#imperial system? last time I checked you were not an empire anymore | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

bedlamsbard · 4 years

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Part 4 of the other side AU concept! This will probably be six parts in total. The AU is Backbone-based and uses Backbone backstory up until the present day.

Previous: Part 1 Part 2 Part 3

About 5.8K below the break.

***

The air was hot and humid, making both Twi’lek women wince as the Ghost’s ramp opened. Hera looked automatically at Kanan, anticipating his indulgent grin, but he was looking straight ahead. There was nothing of her Kanan in him now – nothing of Kanan at all, just the Imperial Inquisitor left, the lethal sword hand of the Force clad in human raiment.

The sea was visible through the trees just to their left. The Imperial base here on Scarif was made up of an archipelago of small islands, connected via transit tubes. The salt tang of the water made her nose tickle; Hera half-expected it to be overlaid with the scent of blood. So many people had died here. So many good people, so many bad people, so many who had just been doing what they thought was right, both Rebel and Imperial. She had known and liked Cassian Andor, and a few of the other commandos who had gone with him to Scarif against orders. Chopper had actually gotten along with Cassian’s droid K-2SO, which had been a minor miracle.

Cassian should have lived to see the Rebellion succeed. So should Jyn Erso and Bodhi Rook and Admiral Raddus, everyone who had died at Scarif, at Yavin and Hoth and Endor and the hundreds of other engagements between the death the of the Republic and today. Bail and Breha Organa. Saw Gerrera. Her mother. Ezra and Kanan. They should all have lived.

The Death Star plans are here, Hera thought with shocked realization. Right here, right now. The battle station wouldn’t be complete for another six years, but most of the plans would still be accurate. And it would prove it existed.

She dragged her attention back to the present. There were stormtroopers standing guard on the vault-like entrance to the landing pad’s transit tube, eyeing them with clear distrust and a little fear. Kanan and the other Hera ignored them, striding forward in perfect step. Hera and Chopper followed, suspecting that she probably should have fallen in on Kanan’s other side for symmetry’s sake but knowing that she couldn’t manage it now.

The stormtroopers fell back before Kanan’s approach, one of them hitting the door control. The other Hera nodded a little to them as the four stepped inside; the doors closed with a frighteningly final sound before the transit car began to move.

“How are you planning to get into the vault?” Hera asked in a low voice.

The other woman tapped the code cylinders next to her rank badge. “ISB has access. So does the Inquisition. It will drop a flag, but I overwrote my access level with Agent Beneke’s so with any luck that won’t be immediate.” She glanced at Hera. “There aren’t a lot of nonhumans in the service. I’ve never actually met one of them, but I know there’s at least one woman in the ISB, a Togruta. That’s who your creds will read as if you have to use them.”

“I’m not a Togruta,” Hera pointed out.

“I know, I changed it in the system to read as a Twi’lek and replaced her image with yours. It shouldn’t end up mattering unless someone here has met her. Most people don’t bother checking creds when there’s an Inquisitor in the room.” She smiled at Kanan, who tilted his head a little in acknowledgment but didn’t speak. “Besides, most humans can’t tell nonhumans apart.”

“Twi’leks and Togruta are very different,” Hera said, startled.

“Most humans are stupid,” the other Hera said. “Present company excluded.”

Kanan snorted softly.

Hera held back her automatic response, which was something along the lines of, You spend too much time with Imperials. It wasn’t that she hadn’t run into that problem within the Alliance or among civilians, but it hadn’t happened more than a dozen times since she had left Ryloth.

The other woman flicked a sideways glance at her, but didn’t say anything else. They stood in silence until the transit car deposited them at the Citadel Tower, the doors sliding open to reveal wide gray corridors filled with more Imperials than Hera was, frankly, comfortable being near – stormtroopers and shoretroopers moving in formation, officers and technicians, security droids and a few astromechs –

She squared her shoulders and reminded herself that as far as anyone was concerned, her borrowed uniform was hers and she was as much an Imperial officer as any of them. She followed Kanan and the other Hera out of the transit car, Chopper rolling along beside her. She was interested to note that Kanan’s mere presence cleared their way without him having to do anything more – a few officers actually jumped out of the way when they saw him coming. If he noticed, he didn’t show it.

Gone, Hera’s mind gibbered silently as they made their way down the long corridors. All gone. Kanan had been one thing; but this part of Scarif was simply gone, vaporized by the Death Star. She would have had the same reaction had she gone to Jedha or Alderaan – she had been expecting to have to do the latter.

No one stopped them. They arrived at the entrance to the data vault to find a single technical officer at the data station outside the vault’s heavy doors. She looked up at their approach, then did a double-take. “Sir – ah – Inquisitor –”

Kanan tipped his head a little. The other Hera stepped forward, her expression cool, and slid her code cylinder out of its pocket. “We require access to the vault,” she said. “ISB-327, ISB-398, INQ-065. Authorization, ISB Five Nine Seven Eight Aurek Senth Isk Three Nine Two.”

The technical officer’s eyes were still fixed on Kanan as she took the code cylinder with shaking hands. It took her three tries to get it inserted. Hera held her breath, watching and wishing that she had a blaster just in case, but at last the data station chirped approval. The technical officer handed back the code cylinder and touched a control on the console, opening the massive vault door behind her. “You’re – you’re cleared, ma’am – ah – Inquisitor. What files are you –”

“We’ll recover them,” the other Hera said, sliding the code cylinder back into her uniform pocket. “Take a caf break, Lieutenant.”

“I – I’m not supposed to –”

Kanan met her gaze. She squeaked and almost tripped stepping out from behind the data station.

“We’ll be done in fifteen minutes,” the other Hera said. “Come back then.”

“Yes, ma’am,” the technical officer said faintly. She gave them a wide berth, skating the wall until she reached the exit.

The other Hera let out her breath. “Chop, plug in. Find us that file – Cluster Prism, you said?”

“Cluster Prism,” Hera confirmed. “And Stardust.”

Kanan gave her a sharp look, and the force of that pale glare over the black mask staggered her for an instant. “You only said Cluster Prism before.”

“I – I’ll explain later. Just – let’s get those files.”

The other woman’s mouth compressed into a thin line, but she nodded to Kanan. “You get the files. Chop and I will stay here and locate them for you and head off anyone who comes calling.”

“Why you?” Hera said, a little surprised.

“An Inquisitor can’t stay out here,” she explained. “It looks bad. And my creds are real; yours aren’t.”

Hera nodded. As Chopper rolled over to the data station and plugged in, she and Kanan turned down the long, dark corridor to the data vault. The corridor let out into a harshly lit platform with a window that revealed the data vault itself – long columns that stretched out of sight up and down, each closely stacked with thousands of data files.

