Dodging Glances From the Walls, Attn: Maris Kala'myr, Mercury Flux

"Private matters, you better keep out of it,"

Apparently the Devaronian was less willing to open conversation than Mercury had hoped. By the tone of his voice pushing the topic would only lead to an aggressive move against them, and that was exactly what the Lorrdian was trying to prevent. So long as he could stall their attackers their chances would inevitably grow greater, or at least postpone their injury or destruction. Exactly how long Maris needed until she defeated the two men after her and returned he couldn't calculate, and as such the only choice he had was to lead them on for as long as possible, give Maris the longest span of time he could. Eventually his fellow Confederate would come back, and no doubt open proceedings to these men's deaths or arrests. Thumper wasn't going to be ignorant of reality; these men could well not make it out of this situation should Daniel, Maris and he wish to do so too. That wouldn't stop Mercury trying to save them as much as possible, but they were a terrible rut in the mission, and nothing should come before the mission. As horrible as it sounded, this mission was likely more important than these criminals, people who simply brought pain on others. These were exactly the type of people Mercury had been sent to arrest in his early years in the Confederation, so he felt he knew their type well. It was terrible to think it, but Tatooine would surely not miss their presence should they perish. But both Mercury and Maris were officers of the Confederation, not some ruthless rebels; they would try and preserve all the lives they could, even if their mission made that very difficult.

With the option of conversation gone, Mercury could only wait and see how the Devaronian and his goons acted. If they tried to assault Daniel then Thumper would have to begin fighting them off without Maris, alone. It was a frightening prospect, and made him sorely miss his Renegade family; he was never alone with them, even when physically he was. Whether Daniel had any fighting experience or not would have to be found out in the heat of the moment, because right now intriguing questions were not to be asked. From what Mercury could tell, Daniel would be unable to answer them anyway; he always looked like a nervous wreck. Turning to him now the Lorrdian could see things had only grown worse. He was acting strange, hands gripping his hair as both hands almost cradled his head, but unfortunately, just like the questions, inquiring into his well-being would have to wait until later. If they were to stand any kind of chance, Mercury needed to be ready to draw his gun, throw a fist, do something against the onslaught. Equally, if Maris returned the pilot needed to be aware, ready to act in tandem with her to catch the men entirely off guard. Daniel was probably just scared; the situation didn't look great for them and in his mind he probably thought the two Confederates were going to throw him to the dogs. It wasn't pleasant knowing he was causing such distress, but ultimately it was for the slicers own good. A necessary evil, just like killing to survive. Sometimes it was the only way to do greater good.

As the shot rang out Mercury dashed for his pistol, his hand sliding under the jacket and gripping the handle to pull it free. His eyes never looked away from the three men -- or rather two as one collapsed to the ground, the majority of his head missing from the blaster bolt. Thumper still hadn't spotted Maris, but could only assume it was her, hiding somewhere in the shadows. It wasn't necessary to know though, there would be little advantage from doing so. Automatically his gun raised, pointed at the Devaronian and ready to unleash a few shots into his torso should the man make any wrong moves. However, having released Daniel it seemed the twitchy little man had bolted. At first the Lorrdian wasn't too concerned; if he did run off the pair could find him again. What did make him sick with nerves was when the slicer tackled the remaining guard. As they tussled it was impossible for Mercury to get a shot on the greater man, but it was obvious the larger thug would be able to fight off his slicer attacker.

"I've got him!" the Lorrdian shouted, keeping his gun trained on the Devaronian for a moment more to allow Maris to get her target.

Of course, he could only assume she'd done so, and truly hoped he was right. If not he was leaving himself in a very vulnerable position, but by now Daniel was getting his face reorganised and Mercury couldn't just stand around. His gun dropped, returning to the holster it had left only seconds before, and the Lorrdian made a sprint to the two tangling bodies. Well, by now it was mostly the hired muscle showing exactly why he went under that profession. Regardless the pilot grabbed his wrist in mid swing, twisting it painfully before jamming it up behind his back. With a kick the man's body swayed and allowed Mercury to get him off his friend, slamming him into the ground with little remorse before situating himself on his back. To make sure the man truly knew how pointless it was to try and resist, or rather how detrimental that would be, the Confederate twisted the joint a little more as a reminder. If he tried anything the pilot was ready to break his arm. However, just to solidify his position as the dominate in this fight, Mercury gripped his other arm, turning it back on itself to put it in a tentative position sticking up into the air uncomfortable. Groans came, but fell on deaf ears, because Thumper rarely felt as sympathetic when having previously been threatened with blasters.

"Daniel, are you okay?"

It was unfortunate that Mercury couldn't check for himself, but present circumstances prevented such a thing. Once Maris had secured the ringleader and brought him over it would be easier for one of them to watch both, then the slicer could receive some basic form of medical aid. This goon had been throwing some hefty punches, and their allies health was becoming quite a worry for the pilot. It was now that Mercury pondered what exactly they were going to do with these two, since letting them go would probably just lead to the same situation, but next time they'd be less likely to fall for Maris's tricks. They couldn't take them back with them, since the next day they had a mission to go about and it was dangerous enough they had Daniel -- someone untrained in military methods -- tagging along. The slicer at least had an advantage; he was excellent with computers, as he had been so keen to remind them. These two though, they were rough criminals with little refine. Obviously it was Maris's decision, being the leader of the mission, but Mercury didn't mind; this was a difficult choice to make.

Thumper was right. This wasn't a difficult choice to make. It was frighteningly simple. Maris knew what needed to be done and she was under the impression that Thumper did too. If allowed to live, these thugs would be a thorn in their side. There was no knowing what company they kept or how much trouble they could bring down on the Confederates. The simplest and most efficient plan of action was to kill the remaining men and leave. Murders were commonplace on Tatooine. It wouldn't be investigated in any more detail than the dozen others that occurred this evening.

Maris approached quietly from behind after shooting one of the devaronain's men in the face. She impassively observed his body crumple to the sand and watched as Daniel threw his body into the remaining thug. Thumper drew his pistol quickly and stopped the devaronian from trying anything. But he didn't shoot. In such a situation, Maris would have been inclined to tilt her head to one side or furrow her brow thoughtfully. But the subroutines that controlled such idiosyncratic behavioural patterns had been suspended for the duration of this encounter. She didn't know why Thumper didn't fire. But she knew he had made a mistake.

I've got him!"

Thumper yelled out. The words were registered and processed. Her eyes drifted from the surrendering devaronain to Daniel being pummelled on the ground. That was unfortunate. Both of them were making mistakes. Maris would have to be the one to think logically and act with a clear head. Organics were so impractical at times. As Thumper wrestled the man off Daniel and restrained him, Maris made her presence known. The devaronian turned, his hands up with a foul expression. Stopping a few metres before him, she watched the alien with a distant expression and the faintest of smiles. Without a second thought, Maris shot him in the chest.

His body twitched as she lowered her weapon and fired again. Walking past the neutralised hostile, she approached Daniel, Thumper, and the remaining threat. Her eyes never moved from the struggling man beneath a well applied arm bar. Thumper was restraining him. The encounter was seconds from a conclusion. That was advantageous. The sooner they were finished with these goons, the sooner they could leave the scene.

"Daniel, are you okay?"

Maris looked to the slicer, blood pouring from a nasty gash above his eye, the bridge of his nose, and his lip. He didn't look okay. But it was Maris' opinion that he was fine. The wounds he had received were only superficial. They would heal and they would not stop him from completing the mission.
"He is not seriously injured." Maris answered for Daniel, turning an intense gaze back to Thumper and the man beneath him. She aimed the blaster pistol toward the pair, finger resting across the trigger.
"Thank you for restraining him. Please move, Thumper." There wasn't any compassion in her voice. It was empty and emotionless. Maris knew what she had to do to protect the integrity of their mission and maintain their cover.

The man was heavy, so heavy that the thin slicer could barely breathe beneath his weight but Daniel had larger worries than a lack of oxygen. Obviously angered by the turn of events, and likely still holding a grudge against the slicer for whatever he'd done in the past, the man's fists continued to come down onto his face. His arms were doing little to defend against the onslaught but seeing as he could not escape either they were his only chance of survival. It had been some time since he'd been so thoroughly beaten up but his mind managed to remember how to handle the experience, allowing the genius to disassociate himself from the pain. It was like he was detached from his body, almost, watching himself getting pummeled by the Devaronian's bulky buddy. At the same time, though, he could feel the particularly harmful hits as they collided with his flesh and bone. Daniel was not meant for this sort of abuse, or any abuse really. How he kept managing to get himself into such violent predicaments was really beyond his mean of comprehension and understanding.

