#caezlo

The base was brisk and snowy, but that was how Caez liked it as they walked in from the cold and shook off their jacket, hanging it up and tapping their keypass against the door scanner and feeling a gust of overly filtered air hit their face as they headed off down the hall towards their room. Not expecting anyone to stop them, Caez was taken off-guard as a familiar large man stepped out in front of them and blocked their path, them looking up and scowling at Kylo as he pulled his helmet off and gave them a weird look, then extended his hand towards them.

Glancing down and frowning as a small box with a shitty and lopsided ribbon tied around it was presented to them, the bounty hunter raised an eyebrow and started to ask, “What the hell is th-”

“Don’t you know what day it is?” The knight inquired, scowling as he lifted the box towards Caez a bit more, him toning dully, “It’s January second, Caez.” Like it was something they should’ve been keeping track of, them frowning back at Kylo and scrunching up their nose for a moment as they thought about it.

After a moment and finally shrugging, Caez admittedly blandly, “Yeah, I dunno what that means, Ren. If I’m miss-”

“-Today was the day you started as my apprentice last year, Caez.” He commented, clearly not impressed by how poorly they kept track of dates as the switch turned on in their head and they snapped their fingers, Kylo rolling his eyes as he muttered indifferently, “It’s polite to gift you something on the date you started your official training, Caez.”

Blanking for a split moment at the “nice” gesture - Caez still wasn’t sure if they wanted to give Kylo the benefit of calling him actually kinda nice sometimes - the bounty hunter paused for a moment before hesitantly taking the small box with both their hands, the feeling that they had somehow fucked up on something they should have just known and prepared for making them feel weird with accepting the gift, Kylo still glowering at them as they muttered uncomfortably, “Oh. I. Thanks. I-I didn’t get you anything. Now I kinda feel b-”

“-You aren’t supposed to get me something. I’m your teacher, I’m supposed to be congratulating you, not the other way around.” He commented, keeping his tone flat and factual as Caez blinked and looked up at Kylo with a slightly flabbergasted expression, not really sure what to say as Kylo turned around and waved behind him, stalking off with a brief, “Goodbye, Caez. Training is cancelled today, enjoy your day off.” Before heading down an adjacent hall and making himself scarce.

Not even having enough time to yell goodbye back, Caez exhaled deeply and let their shoulders slump as they rolled their eyes, exasperated by how ridiculous Kylo was sometimes as they brushed their hair from their face and looked back down at the tiny box, them scowling before tugging the ribbon off and opening the manilla coloured parcel, them lifting the lid off of the tiny box and frowning at the small shiny object inside.

Lifting up the item, Caez inspected what looked like a single credit on a chain, the credit chipped and dulled with time but on the back carved into it very poorly was “One of 50K”, Caez pausing and blinking at the reference to their old bounty as they felt a flush creep across their face. 

Looking around in the hall before shoving the gift in their pocket, the bounty hunter trudged to the closest bathroom and locked the door behind them as they ran to the mirror, pulling the necklace - it had to be a necklace, the chain was too long for any normal wrist - out and putting it on, the dull glint of the credit on them making them chuff and smirk a bit before they tucked the accessory into the inside of their top, them walking out of the bathroom and muttering under their breath, “Thanks, Ren.” Even though they knew Kylo was too far away to hear the thanks.

By this point, Caez didn’t even ask where they were going when Stix and Geht tried to play it cool and call things ‘family outings’. They knew that they were up to something, but between Stix telling Geht to shut up about it and Geht nearly bouncing out of his seat while somehow not crashing their ship was enough of a hassle to deal with, so Caez wasn’t about to ask any questions as they took their seat in the cockpit and hoped that they weren’t about to spring something terrible on them.

A few hours - and two pitstops because Stix demanded they ask for directions in the middle of dead-fucking-space - and the ship finally landed, Caez jostled slightly by the rough landing and grumbling as they rubbed their neck, sleep collecting in their eyes and making their vision pure shit but them not really caring enough to fix said issue yet as they sat up and glanced out the window, soft snow falling around their ship and blanketing the planet in a brisk tenderness as Caez blinked a few times and took in the scene.

