The Rebel Faction

No I never mentioned what language they were speaking. The only time I do is when they are talking around people that wouldn't know their native tongue and they didn't want them to know what they were talking about. Even then I often forget to actually 'tell' the reader they are speaking a different tongue other then Basic. I think this is partly because in my RP experience the other RPers character 'somehow' almost always knows what my character said no matter 'what' language he or she spoke in. >< Kind of gives you the 'what's the point' feeling. It's that annoyance which made me create the 'code' I use in my RP here whenever my characters speak in Clan Dialect: it's an additional sign to force people to realize that 'hey, your character is not supposed to understand what mine are saying!'

Meh, sorry...I ranted a bit there. I am slowly chipping away at Chap 6 BTW, with luck I should have it done today...

Here it is. The second part to it came out a little weak though IMO.

~~~

Chapter 6: Confrontation

It felt like a huge weight had been removed off his chest and Trazu felt he could truly move on from that horrible incident at last. He continued to visit Tzosha over the next couple of months and with her help, soon felt safe enough to start actually staying the night on occasion, usually on weekends when she was off. However he would always slept on the couch, despite Tzosha’s insistence that since he was the guest she should be the one sleeping on the couch.

He’d also been having what he considered to be odd dreams the past couple weeks. Dreams where he and Tzosha were doing things other then just chatting. They were odd to him because as far as he knew, Trandoshan’s just didn’t do things like that: the fact he considered Tzosha a close friend was rare in on itself. Trazu didn’t tell Tzosha he was having these dreams, because they were just silly dreams and meant nothing. Besides in his dreams he was taller then her and that pretty much invalidated any worth of the dreams by itself in his opinion.

Trazu was in the middle of one of those dreams now as he dozed on the couch. He and Tzosha were out in one of the many plains on Talus, Tzosha asleep with her head on his chest while he was leaning back against a tree. She was wearing a tank top with a simple pair of shorts while he just had his pants. It was one of those ‘lazy day’ type dreams and he was simply enjoying being close to her, stroking her arm lightly with his claws and prompting soft ‘mers’ from her in her sleep. Why did his chest suddenly feel cold and wet? It wasn’t just cold either, it was very cold. It was enough to snap him out of his little dream and back to reality.

Opening his eyes, he saw Tzosha standing beside the couch holding an ice cube over him and allowing the cold water to drip from it right onto his bare chest.

“GAH!” Trazu cried as he sat up with a start.

“Wakey wakey ya lazy bum.” Tzosha said playfully, giggling slightly.

“That was down right cruel.” Trazu grumbled as he wiped the water off his chest.

“If you didn’t sleep in so late I wouldn’t be tempted.” Tzosha said smiling. “Besides it was funny. You should have seen the look on your face.”

“Funny eh? Let’s see how you like it.” Trazu jumped up and tried to snatch the ice cube from her. Tzosha however used her height advantage over him and easily kept it out of his reach. “That’s not fair!”

Tzosha just laughed and dripped the water over his head teasingly. Trazu, getting frustrated, swept her feet out from under her. Tzosha yelped in surprise, nearly dropping the cube. Trazu immediately grabbed her hand and tried to pry it open. The pair wrestled a bit, until Tzosha managed to wrest her hand free of Trazu’s grasp and slip the cube down the back of his pants.

“YIPE!” Trazu jumped up and danced erratically as he tried to get the cube out, only to cause it to sink even deeper into his pants until it finally slid out through a pants leg. Tzosha was rolling on the floor laughing all the while. With a faint snarl, Trazu picked it up and looked at Tzosha with a sly grin on his face.

“Oh no…” Tzosha said, scrambling to her feet. “Not after where it’s just been.”

“You shouldn’t have stuck it there then.” Trazu said with a grin as he rushed toward her. Tzosha bolted and slipped behind a table. There was a brief merry-go-round as she kept the table firmly between herself and Trazu, hoping the cube would melt completely before he managed to reach her. It didn’t remain a stand off for long though, for Trazu finally just climbed up on top of the table. From his high perch he was able to tackle her as she attempted to run away and a second wrestling match ensued as Tzosha frantically tried to keep Trazu from placing the cube against her skin. He won however and she squirmed as he held the cube against her skin. There wasn't much left of the cube by this time though, so Tzosha didn't have to suffer long. When it was melted completely the pair sat on the floor leaning against each other, both panting faintly.

"What the hell were we just doing?" Trazu said suddenly, pulling away abruptly and causing Tzosha to fall over.

"Playing." Tzosha replied as she picked herself up.

"'Playing?" Trazu echoed, sounding mildly disguested. "Since when did our people act like that? Its...unnatural."

