So much for a simple assignment...

[Asha Vendax]

The words to describe her dreams just didn't exist in any of the dozen languages she spoke. Fear and andrenaline poured through her blood, driving her senseless and leaving her gasping for air. She sat up abruptly, narrowly avoiding slamming her head into the top of the bunk which would have just added the cherry to the top of the sundae.

Heart pounding, Asha stood and laid a hand against the wall, legs trembling as she forced herself upright. It was as if she'd run the Coronet City marathon with a rancor on her back, her body ready to keep going and ready to collapse all at the same time. She hoped...no, prayed...that this was just the last side-effects of the drugs she'd been dosed with on Corellia.

Otherwise, her dreams had acquired a new level of hell she just wasn't equipped to deal with. She leaned up against the wall, head back and eyes focused on a ceiling panel. Breathing. In. And out.

Breathe in. Breathe out.

Slowly...painstakingly and excruciatingly slowly, Asha forced herself to breathe. Similar enough to the panic attacks she used to have as a child, the steady breathing and simple, focused gaze seemed to help. It took minutes...maybe a half an hour...before she could manage to lever herself away from the wall and towards the door. There was a mirror bolted to one side of it, which she'd draped a scarf over earlier.

Mirrors and shape-shifters with lifetimes of nightmares were never a good mix. Blinking, Asha could only stare at her reflection and eventually sigh. She looked like hell, but at least she looked like herself. Chestnut curls fell to her shoulders and dark brown eyes stared out of the soft features. Fingers brushed her hair back from her face before she stepped away went out the door.

Feet padded softly down the hallway, peering at the young man asleep in his chair at the controls. Leaving him in peace, she glanced at Zereth's door briefly before continuing onwards. Sounds emerged from the door to the galley, the source of which proved to be him. Asha tapped on the doorframe as she entered, not wishing to startle him. She leveraged herself up to sit on an empty stretch of counter, and tried to find her voice.

"Sleep well?" she asked, her voice emerging a bit softer than she'd intended. But at least it had worked, and hadn't left her staring at him silently.

[Zereth Lancer]

Zereth didn't look up at first, instead continued to twirl the mud between his hands with his spoon. He was not one for social interaction, and having lived the last year with Johbi had not helped that problem. The two barely spoke. Both were men of action and they communicated far better physically than they ever could with a tongue. Now that the action had faded away he felt very out of place. Shy, even.

What could he say? There had been little or no thought put into what happened just hours ago. There had been no time to think. Only to react. What had began as a simple good will act toward another living being had been thrown into chaos and he had just taken what felt like the best path. He could feel the spirit of Drexel Kane looking down on him from beyond the grave. No doubt the crooked sith would have cut Asha down in a heart beat. And enjoyed doing it.

"I slept adequately." Zereth said, at last, keeping his voice down as to not wake Johbi just up the hall. "How is your head? You took a nasty hit." His concern was nearly lost in the shudder of the ship. The engines were acting up again. Nothing to be afraid of, but it did cause him to grab the edge of the counter just in case. The shudder stopped as quickly as it came. The ship really was falling apart around them. Regardless, he hardly felt that there should be any concern for his own rest when she was the one who had been the victim.

[Asha Vendax]

"I...slept. Not exactly well, however." Asha replied softly, tilting her head to the side as fingers rose to press against a tender muscle in her neck. She sighed, the sound almost faint and lost amidst the clatter of the ship's shudder. It took a moment longer than it should have to pry her fingers from their position clutched around the edge of the counter.

A frown briefly marred her features but she let the concern filter away. There was nothing she could do about it until they arrived at Kuat and she had access to the things she had stocked there. She did however make a mental note to reevaluate what she took with her for missions. Perhaps a more extensive medkit was in order, especially given her alien physiology.

"My head is still giving me some trouble though...but I'm hopeful it'll pass soon. Doesn't hurt...but..." Asha blinked, her voice trailing off as her vision tried doing the hula around the edges. Both hands gripped the edge of the counter as she closed her eyes for several moments until she felt like she could open them again and not feel like she was about to fall onto the floor.

"...occasionally balance and orientation are a challenge."

[Zereth Lancer]

There were so many questions, each hanging around in the air waiting to be expressed, but neither party was willing. As much as he would like to know just what she was, he knew it would cast an identical spotlight in his own direction; and those were questions he could not answer. From his spiky black hair and red eyes he was something of an enigma, and her with her shapeshifting biology was the thing of faerie tales and high fantasy.

Setting the can aside he crossed the room; his hands revealed and empty. From his taller prospective examining her head wound was as easy as shifting the hair out of the way with fingers strangely delicate for their size. All he saw was head, angry fresh and dried blood. "I apologize, but my medical experience is somewhat lacking." Although, he was fairly good at dressing his own injuries, but head trauma was a whole different galaxy. There was nothing he could do, not with the extremely meager supplies that were on hand.

"We'll arrive on Kuat within the hour. If you wish to clean up the refresher if over there." he said, indicating the door on the far side of the common space with a hook thumb over his shoulder. "I cannot promise you warm water but you should get that wound cleaned out as best that you can. Unfortunately I have nothing to offer you to eat that is not protein paste." Zereth noticed her lack of balance, and the white knuckle grip she held on the edge of the counter. Raising his hand to her shoulder he steadied her where she stood.