It was sunset by now on whatever planet they had been taken to, and as they got up to take a better look at the landscape, Geht had already stamped back into the ship, his shoulders flecked with the dandruff-like puffs from outside as he beamed proudly and announced, “Well?! Come on! It took us a damned long time to get this surprise ready and even longer for Stix to convince me that this was something you needed! Hurry the fuck up so we can get this show started and can finally leave this ice cube!” He yelled before boisterously turning and sliding back out of the ship, the crunching of snow under the older twin’s boots followed by a solid whump and a long string of curses signalling that he had taken a nosedive in the fresh snowfall like a dumbass. Caez really not wanting to have it any other way as they snorted and rolled their eyes, they laughed before getting up from their seat and pulling their jacket around them a bit tighter as they began to walk outside.

The soft brush of wind greeted the bounty hunter warmly as they took their first steps into the ankle-deep snow, the smell of stoney freshness that only came from being near mountains and freshwater springs telling them that they were somewhere they could feel safe for once, them closing their eyes and savouring the sensation running through their body like a comforting warmth encompassing their soul while the world quieted around them. Or at least, the world was still for a grand total of two minutes before the aggressive shuffling of people treading through the snow carelessly had Caez exhaling dully and going tired again, them opening their eyes slowly and ready to glare at whomever had disrupted their tranquility as a familiar voice hummed from a few feet behind them, “… Caez.”

That voice. A voice that could make the blood in the bounty hunter’s veins go still for a fraction of a moment, the same voice that they grew to love and crave. God, even after three years and their defecting from The Order, that voice still made their chest constrict. It wasn’t anything else but the voice in that moment, and his tone had their hands twitching at their sides, nervous and scared as they heard a barely-present plea in the way he said their name. Not turning around - not even sure if they could turn around - Caez stayed motionless as they inhaled carefully, lungs suddenly aching like they were rubbed raw as they hushed out under their bated breath, “… Kylo.”

They weren’t sure what to do now, the sound of handcuffs being unlocked and the annoyed grunt of the ex-Sith filling the uncomfortable silence as Caez kept their eyes locked firmly onto the mountain range in front of them, every muscle in their body afraid to even twinge in case that snapped them from this dream as the heavy sound of boots got gradually closer to them, Caez still not moving their eyes even as a shadow edged into the corner of their vision, even when the shadow was no longer just a blur in their peripherals, Kylo Ren standing like a dark obelisk in front of the bounty hunter as he paused - taking in Caez, taking in every inch of their face like he wasn’t sure if they were really real or not - then hushed, “… They weren’t lying when they said you hadn’t ch-”

No. They couldn’t do this. They couldn’t-

Turning their head to the side so they didn’t need to look at him as their eyes began to sting, Caez balled their fists against their sides as they gasped out fast, “-No. No no no I don’t need this I don’t need you I never needed you why did they make it you?!” They snapped, voice cracking and breaking fast as their emotions started to spiral out of control, their body feeling numb but at the same time like it was falling to pieces as they brought their hands up, clutching the dead air inches from the sides of their face as they scrambled, “Not you. Not you. I’m not ready for this yet I don’t need you I’m not-”

Until they stopped, their mind going completely silent as Kylo’s hands came up and held theirs firmly, him trying to calm the bounty hunter down as best he could as they went silent again, fearful and confused tears streaming down their face as they took in a shaky breath, everything silent again while he was there - it was always him, wasn’t it, always him who could quiet the voices in their head like no other - as he stooped and took a hand from theirs, bringing it up and cupping their face as his thumb brushed away a streak of tears before habitually trailing along the scars marring their face, his eyes dark but Caez still able to somehow tell that his pupils were blown up large like saucers as he took the bounty hunter in like he was seeing a ghost.

