Casus Belli (Part 2)

Posted on Fri Aug 2nd, 2013 @ 7:42am by Morgo Le'Shaad & Berry

6,396 words; about a 32 minute read

Chapter: Chapter IV: Rezer's Edge
Location: Training Room, Red Raptor
Timeline: Pre-Chapter IV (after "Noble Propositions" )

OLD


"I'd appreciate it if you avoided my face, girl." Morgo said dryly, her lips quirking at the corner, looking at Berry across the mat from her, "I still need it pretty, after all."

Surprisingly, Berry pouted at that. "But the head is where the brain is so it will hurt you the most and knock you out," she protested, almost whined.

"Yes." Morgo replied, "But since there is little to no chance this ridiculous sparring session of ours will improve my hand-to-hand combat skills anyways, I'd really rather not get a scar for nothing. I happen to like my face."

The part-Aquar blew out air in a sigh of concession. "Fine. We gotta start out easy first, after all." She blinked. "Even though your enemies won't." She shrugged that wisdom off and assumed her own fighting stance.

Things, it seemed, were about to get interesting .


NEW



It was strange to see it at first. No longer was Berry's expression as vacant or scattered, but very focused. Her gaze was steady, and movements still—everything restrained. "First, show me what you can do. You're standing like I'm going to hit you, but you have to hit me first." Berry cracked a small smile, a bit eager.

Morgo never hit first. Not from the way she was taught, anyhow. The Scholars of her home planet represented the last line of defense Dromache had against those who would destroy their precious knowledge. If an invading fleet managed to defeat Dromache's impressive armada of ships orbiting the planet at all times, and penetrate their planetary shield, getting to the planet's surface, the Scholars and their armies were the only things standing between the invading enemy and the many Archives on Dromache. Thus, most of what Morgo had learned had been defense tactics and fighting styles. The only time she had fought differently was when she dueled. And that had been with a cortosis staff.

Still, it was never too late to learn. Morgo recalled just a few minutes ago when she's tried to slap Berry, an instinctual response to being ambushed earlier. The girl had easily blocked a strike from the side. Perhaps head on was the best approach.

Face carefully blank, Morgo struck out quickly, her arm muscles carefully relaxed to avoid expending needless energy (only tensing inches before impact) planting another foot forward to strike with her weight centered—her wrist straight so that the bones of her hand were aligned with those of the wrist and forearm, allowing for optimal shock impact supported by the rest of the arm, body, and core. Morgo was a physician after all, and a bent wrist meant misaligned bones and possible self-injury upon impact. Which would frankly be embarrassing.

Berry blocked the move as if she was blinking—effortless and smooth. She frowned a little, though. "You're thinking too much. Your eyes, they're still distant." She shook her head, her braids whipping slightly. "We gotta go faster so you can't think. Just...be."

And with that, she launched herself at the other woman. Not too hard, but still hard enough to keep the balance between both of their aggressiveness. It was so easy for Morgo to fall back. It felt like Berry was pushing something that kept falling back. It was annoying.

"Keep hitting at me," Berry told her as she stopped her punching for a brief second.

Morgo did so, narrowing her eyes slightly as she lashed out, watching as Berry easily danced out of the way, fluid like crystalline water. Inwardly, Morgo smirked. How appropriate.

Berry nodded and punched back. "And I'm not cheating with water magic." She smiled impishly at Morgo from behind her raised gold-green fists. "Much." So she kept pushing, the punches coming fast and the time window for Morgo to hit back growing smaller and smaller.

Morgo kept up, but found her concentration splitting as she had to focus on continually blocking Berry’s whirlwind blows, paying her footwork little to no mind as they had a life of their own—already well versed in taking her out of danger and balancing her. As the speed of Berry's blows quickened, so too did Morgo push to respond, the muscles of her arms and calves protesting, burning with exertion.