What the Rebellion wouldn’t do for all of this, Hera thought, looking up at them as Kanan bent over the computer station. Some of it – maybe most of it – wouldn’t be relevant anymore, but others would be. All the Emperor’s surviving projects that the Alliance knew about had been spread out between his successors, but Hera had no doubt that more of them were lurking out there, waiting to take the Alliance by surprise when they were least prepared for it. It would take months to retrieve and copy all the files here, though, and she didn’t have that kind of time.

Kanan was speaking quietly into the comlink on his left gauntlet. As Hera was looking up at the data vault, she saw a green light flash to her right and a little below her line of sight. “That’s Cluster Prism,” Kanan said, removing his mask and hooking it to his belt. “You’ll have to use the handles.”

Hera supposed that with the sheer mass of data here there wasn’t really a more efficient method. She stepped up to the window and grasped the handles, turning them this way and that until she got the hang of their movement. It wasn’t too different from flying a starfighter, actually, if less exciting; she supposed the adrenaline rush of stealing data from the Empire made up for it. She was able to retrieve the Cluster Prism file from its location and bring it over to the window, where it slid into the drawer at the base.

“I’ll get the Stardust file while you copy that,” Kanan said.

Hera nodded and took it over to the computer set into the wall, pulling a blank datacard out of her jacket. Modern datacards could store almost twice as much as they had been able to a decade earlier, so with any luck it would transfer without difficulty as long as the computer could still read it. She held her breath as she inserted the card, then let out a relieved sigh as it slid into the slot. The bulky data file took a big more finagling, but after a moment it beeped confirmation as Hera set the computer to copy it over.

Kanan came up behind her, another data file in his hand. “What is this one?” he asked.

“It’s the plans for something called the Death Star,” Hera said.

His eyebrows shot up. “That doesn’t sound good.”

Hera grimaced. “No. And it’s not for the Alliance; we already have those plans. I want to give that to someone in this universe, to prevent what happened in mine from happening here. If you and Hera don’t mind making a stop after we leave here –”

“What’s the Death Star?”

“It’s a battle station,” Hera said, wincing at the memory. “A massive battle station the size of a small moon, capable of destroying a planet.”

“That’s not possible.”

“It is,” Hera said. “I’ve seen it.” She glanced back at him. “That’s what happened to Scarif. The Empire destroyed their own base in an attempt to keep the Alliance from getting the plans, but the commando team here had already transmitted them to the Rebel fleet.” She didn’t bother going into the details between the Death Star at full planet-destroying capacity and the lesser havoc it had wrought on Jedha and Scarif. With any luck, this universe would never have to know.

“And who do you want to give the plans to?” Kanan asked. “There’s nothing like a – a rebel alliance, not right now, anyway. Just a lot of partisan groups that operate in different systems and sometimes share information.”

“There will be,” Hera said with certainty. “There’s someone I can give them to. I have a message for him anyway. It’s who I would have gone to if you hadn’t agreed to help me.”

He didn’t ask why she wasn’t naming her contact here, not in the middle of an Imperial base.

The computer beeped as it finished copying the Cluster Prism file and spat out both the original file and the data card. Hera switched over to a new data card and exchanged the Cluster Prism file for the Stardust one while Kanan went to return it to its original location.

“What will you do?” she asked Kanan as he came back over. “Once we’ve left here, I mean. You can’t go back to the Empire.”

He shook his head, though his eyes were shadowed. “Hera wants to see her family,” he said. “And we do know where Free Ryloth is right now – the ISB keeps track of the fleet’s location, even if they usually don’t do anything with that.” He glanced sideways at her and added carefully, “She doesn’t talk about her family, but she was upset when you said your mother was dead.”

“If it’s any help,” Hera said, “my father liked Kanan. More than he liked me sometimes, to be honest.”

The corner of his mouth curled up. “I’m sure that’s not true.”

“I left home when I was eighteen,” Hera said. “My father has never really understood why, even today. He thinks I should have stayed on Ryloth. Not that he was trying to keep me safe, but he thinks I should have been fighting the Empire back home instead of somewhere else. It’s not that I don’t know that he loves me, but he’s always resented that I decided to prioritize fighting the Empire over fighting for Ryloth. He does love Jacen, though,” she added, and Kanan’s face did something complicated.

“What is he like?” he asked. “Your son, I mean.”

Hera glanced down, smiling. “He’s smart. He likes animals – every time we’re back on Lothal, half a dozen Loth-cats and sometimes a Loth-wolf turn up at the Ghost to say hello, and the blurrgs on Ryloth love him. I think he’ll be a good pilot, too, he’s already got the reflexes. He’s – he’s a very happy child. I just don’t see him enough.” She looked up at Kanan again. “Ah – a friend of mine says he’s Force-sensitive, but it might not last.”

“It doesn’t always at that age,” Kanan said. “You can usually tell, but not always.” He frowned a little, as if in memory, but didn’t explain further. “He sounds like a good kid.”

“He is,” Hera said. “I wish –” She didn’t go on, relieved when the computer beeped it conclusion. She retrieved the data card, handed the file to Kanan to return, and made sure both data cards were clearly labeled. The last thing she needed to do was turn up back in her own timeline with outdated Death Star plans instead of the Cluster Prism ones.

He had his mask back on by the time she turned around. They left the vault to join the other Hera, who was standing next to the data station with Chopper. “Got them?” she asked.

Hera nodded.

“Then let’s get out of here.”

“Do you normally get this reaction?” Hera asked after the Ghost had left Scarif behind and was ascending upwards towards the shield gate. The traffic control officer had been ecstatic to see them go, in a subdued, Imperial kind of way. “They practically threw us offworld.”

“Imperials hate Inquisitors as much as everyone else does,” Kanan said, his hands on the co-pilot’s controls and his gaze fixed straight ahead. “They especially don’t like having me around; I scare the blazes out of them.”

“Why?” Hera said, startled. She had never seen any Inquisitors other than from a distance, but she didn’t think that Kanan was worse than the ones her crew had intercepted.

“Because I’m human,” Kanan said, his voice even. “There were one or two others when the Inquisition started out, but these days I’m the only one. Everyone else is a nonhuman, and that’s the way the Emperor likes it, since it keeps the rest of the service on their toes. As far as they’re concerned, the aliens can do what they want to each other, but once a human’s in the mix –” He stopped abruptly, a muscle working in his jaw.

His Hera shot a sideways glance at him, a little grief in her eyes. Kanan’s gaze cut towards her briefly and he went on, “Most Imperials don’t like the reminder that they’re just vulnerable as all the alien rebels out there. And they take orders from a nonhuman Inquisitor easier than they do from me. And when I was in the field with my master –” He stopped abruptly.