A ghost…

His warm hand still on their face, Caez tried to breathe normally and calm down as they pulled away from his touch, averting their eyes and trying to sound strong - though they were sure their voice was weepy and strained - as they hissed, “… I don’t need you. You aren’t-”

“-You can’t say it, can you.” Kylo interrupted, his voice steady like the swings of a pendulum as he toned, “… You can’t say you don’t love me anymore, because you still do.” He started, the sound of the word love on his lips making Caez’s chest constrict as they remembered every time he said that to them, how the word echoed in their head and how they could never ever say that to him. They never said that to him, never out loud. They didn’t even like thinking of the word because love always seemed so… So temporary. Kylo was temporary. This was all temporary, and this meeting was just gonna make everything spiral all over again. Caez couldn’t live with that. Not again.

Pulled back to the present as the ex-Sith kept talking, Caez didn’t hear a word that he was saying as they turned their tired gaze up to meet his, mind no longer racing as they breathed out slowly, “… I never said that. I never said that I…” They stopped, swallowing for a moment around an invisible clot that had formed in their throat, “I never said that I loved you. Ever. And e-even if I did once, I won’t now. I can’t now. I-”

“-You died. I thought you had died.” Kylo stated, voice soft - almost pained - as he took in a shaky breath, his face an unreadable mask aside from the welling of tears in his eyes that would never be allowed to fall as he turned his gaze to the sky, voice slightly broken as he huffed, “… They said you were dead, I saw your body. I-I held your corpse in my arms, Caez. Caez, you-”

“-I’m alive. I’m free.” They interrupted, the bounty hunter feeling nothing as they cut Kylo off, his pained expression going surprised as they continued, “… And because I’m free forever now, I can’t be with you. I won’t let someone tie me down again, Kylo. I’m. I’m sorry.” They stated, the weight in their chest finally starting to lift as they smile through their stream of tears, hurt running through their body like nails and every voice in their head screaming for them to not walk away from this as they toned cheerfully, “I can’t keep this up, Big Guy.” Before turning and walking away slowly, their hands coming up instinctively to grip their forearms in an attempt to hold themself together as they heard the gentle poff of knees hitting snow behind them.

No, they couldn’t- No. It wasn’t-

They wanted to turn around, Caez wanted so badly to turn around and run back into Kylo’s arms - wether they would sock him in the jaw or kiss him was still up in the air - but they felt like they couldn’t. Not after what happened, not after how they left. Three years was a long time, after all, and Kylo didn’t seem to think Caez had changed. Well, he was wrong. And Caez didn’t want him to feel right about them as they walked back towards the ship, Stix standing in front of the entry hatch and glaring at Caez as he bristled, “… Go the fuck back. I’m not letting you on this fucking ship until you get your stupid Ren shit sorted out.” He commanded, Caez blinking for a moment and opening their mouth to complain as Stix snapped fast, “It took Geht and I three fucking years to track down this mopey dick. I may hate you and hate him, but you two assholes deserve each other. Take that as an insult or a compliment, I don’t care. You aren’t getting on this ship until you deal with Ren.” He stated, crossing his arms and glowering down at the bounty hunter as they let out a deflating breath.

God fuck, and they had just nailed that break-up bit.

Huffing and storming back to the ex-Sith - and not admitting even to themself the elation that they felt with being able to turn around and go back for once - Caez crunched their boots through the snow slowly for a moment before picking up the pace and almost sprinting towards Kylo, the ex-knight lifting his gaze and scowling at Caez before he mouthed out, “Oh shit.” And got the full force of Caez as they cracked hard into his chest, wind smacked from his lungs as they both toppled into the powdery snow.