It seemed like the beating would go on forever, had been going on for forever. But then it stopped abruptly as the man was torn off of him. Daniel whom had shut his eyes tight took a few moments before opening one and then the other to see if the coast was really clear or if he was just imagining himself being rescued. Thankfully, it was the former as opposed to the latter. Mercury had pulled the brute off of him. Mercury had saved Daniel from being beaten to death. It wasn't going to be forgotten anytime soon, either. He suddenly felt repentant for having thought such vile things about both Mercury and Maris before; they hadn't betrayed him, they'd saved him. Sure, their methods were a little obscure but they'd come through in the end. If only Daniel had realised what they had been planning from the start, it would have saved him a lot of inner turmoil. But he couldn't exactly be blamed for his doubt--in his life, so many people had backstabbed him that it was hard to expect any different. At the same time, his gullible nature kept pressuring him into trusting people. It was a vicious cycle, really.

"Daniel, are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm--ouch!" He'd tried sitting up too quickly utilising his battered and bruised arms and had paid the price for it. There was also a strange metallic taste in his mouth and it was only when he touched his now swollen lip and withdrew his hand when he realised that he was bleeding. Daniel suddenly felt disoriented, dizzy. He didn't like blood. His face hurt all over, too, and he tried to assess the damage done as best he could by using his hands, but it only served to soak them in more crimson, making him feel even more sickly than he did. The thug had certainly done a number on him, but now that it was over, he believed that he'd recover alright. Maris' words served to only confirm this belief. Obviously she knew something about first aid since she was a soldier in the Confederation army, and on top of that she could see him where as he only had how he felt to go by. Which wasn't much considering that he felt as though he'd just been beaten up. Which he had been.

"He is not seriously injured."

Daniel dared not rise to his feet, afraid that he'd collapse out of exhaustion from the trying day that he'd had. Instead he scooted over to the wall, leaning against it for support as he tried to steady his erratic breathing. In seeing that the situation had stabilised some and probably also concerned for her friend, Eloise hopped out of the safety of her cover and over to Daniel. The Gizka nudged the Human's arm companionably but hitting a bruise it only served to cause him to wince. He forced a small smile for his friend's benefit though and this seemed to pacify the worried little creature. The slicer likely would have petted Eloise but his hands were a mess and he wasn't about to go getting the Gizka dirtied up. Still, he was happy to have his friend's concern; at least someone still cared about him. Even if that someone was a tiny Gizka.

"Thank you for restraining him. Please move, Thumper."

His weary brown eyes were drawn to Maris now pointing her blaster at Mercury and the man whom had previously been rearranging Daniel's face. The Devaronian was dead, he now noticed, having joined the others. There was so much death around and Daniel didn't like it one bit. It reminded him why he avoided the Confederation as much as he did--trouble and pain and suffering and death were always following in the footsteps of those who served the ruling government. The not-so-lucky Danny had enough to deal with with his own misfortune without adding the Confederation to the equation. So it was that he was really quite sick of all the conflict for the day and really just wanted to crawl into a bed and hide beneath the covers and pretend these horrible chain of events had never happened. Even though the man had beaten him with the intent of killing him, Daniel couldn't bring himself to want him dead. And with the way things were looking, that was exactly what Maris' plan was: to shoot him.

Despite his fatigue, he struggled to his feet as fast as he could, hoping to maybe add his two credit chips into the decision. "Uh, Maris," he said, his voice still shaky as he regarded her with a cautious gaze. "We don't really need to kill him, do we? I mean, we could just . . . let him go, right? Or, you're Confederates, couldn't we turn him into the authorities . . . or something?" There'd been more than enough blood shed today as far as Daniel was concerned.

"He is not seriously injured."

That was thankful, and from glancing over the slicer for a moment the Lorrdian could see that most of it seemed to just be cuts and bruises. The blood made things look far worse than they probably were too, but after a clean up Mercury was doubtful there was much to deal with. Of course, having received such a hefty beating to the head it would only be sensible to watch out for signs of concussion, and a few extra check-ups would be necessary to ensure Daniel's well-being. All in all though, Thumper was pleased with how things had happened. Two people seemed to have died -- along with two others that followed Maris, making the overall total four -- but it could have been much worse. Other than Daniel's minor injuries, the three of them were all fine and healthy. Perhaps if the slicer hadn't suddenly run off they could all have made it through without injury, but such things hadn't happened and there was no use dwelling on them. It had been unfortunate the devaronian had done something to warrant the shot from Maris, but again, it was probably for the best considering. To be honest, had all the thugs been killed it would have still been looked at as successful, since the primary aim was the survival of Daniel, Maris and Mercury. The fact one had been taken down without any wounds only added to the level of success they'd managed. It turned out the three made a reasonably good team.

"Thank you for restraining him. Please move, Thumper."

At first the pilot didn't understand what Maris was implying. It was only when she raised her gun that the true meaning behind her words hit him. She wasn't planning on taking any kind of peaceful approach to the situation, but rather wished to gun down the remaining goon despite the fact Mercury had pinned him to the ground, and currently the man made no attempt to escape due to the threat of pain. It was completely overboard to shoot the man now, regardless of whether they were on a mission or not. Sure, the problem arose as to what to do with the man, but just because he was a problem didn't mean that his life was expendable. He needed to be handed over to the jailers, whether they be Confederate or from Tatooine. Even if the authorities on this planet were corrupt just like the world around them, it was the course of justice. If it didn't work then it didn't work, and as terrible as that was it was beyond the two Confederates to sort out; they simply didn't have the time or the clearance to do so. Their situation was a difficult one, but they had to follow the rules, not just those to help bring victory to their mission but also those ethical ones set-up for this very thing.

Shooting him now wasn't self-defense like the others, but merely an execution. Killing innocents -- as much as Mercury had to stretch that word to incorporate this man -- wasn't the Confederate way. They were the government, the people who were supposed to bring stability and peace to the galaxy; that was their purpose. Running around firing off shots without consideration was left to the Alliance, killing people just for their own aims had always been their behaviour, not the Confederations. This was something the Lorrdian was not going to be able to ignore, nevermind the consequences. Maris may very well be his superior, but that gave her no right to act like this, to downright murder this man. Court martial, demotion, expulsion, none of these things could sway him on such a serious matter as this. There were plenty of terrible things that the Confederation had done, like any organisation spanning such a great expanse of space, but that was no reason to continue it. These things needed to be stopped, and the first place for change was within yourself and those around you.

Mercury realised that there were some rotten eggs within the Confederation, and had even met a few in his time, but never had he believed that Maris could ever possibly be one. Their journey here she'd seemed so pleasant, and not just the false kind that some people put on when meeting new faces. The woman had truly, sincerely been pleased with things, happy almost despite the fact they were working. When meeting Daniel she'd even seemed friendly towards him, despite his past and the things he'd done. Unlike some people she'd not patronised him for being a navy man, or not trusted his abilities. Hell, she'd even listened to his suggestions, even though he was likely a much lower rank than herself. Maris had appeared to be everything that Mercury had wanted the Confederation to be, to become, but here she was pointing a gun at the man, and subsequently, Mercury himself. From that kind, concerned citizen of the galaxy, Maris had transformed into a cold, calculating killer, and of all the things Thumper had experienced in the countless battles he'd been in on land and in space, he'd never been more terrified.

"[ . . . ] Or, you're Confederates, couldn't we turn him into the authorities . . . or something?"

Daniel was, of course, right. They could very well turn him into the authorites and allow them to deal with him. What happened after that was none of their concern, but at least with that they were continuing on the path of correct justice, and not the warped kind some people followed. Mercury knew that such situations called for treading a certain, terrible line, but never were you to cross it. Never should you become what you were fighting against. Just because these men would have done the same to them had positions been reversed did not been they should now kill this man. The fact that the only thing holding them back now was the mission only made it worse. Currently they were still preparing for it, and until Daniel had revealed the fact they worked for the Confederation, this man had been none-the-wiser. They would have to go some leg work, put in some effort, but there had to be a way for this man to survive and for them to continue safely. With a look to Daniel, the Lorrdian shaked his dreaded head, the strands of hair shifting from the movement but keeping springy atop his head.

