"

There was no way Azreala was going to let him get away with this now. Her body was hers and hers alone to give. Attus was about to be no more.

[Rogue]

Stepping back quickly, Attus lifter his hands. "Woah, woah, woah, calm down princess, no need to get hasty." Attus started to lick his lips, and his brow got dotted with sweat.

He glanced down at his thigh, and his blaster holster was empty 'Oh shunfa! Kark! Kriff! Echuta! That sleemo my-LOM took my blaster for cleaning and maintenance! He must have known!'

"Just point the barrel down and we can talk about this like civilized humanoids. Come on angel, just put it down."

[Azreala]

"I'm done being civilized. Stoopa koochoo kung!" Azreala said with a new coolness.

And with that, she took a deep breath and fired.

[Rogue]

"Oh, SHUNFA!!" Attus toppled to the ground, clutching his stomach and hips. "You crazy murglak!! I free you from slavery and this is how you replay me?!"
Tears sprung to his eyes as he rolled back and forth, trying to suppress the pain.

[Azreala]

"Ha. Free me? You had me trade one slavery for another. I belong to no one. I owe you nothing!" Azreala screamed.

This was no longer about him. This was about her, confronting the pains of her life. Restoring herself to a new person. She had to do this, or her sanity would disappear. She aimed for his head, and squeezed her eyes shut through the tears as she fired again.

[Azreala]

She opened her eyes to the life-less form in front of her with a sigh of relief. Relaxing her posture she sat on the bunk and called for my-LOM.

my-LOM entered and looked down at the mangled body.

"Why the new master has sure made a mess of things." B2 entered making a few whiring sounds and began to clean up the mess.

"The new master shouldn't worry. B2 will make sure the master called Attus is disposed. I have also brought the new master some clothes which should be more comfortable for the new master than those of a mere slave."

Azreala couldn't stop her hands from shaking as she reached for the clothes. Growing up on Hutta she had seen many die, but none by her own hand. That part that scared her the most though was how she felt almost no remorse for the expulsion of life she had caused.

Azreala walked over to the fresher, closed the door and began to change. In her new clothes, the sleeves were a little short, and the pants only went to her ankle, she felt like a brand new person. She was no longer an Angel. She was just Azreala. She was happy to see that the boots fit, and after lacing them up made her way back to the bunk. B2 had already cleared everything out, he was a hard worker. Finally she laid down, and slept as hard as she could knowing nothing could harm her anymore.

[Azreala]

Continued in The First Clue:

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