Sitting up on Kylo’s chest and looking down at him as snowflakes collected in his hair like constellations in the sky, Caez huffed and kept their gaze soft as they back-pedalled on their boldness and laughed out nervously, “Aha, I should- I- Wow, I guess if this is goodbye forever I should give you a goodbye kiss, right? I mean, what kind of cruel asshole doesn’t give you a deep and passionate kiss that makes you want me all the more, right?” They toned, anxious squeak in their voice as they brought their fingers under Kylo’s chin and tipped his face to theirs, their hair acting like a curtain around both of them as the bounty hunter closed their eyes and savoured the feeling of Kylo’s flabbergasted mouth against theirs, a feeling of sparks lighting up in their brain like mad until they finally pulled away, Kylo’s head flopping back into the snowdrift as he gaped slightly.

Sitting up and brushing their unruly hair back from their face, Caez laughed and flushed nervously as they averted their gaze, fingers rubbing their own neck uncomfortably as they toned fast, “Ah, guess that’s it! See-” Only to feel Kylo’s hand come up and grip the back of their head, him sitting up fast and persistently pressing Caez’s mouth back against his as he made the kiss deeper, the ex-Sith’s other hand coming around their waist and pulling them close on his lap before their mouths disconnected again with two breathless gasps, Kylo’s half-lidded eyes desperate and needy as he pleaded against Caez’s soft lips, “… Please… Don’t leave me again.”

This was their moment to push him away, to say no again and leave. To finally be smart and make peace with this. But. Caez couldn’t help but call themself the stupidest person in the entire galaxy as they huffed and brushed their mouth back against Kylo’s gently, them asking jovially, “… I’ll keep seeing you around, then?” As they shot Kylo a crooked smile, him blinking for a moment before nodding slowly, responding quietly.

The heavy thump of their ship landing had Caez jolting from their sleep on the vessel, them grunting uncomfortably and rolling their shoulders as the bounty hunter stretched, looking around the shuttle with bleary eyes as the other passengers began to bustle and prepare to exit the craft. They knew very little about the mission this time, but that was also due to Kylo withholding and demanding their other companions stay silent on the matter, Caez grumbling as they got up from their seat and shuffled tiredly towards the weapons shelf, collecting their things just as Kylo made his way towards them, his mask obscuring the expression on his face as he asked diligently, "I assume you're ready. Rhell and her elites, as well as Kii and the rest of her troupe are prepared to move out." He commented, not really expecting an answer as his tone implied that he wanted Caez to hurry their ass up, the bounty hunter shooting the knight a hard glare as they checked their blaster to make sure it was calibrated.

Toning coldly, Caez growled back, "I'd be damned ready and gearing to go already if you had kept me from falling asleep in that shitty flight seat. Hell, you might as well misalign my back with a scrapping compress, at least then my ass wouldn’t hurt.” They snapped, turning and pivoting on their heels as they stormed off towards the exit of the ship, leaving Kylo sighing and shaking his head before following behind the rogue. Stepping out and looking around the planet, Caez couldn’t deny that Mandalore was a stunning planet - trees black and tall like towers on Christophsis, the lightest layer of snow on the ground just being enough to keep the earth hard under their feet - and could possibly warrant a nice vacation to if they ever had the time or the means to actually have a vacation.

Turning back and looking at Kylo as if to say something, Caez was quickly cut off as a small ball of fire clad in a thick white jacket ran up and tackled them, the bounty hunter just barely catching the Inquisitor in their arms as Rhell laughed and charmed, cupping her own face in her hands, “Ooh-la-la how romantic is this region?! Kriff, this is the perfect weather! Not too windy, not too cold, the sky is overcast so there isn’t snow-glare! It’s like living in a snow globe!” She charmed brightly, Caez rolling their eyes at the Lior as the Inquisitor’s guard walked over and grunted at them, taking Rhell out of Caez’s hands and heading off towards the edge of the tree line where everyone else was converging before they continued to complete their task.