"You can't blurt that out, Daniel," he said solemnly, trying not to tell the slicer off but equally feeling exacerbated at the fact he'd just said such a thing aloud.

Turning to Maris he kept a steady stare on her, never moving from his spot above the man. He wasn't going to give her a chance to get a shot off at him, not until he'd had his say. Mercury was still shocked at the suggestion they shoot their new prisoner, but wasn't going to take the soft approach to solving it. Maris needed to know he was serious about this, and that he was wholly against such a thing. "There's got to be another way we can handle this, Maris; we can't just execute him, even if he is a criminal. It's not up to us to decide what his punishment should be; that's the entire purpose of the justice system." Dropping his head for a moment the Lorrdian began to think furiously. The longer he made Maris wait the more she'd feel inclined to shoot the man, since wasting time was just going to have repercussions on their mission, and it was entirely the mission that made the woman think this way. At least, that was what Thumper kept telling himself. There was no way this could be entirely Maris's own ideas. She was just dedicated, a bit too dedicated but her intentions had to be good. Perhaps she was acting in the interests of the greater good, that was probably it.

"Why don't we drop him off with the authorities, give them a bribe to hold him for at least a day to give us time to get our business sorted without him around. This entire planet runs on money, not good intentions, after all."

She stood over Thumper and their soon to be dead prisoner with the barrel of her pistol levelled towards the pair. Thumper wasn't the target of her murderous intentions. He was there by choice. All he had to do was step from the line of fire as Maris had requested and everything would be dandy. All he had to do was move. Yet he stood his ground. This perplexed the assassin to no end. She couldn't understand why Thumper would choose to put himself in this situation, especially for something that wanted him dead not one minute earlier.

"Uh, Maris, we don't really need to kill him, do we? I mean, we could just . . . let him go, right? Or, you're Confederates, couldn't we turn him into the authorities . . . or something?"

Bringing her higher level functions to full capacity, Maris snapped her head sharply to Daniel. Quickly she turned away, scanning up and down the street. Luckily it was deserted. People of Tatooine had a tendency to keep their nose out of business that wasn't theirs. Intervening where one was not wanted was a easy way to end up dead. Turning back to Daniel, who should have been very pleased that no one overhead him, she was about to reprimand the slicer when Thumper cut in.

"You can't blurt that out, Daniel,"

She nodded slowly to Daniel. But sadly, someone had overheard. Her eyes focused on the man Thumper still held beneath him.
"He knows too much." she deadpanned, retaking aim and preparing to shoot the man where he knelt. Cogitator circuits told the droid that Thumper would understand that the mission came first. They were all expendable; especially those with no affiliation to the Confederation of Dolomar. It was called collateral damage and a necessity of their game with the Alliance. The man beneath Thumper tensed as he awaited the execution that never came.

"There's got to be another way we can handle this, Maris; we can't just execute him, even if he is a criminal. It's not up to us to decide what his punishment should be; that's the entire purpose of the justice system."

Her eyes met his steady stare and she didn't falter. Slowly her head cantered to the left, her eyes still locked with Thumper's. He was under the impression that they couldn't execute this man. Maris smiled kindly and it was completely wrong for the situation. Returning her head to the upright position, she calculated that a direct confrontation would be ill-advised. Thumper was wrong; Maris was judge, jury, and executioner for the Confederation. They had called on her services, asking her to act when others would hesitate, countless times before. This was no different.

She could have pulled the trigger and killed the man before Thumper had a chance to react. She could have sent his body limp below her fellow Confederate. While ensuring the integrity of their mission, in one strike she could ruin their comradely. Glancing back to Daniel, she read him quickly. He was as worried as a child watching his parents fight.

"Why don't we drop him off with the authorities, give them a bribe to hold him for at least a day to give us time to get our business sorted without him around. This entire planet runs on money, not good intentions, after all."

That wasn't going to work. As Thumper pointed out; this planet runs on credits. Their friend could simply bribe himself from lockup. They required a more permanent solution, at least on a temporary basis, to discourage the prisoner from talking. Maris thought about bringing this to Thumper's attention, but she was inclined to agree simply to diffuse the situation. Thumbing the safety, Maris slid the pistol back into its holster.
"Very well. Thumper, please escort Mr Davies back to his lodgings and attend to his wounds. I will meet you there. And I will take care of the prisoner."

"You can't blurt that out, Daniel."

Oops. When he'd offered his suggestion, he had thought that it would assist the man. In so doing, however, his words had not helped the prisoner's case but rather served to condemn him even more. Such was Daniel's luck in matters which he actually wanted to help out; he always seemed to make things worse whenever he wanted to make them better. It was unfortunate, but part of the reason that he probably didn't have many friends (beyond his obvious quirks and otherwise antisocial troubles). Who would want to hang around someone who only brought trouble with them? Sure, his slicing skills were handy but his use seemed to end there. A genius though he may have been, he still had a significant amount of learning to do before his number was up. Hopefully he'd turn into a more self-respecting, sociable guy that brought peace and goodness to the Galaxy in his own way before the end. However, he wouldn't hold his breath and wouldn't expect anyone else to either.

"He knows too much."

Oh, no. She was right. Because of Daniel, the man now knew that Maris and Mercury were Confederates . . . and that sort of thing just didn't go over well on a lawless planet such as Tatooine. Here, it was the criminals who decided what could and couldn't be done, and it was the criminals who were in charge. They never took kindly to government or military intervention, despite when it wasn't even directed at them personally. Few on this dustball were friends to the Confederation--Daniel wasn't, but then he hadn't wanted to be enemies either and so here he was, caught up in another misadventure like always. Now that he was on the side of the Confederates, however, that meant that he had become just as much a target as either of his allies. That was not a good thing. This entire business had gotten quite muddled up, growing dirtier and more troubling every moment.

". . . It's not up to us to decide what his punishment should be; that's the entire purpose of the justice system."

The justice system. Huh. Daniel hadn't thought about it for some time, and he certainly had never considered it a 'justice' system. A punishment, sure; consequences for your actions, yes; but never a system that was associated with righteousness in any way, really. But this was likely because he'd been a victim of the dark side to judicial review; while he had been guilty of a crime, the punishment that had accompanied his conviction had not been equivalent. What was that saying--the punishment should fit the crime? His certainly hadn't. For something that could have easily been righted--he could have just transferred the funds back, after all--he had been given an obscenely long sentence and all the evils that had come with it. So no, he couldn't call it the justice system when there seemed to be so many problems with it, but it was some sort of system, alright. And if it kept a man from being killed point blank in front of Daniel, then he'd rather send the man into the system; on Tatooine, it wasn't likely he'd spend more than a night in the dusty old jail anyway. For most people, this wouldn't be a big deal. It was only Daniel who seemed to have such a strong aversion to being confined in a prison.

". . . This entire planet runs on money, not good intentions, after all."

Maris didn't disagree with Mercury as Daniel might have expected. That blaster in her hand made him nervous, only increased by her silence and that smile which seemed sadistic considering the circumstances. It was anybody's guess as to what she would do now that Mercury had stopped her from outright murdering the man; it would have been in cold blood, even the criminal slicer realised that. Thankfully, the longer that the woman seemed to consider the male's words, the more it seemed likely that she'd realise this too and abandon such bad intentions. His eyes darted back and forth between the dark-skinned man and the dark-haired woman, wondering what would happen now. A peaceful ending to this bloody experience would be preferred if it was up to him. People didn't usually ask him for his opinion, however. Whether it was better this way or not, he could never say since it happened so rarely if at all. Daniel was smart, he had insight, he was sure, but whether it was ever appropriate or helpful . . . well, who knew?

"Very well. Thumper, please escort Mr Davies back to his lodgings and attend to his wounds. I will meet you there. And I will take care of the prisoner."

This sounded like a good plan to Daniel and he told them both so. "I think that sounds like a good idea, yeah. Reasonable, yeah. Mos Gamos doesn't, uh, it doesn't get any nicer at night." He paused, briefly considering something else. His dark gaze swept to Maris. "Will you be okay on your own with . . . him?" The slicer looked at the beaten and defeated man then back to the able-bodied woman. He gave a small, self-deprecating laugh. "Yeah, I mean, yeah, I'm sure you'll be fine. You're . . . you obviously can handle yourself." Another uncomfortable, nervous chuckle as he trailed off in his speech. "Yeah . . ."