Hooking a foot around Berry’s ankle, testing to see if her superior height could do her any favors, Morgo mercilessly pulled so that the girl was forced to either set a foot back or fall, wondering if Berry’s footing was as good as her own. She would only be able to avoid falling if she were quick.

Berry did indeed fall—but she fell in style. Her back arched as her hands quickly met the ground, propping her up for a split second. In that half second, both her feet flew up in the direction Morgo pulled. But Berry inwardly gasped. Not the face was a rule of this match. So she pulled back, the heel of her flip flop sandal lightly slapping Morgo's chin.

Berry completed the backwards somersault and landed on her feet, a sheepish grin on her face. "Sorr—!"

Morgo's foot wiped the foolish grin from Berry's face, taking the opportunity of an apologizing opponent to land a hit. Not a particularly hard one, but one to unsettle Berry's vision momentarily.

"Whoa!" Berry exclaimed as she staggered back, blinking.

Sweat darkened strands of hair clinging to her forehead, Morgo's expression was a mask of utter innocence in the face of Berry's surprise, "Well you didn't say I couldn't hit your face, now did you?" She said evenly, despite her hard breaths, eyes bright with adrenaline as she waited for Berry's attack.

The part-Aquar burst into loud laughter, a merry grin on her face. "You're funny!" Then she rushed Morgo, wailing on her with her fists, keeping the hits quick and light. It just seemed like Berry was fighting harder, but she had just divided up her hits.

Well, save for the last one that hit hard into Morgo's stomach. Berry sprang back with a look of "surprise" on her face. "Sorry...heh."

Thus Morgo dropped like a bag of bricks...and did not get up again.

"Ugh. Goddess I hate you." Said the floor mat as the woman held her punched stomach like the world depended on it. Managing to roll from her side onto her back, one leg extended while the other laid bent at the knee, Morgo's breaths came ragged from her parted lips as she panted for air. The pain wasn't so bad. Morgo had had worse. But the difficulty breathing was new.

Berry poked the floor mat woman with her foot. "Hey, at least your face will still look nice." She smiled faintly and wiped some sweat from her brow, her black bangs stuck to her skin. "You need a break?"

"Come a little closer. And we'll have that break." Morgo said, voice flat, experimentally kneading her stomach and hissing under her breath.

"Hee," Berry chuckled as she grinned at Morgo. "It wasn't thaaat hard of a punch." Then she paused, eyes widening. "Wait—are you PREGNANT?" Berry's jaw positively dropped through the hull and out into space. Oh crap!

The corner of Morgo's lips twitched unnoticeabley as she closed her eyes, trying to relax, "Oh yes. I'm pregnant. How did you guess?" She asked slightly breathlessly, still winded, "The baby is Thane's." She 'confessed', thinking of the moronic Holonet stories floating around about Thane and her, lifting her head from the floor to give Berry a serious brow raise, "Our hate-child." Morgo muttered, her head thudding gently back onto the mat, breaking out into a small smile that probably made her look quite mad.

Mind remembering all the things Thane had said to her back in his quarters, when he'd subtly threatened her to do his will, Morgo had to admit that 'hate' was a bit too strong of a word. She was quite proud of him, in her own way, for having the guts to do so, earlier on in his dark side progress than she'd expected. But Morgo had always preferred to have the higher ground—and this time, she did not.

He did. And that made him an enemy. An enemy that had the peculiar position of also being her once-benefactor.

"Whaaaat?!" Berry was almost as floored as Morgo was. Her nose wrinkled in confusion (and maybe disgust) as her brain worked very hard to reconcile the situation. Steam may have escaped her ears before she overheated and just stared at Morgo. "Is that why he's keeping you around?" Her brows knit as she frowned at the Dromachean in concern. "Since, well...he rescued you?" Her eyes narrowed, and her thoughts flashed back to the slaves she had run into back home. Liam, king of his island of men, was so haughty and proud and handsome, just like Morgo. But nothing would ever take away his owner's firebrand on his back. Even the strongest could be broken.