Huffing and rolling their eyes at how stuck-up and stern Stix was being, Caez sighed and got into a light lope as they began towards everyone else, Kylo begrudgingly following suit and taking a standing placement behind Caez once they made it to the group, Kii in front of everyone as she addressed the crowd loudly, “Okay, this mission can not end in failure, understand? The target we are hunting is highly dangerous and has information on two known criminals, Zignatious and Mojingo Bingo, also referred to by the galaxy as The Bingo Brothers. We need to fi-” Kii had tried to continue, only for Caez coughing to cut her off, the Chiss looking over at the bounty hunter and raising an eyebrow.

Clearing their throat, Caez looked at Kii incredulously before asking, “Okay, wait, are you fuckin’ kidding us here? You want to find Ziggy and Moji Bingo?! You realize that’s a death wish, right? Moji is known throughout Hutt space as a sociopathic hellbent murder machine, and I’ve crossed paths with Ziggy enough to know he isn’t any better when he’s cornered. There’s no way in hell that those two fuckholes will ever work with us even if we were able to catch them!” Caez defended, recalling the single time that their shit luck a few years back had barely saved their ass from getting blown to bits by Mojingo, the memory sending an involuntary shiver up their spine as Kylo’s hand came up to rest lightly on the small of their back, as if assuring Caez that the objective was more important than their concerns.

Still staring at Caez, Kii sighed and toned dully, “We aren’t hunting down both Bingos yet, Caez. We’re hunting our informant for them, who should also, if cooperation is found in her, be able to give us some assistance in catching these brothers.” Kii assured, turning her gaze away from the bounty hunter and continuing to address the crowd, “Who we are looking for is a Zygerrian woman named Tigelle Criddar, who is a known mobster kingpin and a slave trader. Our Inquisitor has located her most recent hideout to be somewhere in this region, and we’re going to smoke her out and drag her back to the Finalizer for questioning.” Kii commented blandly, a few murmurs amongst the crowd of commandos making something uneasy settle in the pit of Caez’s stomach like a rock.

It’s not even that Caez was against hunting down people like Tigelle or the Bingos, but something wrong was leaving pins and needles in their shoulders as everyone else prepared to enter the forested area, Rhell taking her holsters from Stix and loading everything before walking over to Caez with a scowl, her asking, “You aren’t usually the person objecting to capture and contain missions like this. Any reason why, or are you just afraid your poor gross beef-friend is gonna get his ugly mug blasted off?” She teased, the mild concern in her gaze enough to tell the bounty hunter that their Inquisitor was actually worried about what issues they had with the mission, but airing that out loud would probably get both of them yelled at.

Shrugging, Caez crossed their arms over their chest and glanced away as their voice lowered, them toning coldly, “... I just have a bad feeling about this. Something is wrong, but I don’t know what, y’know?” They commented with a scowl, looking down at their boots and scuffing their toe against the gritty snow while Rhell nodded, looking around to see where everyone was and making sure they wouldn’t be heard before toning back.

“... I get you. It might be your Force intuition, Caez. I mean, everyone else seems on edge too, but I’m not about to bring up anything like that in case we need to forfeit and regroup. We don’t have the time to do that now, we need to try and get to Tigelle before someone from The Rebellion does.” Rhell stated firmly, brows knitting together while muttering, “If there was a better option I would’ve posed that first, but with how much Tigelle knows about The Bingo Brothers we really don’t have the time to pass this up.” she quipped, turning her gaze up to meet Caez’s and reaching a gloved hand up to cup their cheek while giving a weak smile, assuring, “Look, out there I’ll have your back, okay? And besides, we should be used to shit getting dicey when we-”