He looked to Mercury, waited to see if he would agree with this plan as well and if he was ready to escort him back to their dumpy little motel as suggested.

"He knows too much."

This was, of course, very much true. With the man knowing their affiliation plenty of trouble could sudden spring up in their path. Mercury didn't know much about the dusty planet, but he knew criminals, and the Hutts would pay a very nice sum to know that the Confederation had to agents on his turf. Such revelations would disrupt the pairs mission no end, and put them in much greater danger than they were before -- if that hadn't been enough already. They would have lost the element of surprise, and with it one of the few advantages that they possessed. The Hutt's guards outnumbered them, of that Thumper was sure -- there were probably more people directly guarding the Hutt himself, never mind the compound he resided in. Infiltration was only possible if the enemy didn't know that there was anyone wishing to gain entry at that point in time, or at least didn't know what kind of entrance to expect. With there only being two of them their choices were obviously limited; they couldn't very well go in all guns blazing if they wanted to make it out again -- or even get further than the front doors. Yes, anyone knowing about their presence on the planet would lead to countless complications, all of which led to a mission failure or even worse their deaths. Still, Mercury wasn't comfortable killing someone when they were unarmed and otherwise restrained.

Her gun remained leveled on her fellow Confederate, the only obstacle to a clear shot on the man. Neither seemed prepared to give up their argument, and the stares between them seemed like mini battles in themselves. Will against will, beliefs clashing with other beliefs. Maris seemed to be probing his, testing them to see if there was any weakness that she could exploit and turn him against this man. Although Mercury liked to avoid conflict he wasn't one to throw away his principles. He may be willing to bend to accommodate others but that was only so far. Some people obviously saw him as a push-over, but the Lorrdian hadn't been given an officer role within the Renegades just for being a good pilot. He cared about the people he worked with, and for. While he often took on the role of welcoming face within the Squadron, Mercury also knew that sometimes things needed to be fought for, regardless of who it upset. Right now he was adamant that they wouldn't take an unlawful path, neither Thumper, Maris or Daniel. They would get the mission done, but within the laws that the government they worked for had laid out. Just because they were enforcers of these laws didn't mean they had the right to break them, because no one was above the law. Without rules there would be chaos. Even crime ridden planets like Tatooine had rules, albeit ones that were less effective at maintaining life as they were generating money. Thumper and Maris needed to set an example, and that meant doing the right thing, not the most convenient. It would be a harder road, but it would be the morally correct one.

"[ . . . ] And I will take care of the prisoner."

Even had Maris not been pulling what could only be described as a malicious looking smile, Mercury would have insisted that he wouldn't leave the prisoner alone with her. It was stupid to think that he'd managed to turn her to his views, as much as he'd like to believe it. Normally Thumper was the trusting type, one who believed that there was good in everyone -- and he still believed such. The only problem was that he didn't believe that the good in Maris had been quite yet become the governing body. The Lorrdian knew she was just acting in the best interests of the mission, but her ruthless efficiency could not be said to be a good thing. In time, perhaps she could see how terrible what she was proposing was, but for now Mercury needed to act to protect the life of this man. Sure, there was no visible reason to; he'd been prepared to kill all three of them earlier, and Mercury had no other relationship with the man other than murderer-victim -- except perhaps jailer-prisoner now. But that wasn't the point. That didn't justify throwing him to Maris who, in Thumper's mind, was sure to kill him once he and Daniel had left. More than anything the pilot wanted to trust in Maris's good will, but there was a life at stake.

"Yeah . . ."

The Lorrdian ignored Daniel for the time being, focusing solely on his fellow Confederate. His brain wracked for a way out of the current situation, but it seem the slicer wasn't going to help him on that front. Why should he? Daniel was probably just as happy to see the back of the thug that had viciously attacked him. It wasn't his problem after all. No, his problem had just been shot down, with only this goon the remainder of it. Out of the corner of his eye Mercury could see the slicer itching to leave, but continued to stand his ground against Maris. There had to be a way for everyone to get a good deal here, because if not tensions would flare and gaps would appear in their little team. As much as Thumper didn't want this, he could just stand idly by as someone was killed simply for being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Sure, he'd not been a nice man, but you couldn't just kill whoever you wanted for whatever reason. That wasn't how life worked. It shouldn't be how life worked. It was wrong, every inch of it was wrong to the core and Mercury couldn't stand it.

"Why don't we bring him back to Daniel's instead? If we lock him up in there at least we're not relying on some corrupt police officers to keep him safe. We can blindfold him so he doesn't know where Dan lives."

It would make a perfectly good cell, and providing they restrained him securely, perhaps with a gag to prevent him calling out for help, then he'd be safe until they came back. No one would think of looking for him in there, should the man have any other friends that weren't gunned down by Maris. They would also know exactly where he was while they were out, and would have full control over who saw him -- which would be no one, obviously. It wouldn't be too much of a hindrance for Daniel either, really. As long as the man was blindfolded he wouldn't know the way, or where, Daniel was residing, so the slicer could return safe in the knowledge that his whereabouts were still unknown. Since the thug would be tied up there's no chance he could mess with any of Daniel's stuff, and once the mission was over they could easily let the man go. A quick drop-off in the middle of the desert would be satisfactory. Mercury couldn't say he liked the man. Just because he was against shooting the guy didn't mean that he would be adverse to seeing him have to trek back to town. At the very worst Daniel would have to move motels, and if that were the case then Mercury would gladly foot the bill. This way the man would continue to live his meaningless life, and hopefully Maris would be appeased as to the safety of the mission.

"I think that sounds like a good idea, yeah. Reasonable, yeah. Mos Gamos doesn't, uh, it doesn't get any nicer at night."

Their slicer had a point. The longer they stood around here talking about the inevitable, the sooner some unfortunate someone came across them. Maris didn't go out looking for trouble, but she dealt with it swiftly and efficiently when it reared its ugly head. The longer they stood in the street littered with dead bodies, the greater the chances their presence would be discovered and their mission scrubbed. Maris wouldn't let that happen.

"Will you be okay on your own with . . . him? Yeah, I mean, yeah, I'm sure you'll be fine. You're . . . you obviously can handle yourself. Yeah . . ."

"Thank you for your concern, Mr Davies." Maris spoke softly, her eyes still fixed on Thumper. "And you are right, I can handle myself." And she seemed to be the only one who knew what had to be done here. If Daniel needed to feel concerned about someone, it should have been Thumper. He was still standing between Maris and her quarry. And that was not a good place to stand. Luckily for Thumper, he was a Confederate and Maris' programming prevented her engaging in hostilities with them. Of course, there were exceptions and Thumper was quickly becoming one. If Thumper had been anyone else, even Daniel, he would have been floored with a hole in his chest by now.

"Why don't we bring him back to Daniel's instead? [...] We can blindfold him so he doesn't know where Dan lives."

Maris frowned at the idea, a true frown, one that displayed the full force of her feelings. The droid normally frowned, but it was always pensive or concerned. This expression was dark and threatening; silently warning the Lorrdian of the thin ice he was jumping up and down upon. A process thread that told Maris to kill them all and continue alone was quickly gaining momentum within her cogitator units and it wouldn't be long before she acted upon such murderous intentions. But there was one option open to her, one viable solution to remedy this situation before Maris did what she believed necessary to salvage this mission.

"Lieutenant," she began in a cool and calm voice, "You are jeopardising the mission. You are acting illogically, emotionally. I am giving you a direct order: Release the prisoner to my custody; escort Mr Davies back to his room and tend to his wounds. Am I understood, Lieutenant?" Maris knew that Thumper understood. She had chosen her words very carefully to remind Thumper that he was a Confederate. What they were doing here was for the greater good.

Sighing, Maris took a step towards Thumper and the prisoner. She placed a hand on his shoulder and smiled softly, still looking him square in the eyes. She barely broke eye contact throughout their enagement.
"If this man's life means so much to you; I will not kill him. I promise." Maris said quietly, removing her hand from Thumper's shoulder and waiting for him to follow his orders.

"And you are right, I can handle myself."