"It's not unnatural." Tzosha said, looking a bit confused at his reaction.

"We are warriors...hunters...we don't...do...things like that." Trazu insisted.

"So says the T'Doshok that ran away from home before he could learn everything about his own people." Tzosha said a bit harshly. "Hasn't your time with me taught you anything? We are not all warriors and hunters Trazu. There are many of us that don't live the way of the hunt: doctors, merchants,...tailors. The brutal hunter and warrior you came to know out here is most other species know because that's all we want them to know."

"Oh please...I am not that ignorant about our people." Trazu said with a faint snarl. "I know we often rely on our own talents for everyday services but we are primarily a hunter and warrior species. I also know that femaleslike you aren't usually even allowed off planet, unless they are hunters themselves which is rare: usually only sterile females become hunters. Any other time females are nothing but breeding stock."

Tzosha hissed, obviously offended by his words. Then without warning she smacked him across the snout, sending him tumbling. "'Nothing but breeding stock'?" She growled. "Are you that stupid and ignorant? Yes we rarely become hunters and it's usually the sterile ones that do become hunters, but we are far from just being breeding stock. We fulfil the roles on our homeworld that you males think are below your standards of worth. Who fixes your ships? Who mends your wounds? Who sells you that expensive weapon you've been looking for? Not many males do those things themselves, it's mostly us females that do them. If you ask me...if it wasn't for us girls our people wouldn't have advanced to the stage we are at now. Who knows, maybe it would have been us that became the slaves instead of the Wookiees."

He barely heard her words, his anger at her for slapping him overriding nearly all reason. Her finally comment about slaves was the final straw and he leapt at her with a hiss. The two scuffled a bit before Tzosha managed to flip him over her, Trazu landing hard on his back, leaving him stunned briefly. After he righted himself the pair glared at each other a moment then, both a little bloodied but not hurt seriously, but neither seemed willing to go for each other's throats again.

"I'm leaving." Trazu said abruptly, moving to gather the few things he had. "And I won't be coming back."

"Fine with me." Tzosha hissed. "I'd rather not associate myself with someone that's so closed minded."

Trazu gave her a final glare and slammed the door behind him as he left.

***

It's been two weeks since the fight and Trazu couldn't get it out of his head. He felt guilty for what he had said and realized he not only said things he didn't mean but things he didn't really believe in the first place. On top of that he felt lonely without her and he was still having those dreams. He honestly wanted to see her again, but wasn't sure if she would let him back into her life. Of course he wouldn't know if he didn't at least try, but his pride was holding him back: he did say he wouldn't come back and to come back meant he admitted defeat.

He lingered out in the wilds a couple days more, then found himself back in Dearic, ascending the stairs to her apartment. At first he wasn't sure what he was going to do, but as he lingered in front of her door he finally decided he should at least apologize. Hesitantly he reached for the doorbell, but stopped when the door suddenly opened, making him jump, Tzosha now standing in the doorway: she looked rather sullen.

They stared at each other a moment, then finally Tzosha stepped out of the way, motioning for him to come in. A few more moments of tense silence passed, Trazu almost shrugging off his pack out of pure habit before stopping himself. Now that he was here, he found the words he wanted to say were stuck in his throat and he had difficultly making himself look at her. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed Tzosha was keeping herself busy by washing off the table, but kept on washing it needlessly: it was evident she too had words she wanted to say but couldn't bring them forth.

"Tzosha..." Trazu said, hesitantly. "I think that table is clean enough..."

"Yes...yes it is..." Tzosha said quietly, straightening up and tossing the rag into the sink. "I keep seeing your footprints on it, though I know it's only in my head. Silly...isn't it? But it's an unwanted memory that just won't go away..."

He wasn't sure if she was refering to their fight or him as a whole. However there was something in her deminor that bothered him: she seemed nervious and somewhat anixous. Plus she kept glancing off to one side, toward a section of the room that was concealed by a wall. Then he felt that 'nagging' feeling in the back of his mind, the feeling of something being very 'wrong' here. Looking at her eyes, he saw fear: fear of what though?

"You must leave..." She said quietly, now staring hard in the direction she was glancing in before. "Quickly before..."

"Too late for that now." A familiar voice said behind him. Trazu felt his blood freeze and panic start to overwhelm him: he didn't need to turn around to know who that was. Immediately the memory of that one night pushed it's way to the front of his mind, reminding him of the fear, the helplessness, the shame she forced on him. He knew he should stand up to her, after all he wasn't injured like he was before, but he was paralized with fear. "Isn't this a surprize?" The female cooed. "My short little T'Doshok friend, coming right up to the doorstep of my sister."

