#vagabonds | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

skellymom · 2 months

Text

"Vagabonds" Chapter 10

Ongoing fanfic Hunter x Reader/Fem Reader/OC

(Posted 2/29/24)

ᴛʜɪꜱ ꜰɪᴄ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴀɪɴꜱ ɴꜱꜰᴡ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʀᴇ ɴᴏᴛ 18+ ᴅɴɪ

To read Chapter 9:

https://www.tumblr.com/skellymom/741739026615353344/vagabonds-chapter-9?source=share

Word Count: 1.2K

Background: Time is running out for Hunter, Omega, and the crew of The Beldame.

Warning: Star Wars swears, Earth swears, fear, physical pain, fainting, blood, hypothermia, dog bites human, canon-typical violence.

(Credit: Cool moving star dividers by @4ngelic-wh1spers )

Recap:

As the jovial banter continued, a group of clones stood around the window, watching the planet recede from view.

“You think She and Little One have a chance?”

“Much better than staying on Kamino. The Nomaadi will take good care of ‘em.”

“Wish I could’a stayed on the planet with ‘em. Kriffin tired of this rat race.”

“Miss them already...”

“Shhh...we can’t. At least not right NOW.”

“Maybe sometime...in the future...”

“Yeah, younger ones go first.”

“Gotta be REAL careful if we smuggle any more out.”

A hush fell among the group as the planet disappeared with only cold black space remaining.

"Stranded"

Far out in cold black space the Dread Beldame drifted.

After Mad had fainted and fallen to the floor, Sil turned her over. Pale and with a bruise from the fall developing on her face, he could feel the panic rising.

“Sil...breathe...” Omega had to keep him calm. “Love?”

The teen floated above the decking; eyes rolled back in their head. No answer.

Hunter had finally passed out from the horrific sensory stimuli.

Tiggy shook it off and ambled over to them whimpering. She pressed her body up against Sil to distract him.

The lights of the Beldame began to flicker.

“Sil! What’s going on? Are we losing power???”

Sil snapped to, furiously stroking Tiggy. “We lost main power after the Venator exploded.” He looked terrified. “The auxillary power is starting to fail...lights, gravity...and life support.”

Omega felt a chill go through her. “We can fix it...RIGHT???”

“No... we need another ship to hook up to the ‘Dame for recharge and repair.”

“It’ll be ok, Sil. The Marauder will be here soon!”

Sil shook his head. “Omega...the explosion pushed us parsecs away from Ord Mantell.” He got up, leaving Mad and Tiggy to check ships comm. He found them inoperable, then stared out into the blackness of space.

“I... recognize SOME of these stars. No planets or any other large landmarks. But we’ll continue to drift farther out.” He looked resigned to their fate. “Without coordinates, or a way to radio them, it’s going to be near impossible.”

“Tech and Echo WILL find us!” Omega was hopeful...but she was also scared.

The lights dimmed again and stayed at half capacity.

“It’s going to get VERY cold here soon, Omega. And we need to conserve oxygen best we can.” Sil opened a panel and pulled out insulation blankets and oxygen face masks.

Omega and Sil pulled Hunter, Mad, Love, Tiggy and each other close into a warm huddle, donned their oxygen masks, and hoped for the best.

Echo and Tech furiously checked as many comm channels as possible to hail the Beldame.

Techs voice was rising, “I cannot find them on ANY channel!”

Echo was starting to worry, but couldn’t concentrate...

“You stink!” Echo wrinkled up his face. “Get in the refresher, Wrecker!!! Pick up your armor, too.”

“Wait” interjected Tech “Who was that clone with you in the sewer tunnel?”

Echo perked up and turned around in his seat “Another clone on Ord Mantell other than Rex???”

“He called himself Riffraff. Escaped off world after Order 66.”

Echo smiled from ear to ear, “Thank the Maker! Vod made it.”

“You know him?” Tech inquired, still checking comm channels, trying not to panic.

“Yeah, he was a shiny I met from another unit just before joining the Batch. Good kid, he had promise.”

“He looked SO OLD though. Didn’t recognize him as a clone at first.” Wrecker was shocked.

“I agree with Wrecker, he must have aged to look like a first-generation clone with all the adversity he witnessed during Order 66 and after. He said he was staying behind to gain intel for a growing rebellion.” Tech’s brow creased stressfully. “STILL cannot hail the Beldame.”

“Wrecker, shower!” Echo ordered.

“I’M GOIN’! GEEZ!!!”

“Well, I hope he accomplishes his goal. The galaxy really needs a strong rebellion. Maybe more of our brothers will join the fight.” Echo looked hopeful. “Inhibitor chips be damned.”

“I’m worried about the crew of the Beldame” Tech looked to Echo. “Without a functioning shield they may not have escaped.”

Echo shook his head, “I REFUSE to even consider that an option.”

Darkness penetrated the Beldame. A thin coating of frost covered the huddled, blanketed crew. Omega and Sil were shivering violently from the cold. Love, Mad, and Hunter were still out, but breathing and warm...for now.

