Argos

'Taanz offered a grunt, before it looked up to Kianna.

"You cannot kill that which is already dead." It said flatly.

"Clearly I overestimated your vision." It said, as it started towards the door. "Fortunately for you, I have better things to do than tattle on some fugitives on a backwater moon, I bid you good day."

Mollem turned to Kianna. "Where do you propose we go?"

"Anywhere," Kianna replied. "There has to be somewhere in this godforsaken universe where we won't be recognized or found. Somewhere the Aschen haven't pissed on enough for the locals to want your head, and that's not into the hands of the people who have been trying to kill us for the past month."

Terra briefly crossed her mind but she quickly discarded the idea. She knew Terra and she could disappear on Terra as she had so many times in the past, but not with Mollem and Raphael in tow. They were too high profile.

There were other places, other possibilities. Remote ones that had yet to cross paths with the Aschen or the Taiyou, but none she would utter until the furball was out of earshot.

She swung the door closed behind the Koala Bear.

"What about the Aurora?" she asked finally. "You had a fleet camped out there for half a year, surely we know something about the locals, and they know nothing about us. More importantly they don't know anything about who you are."

Sire Mollem McGregor frowned. "The Aurora?" He asked, tilting his head to Kianna. "That might work... but there's an Abaddon sphere there, and it won't exactly sit well with me to be on a planet that could blow up at any time."

He then nodded. "Perhaps... but first we need to find my ship."

Sire Mollem McGregor did that

"From the intel we had gathered so far there's at least four star systems out there with habitable planets," Kianna replied. "I'm sure we can find one that you didn't put an abaddon sphere on."

She frowned a moment.

"Raphael knows where your ship is. If you can get him to abandon whatever folly it is he's pursuing here long enough to tell us."

"From the intel we had gathered so far there's at least four star systems out there with habitable planets," Kianna replied. "I'm sure we can find one that you didn't put an abaddon sphere on."

She frowned a moment.

"Raphael knows where your ship is. If you can get him to abandon whatever folly it is he's pursuing here long enough to tell us."

Mollem nodded. "I know where the ship is, as well. It's in the mountains to the north of here." He said, turning to go back to his room.

After a moment, he returned with a rucksack filled with supplies. "It's a few days trek but we can make it before the Taiyou come for us." He said, setting the sack on the ground.

"She's capable too, of holding her own."

"I remember," Kianna replied. "What about Raphael?" she asked.

Randin had spent the last hour dodging through the nearby Argosian town, muttering half-hearted 'salves' to the various vendors and plebeians milling about the town. His clothes were practically rags, his makeshift hood more of a linen cowl. He was also remarkably filthy and smelled considerably bad. Battle royales with Aschen assassins and cave-dwelling monsters, followed by several weeks of hyperspace travel with no showers tended to do that to a man. His five-o'clock shadow had grew into a full-faced beard, his messy, wavy hair curling down over his eyes and ears. In all his current glory, he looked much like a mendicant. All the better. He wanted to be avoided.

Finally, the detective made it up the steps to the house he formerly shared with Marlene. With any luck, this place would still have the same access passcodes. Or maybe she'd hired a cleaning crew to keep it maintained while she was away? Either way, best to knock first. Make sure he wouldn't just walk in on some poor old Argosian maid and scare her half to death.

Bounding up the steps to Marlene's house, Randin finally allowed himself to stand up straight. He stretched in the shade, glad to be away from the public's prying eyes. The last few weeks had been good to him. The detective was pretty much totally healed from his little bout with Kianna that had cost him a rib (and his dignity), and he'd had the good fortune of emerging generally unscathed from his battles on Halla. His body was fixed. The muscle he'd put on back in Caprica had stayed. He was primed, healthy and ready to get back into the world.

Randin pounced up to the front door and knocked several times, fully expecting no one to answer.

Inside the building, Kianna was at work shoving supplies into the rucksacks Mollem had left. She had insisted he get some actual sleep and that they would leave in the morning. He would be of no use if he didn't get some rest and wasn't coherent enough to actually fly the ship once they located it.