"I am not...your friend." Trazu managed quietly, having to force the words through a tightened throat.

"I'm not?" She said, stepping around in front of him. He noted she wore the colors of the pirate gang now and sported a small blaster. "Oh I am so hurt...after all the fun we had too...."

"Leave him alone Zista." Tzosha hissed quietly. "You've made him suffer enough as is."

"Oh can it sis." Zisha said, rolling her eyes. "You were always the softy of the family: even mother was ruthless enough to know when to take advantage of a situation."

"Mother's actions never did bodily or emotional harm to others." Tzosha countered. "What you did was heartless, even for our people."

"You seem to forget one thing sis. With our people only the fittest survive: if he really didn't want it he would have fought me with everything he had. But he didn't, instead allowing his own sword to intimidate him enough to do as I wanted. I dare say he actually enjoyed it..."

Trazu was taken back by her last statement: that wasn't true at all. He even felt somewhat insulted she would even suggest such a thing. "Only in your twisted mind." He hissed.

"Oh really? I bet I can prove it. Here and now." She grinned maliciously. "I got something better then your stupid sword to make you do what I want this time too." She brandished her pistol. Trazu hissed in response, but beyond that he couldn't make himself do anything, his body unwilling to release itself from fears grip.

"No...I won't let you do that to him!" Tzosha growled, starting to rush up behind her. Zista whirled around and leveled the weapon at her, Tzosha freezing in her tracks and Trazu's heart skipping a beat.

"Do not interfer sis..." Zista hissed warningly. "I suggest you back off like a good sister and let me do what I want."

Tzosha however stood her ground, growling. The two sisters were only a couple feet from each other, Zista's weapon pointed at Tzosha's chest. Trazu was shaking his head, his mouth agape. He wasn't sure if he should feel touched that she was standing up to Zista for him or embarassed she had to do it for him. Either way, the possibility she would get hurt due to this he found distressing, yet still he couldn't get himself to act.

The stand off continued for a few moments. Then suddenly Tzosha swung up and slashed Zista across the face with her claws, leaving a few bright scarlet wounds across her face. Due to reflex however, the gun went off and Tzosha was blown back, a black charred spot on her shoulder. With a cry of pain Tzosha clutched her shoulder, felt to one knee and whimpered softly.

Tzosha! Trazu felt guilt wash over him. Because of his weakness he couldn't stand up to Zista himself. No. It was Zista's fault. She did this to him, made him fear her and unable to act, unable to prevent this. He felt anger and rage building up inside him and start pushing aside the fear, unparalizing his limbs and mind.

"Little bitch..." Zista hissed, wiping the blood off her face. "You were always getting in the way, always trying to hold me down. I should have gotten rid of you long ago. Well I can fix that now."

Trazu watched as she leveled her weapon again at Tzosha, but this time he wasn't going to stand helplessly by and watch. With a cry of denial, he lept forward, his sword seemingly to fly out of it's sheath on it's own accord and into his hand. Zista looked in his direction and to her credit recognized the danger right away and spin around to face him, only to have her hand chopped off by Trazu's fine blade. It took a moment for it to register that her hand, along with her gun, was now on the floor. She screamed in agony, clutching her suddenly shorter limb with her uninjured one. To a Trandoshan a loss of limb was actually a minor thing, for they grow them back within a couple months, however she was now in a very dicy situation without her weapon and a healthy, uninjured, and pissed off Trazu facing her.

"H..how..." She stammered as she backed away. "You couldn't even move a moment ago."

"You hurt her...that's how." Trazu hissed dangerously, advancing on her with his sword at the ready. "See how it feels bitch? Understand what it's like to feel helpless and afraid now? Yes I was too weak then, and you had a mental hold over me. Not anymore. I do not fear you now and what you did no longer controls my life. So If you value your pathitic life I suggest you leave...now."

Zista stared at him a moment, then with a hiss she ran for the door. "You'll pay for this...both of you!" She growled before disappearing out the door.

Trazu stared long and hard at the door, a part of him wanting to persue and finish her. He nearly did, but a moan from Tzosha redirected his attention to what was more important at that moment. Setting down his sword he knelt beside her and coached her hand away from the wound so he could inspect it. It wasn't serious, her scaly hide prevented the bolt from penetrating deeply, but from her whimpering you'd think she had lost a limb.

"You're a wuss you know that?" Trazu said teasingly, shaking his head.

Tzosha managed a smile. "I'm not a fighter like you, so I am entitled to be a 'wuss'."

Trazu chuckled and fetched the first aid kit. As he cleaned her wound they were silent, a silence very much like it was a few moments ago.