Tiggy, being small and warmly nestled within the center of the group squiggled up through the bodies. She climbed up on Sil’s chest and pressed her canine head against his forehead.

He felt a strange presence in his mind. The pitter patter of little paws though his thoughts...was the best he could recall. Sil was too weak to care. Concentrating on this was better than the agony of slowly freezing to death.

“...mega?” Was the best he could muster.

“Mmm...” She was barely there. He pulled her closer, trying to keep her warm with his body heat.

How much oxygen did they have left? Even with the masks...it couldn’t last forever. Was it the low oxygen levels or the cold causing them to fight to stay awake?

Tiggy crawled away from Sil and pulled herself up to Love, who was still levitating, but tied up close to their group for warmth. She whimpered and scratched at Love’s chest. No response. She barked.

“Tiggy, leave it.” Sil tiredly commanded.

The puppy whimpered and whined...then bit Love on the chin, drawing blood.

Love’s eyes popped open with the pain response.

“Tiggy, NO!”

Omega intervened. “Sil...I think Tiggy is trying to do something.”

“What?”

“Don’t know...”

Couzin? Love’s eyes rolled back in their head.

Tiggy bit Love again. HARDER.

Love’s eye focused on the pup. Oh...can’t...too weak...

Then Tiggy MASHED her head up against Love’s. Her little tail wagging furiously. Omega and Sil watched closely.

For what, they didn’t know.

Bubbles filled the refresher shower. Wrecker scrubbed away at the stink on his skin. On his third wash to finally be rid of it.

Plunging his face under the faucet a tune wound an earworm into his head.

Wrecker hadn’t turned on his holotunes, but an oddly discordant song kept repeating in his head. More like a repeating snippet of a song...with some percussion.

It became stronger. Then Wrecker started to hum...over...and over. Tapped his foot even.

He finished, dried off, dressed. Still humming the tune, tapping the percussion now with his knuckle on the bunkroom wall.

Wrecker wandered to the cockpit...

...humming...

...tapping...

Echo and Tech were backtracking coordinates, retrying comm channels, plotting hyperspace lanes...concerned for the worst.

“Like they just disappeared!” Echo furrowed his brow.

“Echo...I think we MIGHT have to entertain the idea...” Tech eyed his brother with concern.

“NO!”

...humming...

...tapping...

“I know it’s difficult to consider...Echo...”

“I WON’T accept that they may be...”

...humming...

...tapping...

Tech swung his chair around to look at Wrecker.

Wrecker was grooving along to some type of internal tune. Humming along and tapping on the Marauder’s interior wall. It wasn’t exactly musical, but Wrecker didn’t seem to mind, eyes closed, and he just kept on jamming along.

Echo took Tech’s lead and watched Wrecker for a few moments.

“WRECKER!” Echo shouted.

“WHAAAAT?”

“Why are you tapping out Basic Standard Code?”

Wrecker shrugged. “Stuck in my head...can’t stop.”

“Keep going, Wrecker.” Tech urged, rubbing his chin.

They watched Wrecker repeat the humming and tapping over and over.

Echo broke the silence, “DEFINITELY BSC! The message keeps repeating. Don’t know what the other part is...”

Tech interrupted excitedly. “Notes on the musical scale!”

Tech repeated the Basic Alphabet that corresponded with the notes to Echo.

“With the Basic Standard Code...” Echo started the sentence...

...and Tech finished it, “They’re coordinates!”

They both spun their seats around and immediately engaged the Marauder.

Wrecker stopped humming and tapping. “YOU’RE WELCOME!”

PLEASE like, comment, and/or REBLOG!

To read Chapter 11:

https://www.tumblr.com/skellymom/744912201871245312/vagabonds-chapter-11?source=share

29 notes · View notes

skellymom · 4 months

Text

"Vagabonds"

Ongoing OC x Hunter/Bad Batch Fanfic Series

Introduction: "Chaos On Coruscant"

And Chapter 1: "Weight of the Galaxy" (posted 8/14/2023/reuploaded 1/2/24)

ᴛʜɪꜱ ꜰɪᴄ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴀɪɴꜱ ɴꜱꜰᴡ ᴄᴏɴᴛᴇɴᴛ. ɪꜰ ʏᴏᴜ ᴀʀᴇ ɴᴏᴛ 18+ ᴅɴɪ.

(Credit: Cool moving star dividers by @4ngelic-wh1spers )

BACKGROUND: The following story takes place in the Bad Batch Star Wars Universe, and I tried to keep within the timeline of Season 1-2 before the Batch Left Ord Mantell for Mount Tantiss. The OC characters of my invention are Maadienne “Mad Momma” Dax and her genderfluid Teen named Love. Mad is an older single mom.

Mad and Love also are coded as belonging to something similar to the American Nomad population in the US. Think Nomadland, off-griders, bikers, Slab City transients, hobos, tramps, hippies, punks, carnies, faire circuit vendors, survivalists, societal dropouts, etc. And they intersect with other nomadic groups coded as similar to the Roma (Romani), Travelers/Tinkers (Irish), Romanichal (British/UK). All of these people in this story universe refer to themselves as “The Star People”.