He looked at the ground, shifted some sand around with his shoe, and felt somewhat silly for having said anything at all. Obviously Maris was capable; he hoped that he hadn't insulted her by implying otherwise. Daniel wasn't sure why he'd been concerned, but he chalked it up to the chivalry and manners that his mother had instilled in him at a young age. Just because Maris was a Confederate didn't necessarily mean that she was a bad person as he was learning. He just didn't want to see her get hurt was all. It was purely innocent concern on his end.

However, Daniel was beginning to feel as though he had unknowingly interjected himself into a conflict the likes of which he did not belong in. Maris and Mercury were Confederate soldiers, trained to kill, and right now they were debating ethics of all things; with the former aiming her blaster at the latter, it wasn't looking like the sort of situation that would be easily solved. As far as he was concerned, both the man and the woman were likeable people in their own rights, and he felt he got along with both of them well enough too. He didn't want their team split apart by such a moral dilemma as the one that was presently being proposed. At the same time, however, he wasn't sure how he could go about calming them both down. Not as though they were irate, but they were both being stubborn, neither seeming to compromise for the other. This was really the last position Dan wanted to be in, so naturally it was the one he found himself in. They needed an unbiased third party to voice their thoughts, but the slicer knew that he probably wasn't as unbiased as was needed. Still, couldn't hurt to try.

". . . We can blindfold him so he doesn't know where Dan lives."

Mercury piped up again in his own defense before Daniel could. This plan, however, was not one that the twitchy man liked one bit. "Uh, I don't actually think . . . I mean, it's not a bad idea. But, not to discredit it or anything, I'm not sure it's . . . safe? It is a public motel, after all, and I'm not sure I'd feel comfortable having a criminal in my room . . ." Understatement of the century, that one. This man had been prepared to kill him, had beaten him up with no regards to his health. For all intents and purposes, Dan shouldn't have cared what happened to him but he didn't want him dead. That didn't mean he wanted him nearby either, though. What Mercury was proposing was . . . well, it was kind of ridiculous. He didn't like disagreeing with people especially when they had the power to hurt him for it, but this was an exception. The slicer was more scared of the prisoner than he was of Mercury. "Not to be a bother . . ."

". . . Am I understood, Lieutenant?"

The meek man chanced a glance at Mercury to see how he was going to react to the order. What if he disobeyed? What would happen then? Would Maris shoot him? Daniel liked to think that she was a better person than that but then he didn't know her well enough. One thing he was sure about was that if she did shoot her own ally in cold blood, there was no way that he was going to stick around. It meant that he wasn't safe, and if he wasn't safe in the company of supposed allies, then he'd rather go back to being alone and with Eloise. Eloise, at least, wasn't going to pop him one in the back when he wasn't looking.

"If this man's life means so much to you; I will not kill him. I promise."

There. That should settle things. Maris had given her word. What more did Mercury need than that?

"[ . . . ] Not to be a bother . . ."

Had he not been preoccupied keeping his eyes on Maris, Thumper would surely have given Daniel a glance to convey how he felt about the slicer's lack of help in the situation. If anything, yet again, he was making things worse. What was with these people? What had happened in their lives that had dulled their feelings towards killing, made it more of a hassle than a sin? Mercury had listened to Conner speak of other Confederates going through some kind of strange procedure during initiation that made them into the uptight, stuffy little people they were, but the Lorrdian never truly believed such a thing. Even as he laughed along he'd been positive the majority were normal, nice folks. Perhaps their experiences had altered them a bit, but not in such a horrific manner as to make them impossible to work with. Never had he thought that they were all that bad. Hadrian could be a pain in the arse, sure, but Mercury would hardly consider him a homicidal maniac. Sometimes killing was a necessity, like in space where negotiations were impossible to conduct if the other side weren't willing to leave their channels open for long periods of time. Even on the ground there were those moments when mere seconds were allowed for a decision before death fell upon you, but this was totally different. This man was unarmed and they were contemplating shooting him. Was Lorrd really that different, did the Renegades operational protocols vary so much from the rest of the Confederation? Killing an unarmed man was murder, not an unfortunate casualty. How could they even begin to justify this?

Never before had the pilot begun to miss his superior, his friends back in the Renegades. It was like the entire world had gone mad, and Thumper was the only one left thinking straight, or at least the only one left that believed in anything resembling right and wrong. Before he'd taken every member of his squadron for granted, but now he was realising how different they really were. Conner had assembled a group after herself, where people didn't clash like this, and the Lorrdian wanted nothing more than to dive back into that sanctuary right now. Conflict was horrible, but watching a man die was ten times as bad. Not just the terrible act, but the terrible action it would take him to abandon his morals in favour of the easy path. He couldn't just give up on the guy, no matter how awful it was that he'd pounded Daniel's face to a bloody mess, or threatened to hurt all three of them along with his friends. No matter who told him, be it Maris, Conner or some anonymous Grand Admiral, Mercury couldn't let it happen without a fight. He wanted a better galaxy than that, he wanted to see the better side of every person expressed on the outside, not locked away within, like some embarrassing affliction. If he didn't try then how could he ask others too?

"[ . . . ] Am I understood, Lieutenant?"

His dark jaw clenched at the order, knowing full well that the argument was over. There was little other action that he could take to save the man from his fate, other than physically fighting Maris off. The idea floated in his mind for a few moments before disappearing; Maris already had her gun leveled on him, and she didn't seem to have anything against killing. If Thumper made a move for his pistol she'd only assume one thing -- the thug having been well and truly secured -- and then he'd die having gotten no where. All that was left was to trust in the woman's good instinct, her merciful side and hope that it would surface now more than ever. The thug's life was out of his hands now, and Maris's kind inclination would be all that could save him from a swift death. But how could Mercury have much confidence in it, after she'd just nearly shot the man without much thought? It seemed like a long-shot, but there was nothing else the pilot could cling to any longer. He got up slowly, lifting the man with him as both got to their feet, the latter's arm remaining in an uncomfortable position with his back to the three of them. There was a clean shot right now, one that even Daniel could probably make. The prospect of the goon getting gunned down now just made him numb though, most of his thoughts just made the Lorrdian numb. It was a horrible feeling, not feeling at all.

"If this man's life means so much to you; I will not kill him. I promise."

The gentle touch was almost a reminder of how he'd viewed Maris to begin with; someone he could grow to call a friend, like he did with others. Someone he would miss once the mission was over, and would be sure to put his utmost energy into keeping in touch at least. He had almost admired her professionalism, even if he'd have wished she had loosened up, but such a thing came with time like with everyone. More than anything he wanted to be sure that this was the side of her that was prevalent in life, and not just a front she'd put forward to fool him. She was a good person deep down, he knew it, he believed her. If she said she wasn't going to kill the man, Mercury had to have faith in her word. A smile was almost impossible to return, just an awkward swallow and a desperate look that was difficult to extinguish. He'd do anything to rid himself of it, to show that confident, unconcerned smile that he'd greeted her with when they'd first met with the rest of the Confederation Fleet, but it had withdrawn within him. Still, gratitude needed to be shown one way or another.

"Thank you, Maris."

After handing over their prisoner he turned to Daniel, the slicer having been rather sidelined during the argument but continuing to bleed. None of it looked too bad, but they'd need to make sure none of his cuts got infected. Mercury was used to working in the field with wounds much worse, and had learnt a few tricks to help Daniel avoid any nasty consequence from the attack. Hopefully, with a little luck, the slicer's face wouldn't even become swollen to any great degree. Time was the key, so waiting around in the middle of the street wasn't the smartest thing to be doing right now. With a few, slow steps Thumper moved over to the slicer and past him, an unseen beckoning for him to follow. The motel wasn't far, and to be honest Mercury just needed to get his mind of this entire thing. It had been a much more stressful night than he'd first expected it to be, even as they'd sat in the bar and watched the now dead Devaronian leave to begin his trouble. A stiff drink would have been appreciated, but the distraction of aiding Daniel would have to do.

Maris stood waiting as Thumper rose defeated with prisoner in tow. With the opportunity presenting itself, her cerebral processors calculated the clean shot to the back of their prisoner's head. She wouldn't have missed. But such an action would have put Maris at odds with the man she was supposed to be working with for the duration of the mission. While that was the most efficient course of action, Maris had decided against following logic for Thumper's sake. For some reason, he had some objection to logical actions. Maris didn't understand.