“-Are you two done gossiping so we can get this over with?” Kylo snapped briskly, interrupting Rhell and making her soft expression go cold and snide while he trudged towards the bounty hunter and Inquisitor, the knight removing his helmet and shooting the friends a glare while grunting, “We don’t have time to be playing around, so I’d suggest you two hurry up whatever stupid shit you’re doing and get ready to head off.” He growled, pulling his helmet back on and turning on his heel to get back to where everyone else was standing at the edge of the clearing. Raising an eyebrow and letting her hand fall from Caez’s cheek, Rhell’s eyes narrowed as she yelled back at Kylo meanly, “Oh, you’re just jealous because you’re a shoddy second to me, oh dear Knight of Ren! Truly, I feel sorry for Caez! With all that dick in your personality I doubt there’s anything substantial left in your pants!” She snapped, earning a snort from Caez before Rhell shot the bounty hunter a wink and trotted off, giving Kylo a hard boot to the ass as she ran past him before finding her personal guard. Snickering and rolling their eyes, Caez sighed and pulled out their blaster as they ran over to where everyone else had converged, Kii giving the signal to head into the forest as Caez trudged up and took Rhell’s left flank, the Inquisitor staying quiet as they moved. Aside from the audible crunching of boots, the area was silent and calm, the white-grey skies looking like the sun never shone on this part of Mandalore as they thought about how nice it’d be to visit here on a trip. Caez could easily picture them having a hideout on a planet like this - they could make a treehouse to live in far away from everyone and just enjoy the solitude - but knew better than to really consider it. There was work to be done, and when people like Rhell and Kylo were around there wasn’t much of a chance of Caez being able to get any sense of vacation time. Ah well, it was a nice thought at least. A thought for someday in the future if they ever left The Order. Still trudging amongst the large black trees, Rhell led the way as she used her Force skills to hone in on their target, the troupe coming up to a shabby looking treehouse aloft high in the air as Kylo circled the hidden alcove, him giving the signal that he was sure that their target was holed up in there. Nodding back at the knight, Caez quickly began clamouring up the ladder with Kylo following suit, them getting onto the balcony of the run-down fort and kicking open the tired wooden door as the bounty hunter raised their blaster, yelling into the darkness of the space, “Tigelle Criddar, you are to be taken into the custody of the First Order for questioning. Come quietly and we won’t need to resort t-” Caez started, before stopping suddenly and lowering their blaster from the lone figure sitting in the darkness, the stranger standing up and closing the glowing holocron of Tigelle that Caez had been trained on before stepping into the light coming through the doorway. Eyes going wide, Caez looked at the familiar Mandalorian in confusion as they recognized the electric greens and purples of their armour, the Mandalorian raising a trigger in their hand and flipping the switch, explosives going off underneath the tree fort as Caez and Kylo listened to their companions yelling in surprise. Not taking the time to question their assailant, Caez raised their blaster again and began to pull the trigger just as the tree started to lurch and fall, the Mandalorian running and crashing through a window as they made their escape, leaving Caez and Kylo to fall and be crushed by their devious diversion. Turning back and looking at Kylo as the tree they were in began to fall, Caez wrapped their arms around the knight and closed their eyes tightly as their feet lifted off of the floor, the sickening feeling of what they didn’t doubt would be a very painful death lingering in their stomach just as the tree ceased falling, Caez screaming as themself and Kylo slammed hard against the wall of the fort abruptly, fall suddenly halted and pain radiating from the back of Caez’s skull leaving them in a daze while they tried to recuperate from the shock. Gasping and slumping for a moment, Caez listened to Kylo groan behind his mask as he clamoured over them and shattered the window to their left, him sticking his head out of the hole before calling back to the bounty hunter, “Rhell is holding the tree up! C’mon, you idiot! We have to move before she drops us!” He barked, climbing out of the small window - which, for a big guy like Kylo, it took a bit of effort to achieve - and falling nimbly to the snowy ground, Caez exhaling deeply and following suit, stumbling as they hit the ground before following Kylo as he yelled out orders, “Our target has conspirators and they