He was silent as they slipped through the shield gate and began to move past the star destroyers. The other Hera had a short exchange with the traffic control officer onboard the gate, then they proceeded past the star destroyers and went to hyperspace as soon as they were out of range of the planet’s gravity well. The girl got to her feet and said, “I’m going to change,” leaving Kanan and Hera alone in the cockpit.

He started to strip off his armor without looking at her. Hera unfastened the top of her jacket, but said, “If you want to tell me what happened – she doesn’t know, does she?”

“No.” He put his fingers to his forehead, looking weary. “A lot of junior officers are around the same age as me,” he said finally. “Stormtroopers too. My master –” He touched his notched ear, but it was clear that the injury wasn’t what he was thinking about. “By most standards,” he said haltingly, “my master didn’t treat me – well, I guess. And I’m human, and except for the uniform look pretty much the same as most of them. And I’ve got the right accent,” he added, this last in such pure upper-class Coruscanti that it made Hera’s back teeth ache. The first time she had heard her Kanan use it she had almost jumped out of her own skin.

“My master hurt me pretty badly,” Kanan went on, not looking at her. “And he didn’t really care who saw him do it. Imperials really don’t like seeing a Pau’an do – that – to a nice human boy. And even in uniform I look right, and I sound right, and – there was nothing they could do about how he treated me, though if they were high-ranking enough they could at least tell him to take it to his own tent or cabin or whatever.”

“Which didn’t make it any easier for you,” Hera said gently.

Kanan rubbed his knuckles across his scarred jaw. “No. But I was never paying much attention to anything besides him at the time, unless he told me to. And he didn’t do that when we were in camp – on base – whatever. I didn’t really realize any of that had been going on until the first time Hera and I were on an op with someone who had seen me with him.”

“How did that go?”

“He was a friend of Hera’s. He was scared out of his mind for her. That was three months ago, by the way.” He touched his fingers to his forehead, looking unspeakably weary. “My master didn’t think he was being cruel. And I didn’t – I didn’t really realize it either, not by the point when they were letting me out in the field with him.”

“When was the last time you saw him?” Hera asked, tentative.

“Last week.” He shot a sideways glance at her. “I had to go back to the Crucible to check in. The Whip won’t let us be in the same room alone together anymore – which is not on my behalf by any means. He just doesn’t like the Hunter.” He looked down at his hands. “She doesn’t know and she’s not going to.”

“Who’s the Whip?”

“He’s the head of the training facility at the Crucible – Inquisition headquarters, I mean.” Kanan ran a weary hand over his face. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to tell you all that.”

“I asked,” Hera said.

He shook his head. “She doesn’t know. She can’t know. She can’t. She can’t.”

“Kanan –” Hera began uncertainly. The helpless grief on his face was utterly unfamiliar. Hera had seen it before on Alliance soldiers who had seen too much combat, Imperial deserters who had finally hit their breaking point, freed prisoners finally seeing the outside of an Imperial prison – but not on Kanan.

The door slid open behind her. The other Hera came past her in a rush, putting her arms around Kanan as he buried his face in her shoulder. After a moment he raised his head and looked at her, anguished; she cupped her hands around his face and tipped her forehead against his, murmuring to him.

Hera got to her feet, fighting down her wave of irrational hurt. “Can I use your comm unit?” she asked quietly, not wanting to disturb them.

“There’s one in my room,” the other Hera said without looking up. Kanan’s hands came up to grip her upper arms, tears streaming silently down his face.

Hera slipped out of the cockpit.

Later she sat by the comm unit in the other Hera’s cabin – her cabin – with her head tipped back against the wall. She was balancing her holoprojector on her knee, looking at the old hologram of Kanan.

He should have been here.

Hera sighed and dragged her gaze out of the past, looking around the room. It was scrupulously neat, with uniforms hung on a hook on the wall. Unlike Hera’s own cabin, there were no Twi’leki designs painted on the walls; the only real sign of personality was a discarded silk robe draped over the back of a chair. Hera recognized it; her Kanan had given her the same one the year after they had met.

The comm unit beeped. Hera leaned over to read the transmission, then sent back the correct code. There was a chance this wouldn’t work – but the response came almost immediately. Hera noted the coordinates and got up.

She found the other Hera alone in the cockpit, her head in her hands. She looked up as Hera came in, tear streaks on her face. “What?”

“Can you go to these coordinates?”

“Yeah.” She sat back as Hera leaned over her to input them in the navicomputer. “Kanan said you wanted to meet with someone else while you were here. Is it –”

“It’s probably better if I take the Phantom,” Hera said. “I don’t think it will take long.”

The other woman looked like she was too tired to argue. “Take Chopper with you.” She glanced at the coordinates. “I’ll let you know when we’re there.”

Hera didn’t want to push her. She started to leave, but the girl said suddenly, “He thought I didn’t know.”

Hera stopped, then went back to her.

“He was so badly hurt,” the girl whispered. “And I did notice when Cado found out about him being with me. And I saw him with that – that Pau’an. He doesn’t know I saw them.” She looked at her hands, helpless. “How could he think I didn’t know?”

Hera put a hand on her shoulder. For a moment the other woman resisted, then her face crumpled and she leaned forward, crying silently as Hera took her in her arms.

They came out of hyperspace in an unoccupied system. The star was a distant gleam just visible through the Phantom’s viewport, with a handful of planets unable to support life doing their slow dance around it. The other ship in the system was too far away to make out with the naked eye, its running lights blending in with the star field behind it.

“Detaching now,” Hera said, hitting the control on the dash.

“Acknowledged.” The other Hera’s voice was clear and calm, as if having something to do was helping her grief. Hera suspected it did. “We’ll be here waiting, Phantom.”

Hera gripped the control yoke and eased the Phantom forward out of the dock. It gave her an uneasy feeling of déjà vu; she had forgotten that it would be the original Phantom and not the Phantom II until she had walked onboard.

Chopper muttering to himself was a familiar background sound as she brought the Phantom out of the Ghost’s dock and set her course for the ship showing up on her nav console. She flew by instrument until she was close enough to see it through the viewport, then transmitted the code she had been given. A voice on the other end of the comm, fuzzy with encryption, told her what to do.

The corvette’s dock was only meant for speeders and skiffs, not a shuttle the size of the Phantom. Hera docked at the airlock she was instructed to and shut down the Phantom except for the magnetic clamp. She was met at the airlock by three crewmembers in familiar blue-and-gray uniforms; the female crewperson patted her down and came up with Hera’s holoprojector and the datacard with the Stardust file on it. After inspecting both, she handed them back to Hera. Chopper got scanned by another crewmember and complained the whole time.