Daniel was still standing beside them, watching in anticipation as the Confederates argued amongst themselves. There wasn't anything that he could have said or done to cut their candid discussion short. Well, he could have run, but that wouldn't have been wise. In such a situation, Maris would have been pressed to deal with their one remaining witness in the quickest manner possible and hunt Daniel down to make sure he didn't do anything that would jeopardise their presence on Tatooine. Naturally, that would have been bad all round.

"Thank you, Maris."

Maris nodded as she took the man's hands, crossed them at the wrist, and secured them tightly with one hand. He winced at her grip tightened. She didn't vocalise any response to Thumper's gratitude and simply nodded. With a small smile, she watched Daniel and Thumper walk into the warm night and disappear around a corner. There wasn't any doubt that her orders would be followed. Thumper was a Confederate; he would obey.

Slowly her eyes turned to the prisoner who was at least half a foot taller than Maris and twice as broad in the shoulders. He was made of muscle and would have held the upper hand if the slender woman was indeed human.
"Please; try it." she said coolly with a pleasant smile. He tried to free his arms from the woman's iron grip. His arms tensed as he pulled. Maris didn't budge; barely registering his exertion. With a push, she forced him to walk away from his dead friends, onward to his awaiting fate.

"Thank you, Maris."

There was something in his tone if not in his body language that as he passed by suggested to Daniel that they had lost. The slicer had been under the impression that they had ended up the victors of this engagement seeing as they were alive, and the thugs no longer were--saving the one who had provided such a conflict within their small team. But in seeing the dark-skinned man with such an equally dark, downtrodden expression, Daniel could not help but wonder if they had lost in another way that was not so apparent to him. Even worse, he felt as though this whole thing was his fault. It had been him that the goons had been after, not the Confederates. This near dissolution of their working team was because of a mistake he'd made in the past, not the result of any failure on behalf of Mercury and Maris. They should never have been dragged into his affair, and the guilt that accompanied him on the trek back weighed him down to the point of being a physical burden upon his hunched over shoulders. Unlucky Danny should have been his nickname seeing as he could only cause trouble to himself and those around him.

He wanted to fix this, but he didn't know how. While it appeared that everything had been resolved, with Mercury and Daniel headed back to the motel and Maris taking care of the prisoner, there was still that nagging feeling that something had changed. Mercury was quiet the whole way back and that silence felt condemning. Daniel wondered if he hated him now because of this whole thing. The slicer was used to being disliked, but Mercury seemed to be a nice person . . . He would have much preferred to be friends with him than enemies, or mere acquaintances. The former convict had plenty of people after him for some reason or another, none of them good. It would have been nice to have a few friends in the whole wide Galaxy, even if they worked for the government which had imprisoned and damaged him so terribly. Daniel had decided that Mercury and Maris were not bad people, and since that decision, he had also made a revelation. If there were some good people employed by the Confederation, then perhaps it wasn't all bad. Maybe it could be salvaged somehow. But this, too, he did not know how to fix.

Eloise followed after the two sentients with unenthused hops. She looked as weary as Daniel felt and so he took pity on his friend. Picking the little Gizka up, he slipped her into his bag to save her the rest of the journey; her little head peeked out of the black sack, still keeping alert with big, black eyes. After such a day as this one, the human couldn't blame his creature counterpart for being suspicious of something else happening. The shadows themselves seemed threatening, capable of jumping off of the walls and at them at any moment. Daniel kept away from the shadows, preferring the failing light of dusk to the dark of the coming night. It'd been a dark enough day with him having to witness the deaths of several men--granted, they had not been well-liked men but they had still be sentient lives. It was regrettable, and made him feel bad, so he tried not to think of it and focused instead on following Mercury. Thankfully, nothing else negative occurred on their return trip.

It was a relief to reach the motel and the three slipped inside and headed to Dan's room without drawing anyone's attention. People tended to mind their own business on Tatooine, that was one good thing about the otherwise bad planet. The room was nice and cool and Daniel gently set his bag down, allowing Eloise to wriggle out and then hop beneath his bed to catch some sleep after such an arduous twenty-four hours. The man wished to do the same but he needed to take care of his battle wounds first; now that the adrenaline had worn off, he found his face feeling as though it'd been stabbed with a thousand tiny needles, no doubt his nerves reacting to the pain. The slicer moved over to the mirror that was positioned over a desk nearby and winced at the reflection that he received. He looked as bad as he felt, battered and bleeding and bruised. The Daniel in the mirror reminded him of the one that had emerged from prison all those years ago back into freedom, except it lacked the confused look that he'd worn back then. He knew exactly where he was, what he was doing, and what he needed to do. At present, he had several goals, but the first was patching himself up. Then sleep, then back to work for the Confederates.

However, there was a problem. Daniel didn't have a medkit. In fact, he didn't have any first aid items. In hindsight, he probably should have prepared for such an event as this but oh well. His hazy brown gaze slid over to Mercury as he debated whether to bother the man or not about his own plight. It was possible the Confederate had some sort of medical equipment on him and also probably had first aid experience, but . . . He probably wasn't too happy with Daniel right now. If there was anything that he'd learned in his experience dealing with people, it was not to bother them when they were mad at you. Still, he was tired and he was in pain and the risk seemed to be worth taking.

"Uh, hey," he began awkwardly even as he shifted towards the 'fresher to throw some water on his beaten face. He didn't want the wounds to get infected, after all, and with all this sand and dirt around . . . well, better to be on the safe side and clean himself up."You wouldn't happen to have a medpac or . . .? I just wanted to take care of . . ." He motioned at his face in an obvious implication, even managing a small smile.

Truthfully, Mercury should have been far more alert than he actually was as the pair made their way back to the motel. Certainly, had an attack come it would have been some time before the pilot would have been able to react to the situation and try and end it in their favour. As far as he knew there were none others that were after the slicer, and there were certainly none that were after the two Confederates. Of course, on Tatooine there were plenty of people just out for everyone and anyone, but such low level crooks were usually easy to deal with. Confidence and a gun often put them on their back foot, but thankfully none tried to jump them. For Mercury enough people had been gunned down and died tonight for him, any more would just increase the bad taste in his mouth. It was a consequence of war he understood, but there was still only so much of it he could take. Perhaps it was the fact they were surrounded by relatively normal society, fighting in streets where Thumper could easily imagine average citizens walking down, shopping, chatting or drinking. Everything was a bit too normal for him, and it fazed the two sides to his life together. It was no longer war and peace, they merged, their borders no longer well defined and it was wreaking havoc on the Lorrdian's emotions.

Although, some kind of distraction would have been welcome. Thumper's mind refused to be rid of the dilemma that had faced him earlier, and which he had obviously lost. Thoughts ran rampant, queries and questions that he wished he could pose Maris now but she was long gone. They wouldn't have helped anyway; what was done was done, and arguing with the woman would only put even more strain on their relationship which, for the mission's sake if nothing else, was vital to maintain. Yet with nothing else to occupy him, there was little escape from the plaguing worries, much to Mercury's dismay. All he could do was try and get himself back to the motel, hopefully get a good rest and concentrate on the mission ahead. The sooner it was over the sooner he could be back among his family, the Renegades. Everything was proving much more stressful than he could ever have imagined this mission being, in ways that he'd been unable to predict. With the end of this episode though, perhaps things would pick up again. They had all started out so well, it would be terrible for everything to fall apart now, at such a crucial time as well. He had faith though; they all had their hearts in the right place.

As they came to the motel the Lorrdian slowed his pace, allowing Daniel to lead the way to his room, past an entirely unconcerned receptionist who, with a glance up at the battered occupant, returned to the holofilm playing out before her. It would have been nice to receive some help in repairing Daniel's face, but such were the people inhabiting the criminal planet. If it didn't concern them, it didn't receive their attention. No matter though, because it was probably best to keep a low profile while they were on the planet. Mercury would be able to fix up the slicer's face well enough anyway; the job wasn't extensive. The Lorrdian had dealt with worse injuries in his time than Daniel's, it wouldn't be too much trouble, and might even take his mind off the events of the night. Keeping himself busy was the best course of action the Confederate could take for the time being, just so long as he remained fresh for the next day. Something told him that there would be even greater trials awaiting him.