In a stark contrast to Randin's state, Kianna had taken the early morning hours to wash away the grime of the road from her skin and to don a fresh set of clothes. Her hair was still wet from washing when she heard the knock at the door. She threw a wary glance towards it as she abandoned the rucksack on the floor. Rising to her feet she moved to the small window etched into the stone wall of the romanesque building, but she couldn't get a good look at who was out there. His clothes and unkempt state left her to assume the man a beggar, and she disregarded his presence. He would move on soon enough and the door was locked.

She turned and headed back towards the supplies she was gathering for their trip to Mollem's ship. There hadn't been any sign of Raphael yet, and she briefly wondered where the man had gotten off to. She didn't much trust him and his absence left her uneasy.

Perfect. No one home. Randin sauntered up to the lock code, praying Marlene hadn't shut him out of the house after their divorce. Six buttons later and the locks tumbled open. The detective grinned widely. He was in.

A blast of cool air greeted the officer as he pranced into the home, half mad with joy over the promise of soon-to-be pleasures. Hot showers. Cold wine. Tender meat. He still needed to contact Slim and find away to smuggle him into the house of course. But first, a shower. Yes. Shower before all else. Maybe a shave. Hopefully Marlene still kept that razor in the bathroom...

The boxes and supplies, of course, were an odd sight. Was Marlene planning to move out? Getting rid of some old stuff? He sniffed the air, suddenly aware of the subtle but sweet scent of damp selas flowers. Was Marlene... here? Randin had supposed she'd be off doing... well... whatever it is ascended beings did.

It wasn't Marlene who appeared in the entryway of the room though. Kianna froze as recognition dawned on her and her hand instinctively went for the disruptor pistol she had been keeping tucked in the back of her waistband. Unfortunately she had last left the weapon with Mollem. Her eyes instead flicked to the kitchen knife she had left sitting out from their previous visitor. It was only a few paces into the room sitting on top of a small ornamental pedestal, but she couldn't be certain if Randin was armed. A moment of indecision stayed her movements.

And then, Randin was suddenly aware of the other presence in the room. Slowly, almost comically, he turned, his eyes widening as he glared at the woman who in-part responsible for his trials as of late. Absent of her armor and hood, it was strange to see Kianna dressed in normal attire, her hair still wet from her shower. She almost looked... human.

Randin growled. Almost.

He didn't know why she was here. He didn't know what madness had brought her from the luxury of Caprica to a backwater planet like Argos. All he knew was that this woman was in league with the man who wanted him dead. She'd likely signed his death warrant when Mollem had sent those assassins after him. She would kill him in an instant. He needed to move. His cobalt blue eyes flickered to her own, watching for her next move. Hesitation.

Perfect.

Observing the way Kianna had looked into the nearby kitchen, Randin quickly deduced that she was aiming to grab some weapon in that part of the house. Sprinting into action, Randin grabbed a nearby decorative metal vase, tossing the thing not at Kianna, but at the space between Kianna and the kitchen door. It worked. He saw Kianna move towards the room, quickly flinching backwards as the vase sped in front of her, narrowly missing her. Not wasting a second, Randin bounded toward the woman as she tried to flit past him,slamming into her at the waist and tackle her to the ground, mounting himself over her and forcibly holding her down with his strength.

"Why... are you... here..." Randin grunted, glaring down at her with frightened fury.

Kianna glared daggers at Randin as she again shifted her eyes to the knife, but it was well out of reach.

"I could ask you the same," she bit back seethingly at the man straddled atop her.

"This was my fucking house," he practically spat back, "I was looking forward to resting here after you and your maniacal dick-toy left me for dead on Halla!" His eyes followed her own, quickly noticing the knife on the counter. He looked back at Kianna with a twisted sort of smile.

"Mhm, bet'cha wish you had that now, huh? Not so fucking tough without that tin-can to protect you..."