Berry's tone noticeably lowered. "Is that how you paid him?"

The Lady laughed out loud, despite the upset it caused her bruised stomach, continuing to chuckle as Berry looked on, confused and concerned. Sitting up, Morgo winced slightly as she righted herself, looking at Berry with a new found...consideration in her eyes. Who knew that the girl had a mind, after all?

"No, dear girl, it wasn't how I paid him." Morgo eventually settled on saying, finding it a little cruel to continue distressing the poor girl needlessly, "There is no child. The only thing growing in here," Morgo said, laying a hand over the skin of her abdomen, "Is the distaste I have for your Master. And the grudging respect."

Letting that stew in the air between them, Morgo watched as the girl processed that, setting her mussed, damp hair back in place.

"Tell me, Berry." Morgo said, gray eyes finding brown ones, "What would you do if I had to leave the ship? Because I'd been forced to?"

"Who would force you to?" Berry demanded with a frown, her mood already dark at the mention of a "master." She shook her head. "No one can force you off. We don't have a captain, and everyone listens to themselves since they're here for themselves." She crossed her arms, troubled at the thought of someone asserting command. What had any of the ship's crew done to gain her trust, the kind of trust that came with this obedience she would have to show to this supposed "person in charge?" Her expression started to darken even more, the horizon growing quite cloudy.

"Anyone able to overpower me." Morgo answered simply, the throbbing of her abdomen receding to a dull ache, reminding her that Berry too could overpower her if she wished, "And that, unfortunately, includes everyone on this ship: you, Sev, Bomoor...and Thane."

Amused that the girl was taking this so seriously, Morgo decided to test the waters of Berry's loyalties. Tilting her head to the side, clear gray eyes wandering the room, Morgo's voice was light, "Tell me, girl. If Thane, your informal Master, were to evict me from the ship, his loyal Bomoor at his side, would you help them do it? They are your mentors after all. Do you not do as you are bid to do?"

When Morgo had left Thane's room before, she'd warned Thane that threatening her would not work, that she had other allies aboard this ship that would defend her. Words spoken as an instinctual reflex to his threat. Now she was not so sure. Bomoor, though good of heart, was still Thane's closest friend and companion. Morgo sincerely doubted the Ithorian would rise to her defense, a wanted murderer that he'd reluctantly accepted aboard the ship in the first place. What more was the disappearance of said criminal?

And Sev was most likely indifferent either way, vow or no vow. Yes, he had vowed to protect her. Yet would he protect her from the crew itself? Thinking of her dwindling options, Morgo felt the sudden need to lie down again, and did so, easing herself down onto the mat. She told herself it was because she was tired.

Berry quickly shook her head, her expression dark. "No one tells me what to do unless I wanna do it myself." Her eyes widened. "And who made them the decision makers of this ship?? They don't own it! And they're not the strongest, either!" She shook her head again, her frown deepening. "Unless you did something really really bad, I don't think I would help them." The part-Aquar rolled her eyes. "And anyway, Pale Guy isn't so 'good' either so who's he to say who is 'bad?'" Her cheek puffed in annoyance.

Morgo laughed, a short and bitter sound, "You'll find that when it is you who is weakest, you who is most vulnerable, there is little choice you have in any matter. It is, as they say, 'do or die'. And I do not intend to die."

Berry crossed her arms and tilted her head at Morgo. "Soo why stay on board if you think you're gonna have to get kicked off by idiots??" Her frown deepened. "I mean, you're here for protection but that doesn't seem to be real if you're still scared."

Rolling her blonde head to the side to look at Berry, Morgo smirked, "Because as terrible as it might get on this ship, it's still safer than the outside world. Much safer." Morgo added quietly, eyes growing distant for a second before refocusing onto the green girl.

"May I ask why you stay?" The woman asked, genuinely curious. From what she knew, Berry met Thane, Bomoor and Sev by chance, somehow Force bonding to Thane. Was she here simply because the leash of the Force Bond was something Thane wanted to keep short? Or was she here for some other purpose? To fight Axion? Was she that much of a vigilante?