They led Hera and Chopper through the familiar corridors of the corvette to a room that she knew very well. It was something she had expected but wasn’t prepared for, aware of places where there should have been dents or repairs made that were still spotless, or, in one case, where a hatch had been entirely replaced in her own time. The man sitting behind the table in the room stood up as she entered, and Hera fought back another wave of disorienting grief. She hadn’t known him well, hadn’t met him more than a handful of times, but she had known him.

“Senator Organa,” she said, resisting the urge to salute. “Thank you for seeing me. I’m Hera Syndulla.”

“A relative of Cham Syndulla, I presume?” he said. “Not the missing daughter.”

“Actually,” Hera said, “the answer to that is a little complicated. I am Hera Syndulla, but I’m not that Hera Syndulla. I’m from an alternate timeline, some years from now.”

Bail Organa’s eyebrows went up. “That’s a rather bold claim.”

“I have a message that might convince you,” Hera said. She took the holoprojector out of her pocket and slid it down the table towards him; she had switched out the datadisk inside before coming over.

Senator Organa took the holoprojector, inspected it briefly, and then set it back down on the table before activating it.

Leia Organa’s image sprang up between them. “Hello, Father,” she said. “If you’re seeing this, it’s because General Syndulla was able to reach you. I wish I could have come myself, but the method we used made that impossible. I know that what General Syndulla has told you will seem very unlikely, but I swear to you that it’s the truth. Please help her for the good of the Rebellion.” Leia’s voice and expression had been calm through all of this, but for an instant that cracked, and she added, “Father – Mother – I miss you,” in a voice that trembled a little. “There are some other holos on this datadisk. I don’t know if you’ll want to watch them or not, but they’re for you, both of you.” She took a deep breath. “I love you.”

Senator Organa paused the holo as it began to repeat. He looked at Hera through Leia’s transparent image as Hera tried to remember how old Leia would be now. Ten or eleven, she thought.

“General Syndulla?” he said.

“Of the Alliance to Restore the Republic,” Hera said. “Or the Rebel Alliance, as it’s more commonly known. The vote on the ratification of the New Republic will be held within a week, in my time. Emperor Palpatine has been dead for almost a year.” She met Senator Organa’s gaze and added, “Luke Skywalker was the one who sent me here.”

Senator Organa’s reaction was so slight that if Hera hadn’t been looking for it, she would have missed it.

“I assume I was executed by the Empire for treason,” he said.

“After a manner of speaking,” Hera said. She took the datacard out of her pocket and laid it on the table. “I don’t need your help. I was able to accomplish my mission with – um – local aid. But these are the plans that the Empire in my timeline to destroy Alderaan, a battle station called the Death Star.”

“To destroy –” He went as pale as his complexion allowed, which, like Kanan’s, wasn’t very.

“I think it won’t happen here,” Hera said.

“Leia,” Senator Organa said, his gaze on the hologram. “She was offworld?”

“Yes.” Unless he asked, Hera wasn’t going to tell him that she had been onboard the Death Star when Alderaan had been destroyed.

“I’m glad.” His voice was low, distracted. He looked at her suddenly. “Do you know what else is on this disk?”

Hera shook her head, though she could guess. If she had had any idea that there was a possibility of seeing her mother here, she would have brought more holos too.

Senator Organa activated the holoprojector again, switching it to the next hologram. In it, Leia sat at this same table in the other version of the Tantive IV, holding her young son in her lap. She looked a little tired, but then again not only were they still in the midst of the war but she had an infant only a few months old. Hera remembered how those days had been for her, though not terribly well since she had spent the entire time sleep-deprived.

“Hello, Father, Mother,” Leia said. “If you’re seeing this, then either you believe Hera or you’re looking for evidence one way or another. This isn’t meant to be evidence, but maybe it will be.” She swallowed. “Hera has probably told you what happened to Alderaan – what happened to you. I know that you can stop what’s coming and that your daughter will never have to feel the way I do.” She stopped as her son made a gurgling sound and waved one chubby fist; he was clutching a soft stuffed model of the Millennium Falcon in it that Chewbacca had made for him.

Leia lifted him up so that he faced the holoprojector. “Ben, can you say hello to Grandpapa and Grandmama?”

Senator Organa made a low, stunned sound; he looked like he had been poleaxed. Ben waved the Millennium Falcon vaguely in the direction of the holoprojector with Leia’s help, then she settled him back in her lap. “I wanted you to see some things,” Leia said. “I thought – Ben will have them when he’s older. But I wanted you to see them too, because my parents never had the chance.” She smiled, a little shaky. “I love you, Papa, Mama, and I miss you. I wish you were here.”

Senator Organa put his hand down on the holoprojector, pausing it. “Can you wait?” he asked Hera, sounding like he was suddenly having a hard time breathing. “I’ll have refreshments sent up.”

“I can wait as long as you need,” Hera said. She hesitated, then said, “I – can take something back. If you want.”

He nodded distractedly and left the room without saying anything else. Hera sat down in one of the empty chairs at the table and looked at Chopper. “That could have gone worse.”

He told her that it still could, sounding so exactly like her own Chopper that for a few moments Hera could have been back on the Tantive IV in her own timeline, waiting for Leia to finish feeding her infant son before she joined Hera for the most recent reports from the front.

Kanan was sunk so deep in meditation that the world had frayed apart at the edges, leaving him with only the breathtaking clarity of the Force. He didn’t like going that deep; it had left him uneasy even when he had been a child back in the safety and security of the Jedi Temple. At the moment he wanted that clarity; nothing had been clear to him since he had gone to the Crucible, except at those times when the drugs the Inquisition sometimes used had sent him this deep into the Force. He hadn’t liked what he had seen then.

He could sense Hera sitting in the cockpit, fiddling listlessly with her datapad. Her grief stained the Force; Kanan fought down the urge to go to her and let himself sink deeper into the Force instead. Emotion bled away; he was aware of his tie to the Hunter stretching out from him, connecting him to the other Inquisitor. He didn’t know how to break that bond save by killing the Hunter, and he didn’t know if he could do that without dying himself; the Hunter had bound them together so tightly that back at the Crucible, they had breathed in unison, heartbeats matching each other; he had turned his head and Kanan had done the same without even thinking about it. Kanan hadn’t had to speak to him by the end; the Hunter already knew what he was going to say.

He sank further into the Force; if he lingered too long at this level the Hunter might well sense his attention and yank on that tie like Kanan was an anooba on a leash. Kanan didn’t want to deal with that until he absolutely had to.

The Jedi taught that they were the Force. Kanan felt it now; his physical body was a fading memory, the old agony of injuries nothing more than a shimmer someone else had felt. They weren’t just his injuries, either; he felt a lightsaber burn slash across his eyes, a vibroblade take off his hand at the wrist, flames roar up around him. He was back in his body now, but not his own body. He opened his eyes, but saw nothing but darkness. Shut them again, and was alone with the Force.

