PLANET IKONDA, South Quadrant.

Amidst the thick jungles of Ikonda...

The sweltering humidity of the day had not lessened as the sun dipped below the horizon, casting the thick jungles into velvet darkness. The lazy buzz of insects blended like white noise with the bubbling of nearby brooks and streams, twisting and turning between the thick gnarled roots of the towering trees that lined the mossy banks.

Not all was peaceful. The blended synergy of the night was interrupted with the harsh, discordant grunts that punctuated the tranquility. The smack of flesh on flesh, followed by yelps of pain and roars of anger. It shook the very branches of the thick boughs that hung heavy with ivy and vines, a thick canopy that served the lengthen the shadows of the forest floor far below.

A huge paw swiped the air. The large beast's claws missed by a narrow margin as she ducked low, a few errant strands of her ponytail sliced clean and drifting to the ground. It trampled plant and root underfoot, their deadly encounter seeming an odd dance beneath the bright silver of the moon that shone on them, no more than dappled strands of ethereal light through the canopy overhead.

Papaya's blows sounded like cannon fire as her fists met the creature's distended belly again and again, driving it back with a bitter snarl. Yet Paya could see that the hunger that gleamed in its feral eyes had not lessened one bit, despite the pain it suffered at her hands. Though the exchange had lasted mere minutes, lactic acid caused her muscle to ache and burn with the exertion.

This battle was unnecessary. But in the end, all of them were. Nothing mattered, save for her objective. Kill the Saiyans... Kill the Saiyans... Kill the Saiyans... like a mantra, repeated over and over, every syllable punctuated with each blow landed upon the creature's battered form. An upward knee thrust knocked its heavy maw skyward.

It exposed its large jugular. Paya needed only a moment. Drawing her large trench knife from the holster strapped to her thigh, she charged forward and swiped. The sharp serrated edge glinted malicious in the moonlight, biting deep within the flesh of the creature's throat. A pained yelp devolved to deep gurgling, choking on its own blood and bile.

A spray of dark blood spattered onto the ground beneath them. Paya withdrew her blade, hop-skipping backward a few steps to escape the visceral result of her fatal blow. The beast staggered around the clearing, seeming disoriented in its pain. It was dying a slow death. Not one for senseless suffering, unless it was a Saiyan, Paya drew the weapon at her hip.

She held the sidearm out before her, aiming straight at the creature's head. As its death throes caused it to turn in a final rotation, Paya pulled the trigger. The shot rang out, its ghostly vestige echoing among the trees. They were HEAP rounds, coated in synth-katchin, designed to be especially dangerous against ki wielders. Against such a beast, it was almost overkill.

It slumped forward, prone body hitting the ground with a heavy thud that shook the soft, damp earth beneath her. Paya approached the creature, studying it for signs of life. There were none, but she had not been trained to trust only her eyes. Taking careful aim, she pulled the trigger, planting a second bullet in its skull.

The forest fell silent as the beast was slain, only to resume its nocturnal cacophony mere moments later. Holstering her sidearm, Paya knelt beside the creature, pressing a hard knee into its forearm. She could barely fit her delicate hand around one of its large claws. Flesh and sinew gave way to serrated katchin steel as she sawed through, taking the claw as a trophy of her victory.

Just one among the many she possessed. She found, even at her high military rank, such trophies still continued to lend credence to her role as Major General, and one of the Tuffle's strongest and most successful operatives within the Galactic Empire. Yet it still wasn't enough. All the accolades Tuffle High Command could reward her did little to fill the hole in her being.

Even now, it felt as a gaping wound in her body. As if something vital and important were missing. Confused, Paya pressed a hand to her lean stomach. She chewed her lower lip, as if searching the annals of her memory. Try as she might, so much of her past with the Continuum was unclear. As if someone had simply gone into her memory banks and wiped most of it away.

Perhaps it would be wise to allow the doctors to examine her once she made her bi-annual trip to headquarters. Pushing such thoughts from her mind, she grasped the hem of her dirty tank top, pulling it up and over her head, exposing her nude torso to the humid air. Rivulets of sweat dotted her frame, rolling beads slipping between the mounds of her ample chest.

Her propulsion boots responded to her ki, lifting her into the air as she flew from the thick, suffocating folds of the jungle. Zipping along, dipping between the tops of the trees as her pale green eyes scanned the horizon. She landed on a nearby shore, the rushing roar of ocean waters greeting her as her combat boots sunk deep into the damp sands.

There she knelt at the water's edge, enjoying the shocking cold in contrast with the humid jungles. Paya dipped her shirt into the water, washing away the grime and blood before pulling the damp shirt on over her lean frame. She also cleaned her knife, slipping it back into it's scabbard. There was a beeping noise in her ear—an incoming directive from Tuffle High Command.

They could wait for a bit. She was enjoying the tranquility of the moment. Vanquishing the creature was the easy part, after all. Infiltrating one of the underwater cities? That was where the real challenge came in.

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