"To get stronger," Berry said without hesitation. "So I can protect those weaker than me, help them out, and have fun with them." She nodded, still serious but lightening up at the mention of fun. Her brow raised as she gave Morgo a look. "And you're not having much fun, are you? Since, y'know, you're...weak. Physically anyway."

Morgo scoffed, "You'll learn that not everything is about having fun. If that were the case, I'd have been executed long ago for the murder of several people on my homeworld. But if it's fun you've come looking for, I think you've come to the wrong place." Morgo said, exhaling as she pointedly looked at the ship around them.

Berry rolled her eyes. "Yeah, I figured that out the thousandth time I threw that bouncy ball in my room." She sighed and smiled at Morgo. "But I've got other things on my list to do, like protecting you. Since you're weaker than me and can use my help, that's two fish with one line!" The part-Aquar looked so proud of herself for spouting a Velusian proverb.

Morgo's voice was dull, as if she was weary of something. Perhaps of of hearing the same lie over and over again, "And why would you do that?" She sighed, "I have nothing to pay you with that you would find of worth. And I doubt you have need of credits."

Berry let her hands rest on her hips, seagrass skirt swaying, as she tilted her head at Morgo. One eyebrow raised, lips jutted out in a confused pout... "Pay me?" Berry repeated, the idea completely foreign to her. She chuckled. "Why would you need to pay me? All I'm doing is making sure you're safe. Sure...you may have done some bad things..." The part-Aquar shrugged her golden shoulders. "But no one's perfect. I mean, Mr. Rezer's killed lots of people, making him a bad guy. But no one's kicking him off this ship 'cause he's strong. And just because he's strong means he gets to stay?" Berry shook her head. "Not everyone can be that body strong. You're brain strong, but...that's not what always works in the end."

Her dark, brown eyes met those cool grey ones. "But one thing's clear here...clear as the blue waters off the white beach of my home island. You're a person. You think. You feel. And you, Morgo le'Shade, deserve a chance to live where you don't hafta be scared." Berry's eyes studied the woman. Months in the jungle taught her to gauge weakness in an opponent, and even an idiot like her could see that Morgo was as cautious as any creature could be. Always testing the water, watching for sharks...and boy, there were a lot of sharks in these bloody space waters.

She extended a rough, strong golden hand to the woman on the floor. But it was Morgo's choice to take it. Berry offered the woman a faint smile, filled with encouragement...and a little bit of sadness. Berry knew.

"You don't have to be scared of dying all the time."

Startled, Morgo slowly raised herself to one elbow, looking at Berry's outstretched hand like she didn't know what to quite do with it. The sheer honesty of Berry's words struck her...more than perhaps she'd like to admit. Lips parted, Morgo breathed.

Yes. It was true, wasn't it? Morgo was a person. Not an object to be used then cast aside until there was need of her again. She'd been treated as such her entire life. By those she called family. By those that were 'allies'. Strange that it took a young girl to remind Morgo of her own worth. Of the dignity she too deserved.

Yet, unable to help it, Morgo's eyes narrowed at Berry's hand. For all the girl's earnestness, Morgo couldn't help but wonder if perhaps Berry was the finest manipulator of them all, playing at a child's ignorance and honesty to convince everyone to take her pretty words at face value. For after everything was said and done, words they remained.

A moment passed. Then another, settling in the pregnant silence between Berry and Morgo. The girl: adamant, her warm eyes encouraging, beckoning. The woman: wary, expression closed off, not allowing herself to believe.

A beat. Then a slender white hand, gingerly placing itself into a golden-green grasp.

A grin lit up Berry’s face, and she pulled the woman up—not too strong of a grip to hurt, but not too weak for Morgo to fall back.