Kianna spat at him.

"If it wasn't for what I did, we would have both been executed back in Caprica City," she reminded him. Her words were laced with venomous intent. "If you could have kept your mouth closed for five fucking minutes, you would have been on a ship back to Terra instead.

"Shut the hell up," Randin growled more then he spoke, not at all more receptive to her reason with her saliva dripping down his cheek. For all her defiance, there was a primal satisfaction to the situation. Randin clearly had the upper hand. Thoughts of vengeance swirled through the less noble parts of his mind... dreams of payback for all the hell Kianna had put him through. Luckily, the rational part of Randin's brain once again triumphed over his animalistic urges. Kianna was here for a reason. He needed to figure it out.

"...why ARE you here?" he asked in a much-less bestial tone, "obviously this isn't some pre-planned trap to kill me." Kianna was more vulnerable now then ever. Whatever she'd been doing here, she hadn't been expecting him.

Kianna offered no response beyond the glower she cast up at him. She could shout for Mollem, but pride stayed her tongue as she seethed in silence.

Randin only snarled, snapping his hand to her throat and squeezing. He lowered his head, snorting into Kianna's face like a angry bull.

"Now is NOT a good time to let your Terran side take control," he warned, "answer me. Now."

"Or what, you'll kill me?" she asked. Her hands grabbed his wrist at her throat, but the man had both physical strength and leverage over her. "No I don't think you will," she told him. Her anger roiled through her like a caged animal, her pride wounded at the haplessness of her position, but reason was swimming to the surface. "Wasn't it you who looked upon me and saw a woman instead of a dog?" she asked, the venom easing from her words to something more neutral and guarded. "Wasn't it you who said you wanted to know that woman?" she asked. "Well here you are, and here I am, just a woman as you thought. A terran woman no less."

"Don't play your fucking mind games with me, Black Hand," Randin growled, though much of the force left her throat. She was appealing to his pity. Unfortunately, Randin didn't feel particularly kind or merciful right now. Dismounting her, Randin placed one of his brawny hands over her head, keeping his weight on her skull.

"Twist your body so I can see your back," he ordered.

"The Black Hand was brutally executed by the Taiyou a month ago," she spat angrily. "You wanted to know me, well know this. There's only one thing on my mind right now, and that's keeping myself and my idiotic husband alive."

Kianna wasn't quite as helpless without her combat suit as Randin might have assumed. The woman had years of combat experience under her belt and with his weight shifted away from her lower body, she curled her legs to land a vicious kick to the side of Randin's head. As the detective was knocked clear, she rolled forward.

But Kianna would only get so far before she felt Randin's fingers around her hair, yanking violently at the roots and snapping her head back against him. The rest of her body followed, whiplashing back into Randin's grip. He had her from behind, this time, his brawny arms enveloping over her own and connecting at her mid-section, forcing her limbs in place. His legs quickly crossed over her own, his ankles locking around her calves and keeping them from flailing about or kicking against the floor for leverage.

"Sit... fucking... sti-" Randin never finished his command, a short grunt of pain cutting off what should have been a threat as the back of Kianna's head slammed into the side of his face. Had he been facing the girl directly, she would have broken his nose.

"FUCK!" he growled, ducking his head behind her shoulder like he should have from the very beginning. His ego screamed at him to make her pay for that... but any strike he landed on Kianna would inevitably compromise his dominant position. He had her where he wanted her.

After wrangling out some of Kianna's struggling, the detective thought back to what Kianna had said earlier before she'd kindly kicked him squarely in the temple. The Black Hand... executed?

"I don't... what?" he kept his arms flexed, only squeezing tighter as Kianna fought against his grip. Eventually she'd learn and stop. "What are you talking about? Did the Taiyou overthrow the Empire in the time I've been away?" His eyes widened. "...you were fucking exiled, weren't you? You and Mollem by the Taiyou. Shit. I'm surprised they didn't kill you." He shook his head. "...but then why would you be HERE? In Imperial space? In the house of HIS ex-lover?"