No, not alone.

Somewhere in the dark, a wolf howled.

Hera returned to the Ghost feeling more exhausted than the excursion should have left her. She was carrying a shoulder bag with a small box in it; she hadn’t asked what was in the box and Bail Organa hadn’t offered that information.

Kanan met her at the foot of the ladder in the common room. “Did you get what you needed?” he asked.

“I think so,” Hera said. She frowned at him; he looked tired, but also somehow triumphant, and there was something uneasily familiar about it that she couldn’t identify.

His Hera was standing near the door; she knelt down to smile at Chopper as Hera stepped out of the way so that he could descend. He rolled over to her and began a diatribe about how rude the senator’s people had been. They hadn’t been; he just didn’t like being scanned.

Kanan bit his lip, then said carefully, “Hera – I think I can get Kanan, your Kanan. Do you want me to try?”

#cut scenes and concept writing #other side au tag #as always comments are appreciated

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capricornus-rex · 4 years

Text

Someone Left to Save (7)

Cal Kestis x Reader

Requested by Anon

Summary: The Mantis crew arrives to the capital of Ulfin, in the planet of Pevera, under siege. They meet the local rebel cell spearheaded by the former Republic admiral, Jax Beneb, who seeks to destroy the Empire’s occupation that was aggressively imposed upon while exploiting the planet of its natural resources. A plan is devised to destroy the Imperial’s main base of operations—as well as their influence—in the planet; however, it was a do-or-die mission that you and Cal had gotten yourselves caught in.

Tags: Force-Sensitive! Reader, Inquisitor! Reader, Jedi! Reader, Fake Death, Jedi turned Inquisitor, Seduction to the Dark Side, Turn to the Dark Side, The Dark Side of the Force, Aftermath of Torture, Torture, Psychological Torture, Redemption Arc! Reader, Possible Redemption, Premonitions

Also in AO3

Chapters: 1 – 2 – 3 – 4 – 5 | Previous: Part 6 | Next: Part 8 | Masterlist

7 of ?

Cal wakes up in a cold sweat.

“[Y/N]!!” he exclaimed as he shot up and heaved.

The image of you wailing in an ear-shattering agony, coated in a veil of violet lightning that covered you from head to toe, and eyes that are beyond recognition—it all burned in his mind, hotter than the fires of the explosives that tore down the tower. No amount of sleep can remove that from his system now.

He catches his breath as he was abruptly awakened by that horrid figment. He realizes he’s still in the cramped quarters in the rebel hideout—he’s all alone.

He curls up, drawing in his legs to his chest, props his elbows atop his knees while he rakes his blood-orange hair with his fingers—all of a sudden, he remembers the way you would do the exact same thing, sometimes you would hum softly a wordless lullaby—and then his heart ached. Parroting the way you caress him from his hair to his cheek didn’t seem to make it all feel better—it only made him miss you much more sorely.

A single tear escapes his eyes, and then another, and another… until a wet patch formed on the leg of his pants.

“You can’t be gone… you’re not…” he mumbles under his breath, he grips a clump of his hair caught in the spaces between his fingers as he buries his face into his knees.

“Bee…?”

Apparently, BD-1 was alerted by Cal’s waking from his nightmare. The little droid scampered towards his owner and nuzzled his head against the Jedi’s calf. The young boy didn’t budge, he retained his position as if nothing touched him or tried to get his attention. The only thing moving is his hunched back rising and falling as he breathes. Lulling himself to sleep was a struggle; for weeks, he had been restless, and even if he caught a wink of sleep, it will oftentimes be cut short by nightmares—such as this one.

Cal returned to his bed, pulling up the blanket up to his neck. BD-1 persisted to make himself seen-he stands right in front of the boy lying on his side.

“Sorry, BD… It’s gonna be a long night for me. Go ahead and set yourself to sleep mode if you like,” Cal muttered as he pets BD’s head gently.

The droid didn’t sleep until his owner dozed off first. Cal tossed and turned as he attempted to fall asleep. He tried everything: emptying his mind, reciting Jedi mantras in his head about any aspect he can think of—at least the ones he knows by heart—and remembering the serenity of the warm mornings where he’d meditate in the temple garden with Master Tapal. He was careful not to recall any memory of you because that would only worsen his insomnia—it would be instantly warped into horrendous scenes that his wild imagination makes for him.

Cal repeated the cycle until it bored him to sleep; when BD saw this, he switched to his sleep mode right away and scooted to his owner’s arm.

—–

They kept you in that torture chair—day in, day out.

For the rest of the days that they continued to interrogate you, no words came out of your mouth when they demanded it. As a reply to your continuous rebelliousness, they would switch on the voltage and send it flying straight into your body. Regardless, you held your tongue.

The medbay wardens tried to feed you, little by little with scraps of foodstuff and rations. It was them who insisted they be allowed to check on you for vitals—since you’ve been receiving volumes of shock after your prematurely-concluded recovery. They’re quite astonished by the threshold of your body and its instinct to preserve you.

In protest, you didn’t bite into whatever they gave you in the first few days. Eventually, they gave up on their kindness and stopped—or so you’ve thought, when in fact they were personally commanded by the Seventh Sister to cease your feeding. However, your fasting didn’t hold for long; you had too much pride in regretting and wishing that you should’ve taken whatever food they were trying to give you—even if it was anything short of edible.

Ignoring the pain of the electrocution was much easier than ignoring the relentless growling of an empty stomach.

Keeping the rebels’ location hidden at the expense of your health was commended by the Inquisitor—and the Grand Inquisitor, no less, when he heard of it through reports.

“She’s even stronger than I initially thought. I seem to have underestimated her.”

“She has been silent for days. When we come to her and find her with her eyes closed, she’s not even asleep! She’s just… blatantly ignoring us. I’ve never seen a Jedi this…”

“Resilent.” The Fifth Brother finishes on the Mirialan’s behalf.

She growled, “I grow tired of this! Why not just set it to the highest voltage and leave it on until she dies?! We can hunt down the rebel faction no problem, along with the Jedi she cavorts with!”

“And waste your time in an empty goose chase? I’d rather not, if I were you,” the Grand Inquisitor, in a contrasting tone of voice from the Seventh Sister’s, scoffed through his hologram. “Jedi like her can be of value to us. All she needs is a bit more training.”

“Are you saying, Grand Inquisitor, that she’s to become one of us?”

“How else would you interpret what I said, child? If her spirit is broken, she’ll be easier to bend.”

The Grand Inquisitor concluded the transmission from his end, the pair of Inquisitors headed to the torture chamber.

