Virgil took another step back. "I'm not doin' anythin' for ya." He said. His hands were shaking.

Incus laughed once. It was somehow more terrifying than his rage. "Aw, how sweet. You still know how to make me laugh." His tone turned less playful. "As if you had a choice."

"I can walk out of here." Virgil lied wildly. "I can stick ya through the arm and walk straight outa here-"

"Into about thirty Stormtroopers, all specifically briefed not to let anyone aside from myself and Dark Mallious in and out of this room. Of course," Incus laughed again, not looking up from his nails, "Mallious would never want to see you."

Virgil shook his head slightly. "Nu-uh. I could still stick ya through. Kill ya now. No one would ever be the wiser."

"Okay, then. Go ahead." Incus said, spreading his arms in a slight shrug motion. "I'm unarmed and, you know what? To make it fair, I won't even use the Force against you."

Virgil's hand inched towards his cutting tool in his belt before he stopped himself. Trick, this was a trick. That's all these things ever were.

Incus crossed his arms slowly and - although Virgil couldn't see through the mask covering all of his face - Virgil could feel the almost disappointment coming from him.

"Pathetic." Incus hissed. Wow, that hurt. That hurt more than what Virgil told himself when he couldn't sleep, what Virgil told himself in Janus' voice when his mind floated back to before...

"Weak." Incus continued. "Honestly, can't even kill a man because of petty infatuation or 'love'. I expected - hoped for, I should say - better from you."

"Is the whole reason ya turned because of love?" Virgil shot back. "I thought it was because of us. What ya thought we could become if the Jedi would just listen."

Incus shrugged and brushed the comment aside. It was of no importance. Not to him, anyway.

"All we need you to do is fix the generator, Vee." He said quietly. "Add a bit of fire-power, repair a bit of broken wiring. You've been doing it since you were a child."

"Yeah but not for the Genar-damned Empire." Virgil spat. Something in Incus' posture changed. His spine straightened, he pushed his shoulders back.

Then, he reached out and cupped Virgil's cheek. Where once Virgil might've leaned into the touch, he cringed away from it, turning his head.

"Just think on it, Vee." Incus said quietly, sounding horridly like Janus in that moment. "You'll have all the time in the world here. Alone."

Incus turned to go before pausing just by the door. "It's not true, you know." He said. "What you think about me." He turned his head back to face Virgil. "I've never broken my promises to you." And then he was gone.

Virgil leaned against the table with a sigh, leaning his head back and forcing himself not to scrub away the feeling of Ja- Incus' hand on his cheek.

"Ax! Hey, Ax!" Roman skidded to a halt short of barrelling into xir stall. Ax leaned on one of xir hands, smirking at Roman.

"Hey there, pretty boy." Xe said. "Knew ya'd come back. Where's Virgil?"

"That's the thing, he's gone."

Ax stood up straighter, xir expression immediately growing more serious. "What d'ya mean 'gone'?"

"Kidnapped." Roman explained hap-hazardly. "By the Empire. I don't know why but I managed to get a track on the ship and I need to go after him but I can't do it alone and you're the only person I could think of and-"

"Okay, okay, slow down, hot stuff." Ax said. "Breathe." Roman nodded and took an over-dramatic, heaving breath. "Right, great. Okay, so Virgil's been kidnapped and ya want me ta storm an Empire ship wi'ya ta go get him back. Right?"

Roman nodded. "It's insane, I know."

"And reckless and dangerous and stupid and a suicide mission," Ax reeled off. Xe grinned. "I'm totally in."

I TOLD YOU YOU'D BE GETTING MORE AX CONTENT, VI!
... I am severally delusional-
Bye,
Blaize