WARNINGS: Shades of neurodivergence, mention of deep sorrow/depression/hurt/lost love/relationship breakups/estranged parents/heavy mental baggage/ugly crying. There are hints of the beginning stages of fascism and xenophobia. Some mention of erections, arousal, sexual/sensual feelings, flirting. Lots of swearing (Star Wars swears mixed with Earth swears). Fictional prejudicial slurs. Poverty, class struggle, slavery, war, child abduction, politics, very amorphous mention of genocide, animal cruelty living conditions (brief), animal death (postmortem) and both of these are redeemed.

FYI-We WILL get to Hunter! But first I need to introduce my OC’s!!!

Introduction: "Chaos On Coruscant"

The outer streets of Coruscant started to show their seediness and poverty the longer Mad and Love walked away from the bustling city center. They had just picked up a considerable payment of credits after dropping off two young orphans to a well-heeled couple living within the upscale high rises of the capital. They had the help of clearances, chain codes and disguises. Both wearing a bland headscarf veil and shift dress over their clothes and skin tattoos. Mad’s face was uncovered and Love’s full coverage. To anyone who passed on the street, they were two household nannies taking care of their rich owners’ children.

The orphans, Edda and Oddo, were refugees from a distant Outer Rim planet that the Empire had newly “colonized” for resources. The people of that planet fought and lost control of their sovereignty. Many lives were lost in the battle. So many refugees and newly orphaned children were begging to flee the planet to avoid becoming slaves of the Empire. Mad and Love saw an opportunity to take whomever they could away from that situation and bring them here to a better life. They hated the Empire. Before that The Republic. Before that…whatever governing forces that had killed, enslaved, or pushed their people out among the stars. Homeless Nomaadi that nobody wanted. Dirty marked “Caitiff” scum. Now the Empire was doing this to other “outsiders” all over the galaxy.

When Mad and Love dropped off the children, the stipulation was it had to be at the back servant’s entrance. The couple wouldn’t let it be any other way. Even though Mads contacts were secure, and this job was very low on the risk scale, there was no room for compromise. The couple didn’t come out expressly and say anything prejudicial about Nomaadi delivering the children. But it was heavily implied through the thin veneer of niceness as they opened the door to welcome the children. Mad and Love were instructed to wait at the threshold, to hug Edda and Oddo and say a hurried goodbye. The siblings protested tearfully, but gave in. Mad caught a fleeting look at the large opulent apartment, meeting the eyes of the servant at attention on the other side of the room. The husband, giving them a brusque “thank you” while handing over the bag of credits, shut the door in their faces. Standing in the servant’s hallway, Mad and Love looked at each other in sad silence. The siblings had travelled with them on the Beldame several weeks before. Bonded with them. The children didn’t care who Mad and Love were. They were so grateful to be safe and have someone in their life that cared.

The credits helped smooth the sting…a little. The encounter was so jarring and surreal, but par for the course. Mad and Love couldn’t eat or survive without steady revenue coming in. The couple who paid for the lives of these children paid handsomely. To them it was just a drop in the bucket, easing their guilty conscience. Taking in homeless orphans as their own children…while not using any of their privilege to stand against the Empire seemed like a glaring example of blind privilege. Love was neutral on the subject, looking at the glass as half full. The children have good homes now. Mad saw the glass as leaky with a huge crack in it. The damned thing didn’t work well and was fundamentally broken.

Their ship, the Dread Beldame, was parked on the outskirts of the capital city to keep a low profile. That meant a lot of walking, but it kept the Coruscant Police off their backs. Getting the hell off the planet relatively undetected was the goal now.

The narrow streets led to a small public square complete with an open-air second-rate vendor market. Tourists visiting the Capital, locals, and Neuvo riche citizens of the city center visited these spots due to lower prices on goods. The awful smell of the exotic meat vendor wafted up into Mad and Love’s noses. The smell of a hundred naturally and genetically designed animals housed together in a small space.

Mad ignored the smell and kept a brisk pace. However, was surprised by a familiar voice and warm Nomaadi greeting.

“Auntie?”

Mad Stopping in her tracks and looked past the front counter into the shadows towards the back of the stall. A familiar face slowly stepped out. Mad thought she was looking at a ghost.

Nephew Sil, covered in dirt and slaughter offal, underweight and wearing a slave collar sadly smiled at her. She hadn’t seen him since he was a boy, when he was abducted from his family. Now Sil was a teen. The Nomaadi chest tattoo a clear identifier. Her experience was that many Nomaadi children were stolen. The authorities didn’t care to help the families to find them, so they were easy pickings by slavers and traffickers.

Love, totally unaware of Sil, followed the scent and was shocked by the scene at the meat vendor’s chopping block. A small live puppy was held aloft shrieking and scruffed by the butcher who was barking at any possible patrons in the crowd.

“Loth Wolf-Vornskr hybrid! Tender delicacy. Butchered fresh right here. Last one goes to the highest bidder!!!”

In his other hand was a very large meat cleaver.