"I have accepted your hand, Berry." Morgo said, now on her feet, blinking slowly, gazing almost softly down at the part-Aquar with half-lidded eyes, voice gentle, "But I have yet to wholly trust you."

Taking her hand back, Morgo tilted her head, a smile playing on her lips, "Perhaps in time, I will accept you as well. "

Berry burst into merry laughter. “OF COURSE you will!” A hint of a smirk hid behind that big grin. She always got to people…eventually.

And Morgo did not doubt it. When she wasn't being an utter idiot, Berry was bizarrely charismatic in her own way. Thane, Bomoor and Sev had already been pulled into her orbit, one through Force bond, the others through uncharacteristic fondness. Morgo was beginning to suspect that perhaps this quality to her was at least partly the result of the Force, naturally pulling people towards her. Perhaps even like the legendary Meetra Surik of the Old Republic, popularly referred to as the Jedi Exile in many texts, with her unconscious natural ability to form bonds with those around her, subtly influencing them.

It was all still in the theory stage at this point, but Morgo was going to have to tread lightly if she was going to resist being roped in as well. Luckily, being a Force void had its benefits.

Mind returning to the matter at hand, Morgo ran a hand through her hair, smoothing any flyaway strands that may have been knocked loose in their little fight, the sweat on her forehead now drying.

Watching Berry and the untrained and undisciplined slant of her posture, loose-limbed and all too jolly, Morgo began to wonder. From the girl's reaction upon naming Thane her 'master', things were not too well between them. The girl had responded in mild distaste and spoken freely about her opinion of him—not all of it good.

The apparent decline in their relationship then, was most likely because of Thane. From the way Berry had spoken before and in the past, about wanting to get stronger and worrying about Thane (which she had admitted back on their shopping trip on Coruscant), her regard for him was quite strong. She would have never voluntarily pushed him away unless he'd done something to merit it. Which Morgo was assuming he hadn't. Not yet.

But Berry was a difficult girl, certainly not the kind of apprentice that Thane was perhaps hoping for. If Morgo knew anything about the man it was that he was rather unimaginative and quite a stickler for technicalities, making him a rigid mentor figure that was perhaps unsuited to one as Berry—like the tide itself, unable to wear away at a diamond on the stony shore. Two unmoving objects, unwilling, or perhaps even unable to bend for the other. Berry needed someone who could adapt to her, flow with her, if anything was to stick in her head—to teach on her own terms. And perhaps Thane was unable to quite do so. Morgo had never sat in on their training sessions, but she could imagine Berry's improper vocabulary for all things sacred to Thane was absolutely unacceptable. And likewise, Thane's inability to call Beria by her preferred name, 'Berry', similarly reflected that inability to bend for the other Morgo had diagnosed before.

And so, not encouraged by the rate of progress of his apprentice, Thane was most likely pulling away. Not consciously perhaps, but a keen young girl like Berry would be able to pick up on the silent signs he was no doubt giving off. She would also be able to feel it through their bond. They were growing apart.

Pity really. It was the breaking of perhaps what could have been a very powerful relationship. One that she would have loved to record and relay to the rest of the galaxy, in time, had the partnership flourished.

But if Thane was not going to use the girl... perhaps Morgo might. If anything, Berry's Force Bond to Thane made her a useful asset. Not a pawn, no. Berry was too much of a wildcard to be of any use on that front, which required obedience. But an asset. Perhaps even an advantage over Thane, should it come to that.

Yes. It could work.

Keen eyes alighting on Berry's face, so open and trusting, Morgo felt almost guilty for manipulating Berry like this. Almost.

Thane and Berry's relationship was already on the precipice. And when Thane had saw it fit to threaten Morgo, he had made his move. This was Morgo's.

"Berry," Morgo began, eyes fierce, "You promised to protect me, did you not?"

Berry gave Morgo a look. “Uh, yah.”

"Even from those you call friends? Even..." The woman paused, voice grave, watching Berry's face like closely, "...from Thane?"