Entering the room he pulled off his jacket to begin with, placing it on the back of a chair and pulling his gun out to place on the desk. It would remain within reach, just in case, but Mercury doubted any trouble would come after them again. After earlier he rather hoped Daniel would be more open about the troubles that came with him, because surprises didn't go down well with people undercover. Mercury didn't like firing off rounds without knowing what he was shooting at, but when he got startled such a thing wasn't uncommon. It was shoot or be shot, and the Lorrdian didn't want to be the latter. They should be safe here though, since it was doubtful the slicer would have given away his location. If he had, the Devaronian would have just caught him there, where it was quiet and there would be no witnesses to whatever unspeakable act he had been planning for the already nervy Daniel. However, Mercury would only fully feel at ease when Maris returned; being split up wasn't the nicest feeling.

"You wouldn't happen to have a medpac or . . .? I just wanted to take care of . . ."

Having momentarily forgotten himself in his duties as a solider, Thumper had entirely forgotten Daniel needed medical attention. Looking up he could see the devastation that was the slicer's face much better in the bright light of the room. It wasn't a pretty sight, and only made Mercury even more adamant to fix it to prevent further discomfort. Turning around he grabbed his satchel, which he had left unintentionally on Daniel's table. There was one in there, he was sure of it; Thumper never went on a mission without one; they would forever be useful, and if not then at least he had the knowledge that they were there. "Grab some ice from the freezer, and a damp cloth, then come sit down. It might hurt a bit but if we leave it your cuts could get infected, and we need the ice to stop your face swelling."

Pulling the medipac free he opened it up on the table, a variety of medical things inside; bandages, disinfecting cream, medical glue, stitches (both butterfly and proper ones) among other things. Some of it was useless for Daniel's injuries, but there was often something for every situation. Even a small splint was inside the relatively tiny box of supplies, just in case such a thing was needed out on the battlefield. The Lorrdian pulled out the relevant things, placing them down carefully on the table with organisation that might have been seen as excessive. Once done he went about cleaning the wounds first with the damp cloth, trying his best not to cause pain but also making sure that the job was done well. It would be much more painful if infection set in, after all. However, there was a significant change in the mood and atmosphere. After the events of that evening everything seemed much more awkward, almost uncomfortable, which was no doubt down to the lack of communication after seeing everything unfold.

"Out of curiosity, how do you usually deal with all the people after you, when a pair of Confederates aren't conveniently nearby?" the Lorrdian smiled broadly, attempting to bring about the friendly air that they'd had before. No doubt the slicer would continue his anxious behaviour, but so long as he became more comfortable with talking then something positive would have been accomplished.

Once done cleaning he placed the cloth down on the table, picking up the tube of disinfectant cream and squeezing some out onto the tip of his finger to make it easier to distribute. A small amount of wiped over the cuts, no doubt stinging terribly as it tingled and seeped into the open wounds, but it was necessary, and hopefully Daniel wouldn't complain too much. It was no worse than the stuff parents put on grazed knees, and even though people never really got used to that stinging feeling they grew out of the squirming refusal to the administering of it. Mercury seriously was not about to chase the slicer around the room before pinning him down to put the stuff on. As much as he enjoyed the family feeling in the teams he was a part of, that didn't mean he wanted to play mother to Daniel. Finishing that he returned to the cloth, picking up the ice the slicer had brought over and stuffing as much as possible inside before handing it to him.

"Do you have any weapons, come to think of it?"

"Grab some ice from the freezer, and a damp cloth, then come sit down. It might hurt a bit but if we leave it your cuts could get infected, and we need the ice to stop your face swelling."

Daniel did as he was told and retrieved the ice and the cloth before sitting down on the bed. It creaked even beneath his small amount of weight. That was to be expected, this was no four-star hotel after all. It was sort of encouraging though since it made him feel heavier than he was, and the slight man knew that he was a bit on the skinny side, especially as of late, and had been trying to gain some pounds or some muscle to offset his near-emaciated look. His metabolism was such that despite what he ate, or how much he ate, it hardly stuck around for very long and thus he looked like skin and bones more often than not. This led to the misconception that he didn't take care of himself--he did. But as was his usual lot in life, no matter his efforts, the results weren't the desired ones. He wasn't too bothered by how he looked, though, because it wasn't his body that was to his credit but rather his mind. Yes, the strength of his brain almost always compensated for his physical weakness.

The squeamish slicer watched as Mercury unloaded the medpac's contents upon the desk. It was unnerving to see all the tools and things spread out like that, it made him nervous. Or more nervous than usual for the jumpy man. It reminded him of tools that would have been spread out for a dissection or experiment. He shivered, momentarily reminded of his tormenting past. That was then, though, and this was now. Daniel mentally had to remind himself of that, over and over and over again. There was no reason to worry about the stuff in the medpac or how Mercury was going to use some of it on him; it was to help him, not to hurt him. While he was still skeptical of both the Confederates, he tended to lean towards the trusting side despite it. Daniel liked to think that he was good at reading people, and both Mercury and Maris seemed like decent enough people. At least, towards him, as long as he wasn't considered an enemy to the Confederation. His skills and his temporary alliance to the government through them could very well be the only thing keeping him alive, he knew. That thought made him feel ill again, though.

Mercury set about to clean his wounds and Daniel was thankful that he seemed to know what he was doing. There were a few times that he pressed too hard on a cut or bruise which led to a wince from the wounded man, but otherwise Daniel was quiet as a mouse. In his head, he ran over some computer programming algorithms to keep his mind occupied; math was easier to deal with than the thoughts about how uncomfortable the silence was. The slicer may not have been the greatest socialite, but he still enjoyed chatting with people. That is, when they were willing to do the same with him. One-sided conversations were not unfamiliar to the man; people had a habit of getting lost in his words when he started in on one of his ramblings. It was just so hard to keep all of his thoughts together, coherent, and then translate them through words. Something usually got lost in translation, and then it was like he was speaking an entirely different language. Still, he was just about to try to open a line of communication between himself and the man when Mercury thankfully spoke first.

"Out of curiosity, how do you usually deal with all the people after you, when a pair of Confederates aren't conveniently nearby?"

His smile seemed to reassure Daniel that he wasn't upset with him as the man had suspected. That was a relief. "Oh, that's a good question," he said. He mused for a few moments, gave a quiet chuckle. "A very good question." To be honest, he wasn't sure if he really had much of a strategy when it came to dealing with he trouble. He sort of just winged it, played it by ear, or got lucky. "I don't really stick around in one place too long. If I hadn't run into you--oh, and Maris--I probably would have left Tatooine. I mean, it doesn't really take care of the problem, yeah, I know, but I'm not exactly a . . . a fighter. I like to think I'm an intellectual, of sorts. I'm much better at dealing with binary problems than physical ones." A knowing smirk crossed his lips, knowing that that was an understatement. Any problem related to technology or science or physics or math . . . He could solve those. When it came to social issues, however, he was helpless.

"Sorry again for dragging you into this, uh, mess," Daniel continued as Mercury applied some sort of disinfectant to his scrapes. He didn't want them to fall into silence again, it made him uncomfortable. And he was naturally curious about the man just as he was generally curious about the world. They said knowledge was power, and the slicer could use as much of that as he could get, really. "But I'll make it up to you. Promise. You won't regret helping me out." Daniel may have been a lot of things, but a liar he was not. Not a good one, anyway. And if he gave his word, he liked to keep it. He'd come through for the Confederates. At least, he hoped he would. He knew he had the abilities to do so and as long as they had the resources, they would likely succeed. Failure probably wouldn't end well for Daniel given his present allies. Best to be on the safe side and follow through with his promise.

"Do you have any weapons, come to think of it?"

Daniel pressed the moist cloth to his eye which felt like the worst part of his aching face. A black eye seemed fairly imminent at this point. "Yeah, yeah, I do." His tone suggested that he wasn't happy about the fact though. "Just a hold-out blaster though, nothing really impressive. And I'm . . . heh, I'm not actually a very good shot." This was actually a good thing in the long run because it meant that he couldn't hurt anyone, not seriously anyway. The man had taken a life before, but he wasn't proud of it; it'd been a mercy killing, but it was still upsetting to him. If he didn't need the hold-out for self-defense, to ward off those who would look to beat upon an easy target, he would have gladly tossed it to the side. But they didn't live in such a perfect, safe Galaxy as that so the blaster had to stay on his person. Unfortunately. "I don't really like--I mean, I know they're useful, but I don't really like them. Blasters, I mean. As far as technology goes . . . I like computers a lot better."