Love was mortified to witness this. As their eyes looked past the puppy, cages upon cages of trapped animals came into view. Small wire cages stacked up high holding dirty tortured souls stuffed into small spaces. And beyond that, a bigger reinforced pen holding a large bellowing beast hiding in the shadows. The smell of animal shit, fear, blood, death, and pain hit Love in the gut and assaulted their senses. Patrons rushed forward with their money to bid on the last small life in the butcher’s hand. Love was knocked aside and bounced from one patron to the other before being shoved down onto the hard pavement. The obscene display of crude materialistic greed while being trampled was too much for Love. And concern for the pup brought anger out of them, vibrating the very air within the space.

Mad called out to Sil, “Come with us!”

“I can’t” and winced as he touched the shock collar. It was electronically locked, live and would not allow him to leave the market stand. Sil was the meat butcher’s property and locked in, just like all the animals stuffed in the cages around them.

Mad unbuttoned the top of her blouse to reach for the credits stowed in the security pocket of her binder. The high neck fell open to reveal her own circular Nomaadi chest tattoo. She could attempt to buy Sil back from the Butcher and help locate his parents. The job’s payment would allow this luxury and still have enough for them to live on until the next job. Before Mad could pull out any credits, she could feel every hair on her body stand on end. Sil could feel it too. Mad knew exactly where it was coming from.

“LOVE! NOOO!!!”

Mad suddenly turned to see Love levitating 10 ft above Coruscant street. The patrons facing the butcher never saw what was coming, but he had a front row view. The butcher froze and his eyes went wide. Mad could feel the raw emotion and power pulse from Love’s body. They were gonna blow, and Mad couldn’t do a damned thing about it.

The puppy and the animals in the surrounding cages fell silent.

All. At. Once.

What happened next to Mads recollection was in slow motion. A silent Force scream emanated from Love’s mouth. It shorted out EVERYTHING within that city block. All the technology, transportation, everything…and the locks on all the cages within the meat stall. Everything was at a standstill for 5 seconds. Love still levitating above the street, the butcher standing in the same position, the vendors at a standstill.

Then things sped up.

And… THE SHIT HIT THE FAN!

The animals, sensing freedom, burst from their cages in a frenzied wild blur. Screams could be heard from patrons slowly realizing what was happening as animals escaped beneath their feet, swooped near their faces, leaped on or past them. Love still levitating as people and animals ran pell-mell through the square. Nobody cared to notice a skinny veil-shrouded teenager floating above them. The butcher let loose a litany of curse words and pointed the meat cleaver in Love’s direction…while still holding onto the puppy.

Love reached out with the Force and snatched the puppy from the Butcher’s grasp. He turned 3 shades of red and chucked the meat cleaver at Love. They cradled the puppy and force deflected the cleaver. It fell ineffectually against the pavement below. Love was still levitating at 10ft and giving a calm intense death stare to the Butcher. He foamed at the mouth in a rage, stooped down and yanked a laser rifle out from under the counter, swinging it around to aim right between Love’s eyes.

Love, unfazed, didn’t move from his aim. Mad almost shit her pants in fear. It was all too much. They were going to get caught, and Love’s luck was going to run out. Today was the day she would see her offspring’s brains all over the streets of Coruscant.

The Butcher pulled the trigger…which did absolutely nothing as Love’s scream had shorted out his weapon. He was thwarted once again from dispatching this teenage menace, and absolutely lost his composure, chucking the weapon at Love.

They calmly Force pushed the weapon aside, keeping the death stare. Having nothing left to assault Love with, the Butcher leapt onto the counter and launched himself up towards them…

…and was immediately taken out by the large animal held captive in the shadows of the meat vendor’s stall. There was an explosion of metal, wood, and small animals…that hadn’t escaped from the first rush to freedom. The Behemoth ran past Love and caused total mayhem to the remaining people in the square. More blood curdling screams mixed with angry animal cries.

Love calmly turned on a dime and floated airily away from the scene, pulling off the veil and gracefully dropping it to the ground below. Their Nomaadi tattoo in full rebellious glory to all of Coruscant. Love’s facial expression calm as ever, still cradling the puppy.

It was a total sight to behold. Mad was beside herself watching Love float away from the scene. And then yanked almost off her feet as Nephew Sil ran past and grabbed her hand. He ripped the now inactive slave collar from his neck and threw it aside. Behind them a cab and several speeder bikes fell from the sky and exploded on the pavement, they had shorted out as well.

“We gotta go, go, go! Run Auntie Mad!!! Where’s the ship???” Running high on adrenaline he dragged Mad out of the square into the narrow streets for cover. They tripped over scurrying marmots. And, Mad had to pull a small, flighted escapee from her hair as they tried to catch up to Love.

“Love, come down outtya head! Or we are gonna lose ours!!!” Sil let go of Mad and ran ahead. He took a huge running leap and yanked on Love’s leg, pulling them out of levitation mode. It was like he was trying to catch a balloon. Love landed on two feet with a proud smile.

They signed “Hello” warmly and presented the puppy proudly.

“You CRAZY!” Syl shook his head “Causing big trouble.”

They were interrupted by a bedraggled Spice Head grabbing both teens by the back of their shirts. “Catiff scum! You should be worth some credits!!!”