At that, Berry grinned. “Of course!” She wiggled a finger at the duchess. “And everyone else from you, too, Missy Shady.” She chuckled. “Although I’m not brain smart so you’re probably screwing me over without me knowing. Ha!”

Inwardly, Morgo smirked. The girl was certainly not brain smart. But that was part of her charm.

After Berry’s chuckles died down, she tilted her head at the woman. “Wait, why’re you asking about Thane? I thought Mr. Rezer was meaner to you…?”

"Perhaps. But at least the death Sev promises me will be a quick and clean death." And arching a dark brow, Morgo's expression was unreadable, "I fear the demise Thane has planned for me is of a much more prolonged nature...should I refuse to do as he wishes."

Be it death by exposure, abandoned on the nearest moon, or death by the slow decay of time behind force-fields and transparisteel, Morgo rejected either fate. One of which she would surely suffer should she refuse to comply with Thane's wishes—immediate and future. For imprisonment promised nothing but the gradual, inevitable rot of her own mind, her most prized possession. Do what you would with her body, for so long as her mind was kept active, kept truly alive, challenged, Morgo was content.

"Whaaaaat?!" Berry exclaimed, her eyes widening. "He's gonna kill ya if you don't do what he wants??" Her brows instantly lowered, not bothering to wait for an answer. "I already said no one's captain here," Berry growled as she stomped to the exit. "I'm gonna hafta talk to him." Her knuckles cracking, however, made this "talking" seem quite different from the real thing.

Morgo chuckled, "Now, Berry, wait." she said, ever patient like a mother with a frightfully impulsive child. It was not (quite) Morgo's intention to rile Berry up and aim her at Thane, fists blazing. That would be a little too much like sending a furious ant to a boot. For what was raw power against a carefully honed weapon? Berry would confront Thane, would most likely cause an incident and resort to a physical altercation to settle things with Thane. Unwilling to outright kill her, Thane would try to reason with her, before growing tired and impatient with every blocked blow and every tedious parry. Berry at full power would most likely prove a challenge for Thane. But in all reality, it wouldn't be long before he simply swatted her. For good.

And what use was a corpse to Morgo? No, she much preferred Berry alive.

"Stop and think a little, girl." Morgo reasoned to Berry's back, unable to help her own amusement, "What could you possibly do to Thane that he couldn't do back to you, tenfold?" She asked, hoping that something would sink into Berry's thick skull before she went off and got herself killed. Tedious, really.

Berry paused and glanced back at Morgo, face blank. “Hmm, what could I do to Thane? I never really thought about it…” She turned fully around, her lip pouting out a bit. “Hmmm…”

"Berry..." Morgo began warily, starting to recognize the many faces of the part-Aquar and remembering that this particular expression on the girl's face meant that Berry was actually formulating an idea . And a Berry idea was never a good one.

"...Forget what I just said. Stop thinking." The woman added hastily, but in vain.

“Aha!” the part-Aquar exclaimed in realization, so lost in thought (for once) she heard nothing from Morgo. “How about a test? What’s strong around here…” She glanced at Morgo. "Nah." How about that box in the corner. "Nope. Oh, the ship’s pretty strong, right?”

She zipped forward in a burst of water magic speed toward the outside hull. “HiYA!” Her fist slammed into the hull, hitting it so hard the floor even vibrated slightly.

"Berry. Berry no." Morgo sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose.

Berry stood there, surveying her work. A small dent, but not good enough. The hull was probably reinforced to put up with blaster shots the previous smugglers must have encountered. “Hmmm...I've never fought full power yet. Maybe I should try again." Her feet padded rapidly as she sped toward the hull again.

Resisting the urge to grit her teeth, Morgo inwardly cursed. Idiot girl! Damaging the integrity of the ship's hull could be the death of them. And here Berry was, testing her strength on it. Thinking quickly, calculating the necessary course of action to prevent Berry from killing them all, Morgo clenched her fists, opened her mouth—

And screamed .