Moving the icy cloth to the cut on his forehead, he posed a question of his own to Mercury. "So, how long have you been working for the Confederation?" he asked, innocent in his inquiry. He was genuinely interested in hearing about the other side, the one he'd been ignorant and consequently afraid of for so long. Daniel had witnessed how the Alliance operated first-hand, now he was curious to see how the Confederation worked . . . and then he could properly compare them and see if they were so different after all. It was a scientific approach more befitting the thinker that he was, really. "Do you like it?"

"[ . . . ] I'm much better at dealing with binary problems than physical ones."

The earlier tussle hadn't been required for the Lorrdian to see that Daniel was no fighter; everything about him seemed thoroughly against the idea really. Although the slicer was taller than Mercury -- just -- the pilot was easily broader than him, with a weight that must surely have exceeded the slicer's own. Whereas Thumper had lived a life full of strict fitness regimes, regular response tests and natural growth from the g-forces exerted on his body, Daniel looked much more at place in an office environment. The man looked like he would be more comfortable smartly dressed, within well defined boundaries where everyone knew their job and knew what they could expect from Daniel. He certainly didn't look the type to be wander around the bad parts of town, ducking into alleyways to negotiate a price over illegal activities. Daniel didn't look like someone who would have grown up successfully in the criminal underworld at all. Perhaps, just like there were misconceptions about the Confederacy, Mercury was under misconceptions about the criminal fraternity. Although he strongly doubted it, maybe there were times when someone who appeared -- and indeed was -- so helpless to fight off the thugs that he dealt with could worm their way through life and make a decent living from it. Then again, the likely reason was mutual benefit. A good slicer was hard to find; Mercury had been made to track down a few rogue ones in his time. It wasn't that they weren't there, but rather that they were a certain breed that always made things difficult. Finding them was difficult, keeping hold of them was difficult and keeping them out of trouble was often difficult. From what Thumper had seen so far, Daniel was a prime example of them.

"[ . . . ] But I'll make it up to you. Promise. You won't regret helping me out."

The pilot gave a small smile in response, finding the apology endearing. Most people would have just let it all blow over, ignored the events and prayed others did too. Saying sorry wasn't hard, but few people ever did it anyway. It showed the slicer was at least concerned about the relationship between himself and the Confederates, which in turn made it easier to trust in him. Daniel wouldn't give a damn if he planned on screwing them over, after all. Even if he was a criminal, Mercury was willing to give him a chance; everyone deserved one, otherwise where would we be? People made mistakes, especially when there was so much pressure from so many places in the galaxy they lived in. It would be cruel to hold the past over anyone, and if Daniel was willing to put his bad deeds behind him then Mercury was willing to forget them. A fresh page, a clean slate and all that.

"It's fine; even if this planet isn't under Confederate control we can't just let criminals kill someone in front of us."

At least, Thumper couldn't. Despite trying to pack everything that happened earlier away, the pilot couldn't prevent the thoughts and questions about Maris rise in his mind again and again. Could he really vouch that the woman would try to protect innocents that were being harassed and threatened by thugs, had said innocent not been an asset for their mission? He hoped he could, but Maris seemed to be an entirely different breed of Confederate. It was like they'd been exposed to very different sides of the organisation. The Lorrdian couldn't even begin to imagine what her experiences had been, but surely they had to have been severe and cruel. How she'd gunned down men without even batting an eyelid was incredible, but not in a good way. Killing shouldn't be easy, or natural. Taking a life was a terrible thing, even if there were times when it was acceptable. The evenings events just made him more curious to know more about his colleague. Where had she come from? Who was she really, and what jobs did she usually do for the Confederation? It had become obvious that she wasn't just another soldier; they didn't behave like that. She had been meticulous, like she had been solving the kind of problem you get in the officer exams. It was like Maris had identified the steps to completing her success and moved through them with precise calmness. She was a world away from anything the Lorrdian had seen before.

"[ . . . ] I like computers a lot better."

Pausing for a moment the Confederate mused to himself. Fleeing from a problem wasn't great, but it was understandable when no solution seemed obvious or attainable. Mercury wasn't about to reprimand him for something like that, for several reasons. It was his life in the end, and Daniel didn't seem to be going the wrong way. He was trying to go legitimate -- if his words were to be trusted -- and was willing to help out the government, which was a great step to a lawful life. Still, it must have been by sheer luck he'd never run into a situation where he'd been unable to escape and flee. The man was luckier than Thumper had even realised. "But don't you ever want to stand up for yourself? It just seems like a bit of a haphazard life, to be running all the time."

It seemed almost sad to think that the slicer simply kept moving to keep out of trouble. That he'd never been able to just settle somewhere, if even only for a while, because when people came to cause some mayhem he'd been unable to fend them off. Granted, Daniel was a skinny sack of bones, but there were ways of changing that. Mercury had never been strong before he'd joined the Lorrd Security Force, and even now he wasn't someone who possessed amazing strength. But there were techniques that made size matter little; like earlier with the thug. The man had been much bigger than the pilot, and although Mercury had been fortunate enough to have a distraction -- Daniel's face -- it had still involved little effort to keep the thug under control. There were so many weak points in the human body it was amazing the species had thrived as it had, and when you knew some of these even a wall of muscle would fall easy prey. Had they had more time the Lorrdian would have happily taught some to Daniel, but as things were they had more pressing matters. Then, once the mission was over, everyone would be parting ways. Daniel would go back to trying to make a living for himself, Mercury would return to the Renegades and Maris would go back to the life that she led, whatever it may be.

"So, how long have you been working for the Confederation?"

The question was abrupt, coming out of no where really considering their earlier train of conversation. It caught Thumper entirely unprepared, and for a moment he bit his lip as numbers and events ran through his head. Not many people asked him such a question, since most of them either knew already or weren't in a position where they cared -- enemies were sometimes preoccupied with other things about Mercury, like his piloting skills or the gun pointed their way. In a few seconds he ran over his career, from graduating the Lorrd Security Force Academy, all the way to linking up with the Confederation and then the Renegades. It had been a simple enough path, but one that had its fair share of life effecting events.

"Must be seven years now. Lorrd, it sounds so much longer when said aloud," he grinned, turning back to the table to pack his things away again; all they could do now was apply ice, wait, and hope that the swelling didn't get too bad.

Once everything was back in it's rightful place -- Mercury liked to know where things were, particularly with regards to the medpac -- the Lorrdian placed it back in his bag and sat down at the table, facing Daniel. He was beginning to worry about Maris, even if it hadn't been that long. That uncomfortable feeling of being separated and alone was nagging him, and his eyes drifted. First they went to the window, noting that night was descending on the city, then to his watch, which confirmed the time was getting late. Lastly they drifted to the door, still shut and without any sign of opening. There were no noises from outside that would suggest someone was walking down the hall. In the distance the holofilm that the receptionist was watching echoed down the hallway, as well as voices from other rooms. It was eerie really, for some reason that Thumper couldn't quite grasp. There was something unpleasant about this place, even if nothing bad was happening.

"Do you like it?"

His attention returned to Daniel on the bed, a small smile appearing by habit as he tried to dispel the thoughts running through his head. Thankfully the slicer was proving better company than first thought, and despite his injuries was willing to sit around and chat for a bit. The Lorrdian was keen to find out more about him anyway, as no doubt Daniel was of his new accomplices. If for no better reason it was pleasant to know the person you were stuck with for the next day, especially with what they were going to be going through at the Hutt's. The pilots hand tapped lightly against the desk, his lips pouting slightly as he thought the question over. He wanted to be honest with his answers, and so replying too quick would no doubt bring about false ideas. It was better to remember everything about the job, instead of just the more prominent memories -- which were often the best ones.

"It's not a terrible job. There are bits I like, bits I don't like; just like everyone else I guess. It's nice to know I'm protecting people, and making a difference. Then again, I have to kill people, which isn't what I want to do. But I can't seem to do the former without the latter." A sombre expression crossed his face at the thought. Mostly he tried not to think about all the deaths he'd played a part in. All those battles he'd had a part in would have left countless families without a son or daughter, father or mother, husband or wife. It didn't make him feel good, and there was little he could do to change his situation, so it was best left at the back of his mind.

"What about you? There must be a bad side to being a slicer, right?"