"Tzosha..." Trazu said quietly, breaking the silence. "I...I'm sorry. That day I...I don't know what came over me...and said things I didn't mean."

"We both did." Tzosha said softly. "And our trademark short temper didn't help us either."

He chuckled half heartedly. "I admit I've been feeling a bit confused." He said softly. "Between what I've been taught, what I've heard to expect from our people, and my own...feelings." He sighed. "I felt lonely when I left."

"As did I...and I feared I would never see you again."

Trazu stared at her for a moment. Did she just admit something that is frowned upon by his people? Something that's considered an even worse taboo then friendship? Then again, is that 'fact' about their people just another mask to keep them from being percieved as weak? Did his dreams and his recent action mean he was having the same 'blasphemous' feelings as well? It was too confusing and he shook his head, pushing those thoughts and feelings away.

"If your sister is to be believed." He said, changing the subject. "We should probably move."

"I agree." Tzosha said, standing. "She may not be a direct threat to us, but if the boosts she was giving me earlier are true she has enough rank in that gang to convience some lackys to come after us." There was pause, then she added. "Wait...you said 'we should move'."

"I did?" Trazu said, realizing he subconsciously felt he lived with her now. Beside himself with embarrassment, he blushed. He blushed even more when Tzosha commented that he looked 'cute' when he blushed.

heh... tis ok.

My dad asked, "So.. you gonna die or what?"


lol... he doesn't know what to say in situations like this.


He's cool tho. I told him mom had me insured up the wazzo so it's a win-win situation for him no matter what.

yeah..we're a weird family.

Right now Diabetes is simply an annoyance.

"Or you must type really fast. I can't say I read it all, but what I did read was quite good."

Mer, combo of too much 'free' time at work and having a bunch of notes from previous attempts to get this fic off the ground I scavanged bits off of. I actually didn't have any notes to on the last couple chaps I did here: that was all original writting. Next chap though is going to take some thinking, not because I don't know what I want to have happen, but it's the 'how'. Plus I got RPs I should be writing. No idea when I'll get Chap 7 done as a result...*sigh*

I've been negilecting this fic since I returned to the States, so at work today I finished it. Here's the second to last chap.

***

Chapter 8: Bloodrage

The trail was easy to find, easier to follow and Trazu traveled as fast as he could: the sooner he found the culprits, the sooner he will know Tzosha’s fate and punish those responsible. He was forced to make camp and rest a few hours due to sheer exhaustion, since he had been on the go since the previous morning. Sleep was restless for him though, nightmares of what could be happening, if not already happened, to Tzosha plaguing his mind. Thus his eagerness to find her was renewed when he picked up the trail again.

By that afternoon the trail ended at an old remote storehouse far from civilization. The place was likely set up by gangs and pirates themselves rather then legitimate parties: who else would use a place so remove? However why the building was there was not important to him, for with the lack of any fresh trail leading away from the location it meant he had found where they had taken Tzosha. Not seeing any guards about, he strode right up to the place and found the door open.

Idiots. Assuming I wouldn’t come after them… He thought as he walked in. His sixth sense was nagging at him, trying to tell him something wasn’t right, but he ignored it, rescuing, or avenging, Tzosha at the forefront of his mind.

The storehouse was like one big room with a few smaller offices along the sides and from the number of crates and various other storage containers the place was in active use. The containers were all stacked high enough to prevent him from looking over them and set up kind of like a maze; making searching the place and keeping an eye out for guards an annoying affair. His sword at the ready, Trazu picked his way through the maze of containers and soon found a large open space within the maze. He saw Tzosha on the far end of that open space, tied up between two poles.

“Tzosha…” He breathed as he ran toward her, forgetting he was in enemy territory. He ignored the fact that it was strange he had yet to see a guard and that Tzosha was shaking her head madly, unable to speak due to a gag. By the time his sixth sense had sounded off loud enough for him to have no choice but to take heed it was too late.

There was a sudden loud bang and Trazu found himself suddenly blown off his feet by a large sonic burst. He smashed against a support pole, his sword flying from his hand, and fell to the ground. Stunned and the world spinning in his vision, Trazu struggled to get back up to his feet and shake the stars out of his head. He was dimly aware of the sudden appearance of dozens of pirates, but he didn’t get a chance to react to their appearance, as a sudden sharp blow to the head rendered him completely unconscious.

***

His head ached as he regained consciousness, his vision taking a moment to sharpen and clear. He found himself tied up across from Tzosha, stripped of everything including all his clothing, even his bracelet. At first he felt embarrassed that he was being seen by Tzosha in a manner usually only reserved for bathing and the most intimate of situations, but he quickly reminded himself that this was no time for modesty. He looked Tzosha over from his position: she looked a bit roughed up and slightly bruised, but otherwise not injured.