It was a bloodcurdling sound that Morgo pitched to be one of absolute terror . A cry one might hear from a lesser woman upon being stabbed...or upon sighting a spider.

"Berry, help! Bomoor's gone crazy and is killing me!" Morgo cried, not even attempting to cover the dripping sarcasm from her deliberately over-exaggerated screams, sounding utterly unconcerned with her own demise. Had Morgo wanted to complete the act and play the terrified, assaulted woman, she could have seamlessly done so, slipping into the persona like water into a silver flagon. But such a performance would have been lost on her audience. Her utterly, mentally defective audience.

Berry whipped her head around to stare at Morgo. "Wh-whaaat?!!"

Unfortunately, she forgot to stop the rest of herself and slammed into the outside hull. She peeled herself off and staggered over to Morgo. "He's not here! What's wrong?!"

"Nothing. Just testing your protective reflexes." Morgo replied coolly," Now, if you're quite done with trying to blow a hole in the wall, killing us all, I need you to come over here and sit down." She added sternly.

Berry narrowed her eyes at the woman as she slowly approached her, then sat down.

"You cannot be my protector if you do not know all the factors that threaten me. But I will not tell you if you continue to react to my information explosively." Morgo asserted, eyeing Berry like one would a disobedient pet, "So do you promise not to do anything untoward or impulsive with the secret I'm about to tell you?"

Berry made a face and shrugged. "I'm not gonna promise something I don't know about, but....maybe."

"No wall punching? No Thane punching?" Morgo asked dubiously.

At that, an impish grin appeared on her face. "Heh, no. What're you gonna tell me?" Her eyes widened as she waited expectantly.

Looking down at her hands, Morgo picked at her nails absently as she began, "You are aware of my situation, are you not? I am a galactic fugitive, wanted for murder on my home planet. Should I leave this ship, it is highly likely I would be caught by someone after my bounty. Without the protective walls of this ship, I would be exposed. I would have to hide, never staying long in one place for fear of being recognized. And the more I moved, the more people would see of my face. It's a... dizzying cycle that would eventually lead to my capture and imprisonment."

And smiling amusedly down at Berry, Morgo blinked, "Or perhaps worse. I'm sure you are no stranger to slavery on Velusia. Should someone find that they would gain more profit by selling me to a slaver or perhaps a scientist with a taste for human lab rats, I have no doubt I would be sold faster than a blink of an eye."

Infusing her posture with a subtle tension, Morgo turned away to look out a port-hole like window, watching the stars pass by. Giant balls of gas they were, ever burning with a fire Morgo could never feel.

"Thane wants me to reach out through my...friends in the galaxy to glean more information about Axion, the man he hunts, and the Kaiburr crystals he also seeks. If I do not do so, well..." Morgo chuckled darkly, "Let's just say he'll leave me to whichever fate catches up to me first."

Berry gaped at Morgo. "He's gonna do that? And...you didn't even go attack him like the others did!" She shook her head, frowning darkly. "No wonder it's starting to stink here. I thought it was just because of all the blood from Mr. Rezer, but...I'm starting to think it's Thane, too."

She laid down on her back, her hands resting on her stomach as she stared up at the ceiling. "They used to say on my home planet: If something stinks, there's a rotten fish around." Berry glanced over at Morgo with a faint smile. "And we're in a freaking barrel of rotten ones, huh!" She laughed, a bit amused. It wasn't like she wasn't used to it. Most of her old crew had done something bad in their past (Let's see, Orza, Nimo, Iboni). But at least they all were looking out for each other and cared for each other. Here...they barely had a common goal.

But it was related to Morgo all the same. "So he thinks you're NOT gonna look for the crystals with us? Why wouldn't you do that? Don't you want them destroyed, too?"

"Why should I?" Morgo replied, turning to face Berry once again, "Such is not my quest. It is his. It is yours ." Morgo added, pointedly.