Mad had enough of everything that had gone to total shit today. Anger welling up, she would have shot him on the spot had her blaster not shorted out. Instead, she ran full tilt into the assailant, knocking him to the ground. From there, proceeded to grab handfuls of hair and repeatedly pound his head into the pavement accentuating each screaming curse:

“KEEP. YOUR. HANDS. OFF. MY. KIDS. YOU. KRIFFING. BANTHA. FUCKER!!!

He started bleeding, lost consciousness, and stopped moving. He was still breathing, though. That was a plus. Mad’s view cleared and could feel Sil and Love pulling her off the man.

“Mommommom!” Loves voice echoing inside Mad’s head.

“Auntie, stop! Please get up!!!” Sil’s voice outside her head.

Looking up, more Spice Heads were watching the scene unfold, shrinking back into the shadows. Fear on their faces.

“See this? Keep your hands off us and your mouths shut! We were never here!!!”

Mad gathered herself, stood up and firmly barked, “Get your asses in gear, the Dame’s this way!” Sil and Love, clearly shaken, followed behind.

She gave murderous glances to the onlookers, who cowered as Mad, Sil, and Love passed. One threw the Eye of Protection sign, showing the fear Outsiders had of The Bad Fate believed (wrongly) spread by the Nomaadi. Mad sometimes wished she could really curse these people to silence so her family could escape safely. Every excursion was dangerous to her people. Snitches were a constant hazard.

From there, they ran several blocks to the outer port where the ship sat waiting.

The Beldame with its mismatched junky exterior looked so welcoming. The sensors picked up Mad and Love’s proximity and opened the gangplank. All three ran in and found their seats. The Dame automatically closed its gangplank and Mad got them out of there quickly. Two local precinct police speeders appeared in hot pursuit firing handheld blasters at the ship. The speeders could only follow so far before falling behind…but not before shorting out the Dame’s antiquated deflector shield.

While the Dame exited Coruscant’s planetary atmosphere, Mad brought up the coordinates for Ord Mantell, scrambled their jump signature, and punched the ship into hyperspace.

You could cut the silence inside the ship with a vibroknife. Both teens unsure if Mad was still…MAD.

Both were seated behind her. The light of stars coursing past casting shadows down Mads back. It was an uncomfortable 15 minutes before she swung the chair around and met Love with an intensely serious stare. Only Love heard Mad’s voice in their head.

“Dank Ferrick, Love…what the hell was that back there!”

Sil sat watching a silently animated display of physical movements while both Love and Mad argued back and forth inside their heads at each other. It was like watching manic mime comedy. He knew they both could communicate like this. Just never seen an argument between the two since he disappeared years ago. He could only guess what the row was about.

“I couldn’t help it. Everything about that place was so horrible. All those animals living and dying like that. The people trampling me. And… I miss Edda and Oddo. I’m sad we let them go.”

“We needed the money. We were broke, Love. Can’t keep everyone we ferry across the galaxy. What you did in the town square…it was over the top. You blew our cover. Our contacts that we worked so hard for won’t help us now. We will NEVER be able to go back to Coruscant again!”

“Good, that place is fucking POODOO!!!”

“But we had allies there, Love. Without allies we can’t do any business there. We just lost a good steady income. The Outer Rim only pays us enough to scrape by. And now we might have eyes actively looking for us! You don’t really understand how dangerous everything is now for us…YOU…especially since the Jedi were murdered, do you???”

Silence. Surprised face.

“DO YOU??? We already have shit rain down on us normally. Things are getting worse out there with the new Empire.”

Silence. Angry face.

“And what the hell was that…thing you did? It shorted everything out! That’s new, Love. You need to control whatever the hell that is. What did you do?”

Silence. Offended face.

Mad sighed. “I’m sorry I upset you. I’m sorry I yelled. It scared me. The thought of losing you scares me. I love you”.

Silence. Neutral face.

“Ok…” Exasperated sigh. “I… We’ll talk later. “

More silence. Still neutral faced, Love starts to levitate and zone out. Swaddles the puppy tighter.

Mad knows she overreacted again. The rebellious Love was something she wasn’t prepared for. No idea on how to control these powerful urges. A Jedi might be able to help if there were any left. But then, the Jedi were problematic and antiquated. Had they not been, Love would have been a Padawan long ago…and probably deceased now. With a heavy, tired sigh Mad turns finally to address Sil.

“I missed you so much Nephew. I’m sorry for the drama.”

Sil immediately got up and hugged Mad. She grabbed him in embrace and squeezed hard.

“It’s been so long. Your parents will be happy to know you’re safe.”

Sil was quiet. Then Mad heard soft sobbing and felt his body shake. She kept quiet and just held on until he wanted to be let go. Love, dropping their angst, floated over and placed a hand onto his back and slowly rubbed in circles.

He eventually let go and stood up. Both Mad and Love spoke at the same time: Mad verbally and Love signing in Basic, “In your own time. I’ll be here. I love you.”