are extremely dangerous! Do not hesitate in taking out these assailants, but remember we need Tigelle alive!” Everyone murmuring agreements to Kylo’s words, he waved everyone off as they all dispersed, Rhell walking over and brushing her gloved hand against Caez’s still-shaking shoulder for a moment, tuning tiredly, “See? I got your back, Caez.” Before following Kylo and the bounty hunter, Stix taking up the back and keeping his blaster raised while they trekked through the trees trying to find where their target could’ve run off to. Now the silence seemed sinister, almost like every pitch black tree and shadow was about to jump out and attack as Caez felt their fingers shake against the trigger of their blaster, eyes flitting from side to side and ears trying to hear any sort of irregularity just as the steady tmp tmp tmp of something approaching them from the left had Caez raising their blaster and reeling, them screaming, “Watch the fuck out!” Just as a wild Strill bounded down from a tree and leapt at them, Caez letting off a few shots and watching the monster fall to the ground with a heavy thud as they gasped and tried to regain their composure. Rhell kneeling down and holding Caez’ shoulders as their chest heaved - Caez not even remembering how they had fallen on their ass during the attack - Kylo stalked over to the Strill and started to investigate the large corpse, Rhell calling back darkly, “Fuck, Kylo! Leave the poor nasty thing alo-” Before shutting herself up as the Knight of Ren ripped off a control-collar, holding the stolen Order tech up for his three companions to see as Rhell scowled and hissed, “... Those are still prototypes... How... How did these people get them? How did they know about them?” She asked, hands tensing on Caez’s shoulders as she helped the bounty hunter to their feet. Shrugging and pocketing the item, Kylo gritted out darkly, “Doesn’t matter now, we’ll get answers from Tigelle once we catch her. FN-6106, comm everyone and alert them of this. Everyone be on the watch for any approaching creatures that seem hostile. We can’t risk that they aren’t being controlled too.” He stated firmly, Kylo’s hand brushing snow off of Caez’s shoulder as he walked by them before taking up the lead again and pulling out his lightsaber, Rhell’s mouth going into a stern line as she pulled her own lightsaber out as well, the familiar hum of the Kyber weapons putting Caez at slight ease while they followed suit. Still trudging forward for a bit longer, Caez wasn’t sure what to expect as Rhell suddenly ran ahead of everyone, them yelling out, “Hey! Rhell?! Fuck, come back!” Before running off after her, Kylo and Stix about to follow suit just as two more Strill leapt out and began to circle the two men, Caez looking back and halting for a moment - unsure of what to do - before heaving a sigh and continuing to chase Rhell so she wasn’t alone, them trusting that Kylo and Stix could hold their own as they sprinted through the trees to try and catch up to the Inquisitor. Only catching glimpses of Rhell as she dove between the trees, Caez felt their chest begin to ache from exertion just as a blaster shot rang out around them, both themself and Rhell halting in their tracks as they looked back and spotted their target - Tigelle - just as a painful twinge radiating from Caez’ side caught their attention. Looking down, the bounty hunter was shocked as they touched their glove against their side and it came up slick with blood, the realization that they had just been shot only being cut off as Rhell suddenly yelled out, “Cam?! Camren!” Before hastily running off in the other direction, leaving Caez alone with their target as Tigelle glared at them. Unsure of what to do - and far too panicked to want to risk jumping at the Zygerrian with their lightsaber - Caez kept a hand placed firmly over their wound as they called out shakily, “... Tigelle Criddar, you are under arrest by the Order, and will be taken into custody. Come quietly and avoid making this messier than it needs t-” Before diving and dodging another shot let off by the woman, Tigelle snarling at Caez as they got up from the ground slowly. “You... You demons! You’ll have to kill me and skin me before I come with you anywhere!” Tigelle screamed, barring her teeth menacingly and taking a few steps towards Caez just as they got to their feet, the bounty hunter starting to feel sweat accumulate on the back of their neck while they tried to figure out what to do. Looking around and finding no one from their group in the vicinity, Caez thought for a moment before finally acting once Tigelle was close, them kicking up a pile of dirty snow at the woman and spinning to make a run for it as they dove in between the trees, the pain from the wound on their side a lot more noticeable now that they were