The two exchanged glances, but it was the Mirialan who had the most shocked look between her and the gray humanoid. She was neither keen nor disdainful for having someone added up to their ranks, she just didn’t know how to feel about it. Whether she liked it or not, the Grand Inquisitor’s word is to be honored. If it’s any consolation, one new headcount would factor to the likelihood of the newcomer being the one assigned to even the most mundane of assignments.

In that very chamber, you’re still underneath the halo of a white light pooling above the very chair. Mist from the piping and hydraulics wafted about your calves, it was an eerie sight. Whenever the dead silence was your only friend, you thought that death was a much easier fate to accept, or perhaps you questioned why you even survived the explosion. You afforded the quiet moments where you struggled to empty your mind, but the thoughts of rage and hate were too loud; provoking you with the thought of Cal being found and sharing the same fate as yours was a catalyst—perhaps, that is what the Grand Inquisitor sensed, even from afar, and what convinced him to bring you into the fray.

The blast doors whipped open, but that didn’t do much in catching your attention. Anyone who came in and out didn’t matter to you, the sounds and sights were dull and bleak to you now; at this point, they’re all the same, faceless, sentient mannequins that come to glare or gloat at you every now and then, poking you for a reaction to see if you’ve dropped dead or just clinging to the last threads of dear life.

“She’s alive, but weak,” the Fifth Brother observed aloud.

The bags under your eyes were prominent, patches of red swelled on your arms from the constant electrocution—the more severe ones made your muscles bloat—and your unkempt hair shrouded your cheeks. Despite your shoddy appearance while strapped to the torture chair, the Seventh Sister squints to take a closer look at you, there was something about your eyes: still and peaceful, despite all of that suffering—to her, it appears as though you were only sleeping.

“Unlock the restraints,” ordered the female Inquisitor.

Doing as what they’re told, the operator set you free those cold, silver handcuffs at the push of a button. Without anything to hold you anymore, you gradually slid away from the bed of the torture chair, the Inquisitor pair stepped back as if you’re some kind of leper when you plopped limply to the floor—without an ounce of strength left in you to bring yourself up, at least on your knees.

The Seventh Sister stepped forward again, bent down to your level, angled your face as she clutched you quite roughly; moving it left and right, to examine you at a much closer view. She watched you struggle to lift your eyelids, slits barely revealed the color of your eyes, seconds later, you gave up and eyes closed shut.

“She’s alive, alright. Follow me.” She sternly ordered as she erected back up, turned tail and made her way to the door.

Seeing that you’re fully incapable of doing so, a pair of Stormtroopers took you by each arm and let your knees drag across the metal floor. They hauled you all the way to a training dojo. Your garish entrance took the practicing Purge Troopers by surprise, they paused their sparring session and stared; a single nod from the tall, gray Inquisitor prompted them to leave, they walked past you hooked to each Stormtrooper’s arm and sniggered on their way out.

“Jedi,” one said in a tone intending to insult.

When the dojo has been emptied by those who weren’t needed, the Stormtroopers dropped you and you plopped on the cold, glossy tile. The coldness stinging your cheek eventually woke you up, your body realizes that it’s not strapped to that terrible apparatus anymore—though your limbs ached when you moved them—and you craned your neck to face what’s in front of you.

“Get up,” the Fifth Brother bellowed.

And get up you did. Your knees were still wobbly and shook off the grogginess in your head as you studied the new room they’ve put you in.

“Where’ve you taken me this time?” your words rolled off your tongue, though you’re still partially coherent.

“You’re in our training dojo,” the Fifth Brother simply replied. A sinister smile played along his stony face. “We’re gonna play a little game, you se.”

“I don’t think I’m in the best shape to play along,”

“Oh, that doesn’t matter, you’re part of the game and if you wanna live—you gotta fight,”

“With what—my fists and legs?”

The Fifth Brother chortled, then provided you with a baton similar to a Scout Trooper’s. He tossed it and you failed to catch it in time as you’re still seeing double. You crouched to retrieve the baton and practiced the firmness of your grip with it.

“So, are you two gonna be my playmates?”

The Seventh Sister flashed a toothy grin, “No. We have someone better in mind.”

They retreated to the main hold—like the bridge to a command ship—in front of the dojo, it also served like a watching room for those who spectated training sessions as a pastime and a control room to manipulate the setting of the dojo’s environment. There was an awkward yet tense silence humming across the room, you looked around and notice every single rectangle on the wall that could be a door—anticipating for one of them to shoot open and set whatever enemy they have reserved for you pouncing to you with bloodlust.

The only thing that you needed to look at was the door just below the control room. The metal groaned and out of the shadows came a familiar face. The armor had been remade back to its original appearance, in the place of a red haloed saber was a lance, the helmet was unmistakable—it was the Second Brother in a second face-off against you. Even when you’re groggy, you can sense the flaring hate within the Second Brother, more intense than the combined heat of Tatooine’s binary suns.

As he strode forward, weapon in hand, you struggled to get yourself straightened up to prepare for a fight.

“You’re lucky they only gave me this pathetic electrostaff!” the Second Brother hissed, putting himself in a stance as he would with his own saber. He continued striding towards you who’s barely made a proper posture with your block against the incoming attack.

You’re envious that the Second Brother has recovered so soon, but then again, he wasn’t the one strapped to a torture chair and be electrocuted almost everyday until you were treading the tightrope between life and death.

You wished that you could have uttered a comeback in mind, but you were too weak, and you prioritized staying alive in this unfairly-matched duel.

Your deflect was flimsy and unskilled, as expected.

However, something inside you refused to die in an indignant circumstance such as this—thrown into a dojo like livestock, pitted against a fully-recovered enemy while you’ve barely had a proper shred of recovery or medication.

The Second Brother didn’t hold back, neither was he thrifty with his windows of opportunity—he made all of them count. Whenever he would see an opening from you, he pommels you with the electrical end of the staff on your rib, your shoulder, arm, leg, anywhere and everywhere he could get a jab at. Dodging his attacks or returning it seldom happened, all you were doing was side-stepping away from him and the lance. He retained his dexterity and nimbleness that you initially saw in your first encounter with him; though, he seemed much quicker than you remember, more difficult to catch up with, and certainly more annoying. His acrobatics made it worse for your eyes—as you can’t even see without the hazy, mirage-like doubles of the things you fix your eyes to.

“Come on, Jedi girl! You seemed to be so tough in our last fight!” taunted the Second Brother in a cackle. “Where’s that spark I saw? Don’t tell me the explosions outshone it?!”

As much as you wanted to, you could barely put up a fight. He simply stepped five inches to his right or left when he sees you lunging at him, you’d clearly miss and in turn, he’d jab you—except this time, he’s keeping the end stuck to your body for a few seconds longer. If he’s feeling sadistically indulgent, he’d keep it for as long as a minute or so.

