Missions and Memories pt.2

Still waiting for the team to get back.

28 hour have passed now. I have been running the sniper rifle semantic through my head to keep from getting lost in thought. Also, I am curious how the experimental ion round the Lt. Cmdr left with me will work. I only have two clips, along with the regular ammo. The ion round might be able to disable droid shields. That would help with the droid destroyers.

I am not sure where she comes up with these things. They are not standard issues. Maybe the ion rounds are Nabooian. They seem to have improved their offensive combat capability against droids in the past 10 years or so. But I guess you can't blame them.

I start to think of what I know of Naboo and my thoughts being to wander again.
_________________________________

5 Months Earlier, Coruscant

"OK then TK 266, let us get to the sparring and stop wasting a trooper's valuable time" A small smile plays across her face.

"I don't think I implied that you were wasting my time, Lt Cmdr."

"I know TK 266. It was a joke. Clones don't seem to have much of a sense of humor do you?"

She drops in to a standard Nabooian special forces fighting stance. I get ready to defend myself.

Her fist shoot at my head is much quicker then I imaged she could move. I block with quick, light hand movements.

"So TK 266, what do you do for fun?"

"Fun?" I block another flurry of hit and jump over her foot sweep.

'You know, what you do when you're off duty and leave base" she switches to a fighting style favored by the people of southern Naboo. She must have learned that in her youth.

"I haven't left the base except to go on missions" She feints with a kick and punches for my chest

"What do you mean, you don't leave the base? You have got to be kidding, here you are in the center of Republic civilization and you don’t leave the base?" A quick spin kick shoots towards my head. I block, grab her ankle and flip the Lt. Cmdr to the ground. She rolls over her left shoulder and then is back on her feet.

"So what are BIBO rules?" she asks, changing the subject as she launches in to a series of punches and kick. I block and retreat slowly across the mats.

"Informal trooper sparring rules. It means blood in and blood out. The sparring doesn’t end unless both troopers have bleed or one is incapacitated." I block a spin hit and then a reverse roundhouse kick.

"As opposed to being a punching bag like you're doing right now?" the Lt. Cmdr says with a flash of annoyance. "You haven't tried once to strike at me once" she begins to move a little faster. "You are fighting like a Voorpak."

"I think you're the Voorpak. Small, from Naboo and you have quite a bite."

"Wow hoo, was that a joke? From a trooper?" two jabs and a quick left almost catch me off guard. 'So are you going to attack at all or are you going to continue to fight like a adiik (child)."

"I have 28 cm and 32 Kg on you. I don't think it would be a fair fight. Plus you heard the arena Admin orders. And where in the galaxy did you pick up Mandalorian?"

She ignores the last question, "Don't worry about the admin, I outrank him. And we won't play BIBO's rules. We'll just fight until I knock you to the mat."

A sharp smile plays across her face "Or are you a hut'uun. (coward)

I am stunned by the word for just a second and the Lt. Cmdr lands three quick forceful blows to my face. As the blood start to flow I bark back "CAPAANI MIRSHMURE'CYE!"(are you looking to get hurt)

"Whenever you’re ready, TK"

I let my instinct take over. I begin an offensive attack with three stomp kick and a jab combo. The Lt. Cmdr block, jumps and dodges my blows, while backing away.

For the next five minutes we fight around the sparring arena with many of the troopers forming a wide circle and cheering us both on.

We have stopped taking and concentrate on the fight. The number of hand to hand fighting techniques the Lt. Cmdr knows surprises me. She can not be that old. And why would a slicer need that many fighting styles.

Finally, I spot a flaw in here defense. I test it with a reverse round house to the left and the Lt. Cmdr duck/dodges to the right. I quickly pivot for a spin punch from the right, as the Lt. Cmdr begins her defense, I stop and bring my knee up with force.

The sound of my knee connecting with the Lt. Cmdr's head quiets the room. She flies back and lands on her back, blood flowing from her nose and lip. I can see where the bruise is beginning to form.

She looks unconscious.

I rush over to make sure she is going to be ok. As I approach she pushed off the mat with her arms and one leg. She moves so fast I don't even see the kick to my groin coming. The pain shoots up my stomach and I feel the air rush out of my lungs. A second kick hits me in the chest and I fall back, trying to clutch myself while defending against the elbow coming towards my face. When she hit me I feel my nose break and hear a snap in her arm.

The Lt. Cmdr rolls off me, groaning, coming to rest on her knees and one hand, holding the obviously broken arm off the ground. Blood is dripping from her mouth and nose.

I turn on my side, spit out blood and I think a tooth on the mat, while trying to regain my breath.

Gasping the Lt. Cmdr say, "Well, you’re on the mat, so I guess the sparring match is over.”

She smiles up at the stunned troopers standing around “How about after the med bots clean us up, you and the other troopers join me off base for a Kashyyykie Ale?"

I just look at her.

"What do you say TK, you up for going off base?"

I nod the affirmative as several of the troopers help us up. They are all talking at once and slapping the Lt. Cmdr on the back. I think they are going to like her.

_____________________________________

As I gaze out over the landscape, my hand inadvertently rubs the small bump in the ridge of my nose. I think about the bar that evening and how the Lt. Cmdr embarrassed my by calling me Tak all night. The other troopers picked up on it and used it whenever the brass was not around. It took a while to got use to a personalized name.

Still no word from the team.