The detective glared down at the girl. Armed or no, he wasn't about to leave this house. "Listen. Like it or not, this is the ONLY place I have left to go. I walk out those front doors and I'm dead anyway. It's only a matter of time till Livia finds me. I survived your fucking torture. I survived your fucking exile. I survived the assassins. The monsters. The lack of food, water and medicine." He growled. "I'm not about to let you ruin things for me yet again."

Kianna's words were scathing in response. "None of that's my problem. I stuck my neck out for you back on Langara, and you shoved it in my face," she retorted. "You nearly got us both killed. After that fucking stunt you pulled, you're lucky I managed to get you exiled instead of executed. You have no idea what that cost me."

Randin stared at her for a short while, using all of his detective insight to determine whether or not she was telling the truth. He needed to face her directly. Not that he was subtly enjoying Kianna's backside pressed squarely into his torso... there was just no way he could properly interrogate her from this position.

"If you make a move, I'll twist," he warned, bringing his lips up to her ear and growling, "hard." That said, Randin would sternly bring one of Kianna's trapped arms behind her back, only intending to apply painful force if she resisted. Much to his surprise, she didn't. He'd of thought that the girl was finally starting to submit to him if he didn't know Kianna the way she did. This bitch was a coiled snake, waiting for her opening to strike. He could not give her that opening.

Randin used his abdominals to hold her arm in place behind her as he reached for the other one, wedging the limb between her back and abs. When the other one followed, he kept them both on place, quickly and efficiently ripping off a good chunk of his raggy shirt.

She shook her head. "I meant it all you know, the things I told you in Caprica."

With trained hands, the detective speedily managed a sturdy holding-knot over Kianna's wrists. Nothing like handcuffs, of course, but it was a tough enough binding to keep a strong man an hour and a half before tearing through it. He'd used it before on cases when his binders were otherwise in use.

"Yeah. Nice story," he quipped slowly, forcing Kianna to her feet and walking her over to a nearby chair. He inspected several smallish kitchen seats before deciding on a wooden dining chair with a particularly large and tall back. He had no doubt that Kianna could twist her arms over her head. This one would be a bit tougher to wiggle out of. Making sure the chair's back slipped through the 'O' of her bound hands, Randin sat her down, purposefully removing the comfortable seat cushion before she could rest herself.

Still a bit out of breath from his brief fight, Randin walked a few feet over to the kitchen and grabbed a bowl, running it under the sink. "Fuckin' chatting me up in Caprica. Having dinner with me. Playing it cool. Next fucking thing I know yer'straddling me, kissing me one moment, setting my veins on fire the next." He lifted the goblet to his mouth and drank deeply, turning back to face Kianna when he was finished.

"I know better then to trust you this time around. Maybe you ARE a woman, Kianna, but that woman isn't a very nice person. And it's not someone that I to let get close to me." He smoothed his hair back, finally collecting his breath. He set the goblet down on the counter.

"I did what was necessary," Kianna growled. She hadn't taken her narrowed eyes off him since he had deposited her into the chair, and at her back she was already twisting her hands within her bindings even as the cloth bit painfully into her skin for her efforts. "Tell me this. If it was all a fallacy, then why did I have Casey recovered even after everything? Why did I intervene when Mollem ordered you executed after your outburst?" she asked. "Had I refused that order, I would have lost everything I was working to build, and for nothing. Not that it did any good anyways. When the Taiyou and UCON moved on us, they were gutting Aschen citizens in the streets of Wing City like animals, but the ungrateful bitch was content to just look the other way as rioters and vigilantes moved in. And what influence I possessed to try and maintain peace efforts was lost when Mollem threw it all away in a fit of drunken idiocy." Her sharp eyes continued to track his movements.

"Spare me the sob story, bitch," Randin groaned, hardly believing a word of it, "you and Mollem were kicked out because you fucking deserved it. You ruled the Aschen people through fear and ignorant faith, and you paid the price. Did a real good job putting your neck on the line for me, by the way. I could really feel your mercy when CPF agents showed up on Halla to slit my throat."