Sil wiped his eyes. “I’m hungry, Auntie”. He was so thin. Clearly, he was underfed while gone. Probably starved to be kept in line, in addition to the shocks he received. An outline of rough scar tissue from the slave collar worn into his neck stood out. It was a very sobering thing for both Love and Mad to consider.

“Let’s see what we can rustle up, huh?” Mad got up and made a beeline for the ‘Dame’s tiny galley kitchen.

“I missed you too Couz.” Love signed. “Can you hold Tiggy for me while I help mom?”

Sil nodded and took the puppy from Love. “Hello, Tigglet” he whispered while settling into the pilot’s chair to watch the stars and Purrgils float past.

Thanks for your patience. Hunter makes his entrance in this next chapter!

Chapter 1-"Weight of the Galaxy"

Back at Ord Mantell, Mad knocked back the Spotchka to steady her nerves. While leaning on the bar of Cid’s Parlor with head in hand, she contemplated the huge clusterfuck that transpired on Coruscant.

They were so kriffing lucky! Especially finding Sil like that and getting him freed. Being able to keep all the credits from their last job without having to haggle for his freedom. The animals and exploding vehicles provided diversion. The Butcher was being scraped off the concrete, so he wasn’t talking. The Spice Heads might present a problem…if anyone cared to listen to a bunch of Tweakers. The only reason they were pursued and lacked a shield was due to the Coruscant Police suspecting those running away from the scene and fleeing the planet were to blame for the crime of…property damage.

The authorities and media didn’t give a Womp Rats ass about the dead butcher, his sketchy meat market front, or the slaves he ran through it. They feigned some concern about the injured citizens of the downed vehicles and those maimed by the market escapees. The News Holos were calling the incident “eco terrorism” by a small band of indigents who set the animals free. Fortunately, a well-known Enviro Group stepped up and claimed responsibility, inspiring its many supporters to clog the streets around the Capitol building in open protest. The Butchers Trade Org, Pro Meat Groups and rando hooligans looking to profit and cause havoc clashed against them. This brought out the Coruscant Guard to try to bring order to the chaos. The upper crust of Coruscant railed against the inconvenience to their day and clutched their pearls. Total mayhem and a convenient smokescreen.

This kind of luck is what Nomaadi Maami Dall would call “A Gift from The Force”.

“But make NO mistake, the Force is Fickle. It won’t last for long. Get out of yer own head, or it will be your end!” Could hear her Elder preach the message like she was sitting right next to Mad at the bar. She sorely missed Maami Dall…and Paapi Dall, Brothers, Sisters, Aunties, Uncles, Couzins, Friends of The Nomaadi Star People. The whole Community. It had been so long since they could all safely come together for Reunion. Fond memories of feasts, Hand Fastings, Parting Ceremonies, musicians in drum circles around large bonfires, people singing and dancing all night, helping to repair transports during the day and restore supplies for travel, children playing, community coming together to share news, information, trade, settling disputes, healing family rifts, making love, birthing babies, and just safely relaxing from the nomadic lifestyle for a while.

Oh Maker…the nostalgia HURT. Being transient was The Way. Everyone had a different journey. Paths diverging, converging constantly. Nomaadi were encouraged to leave, live their own truth, and be independent. Plus, their survival depended on it. Too many of them in the same place for a long period of time made the community sitting ducks. This is why they would occasionally meet for Reunion by word of mouth and never permanently settled anywhere.

Mads’ thoughts shifted back to their luck…this time. How long before it ran out? Love started as a quiet introspective child. Their use of the Force started early. It always manifested itself as gentle, non-threatening, defensive and never offensive.

Mad also deeply regretted the show of temper. She really hoped to not permanently injure or kill the Spice Head. He was stupidly dangerous and a victim of a fucked-up system that kept so many down on Coruscant. Hell, the universe. All the people on the bottom fighting for the scraps that the powerful occasionally threw at them. She sighed…when was it ever going to kriffing change?

Mad’s only plan for tonight was ordering several more drinks to help forget the rising worry in her mind: After the wholesale slaughter of the Jedi and those showing Force abilities, how was she going to keep her powerful and now rebellious child safe?

At the other end of the bar slumped Hunter, attempting to drink himself into oblivion. He was at the start of his journey tonight several drinks in.

His brothers and sister were back at the Marauder. Tech and Echo had mechanical Maintenace to do. Wrecker planned to take Omega for Mantell Mix and browse the Traders Market. Hunter didn’t feel any of it, except guilty for turning Omega down when she begged him to come along. He couldn’t get the vision of Crosshair out of his head, standing alone on the platform of Kamino as they left the planet. Oh, and he felt guilty for that too. Sad as well, and some frustration that his brother wasn’t touched by the plea of brotherhood offered by most of The Batch. He very briefly considered having Wrecker drag Cross back inside the ship, refusing to leave without him, or stunning the sniper to do so. It would have not changed Crosshairs mind in the long run. Stubborn brainwashed sibling. Hunter still loved him.