[Asha Vendax]

His touch was surprisingly deft and gentle, something she was grateful for given the very tender state of the wound and the area around it. She sighed and dipped her head closing her eyes for the brief moments it took him to look at it. "There's nothing to apologize for. I should be able to tend to it with the supplies I have set aside in my home on Kuat."

Blinking, she looked up in time to see which door her was gesturing towards. He stood close still, and his hand rested on her shoulder, steadying her. Which she needed, considering that she still couldn't let go of the counter. Asha did manage after a few minutes, to pry her fingers away and stand up straight.

"Honestly, I think I'll pass on the protein paste. Appetizing as it must certainly be, I don't think I could keep it down just now. I will, however, avail myself of the 'fresher. I'll need to...change...before we arrive." she said softly, concentrating on the words and managing them well enough. Fingers withdrew a flimsi from her pocket and pressed it into his free hand.

"Speaking of Kuat...those are coordinates and codes for the hangar bay. Its in a smaller spaceport on the outskirts of the capital city. The staff is discreet and capable...you will allow me to at least arrange for some repairs to your ship as a means of repaying you for what you've done for me today."

Her fingers rose to rest in the center of his chest, lingering as she regained a touch more of her balance. She withdrew them upon realizing how long they had lingered, then stepped away and carefully made her way back to her borrowed bunk and then in turn to the 'fresher.

Any water above the frigid pond she'd fallen into would be welcome, as would be the feeling of being clean.

[Zereth Lancer]

Taking the flimsy from her Zereth examined the coordinates. It meant nothing to him right now but just as soon as it got it plugged into the navigational computer they would know where it lead. At the promise of compensation for his troubles Zereth's unabashed rejection was just on the tip of his tongue but he just could not say the words. While he would prefer not to trouble anyone he had to admit that he was in dire need of repairs and supplies. This ship was too big for him and Johbi to take care of and it was slowly falling apart.

It was not a good thing if you had to slap the air scrubbers every time you start the starship up just to get them to work. You wouldn't even know they turned off if it the air didn't start tasting like socks and Johbi had a tendency to pass out when the air got thin. That's why the cargo bay was depressurized. They couldn't supply the kind of air flow required to keep the whole ship breathing.

Zereth didn't notice her lingering hand until it was pulled away and she hobbled off. He stuck around, even if just to make sure she got to the refresher without falling down. When the the door closed he waited a few moments and then headed to the bridge; waking up Johbi and handing him the flimsy with the coordinates. No words were needed as the younger man stepped into action plugging them in.

It would only take them an hour or so to land, so Zereth got ready. While a shower would have been nice he wasn't going to rush Asha. Instead he threw his long hair into a pony tail, threw on some fresh clothing; also black, and would have grabbed his cloak but it had gotten a bit soiled in their adventure the day before. He went without, instead grabbing a leather jacket that felt far too foreign on his shoulders. Lightsabre hidden away he was ready to see what the day brought him.

"Send the landing codes and take us down."

[Asha Vendax]

The water had been lukewarm, at best, and even that had only lasted a short while. But it was still enough for a shower that left her feeling at least a little bit better than she had before. A shower, even a quick one, and fresh clothes always worked wonders.

She slipped into the cockpit and resumed her seat without saying anything as the two men worked together to bring the ship into the spaceport. She smoothed out her simple black pants and ensured that the crash webbing wouldn't wrinkle her silver shimmersilk blouse too badly. Shoulder length curls were a vivid, bright shade of blue held back from her now-delicate face with a silver ribbon.

Eyes of a gleaming green looked out of the viewport, watching as the hanger loomed ever larger while an open door beckoned them forward. There would be a landspeeder waiting, with a driver, as was her identity's custom to be so ferried about when on-world. At least this time she'd be thankful for it, considering her still wavering vision and questionable balance.

[Zereth Lancer]

As Johbi announced their descent through the atmosphere Zereth took the precaution to strap himself in. The ship was not in it's best condition and turbulence was a constant companion. Even with the crash webbing holding him in place he still felt thrown around. A cure for sore muscles it was not. As they approached the spaceport Zereth made sure to keep a sharp eye out; checking even the most minute details as they flew in. The last thing he wanted was to be caught by surprise. They were not in their domain anymore like they had been in Coronet. That city was under Zereth thumb. Here he felt exposed. Vulnerable.

As they finally set down, sans grace, and the bumpy ride came to an end, Zereth pulled himself out of his webbing and looked back at Asha, and found himself staring for a moment as his eyes adjusted to the new look. It looked much better on her than mud but was far to flashy for his own tastes. Nodding to Johbi he informed the younger man that he would escort the lady and to keep an eye out for any trouble. He had his comm, and with that he left the ship in the sometimes capable hand of his apprentice.

There was no room to argue his involvement as he offered Asha his hand and helped her off the ship, down the loading ramp, and into her waiting speeder. As they stepped into the warm sunlight of a new day Zereth padded down his coat with his free hands until he located a set of sunglasses. Less to shield the sunlight and more to hide his distinguishing red eyes. Even in a galaxy full of all shapes and features, a humanoid with red eyes was not a common sight without accompanying blue skin.