“Come on! Show me that little tough girl front again!” he chortled. “Again, Jedi!”

He might not have sensed it, but the Second Brother’s fighting tactics were beginning to get into your nerves. It was genuinely annoying now; it was nauseating enough to catch up to his lunging and pouncing around, adding to the mockery he peppers in one-sided banters during the fight, and they’re fueling to your rage in this mismatch of a duel. This went on until your attacks became raggedy and graceless—a dramatic contrast to your original fighting style.

Finally! Just finally! You found a small burst of energy which seemed to grow by the second, though you didn’t know where it came from—it just naturally came to you. Whatever it was, you weaponized it more than that sorry excuse of a weapon in your hand. You paid back for the moments where you’re denied of a chance at hitting the Second Brother because he wasn’t taking you seriously, mostly due to your state. He met the same ferocity beneath that tawdry exterior, eyes burning brightly with a menacing passion that lit through the dangling locks of hair, and your blows were weak but they packed a punch compared to the first few moments.

You gained your momentum in this fight. The satisfaction of finally being at par with the Second Brother’s caliber—with your current condition—was intoxicating. You found yourself tethered to it and can’t seem to get enough.

Faster, more intense!

With every strike, your strength and dexterity returned.

At first, the Second Brother was amused. Finally! He thought as a grin stretched across his face, albeit masked. Some fun!

His amusement was short-lived as he saw you trembling—not out of fear, but out of rage that could no longer be contained in the vessel that is your body. Slowly but surely, your body regained its confidence and composure; your stances were now more pronounced, the impact of the blows were much heavier, and your footwork was no longer faulty. This startled and amazed the Second Brother, Seventh Sister, and Fifth Brother altogether.

When you caught the Second off-guard with your burst of attacks, you cut the air with the baton—swinging it and landing its mark straight into the Inquisitor’s diaphragm. The two other Inquisitors in the bridge flinched in reaction, as if they felt the pain of your attack since they’ve been immersed with your duel ever since you started gaining the upper hand.

“Agh…!” the Second Brother winced, falling to his knees, the electrostaff fell to the glossy floor, the rhythm going from beat per beat until it faded out into a rattle.

“How’s that for a tough girl façade, you asshole?!” you snarled.

For good measure, as revenge for him humiliating you for the last time, you delivered a heavy overhead strike against the middle of his spine. The velocity of your swing was so intense, the Inquisitors heard the whoosh from where they stand.

When you were done exacting revenge on the Second Brother, you flung the baton to the direction of the bridge—it was like a statement, but it was just a final compulsive action from you. The weapon ricocheted against the walls and then to the floor, creating a gong-like sound as it clattered around. When the two of them caught sight of your face—that fiery tenacity, and your eyes…

They could almost see the hate and anger in your bloodshot eyes.

“Interesting,” the Fifth Brother mused.

“Well now, I think I’m going to enjoy training duty for once,”

The two Inquisitors exchanged glances and snickered together while peering through the glass, staring at their new, little experiment—you.

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majorshiraharu · 4 years

Text

Echoes In My Mind; Chapter 4 - Familiar Faces - EchoxReader Fic

Previous Chapter

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Content Rating: Mature+ Warnings: Swearing Anxiety Trigger Warnings: Depression PTSD Nightmares Trauma Torture ; only references from the previous chapters

If there are any warning labels I’m missing please inform me

Notes: Y/O/N = Your characters original name (before they went into hiding) Sorry this got a little long lol Taglist: @grand-admiral-luna

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They were right, after a few weeks and a lot of hard work you were walking again, your legs and arms were still weak at times, but at least you could move around without needing Echo to follow you like a lost puppy dog -- though you do miss having him around, you miss having him curled up at your bedside holding your hand as you fell asleep, you actually kinda miss having him feed you, mostly since it always annoyed Crosshair. It was nice having someone care for you, and it was nice to get to know Echo better over this time, though you didn't actually learn too much about who he was since he still didn't tell you anything about his past, and you fearing that if the man who captured you knew who you were, you didn't want to put Echo or the others in any danger by telling them about your past either, in case this guy ever found you guys, you couldn't bear the thought of Echo being hurt by that scum. - Though you really wanted to tell him, tell him everything, most of all, how you felt about him, you didn't want to waste this chance by repeating your mistake, but you can't, for some reason, you just can't bring yourself to tell him, not yet anyway. -------------------- You walk into the small area of the ship that Tech had all his things set up in, hoping to get an answer to a question you had. "Hey, Tech, about having questions, um, I have one..." you call out.

"Oh Y/N, sure, how can I help?" he asks, motioning you to come over. "So, uh, the guy who...tortured me...um..well he used the poison for more than just trying to kill me, he wanted to remove something, and I need to know if it's true, what he said, and if it worked..." "Ok, what is it? I can scan your body and blood again to check what you're looking for," he asked curiously, but almost like he knew what you were talking about. "Promise me you won't tell anyone about this, not anyone!" you say with a concerned look, worried about having just one person find out you're a force user. "Not even Echo" he teases "What...uh...no, why would you ask?" you shoot back trying to hide your flustered expression. "Oh....no reason....so, what is it?" he says smirking before looking down at his datapad. "It's um....for...uh....Midi-chlorians." "Hm, let me check" - he takes some blood from you and puts it into a slot by his holoscreen pulling up some graphs and numbers you don't understand. "So, what does it say?" you question, eagerly awaiting his answer. "Well, it shows normal levels," he says comparing it to other graphs and numbers on the screen. -"But, for some reason, it has increased since the last test I took, interesting, is this what you meant?" he asks turning around to look at you.

"Not exactly, he said he'd take it from me, but if they're increasing that means he failed, right, but....no matter how hard I try I still can't use it." "The Force? Well to my limited knowledge it's not possible to take it away, you can reduce the Midi-chlorian levels, but if a user is strong enough it will return, you would just need to reach a level closer to your original before it would fully return. This is the information I've gathered from some old Jedi text." "Wait wait wait, I never said anything about the Force, and I'm no Jedi, and why do have old Jedi text anyway, that’s forbidden under the Empires new laws" you say nervously.

"No, you're not, but you were a strong Force user that worked for the Republic," he said adjusting his glasses. "What, no, uh why would you say that?!" you're starting to panic, wondering how he could possibly have figured this out and if everyone else knew... "It was in your file - if you're wondering how I found it, - your blood is stored in the old files from the Republic I have saved, this includes some medical files and Jedi text, along with files on important members of GAR, when I input some of your blood samples into the scanner months ago your file popped up. Oh, don't worry I didn't tell any of the others, your secret is safe with me." "Ah, I thought those files would have all been destroyed, thank you for not telling anyone."