All the while the remains of his home…no, his family’s home lay in the Kaminoan sea smoldering. The remains of which The Batch narrowly escaped from. Almost resigned to a watery grave. What happened to all the future unborn and young clones he had seen at the facility the day the Empire took power? Were they safe? Even alive? All The Regs brainwashed by the chip. All the Jedi murdered by them. Did Caleb Dume ever make it to safety? If so, was he scarred for life after seeing his master gunned down on Kaller, then having the Clones turn on him too? It was all too much. He felt small and overwhelmingly powerless. Like absolute miserable shit. The only thing he could do was drown his emotions in whatever Cid’s bar was serving.

Sometime later, after draining his drink, Hunter’s senses tingled. Sitting up and rubbing his face, he caught a scent. His nose found the source down the opposite end of the bar. She looked and smelled intriguing, and was staring intently into an empty glass.

“Hey”, Hunter addressed Cid and nodded down the bar, “Who’s she?”

The Trandoshan rolled her eyes, “Why? Ya looking for a world of hurt, Bandana? “Cause that’s all you’re gonna get with that one.”

“No seriously, what’s her name?”

“She comes here to drink alone. The last idiot who didn’t respect her space left a permanent stain on my carpeting. That Momma has zero patience for Bantha shit”

“Momma???”

“Yeah, she’s got a kid. The dad split. Just the two of them now. And she’s protective of her kiddo. They’re ‘Nomaadi”, so they tend to keep to themselves.”

“Nomaadi?”

Cid sighed and rolled her eyes again gesturing wildly, “Nomaadi! Travs! They wander the galaxy with no known homeworld. Come on, Bandana, you never heard of ‘em? Met ‘em??? Her people are scattered all over the place. You must have had to move them along while you were working for the Republic? The Republic considered Nomaadi trash, so they got pushed out. And they just keep on moving around the galaxy. This new Empire absolutely hates them.”

Hunter let that sink in while staring down the bar. Cid contemplated these two sad saps sitting at either end.

“She reminds me of someone I know. Got the weight of the whole galaxy on her shoulders.” Hunter’s gaze immediately snapped up to meet Cid’s eyes. She held his gaze for a long, uncomfortable moment hands on hips.

“Her name is Mad.” Cid finally answered as she turned and walked away.

Mad. Was her name Mad for angry or crazy? He couldn’t tell, but he wanted to find out. She was a welcome distraction from the things he wanted to stop thinking about tonight.

Mad’s inner stream of consciousness was abruptly interrupted by Cid. “Find any amazing revelations in the bottom of that glass? You’re here to drink, not meditate.”

Immediately she looked up to meet the bright green eyes of the Trandoshan. Cid’s first language usually was heavy sardonic sarcasm tinged with menace, but Mad saw a bit more in her demeanor. A tiny bit of empathy shining through…before the sarcasm blocked it out again.

“Dark and Broody at the end of the bar wants to buy ya a drink if you’re interested.”

Cid pointed towards a very handsome man with a red bandanna and face tattoo staring up the bar at them. He raised his hand in a brief two finger wave and cheesy half smile. An attempt of levity with some drunken smolder.

Heavy sigh and groan from Mad. “No creepers, Cid. Remember last time?”

Cid leaned in against the bar. Her voice finding some softness, “He’s ok. Done some jobs for me. Got a kid of his own, no partner. Kinda lonely. You both look like you need a drink and time out of your own heads. Whaddya say?”

Another sigh from Mad. What did Mad really have to do tonight? The next job wasn’t until tomorrow afternoon. And Love was back at the Beldame with Sil fiddling with the shield generator. The puppy was probably tearing up and crapping all over the ship. Maker, what was she gonna come back to? Mad didn’t want to deal with any of it tonight. Luckly, Sil seemed somewhat responsible enough, and Love rarely if ever left the Beldame without Mad at their side. Both teens had dragged Mad down the gangplank in the direction of the bar. “Go have a drink!” they chimed in unison “We got this!” as they ran into the ship. Oblivious young'uns, dear Maker, now she had two…three with the four-legged pot roast they just “adopted.”

“Fuck it. You’re right. Can’t turn down free Spotchka.”

Cid winked and turned away to grab a glass. Mad straightened up, looked down the bar, and gave her best devil may care smirk. She then gracefully signed “thank you” in Basic Sign Language to Dark and Broody.

Cid plunked down the Spotchka. Mad tipped it back with abandon, enjoying the feel of the drink on her tongue. The pleasant burn. The warmth of it down the hatch…

“HELLO.”

Mad choked and spit the drink right onto Cid.

“Smooth move, Bandana”, disgusted and slightly pissed Cid retreats to wipe herself down. Dark and Broody had suddenly and stealthily materialized in the seat next to Mad.

The pleasant burn is now a fire in Mad’s nose and throat. Spotchka ran down her chin and onto the bar. “Are you trying to Kriffing kill me!” in between coughs. Anger rising. What the fuck, this guy! Dark and Broody looks embarrassed and concerned. She briefly considers punching him in the face.

“Sorry…I should have given you more warning” he replies while offering several napkins. Mad grabbed some from his hand holding them to her mouth.

Cough subsiding, nose still burning, Mad takes in the visage of Hunter: Head of amazing thick black hair, trim body, muscular, deep brown eyes that she could get lost in… She shakes her head and his smokey, sexy voice slides into her ears, “You ok? Anything I can do?”