“I’m sorry…I…” Trazu started to say, but found words failing him. Tzosha seemed to catch what he was trying to say, for she slowly shook her head, her eyes full of forgiveness. With a sigh, Trazu turned to study his restraints: maybe he can get them out of there before their captures returned.

He was tied up in a similar manner as Tzosha was, bond with a strong polymer based cord. Trazu moved one hand around, attempting to loosen the cord enough so he could slip his hand through, but the cord held fast and he only rubbed his hide raw for the effort: he already knew he lacked the leverage and the strength to break the cord with brute force and his claws weren’t sharp enough to cut through them.

“About time you woke up.” A familiar voice said. Trazu turned and his eyes narrowed at the figure that appeared. Zista was leaning against one of the crate, looking smug and sure of herself and holding some sort of whip in her regenerated hand. “I was afraid my minions had hit you too hard.”

“You…” Trazu growled hatefully, straining against his bonds.

“Now now.” She said teasingly. “Don’t get yourself worn out now, there’s a lot of fun to be had before we are done here.” Zista said as she walked up to him. “I have plans for you, you see. You have a lot of spunk, which I like, but too much will. So...so that I can do what I want with you, I need to break you in.”

“You mean make me your slave.” Trazu hissed. “I’ll die first before letting myself sink to that level.”

Zista merely chuckled. “Now, thanks to our last encounter, I knew to anticipate that kind of attitude. That’s why I captured your little friend here…” She gestured toward Tzosha, whose eyes widened.

Trazu’s own eyes widened. “Leave her alone.” He said warningly.

“Or what?” Zista laughed. “You’re not in any position to stop me are you? Submit to me…or she pays.”

Trazu felt torn between his own dignity and his feelings for Tzosha. He didn’t want Tzosha to be hurt because of him, but he didn’t want to become someone’s slave either. Tzosha was madly shaking her head, but Trazu couldn’t if she was trying to tell him not to fall for her blackmail or what.

“No answer?” Zista said as she walked over to Tzosha and ripped her gag off. “Maybe hearing her scream a few times will loosen your tongue.” She looked back at Trazu with a malicious smile. “They do say…that if you strike someone with this kind of whip too many times they suffer permanent brain damage…I wonder how many times that has to be…”

“Don’t submit to her…” Tzosha said bravely. “No matter what happens to me!”

“Now now sis…” Zista said as she moved around behind her. “Let him decide that.” The low hum of the whip being turned on could be heard. Then there was a brief streaking flash as Zista raised the whip and snapped it sharply against Tzosha’s back.

He could tell she really tried hard not to scream, but the pain was too much for her and her scream tore into Trazu’s heart. Just as painful was the spasms he could see coursing through her helpless body and he crushed his eyes close so he could not see it. But he could not shut his ears Much to his distress, he could not choose his pride over Tzosha or Tzhosha over his pride. He found himself sinking deeper into despair. Why can’t I be strong enough to have both?

An image flashed in his mind, no a memory, of the battle he fought with the K’Satikur and reminded of that rage he had gone into then. Yes, that’s it. If he could go into that mode again….

But wait. He was mindless killer then, what if he killed Tzosha while in that mode? As another scream echoed in his ear drums, he over heard one pirate whisper to another: ‘won’t matter what he does…boss intends to kill her anyway from what I ‘ere.’.

Hearing that made the decision for him: it was their only chance, no Tzosha’s only chance. What happened to him he didn’t care anymore, all he cared about was make sure Tzosha survived. He reached down deep inside of him and found that mode deceptively easily and embraced it.

The familiar surge of strength came into his limbs and he strained with all his might against his restraints. Suddenly the cord on one hand snapped, making him swing wildly and almost lose his footing. Quickly he reached over and attacked the second cord, the cries of Zista’s disbelief and ordering her minions to stop him barely registering. Before they reached him though the second cord came free and his vision became filled with a blood red haze.

When his vision cleared the floor was slick with the blood of his enemies, he himself was coated with it. His body ached and threatened to collapse under him as he forced himself stagger toward Tzosha, who was slumped over unconscious, or worse. He collapsed against one of the poles that she was bound to and forced himself to start working on untying her, his mind threatening to lose consciousness with every movement. The task was made even more difficult due to the fact his fingers had deep lacerations and the blood was making the cord slick and difficult to grasp. Finally one of her hands was free, but before he could move himself so he could free her second hand his body gave up on him.

Tzosha…please be alright… He thought as the world turned black….