Kianna raised a brow. "And you think I went through all that trouble to get you off Caprica alive, just to have you killed?" she asked. She shook her head. "I returned to Terra after your exile. What Mollem chose to do in my absence was beyond my control. Those were Mollem's ways, not mine."

Randin opened his mouth to offer what he was sure WOULD have been a brilliant rebuttal, but closed it. Damn. That made too much sense. Especially considering what a fucking idiot Mollem was sometimes. "...that... still doesn't explain why you're in Argos. Tearing up Marlene's home. What, the other Aschen nobles wouldn't take you in? Had to settle for this primitive planet? My heart bleeds for you, Will. Whatever will you do without your Caprican palaces and three-hundred cubit ambrosia..."

Kianna narrowed her eyes sharply. "You really think any of that mattered to me?" she asked. "That I would be here on this shithole of a backwater moon if I cared about any of that? I may have lived with them, walked with them, talked like them, but I'm a Terran and you would do well to remember that."

"Right. That's why you worked with a government that actively hated and plotted against Terrans." He quipped. It was a cheap shot, and he knew it. His last jibe hadn't made any sense at all. God, he was just LOOKING for things to call Kianna out on. "Fucking coming here... to this house..."

Randin refilled his goblet. "I mean, goodfuckinggod... I have more right to be here then you do. This was MY house at one point. Pretty damn sure Marlene likes me better then Mollem. That's not saying much, but still." He smirked. "God, ANYONE would like me better then Mollem. I like me better then Mollem. And I hate me." He sucked down the water quickly, rivers of liquid flowing down his mouth and dripping off his beard.

The officer wiped at his maw barbarically, noting that Kianna had let her guard down. He drew a few deep breaths, allowing his temper to cool and his voice to lower.

"I'm staying here until Slim and I can get back to Terra. I'm not leaving."

"And what, just planning to leave me tied to a chair until you decide to piss off?" she asked. "You know, some men would have paid to have done what I did to you," she remarked with amusement.

Randin stifled a painful chuckle. His last encounter with Kianna wasn't exactly a shining testament to his willpower and mental fortitude. No one had made him cry out like that before... not even as a boy had he been so thoroughly debased.

"What you did to me is nothing that I care to remember," he replied, his voice low and dark, "and for your sake, I suggest you don't bring it up again. You ARE the one tied to a chair right now. It wouldn't be too much trouble for me to pay you back for the wounds you've left me." He grinned. "...plus interest."

Kianna smirked lightly. "And to think I didn't take you for the sort to beat up unarmed women," she replied.

Randin smirked back. "I guess you're lucky that I'm just so damn chivalrous." The detective stepped forward, taking another brief pass around the room. The adrenaline was leaving his system, and he was beginning to think more clearly. What was it Kianna had said earlier... 'keeping me and my idiotic husband alive...'

"Where's Mollem." He snapped back to Kianna. He didn't phrase it like a question.

Kianna snorted. "Probably getting drunk with Raphael," she remarked. Her eyes shifted to follow Randin as he paced the room. "What do you hope to gain from this?" she asked. "You won't kill me, and you have no charges to bring me back to Terra under."

"I don't want to..." he stopped himself, "...okay, that's not true. I DO want to kill you. But I'm not going to if I don't have to. Right now I just want to get off of Terra. That means ducking down in Argos for a couple days to get supplies." He smoothed his hair back.

"Harsh words from someone who would be dead if it weren't for me," Kianna replied coldly. "Paint it however you like, but if it weren't for me you would have been executed back on Langara and you damn well know it." A touch of anger was edging back into her voice again. "I warned you. I told you to never forget that it was by your will, not mine, that we entered that room." She gave her head an angry shake. "But how quickly you are to blame me for what transpired. Tell me, what would you have had me do differently?" she demanded.