Two others in the bar reacted to the name Ace, though not quite as noticeably as Page. Larra nearly fell out of her chair she turned around so fast, and Demon choked on his drool, just loud enough that the woman playing with the knife finally noticed him.
"All right, what was that?" Ta-vora asked, once Page had left.
"Used to know an Ace," Larra muttered, but offered no further explanation. After a few moments of silence she sighed audibly and ran a hand through her black hair. "I'm going for a walk. Wanna do me a favor?"
"What?" the catlike alien asked, slightly suspicious. As he should be, especially with someone like Larra asking.
"Watch Demon for me. Just make her that chick over there doesn't kill him."
Ta-vora glanced over at the large black dog, then back at it's constant companion. "Why not."
"Thanks," Larra jumped up from the table, "If you gotta leave the idiot, just let him know that no one's going to protect him." With a bit of a cheery bounce in her stride, she headed out of the bar.
===============
As filled with diverse characters as it was, even dimensional travelers like Larra couldn't help finding the Rock's flourishing black market interesting. With the air of someone browsing through a garage sale in a perfectly safe neighborhood, she wandered between stalls selling various illegal weapons, ship parts, and pretty well everything else.
Of course, the more interesting merchandise was only available to those with the right connection, but Larra enjoyed browsing all the same. Stopping at a table where a one-eyed pirate sold several models of modified blasters, she picked up a few, checking the sights and weight before moving on. Firearms weren't one of her biggest interests.
Typically, in a place like this, lone women were constant targets for thieves, pickpockets, or any type of assault. However, most victims weren't always one step ahead, like Larra was, craftily thwarting any attempts before they could begin. Most of the time she would have welcomed a fight, but not at the moment.
After spending nearly half an hour examining excellent examples of various tiny or collapsible weapons that could be concealed nearly anywhere, the young woman moved on again.
Presently she left the busier areas and headed off on her own, finding a point where she could stare out from one of the holes in the hollowed out asteroid known as The Rock. In a design plan that Larra wouldn't have expected from pirates, it was coated with heavy glass, showing a view of silent space.
Life had taken an odd turn lately, and she had not had the time to herself she was used to. Usually a social person, Larra did have a tendency to lapse into anti-social moods on the occasion when she didn't get that time.
Demon seemed to know when she was getting into that frame of mind, and would give her her own space for awhile, but she just wasnt used to the constant companionship of anyone else. Letting her thoughts drift, however, Larra realized that she was beginning to enjoy always being around this mixture of new and old friends.
But as she stared out into space the urge to travel rose again, and she wanted to see new things, and go new places. For the moment, Larra was forced to still the nomadic call. Ta-vora needed help finding his friend (girlfriend, maybe, she wasnt sure yet), Ki-jara.
Considering she was still alive and they figured out where she was, a rescue operation would have to take place. Larra returned her gaze to the stars, this time focusing on possible plans for something she wasnt sure would happen. If course a sneak attack would probably be best...but what if....
Content to stay where she was for a while longer, the young Acaran pondered the alternatives for the one thing she count on to be unpredictable. Tomorrow.
------------------
If all the world's a stage, why'd I get the part of the psycho?