trying to run for their life. Not hearing Tigelle giving chase, Caez didn’t trust themself to stop running until they found someone they knew to help as backup, the almost-permanent pain radiating from their chest only intensifying as they sprinted between tar-coloured trees, every single one of them looking like they might jump out and try to kill the bounty hunter as they kept running. They had to keep running, otherwise they might not get the chance to keep moving afterwards. Muscles of their strong thighs protesting as they ran on uneven terrain, Caez only came to a stop as the ground ran out before them, heels of their heavy regulation boots grinding against dirty snow as they tried to right themself and not topple off the cliff’s edge, the sound of their own heartbeat slamming in their eardrums as they looked down and took observation of the waterfall and clear lake underneath them, the fall looking too steep to survive without injury, but Caez really didn’t feel like if it came down to either jumping or getting shot full of holes that they’d be too picky about breaking an arm if it meant surviving. Still trying to figure out where to turn next, a rustling in the bushes had Caez whipping their head back around to the tree line, Tigelle stalking out slowly and giving the bounty hunter a merciless look as she gritted her teeth and raised her blaster again, fear response overtaking flight as Caez stood there while the Zygerrian growled out, “You stupid Order puppets... Always think you can just take anyone and they’ll obey. That you can burn down any world and we will all kneel for you! You all disgust me!” She snapped, face contorting into an animal-like snarl as she screeched, “You child-murderers! You thieves! You all deserve to burn!” Not sure what to even do, Caez tried to buy their time for a bit longer until someone maybe found their location, their hands shaking at their sides while they asked, “...Child murderers? Lady, you’ve got the wrong fuckers if you’re tryna blame us for that one! I-I mean, sure we’re bad and shitty and do other bad stuff, but kid killers? Seems a little-” “-Shut the fuck up you rat!” Tigelle cut off, voice tight and cruel and causing Caez to jump slightly before looking back and trying to keep rom accidentally falling off the ledge they were cornered on, the Zygerrian slave-seller growling and raising her blaster finger tensing on the trigger while she hissed, “... Any last words, rat?” She asked, as if to mock Caez or expect them to give her a reason to shoot them just as a voice behind Tigelle grunted out. “... Yeah. Fuck you, bitch.” Kylo gritted out behind Tigelle, both the slave-trader and bounty hunter looking over at the knight as he limped over - Kylo’s shoulder sustaining a large bite on it, his helmet long discarded and dark hair sticky with sweat, plastered to his high cheekbones - and raised a hand-blaster, shooting Tigelle in the arm and forcing her to drop her weapon as her ears pinned back in anger, the Zygerrian looking ready to pounce and rip Kylo’s throat out just as the fast running of another intruder cut through the silence, the same Mandalorian from before - from the tree house, from the attack on Takodana - running and jumping through the crowd, them tackling Tigelle and launching the both of them over the ledge and going into a fall just as a large enemy ship flew by and up, the Mandalorian holding onto their target and escaping on a rope dangling from the vessel as Caez and Kylo stood and watched uselessly. Turning and walking over to help Kylo, Caez let him lean on them as they both limped back to the clearing where their own ship was stationed, Kii taking Kylo and inquiring as to what had happened to them as Caez shifted away from the knight and walked over to Rhell and Stix, both of which looked rather shaken up while Rhell mumbled under her breath, “... She escaped, didn’t she.” Pausing and taken aback by the sudden question, Caez went solemn as they nodded, muttering, “Yeah. She got taken by the same anarchist that set up the treehouse diversion. Kylo seems to b-” They started, before gasping and jolting in surprise as Rhell reached out a hand and pressed it to their wounded side, Caez relaxing as they felt Force-healing magic start to mend their wound as Rhell muttered. “... It’s okay. We’ll get them next time. But for now, you should let me heal you up a bit, then go see Ren. According to Stix the ugly fuck tried to chase after you and almost got his head ripped off by a Strill.” Rhell commented, giving Caez a crooked smirk before pulling her hand away from their newly mended side, her turning and walking off towards the ship with Stix and giving the bounty hunter a casual wave as Caez stood there for a moment, finally mumbling under their breath. “... Yeah. I’ll remember to do that.”