And while it was true that under normal circumstances, Morgo would seek to protect such relics like the Kaiburr shards from falling into the hands of Force Sensitives, Light or Dark, these were not normal circumstances. As a priority, staying alive ranked higher.

Berry propped herself up on one elbow as she smiled confusedly at Morgo. "Aren't you supposed to be our doctor? Why is Thane being a butt about you if you're doing your part? I mean....look!" She pulled her shirt up and pointed at the still-healing gash on her abdomen. "What is HE gonna complain about when he's about to lose an arm?!"

It took an idiot to know one, and this idiot rolled her eyes. "I mean, even I know I need a doctor that does doctor stuff." She frowned at Morgo. "What's he offering you for EXTRA services that isn't doctor stuff?? That doesn't seem fair, to make you do something you didn't say you would or that he asked first."

"He offered me nothing of substance, only vague words that he might help me improve my situation once he defeated Axion. That is, if he chose to indulge in such an effort." Looking off into the distance, Morgo's expression was almost dreamy, "Such a master of persuasion, isn't he?"

How Morgo had even managed to refuse such a generous offer was a mystery.

The part-Aquar's golden-green nose bridge wrinkled slightly in confusion and distaste. "Are you serious? How are you gonna trust him if he's not even gonna tell you things?" She fell onto her back and crossed her arms. "I mean, I know he's not a nice guy, but that's just mean...taking out Axion could take forever. And he's already saying he's gonna kick you off the ship? Where is the honor in that?"

Honor meant different things to different people...but to Berry, it was a code she could never, ever break, even if it meant her death. And that code included how to treat people. One could call it "chivalry," but Berry didn't need a fancy term to describe treating others with dignity and respect.

Berry quickly sat up, a surge of indignation running through her again. Her brows lowered as she frowned at Morgo. "And then you're gonna get mad at him 'cause you're scared and maybe NOT do what he wants, and then HE gets mad and ends up kicking you off the ship, and then it was a WHOLE waste of time!" (And waste of food that Berry could've eaten that Morgo ate instead.) She shook her head. "And even if you did what he wanted, you'd still be mad and not trust him and it was only because he scared you to do it, not because you really wanted to." Berry sighed. The weight of the world seemed on her shoulders as she contemplated the vicious cycle of...viciousness.

Seeing Berry's troubled expression, Morgo crouched, placing both hands on the girl's upper arms and squeezing gently. Comfortingly.

Berry was not naive. But she was still ignorant innocent. And while it gave Morgo no small amount of satisfaction to unveil reality to this girl, she also realized that for others it was a difficult process. If Berry was to be persuaded to help her, she was going to have to believe Morgo cared—and she did. Truly. Morgo cared in the same way she cared about whether her investments were going to make a return profit, or whether her trade agreements were going to strengthen the reaches of her influence.

And Berry was much more intriguing than any of those.

"You're right, Berry." Said Morgo quietly, "I don't want to do as he says. But I'm going to."

And shushing Berry before the girl could cause a fuss in her bubbling outrage, Morgo continued, "I am, because this time, it will not cost me much to do so. To appease Thane is the wisest choice I now have, unfortunately."

Morgo paused, accentuating her silence with another squeeze to Berry's arms before letting go, "But it will not always be so. As long as Thane has a hold over me, he will use it, testing the limits of his power until the breaking point. Until the playing field is leveled, there will be no rest for me. And there will come a time when the price of obeying him may be too high to pay. When that time comes, I need to know that I can count on someone to help me, Berry. To be my ally."

Berry smiled at the woman, laughing merrily. Her dark eyes twinkled with amusement and true warmth—a warmth that could sometimes outshine the hottest star. "Didn't I already say this? Maybe you're the slow one today!" She smirked a little, smug about her physical prowess and temporary victory. "You can count on me." She took Morgo's hand and shook it. "It's a promise."

"Yes." whispered Morgo, the heat of Berry's hand beginning to suffuse hers, "Yes, it is."

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