Mad’s expression was ambiguous while trying to calm down. She sits staring intensely at Hunter. He noticed the depth of her eyes: flecks of yellow mingled with green. While her surface demeanor gave little away, Hunter’s senses pick up anger, confusion…and a slight glimmer of attraction. She looked like she might attack and eat him alive. The prospect seemed exciting. His eyes dropped and scrutinized her chest tattoo for the first time.

“My eyes are up here, Stud” she growls. He notices her noticing him looking at her chest and immediately becomes embarrassed. His expression shows it, as his eyes widen and immediately shoot back up to her face. “Just looking at your tattoo. Honest” he raises both hands in surrender.

“You always this smooth with the ladies?”

“Little off my game tonight. Can I try again?” Hunter gives Mad a sly smile.

Cid sidles back up to the bar, “Drinking only, no maiming…and NO sex in the bathroom. If ya wanna do that, then leave my bar!” Hands on her hips, looks across the room and suddenly shouts, “SHUT UP, YOU TWO, and mind yer own business!”

Bolo and Ketch stop laughing and solemnly return to their game of Djarik.

“Mad, I need Dark and Broody here in working condition for my next job. So go easy on him. He’s harmless. Bandana, quit being such a laser brain. You guys are stinkin’ up the joint with your buffoonery” she nods to Hunter, then Mad “and your angst.”

Both Hunter and Mad, taken aback by Cid’s scolding, soften and relax.

“Cid’s right. I really am harmless…and a laser brain. My name is Hunter.”

He extends his hand to shake. Mad continues to stare into Hunter’s deep brown eyes for several beats before extending her own and taking his hand. As her fingers slide into his grasp, there is an intense warm wave that passes between them both that ends in a tingle. Hunter and Mad’s body hair stands on end as the tingle runs up one arm, crosses their hearts and runs down the other arm.

Hunter, trying to maintain his cool, gives a lopsided attempt at a smoldery smile while still holding Mads gaze. Mad was never prepared for this sensory experience and immediately inhaled while her pupils dilate, and her face slightly flushes. Hunter can hear her heart skip a beat, then pick up to a frenetic pace. He smells perspiration as it begins to form upon her skin. He also smells a faint hint of arousal.

“Mad…” She’s thrown off by what just happened and quickly pulls away. She’s used to whatever crawls into the bar trying to daftly impress, threaten, cajole, talk down to, manhandle, or manipulate her. He’s self-depreciating, disarming, and a bit goofy…while smoking hot. She’s confused and warming up to this Hunter guy. But the walls are still up. The urge to bust him in the chops has left her mind.

“Wooo. That was…intense!” Mad’s feral demeanor fell away to shit eating grin and head tilt. She fans herself with her hand. That sensation was amazing! What the hell did HE do?

Hunter chuckled. “Uh, yeeaaah…” Casually crosses his legs to hide a semi erection. That sensation was amazing! What the hell did SHE do?

“That happen often?”

“Nope. You’re the first.”

“Shush…flattery will get you everywhere” Mad leaned in closer to Hunter, still not breaking intense eye contact. She was falling into the pool of those warm brown eyes. Basking in them. Hoping not to drown.

“I can only hope,” he counters. His heart flutters first, then he feels a second flutter between his crossed legs. Physically he feels amazing. Mentally, he feels like an idiot.

Cid, leaning against the back of the bar, rolls her eyes. “Can I get you love birds to move the party to The Oasis? I can’t handle the melodrama. Give ya a bottle of free Spotchka to get lost.”

“The Oasis?” Hunter said suddenly. He was very confused. To the best of his knowledge, Cid never mentioned it.

“It’s a secret little hideaway. She doesn’t let just anyone use it.” Mad winked at Cid then gave Hunter a conspiratorial grin.

Cid wrinkled her nose and shot Hunter a nasty look, “I never let your Batch in on it…except for Tiny. Your ship smells like poodoo. If you trash my Oasis, you’ll owe me FOREVER!” She followed this up by pointing her long bony Trandoshan claw at him.

Yep, that did it: Totally killed Hunters erection.

Cid plunked down a full bottle on the bar. Mad grabbed it as she got up from her bar stool. “Care to join me for Spotchka under the stars…Hunky?”

Two loud and very offended scoffs from across the room, “How come we don’t’ get free bottles?”

“SHUT IT!” from Cid “Or you both are gonna get a bottle each…upside your heads!!!”

Hunter could only answer with a smile and nod, grateful he could now get to his feet without embarrassment from a certain bodily function. He followed Mad to Cid’s office and through a hidden doorway.

“Don’t trash my Oasis! I MEAN IT!!!” came Cid’s shrill threat from the other room.

Mad grabbed Hunters hand and led him through several dark winding stairways, many doorways, purposeful twists and turns that confused the sense of direction. The last door opened to a rooftop area…

PLEASE like, comment, and/or REBLOG!

To read Chapter 2

https://www.tumblr.com/skellymom/728315714878980096/background-hunter-and-mad-bond-make-love-and?source=share

46 notes · View notes