Upon landing at the King's Lair on the ice planet of Hoth, they learned that Dianna had been placed in the kolto tank nearly thirty standard hours earlier, and the MD droid estimated that she wouldn't be out for another fifteen hours, which was fine with the two Sith.
They hadn't seen Zanz since he had been put in his place when they arrived last time, and as long as he stayed out of their way, they were alright with it. Still, they left Aitchkay aboard the Jet Razor with orders not to let anyone but themsevles or the Chadra-Fan, Delki, aboard without their express permission.
After asking the little mechanic to give the ship a thorough mantanence check, Trychon and Raezyr retired to their quarters for some more rest. They both hoped Darth Vikon decided to keep to himself this time.
Thankfully, their sleep was peaceful and uninterrupted. Raezyr had set the alarm on his chronometer to wake him an hour before Dianna's scheduled release from the kolto tank, but it proved to be unnecessary, as he awoke on his own before it went off. He stepped into the refresher then dressed in a white tunic, black pants and black vest. After strapping on his utility belt, he stepped out and headed for the cafeteria as he was feeling famished. He paused briefly at his elder brother's door, and sensing he was still asleep, continued on his way, deciding not to wake him.
It was mid-afternoon and between meals, leaving the dining facility empty when he arrived. He entered the kitchen and found half of a pot of caf still sitting on a warmer. It was old, but hot, and after pouring a mug, he took a long swallow and the bitterness tasted good anyway. Digging around in the refridgeration units, he came up with the makings for a cold sandwich and made one and put it on a plate. After refilling his mug, he took his quick meal and sat down at one of the tables.
He was just about to take the first bite, when he felt Trychon's presence approaching. He bit into the sandwich just as the other Sith entered. "I'm so hungry right now," Trychon said, looking wistfully at the meal his brother was practically inhaling.
"Get your own food," Raeyzr said around a mouthful.
"I see how you are." Trychon chuckled and went into the kitchen. He would have told Raezyr the same thing. A few minutes later he emerged with a sandwich of his own and a cup of cold elderberry juice, and sat down across from Raezyr.
They ate in silence for minute then looked up toward the door expectantly, having sensed Zanz approaching.
The ex-Sith commando entered the dinning hall and looked at them hesitantly before approaching. Raezyr swallowed the last of his food and spoke before Zanz had a chance. "If you're going to start something, do you mind waiting for awhile? I'd rather not have to kill you on a full stomach."
Zanz ignored the comment and took a deep breath before speaking. Clearly he was having problems with what he wanted to say. "Look. I just finished going over the holo-recordings you submitted on arrival, and I spoke to Taggart and Dengar when they left Gentes," he paused before continuing. "I may have been a bit hasty the last time we spoke."
Without letting either of the Sith reply, he spun about and walked quickly out of the cafeteria. After he had left, Trychon and Raezyr looked at each other and burst out laughing.
They sat and joked for a while about "understatements," when Raezyr glanced down at his wrist crhono, and noted it was time for Dianna to come out of the tank. He stood up from the table, "You coming?"
"Nah," Trychon said, his mood turning bleak in an instant. "I need to go talk to Kord's friends. I realize they probably already know, but I should talk to them anyway. Besides," he added,"you probably want to talk to Di alone for a bit."
Raezyr sensed the despair that was beginning to cloud around the other Sith. "Trych, I know a little something about kicking yourself over 'what if's,' but the bottom line is that Kord's blood is on Riv-ar's hands."
"Yeah, I know," Trychon said. He knew what Raezyr had said was right, but now that things were settled down a bit, he couldn't help but think that Kord might still be alive if he had just done things a bit differently. He watched as his younger brother exited the room and put his own dishes away, then headed out to find Kord's friends.
By the time Raezyr got to the medical bay, Dianna was already out and was resting in the bed. She smiled at him as he entered the room. "Hey lover!" she said playfully, although still a bit weakly. "Kill anyone lately?"
Raezyr sat next to her on the edge of the bed. "Yeah, I took a little trip to Gentes, and I brought you this souvenir," he said, pulling out a necklace that he had chosen from the wooden box. It was a brilliant green gem which emmited an inner glow, in an aurodium setting and chain.
"It's beautiful, but you mean to tell me that my lover went out and killed my arch-enemy, and all he brought back was a necklace?" she said teasingly.
He grinned, then leaned over and kissed her gently. "Well, Trych would kill me if I gave you the Delfa ale we found, so that's going to have to do." She leaned her head forward and he did the clasp for her.
"I love it, Raez." She held up the pendant and looked at if for a moment, before Raezyr spoke again. "I thought you'd be done once you were out of the tank."
Dianna explained that the medical droid wanted to run some more tests before clearing her and she may not be out for another day or two, but she was more concerned about other things. "Raez, you and Trych saved us, you know that, right?"
"No, Taggart and Dengar are doing that by making the delivery. You wouldn't have given up the operation here for a few prisoners. You would have wanted to, and you would have hated yourself for not doing it, but in the end they all knew what they were getting themselves into. All Trych and I did was wipe out a bit of the competition. Plus we let a few escape with the knowledge that anyone who tries to cross you or your crew can expect the same." Raezyr fell silent, holding her hand and looking at the floor.
"What's the matter?"
"We've got to go again. I can't tell you where, but it may be a long time before we return," he said. He looked into her eyes and then bent over and kissed her. Standing up he headed for the exit.
"Raez?" she called when he had reached the door. "I love you."
He looked over his shoulder as he activated the controls. The door slid open with a 'whoosh.' "I know," he said, and stepped into the hall.
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