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voidendron · 2 years

Text

Routine

Whumptober 2022 Day 10: Poor Unfortunate Souls Taser | Whipping | Waterboarding Alternate Prompt 7: Protective

Star Wars: The Old Republic Characters: Sy'hen "Hush" Rett (Human, cyborg), Saa'tek "Gunshow" (Cathar/Omwati/Zabrak, cyborg), Jessi "Nexu Bait" Toklar-Sept (Human/Zabrak, cyborg), Kaiba "Red" Felshaad (Human), "Zip" Drakou (Zabrak) Warnings: Violence, Blood

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It was routine. Something they did often, by request of the Commander.

Sure, the squad had started with a focus on humanitarian aid, but it had quickly become one of Commander Terrin’s favored squads for this kind of work. They were good, and she hadn’t wanted to hold them back with rebuilding efforts. The Barsen’thor and his students were more than capable of protecting build and recovery teams, and studying as they did so.

No, Inferno Squad had slowly transformed into scouts, and from scouts into an Alliance Intelligence team. One little thing, after another, gradually adding up until they could see with the quirk of Terrin’s brow that she saw far more potential in them than what she was requesting of them.

So, here they were. Another mission, scouting out suspected spies nosing around where they didn’t belong within Alliance territory.

Zip had a data spike plugged into a seemingly abandoned computer system (they knew it wasn’t, they just weren’t sure when the camp’s occupants would be returning), her eyes scanning walls of code as the rest of the team watched her back. Kaiba and Jessi standing close behind her, Saa’tek posted up high with nose in the air, and Sy’hen stalking the outer edges of the empty camp.

The shadows closed tight and uncomfortably around the former Knight, their eyes scanning their surroundings and one hand remaining at-the-ready to reach for their deactivated saber pike.

Something…

It didn’t feel right.

Their eyes drifted up to Saa’tek, whose tail was flicking and one ear gave a twitch, as he obviously seemed to notice it, too. Then, they looked to the team’s CO; Kaiba’s own gaze had flitted up to Saa’tek, before she tightened her hands on her blaster rifle.

Sy’hen noticed the silence, then. It was unnatural. There should have been the sound of fauna nearby—chirping, or rustling, or anything—but all was still.

They removed their pike from their back, but kept it off as they pulled the shadows tighter around themself, their Force shroud leaving a chill to crawl across their skin. They’d never been particularly fond of using it, but wouldn’t deny that it was an incredibly useful ability. And, as the only Force-sensitive of the squad, they were glad to be able to give the team that advantage, however small it was.

Their head snapped up to rustling; the noise was there, then gone again just as quickly.

Their eye narrowed as they ducked low and began creeping forward. Their hands tightened on their weapon, their steps were impossibly quiet over dead leaves as they used the Force itself to muffle any sound they may have made, and their eyes—

Movement. They weren’t sure they would have caught it unaided, but their prosthetic eye picked up on it and pinned the motion to the back of their mind.

Sy’hen surged forward; they felt as if they were lunging through the shadows themselves, until they were barely a step behind the stranger.

Zakuul Knight armor made their breath hitch, just for a moment. It was long enough for the other to sense them, and Sy’hen only barely managed to ignite their weapon in time to block the Knight’s own pike from taking off their head as they were pulled from their shroud.

A thought was all it took, and the comm built into their ear implant turned on.

“Hush to squad,” they said, voice impossibly soft and level even as they shoved their opponent away with a kick to the chest. “Camp belongs to renegade Knights of Zakuul. Number unknown—have engaged with one.”

They ducked in time to dodge a stone that the Knight lobbed at their head, huffing through their nose as a snarl found their lips.

Kaiba gave a stream of commands to the rest of the squad, calling for Sy’hen to regroup with them, before the line went dead.

They reached out through the Force for one last shove at the Knight—he must have been a Captain, once upon a time if his armor was any indicator—before turning on their heel and bolting back to the main part of the camp.

The sight to greet them was the rest of the squad trying desperately not to get cut in half by half a dozen renegade Knights.

Sy’hen froze where they stood, their own pike gripped tightly between their hands and remaining eye wide even as their prosthetic began running the information straight to their head. Six of them, seven counting the one they’d left behind who would surely be showing up to help his comrades any moment.

They knew Knights. They knew the training Knights went through, rigorous and unforgiving of failure. These may have been renegades, but they were still Knights.

Just like Sy’hen.

They swallowed.

No. Sy’hen had shed their title long ago. They were an Alliance Paladin, now.

But they knew Knights. Real Knights. Zakuul was an ally to the Alliance, and Knights were loyal and trustworthy and noble—at least, now they were, with the royal family no longer on the throne.

These weren’t Knights.

And seeing them wearing that armor, wielding those weapons… It made their blood boil.

Sy’hen was pulled from their thoughts when Saa’tek bolted toward them, grabbed them by the wrist, and dragged them behind cover where Jessi was hunkered down already. They never could get over the fact that their medic carried a giant-ass assault cannon, but she seemed to be tinkering with it as she cursed under her breath.

“Protect ‘Bait—her gun’s jammed,” the engineer said. “Red’s orders. I need to set up some foot traps around the perimeter and try to lure ‘em there.”

Their gaze drifted to Kaiba for a moment, locked in combat with who appeared to be the renegade group’s leader, and nodded stiffly. “Be careful,” they murmured. Saa’tek gave a loose two-finger salute in acknowledgment before he was darting away, using his smaller size to his advantage to keep from behind seen.

So, Sy’hen waited. Their pike was gripped tightly as they kept themself between Jessi and the “Knights,” who were obviously holding their punches as they surveyed the situation. Most of them hadn’t even engaged yet, instead hanging back and raking their gazes across their camp.

Which told Sy’hen they either hadn’t expected to be discovered, or didn’t have a plan in place for when they were. They strained their ears to listen to the Knights’ voices, and noticed they were young. Maybe even younger than Jessi, though it was hard to tell behind their helmets.

When Jessi gave a nod, indicating she’d repaired whatever the issue with her cannon was, Sy’hen lunged away to grapple with a Knight who’d attempted to get Kaiba while her back was exposed.

They weren’t sure whether they, or the renegades, were more angered at seeing each other. The attempted backstabber’s eyes pinned on Sy’hen’s weapon, then their armor that was now painted in the squad’s colors, and they could practically feel the snarl that came to her lips.

Fortunately, the renegades were young. Inexperienced. That, paired with weapons and armor and training that the squad was grateful about having a Mandalorian Commander for, as Terrin accepted only the best for her people, meant that even outnumbered they were a step above the Knights. What strikes of their pikes did meet, bounced off lightsaber-resistant plating; what blaster shots were deflected, simply left burns in the paint of the squad’s armor.

That was, until the leader shoved Kaiba. Though his hand did meet her chest, it was obvious with the momentum that threw her into a tree that he’d used the Force.

Their Captain slumped where she landed and went still.

Jessi, not only their medic, but their XO, took only a moment to swing her heavy weapon against one of the renegade’s heads—Sy’hen could hear a loud crack, could imagine a spray of blood or neck twisted at an unnatural angle as the body slumped to the ground and they realized that Knight had lost their helmet at some point—before she was giving out orders in lieu of their (injured? dead?) CO.

Sy’hen barely registered her words.

Instead, their eyes zeroed in on the renegade leader; his weapon was drawn, he was…

Eye widening, Sy’hen surged forward. The Force pulled uncomfortably at their skin, the shadows around them too close, too tight, too cold, before they were tackling the leader before he could take off Kaiba’s head.

The two rolled when they hit the ground, spitting curses and trying and failing to get enough space between their tangled limbs to get a handhold on one another. Their weapons were dropped somewhere along the way. It was the least of Sy’hen’s concerns.

The Knight was wearing a helmet—the Paladin growled and grappled to pull it off.

The moment it tumbled away, a fist was swinging. Sy’hen spit as the blow split their lip, returned the favor so their glove came back smeared with the blood running from the man’s nose.

He’d tried to kill Kaiba. Kill her. The squad’s CO, Captain Felshaad, who’d hand-picked each of them and gave them all a place where they finally belonged. Kaiba Felshaad, who’d looked to the former Knight—the former Knight, who’d once fought tooth and nail to tear down the Alliance—and stretched out her hand with a smile. Who showed honor and mercy and respect, even to her opponents.

And he’d tried to kill her while she was helpless to defend herself.

Sy’hen growled and shoved the man onto his back, straddled his chest with knees pressed harshly into the sockets of his shoulders.

They pulled a fist back; it cracked loudly against his jaw.

Again.

They didn’t realize they were panting, not until a hand grabbed their arm that was poised for another blow. They didn’t realize blood smeared their hands, or their armor, or the ground under the Knight’s head. He was wheezing; Sy’hen’s nostrils flared as their chest heaved.

Their arm twitched as if to yank away from the grasp on their elbow.

Then it dropped to their side and they swallowed. They allowed themself to be maneuvered off the Knight while Jessi knelt by his head to make sure he wouldn’t die on the way to a cell on Odessen. They…couldn’t bring themself to look him in the face as shame twisted their gut. The feeling only worsened when they noticed Kaiba staring at them where she was still propped against the tree; her brow was knit and mouth parted as if she’d tried to say something but it caught in her throat.

They’d…never lost their temper before.

Not like…that. Not to the point they’d beat a man within inches of his life with nothing but their fists.

Sy’hen swallowed again.

They couldn’t bring themself to look down at their bloody hands.

#swtor #knights of zakuul #tales from the void #voids ocs #oc: sy'hen rett #oc: saa'tek #oc: kaiba felshaad #oc: jessi toklar-sept #oc: zip drakou #whumptober2022 #alt no.7 #violence #blood

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