"The files were destroyed by the Empire and made illegal, but I have a lot of old stuff stored on this thing from back before the Empire took power, it's all saved locally so they can't remove or access it unless they get their hands on this, but I've got plenty of safety features to protect this information," he says patting a terminal next to the holoscreen. "Thank you Tech, so...then about the Force, it'll come back?" "It never left, your Midi-chlorians were taken down a lot, when comparing to your old records, but the more I study these numbers I think that not even this is true, I can't be certain, since I can't find the poison metal in your system anymore, but I think that is interfering with the Midi-chlorian count somehow." "What do you mean?" "You should be able to use the Force, based off of other records including our own, it appears that the only thing that can actually remove Midi-chlorians from the body is by losing parts of your body, an example would be Echo, he lost an arm and both legs, his count is lower compared to his old files, but that hasn't happened to you. My conclusion would be that the metal is somehow preventing the scanner from picking up everything." "But if I can technically use the Force, why can't I use it now?" "I'm not sure...the Force seems to be something that is based not only in the body but also the mind. You went through a lot, and since your body is mostly back to normal, I would recommend focusing on your mind. -Echo told me you have a lot of nightmares about the torture, maybe start with that." he says before hearing his name being called from the other room by Hunter. "Tech, get over here, we need you to review some bounty missions," Hunter shouts over the sound of his brothers chatting. "You should go, thank you for the help Tech, I appreciate it, hopefully, I can figure out what's wrong," you say looking down at the ground wondering how you were supposed to stop these nightmares and regain your abilities.

"No worries, based on your files I think this is something you can handle, but if you ever need help from any of us, --especially Echo would be happy to help," he says smirking while walking off to join his brothers. -You roll your eyes before heading back to your room. ---------------------------------------------------------------- You're sitting on the floor, trying to meditate. -You are back in the dark building, you hear screaming, - it sounds familiar, you move closer to the screaming. - The closer you get the more you realize it's you screaming, it's your voice. There's talking, but you can't understand what they're saying, suddenly you hear a voice calling your name, you look around and there is no one. The voice gets louder and louder until you're snapped out of your meditation. --"Y/N, hey, do you copy, Y/N?!" Hunter's voice comes in over your com. It takes a moment for you to realize where you are and answer your com, "Sorry, what is it?" you ask slightly annoyed that you were snapped out of your meditation.

"Come join us, we're discussing a potential bounty mission and we need your help."

"Okay, I'll be right there," you say turning off your com while you get up and head towards the main area of the ship. Requesting your presence at one of their meetings wasn't something that happened before, usually, you hadn't been included in the past ones because of your health, you're still not back to normal, now suffering more from mental than physical pain, but hopefully, you could be of some use. -- "You called for me?" you ask walking into the area of the ship they always held their briefings in. “Ah Y/N, yes we require your help on this mission, Tech decoded the frequency of the bounty request and it is coming from an Imperial base, we need the credits to stock up on our supplies and for fuel, but if the Empire finds out who we are we could be in some trouble. You're not a Clone so we're going to need you to accept the information from them and later on drop off the bounty, are you willing to do this?" Hunter said motioning you towards the table. They all look at you, clearly concerned, especially Tech since he knows you use to be part of the Republic, but none of them knowing if you might have a bad past with the Empire. You know they need these credits badly, you overheard Tech and Echo talking the other day about how low they had run on credits and supplies after tending to you for so long and not being able to take the more dangerous bounties which always paid better. You don't know how much Tech knew, if he found out that you use to work under the direct command of the Chancellor who was now the Emperor, you were a powerful force user, you were also a bounty hunter before that, you'd been found by him because of your skills, you were hired to be a military leader within GAR, taking dangerous missions all the time, you served alongside some of the best battalions and Jedi. When order 66 happened you were expected to fulfill your duty, to die, being the right-hand woman of the Chancellor now turned Emperor you were a danger to him and his new Empire, but you refused to accept that fate and after escaping you deserted the military, changing your appearance and never looking back. Even though a friend of yours helped you fake your death, you didn't exactly want to march into an Imperial base and help them, but you did want to help the people who saved your life and that you've grown to care for. After a long pause and their faces growing more concerned, you finally answered. "Yes! - I owe you guys for saving and helping me, I'm also starting to like it here so I gotta do something besides waste your credits and supplies" you say with a confidant but sad grin on your face.

"Don't worry about that, but it's good to have you on board for this one," Hunter said giving you a datapad with the information on it. ---------------------------------------------------------

You all spend a few hours planning and going over all the information provided, you also decided to go over some details in case anything went wrong -- the autopilot dropped the ship out of hyperspace plotting its course for the planet where this meeting will take place, Tech takes over the landing of the ship, setting the ship down near the designated hanger of the Imperial base. --------------------------------------------------------- Anxiety rushes over you as you put on your armor, Echo comes over to your side looking concerned, "Y/N, are you sure you want to do this? We aren't going to force you to do this, clearly, there's something bothering you about this mission and -"

"Echo it's fine," you say coldly, cutting him off, causing a sad expression to fall over his face, "Y/N, you know you can tell me anything." "Not this Echo, trust me you're better off not knowing," you say putting on the last parts of your armor, putting on your helmet and activating the voice changer, hoping this will keep the Empire from knowing who you are, even with your change in appearance you rather be safe than sorry. Echo attempts to say something but you ignore him, making his sad expression turn into a frustrated one filling his face as you headed over to the main part of the ship, walking out the door as the others wish you good luck, Tech had connected their coms through your helmet so they could give you tips or information, and just in case anything goes wrong they'll know right away this time. --------------------------------------------------

You march over to the building housing the office where your meeting will take place, avoiding as many Imperial people as you can on your way there. -- You finally reach the office, knocking on the door identifying yourself as only a bounty hunter here for the mission they requested. "Come in," says the Imperial on the other side of the door, you push the button to let yourself in, walking in you notice a person standing off to the side of the desk, she looks very unfriendly her short black hair rounding her face in an unflattering way, the man behind the desk looked pretty standard, clean cut black hair with some gray showing, but when he turned to fully face you you noticed something -- he was a Clone!?! What the heck you thought...well good thing they sent you, otherwise, they'd be in a world of trouble, suddenly you notice on the side of his face there was a scar tracing around the side of his eye in a distinct cut, you'd seen this before, you'd seen him before. After you'd been tortured your memory had gotten pretty bad, not helped by the many sleepless nights caused by nightmares, but you know him you just can't place it, right as you think of who he is he introduces himself. "I'm Commander Cody, who are you?", you can't believe it Cody is working for the Empire, well actually you can, unlike Rex he wasn't one who defied orders, at least not easily or often, but you'd rather not think about this because you use to be good friends and now he's working for the ruling force in the galaxy that wants you dead, what would he do if he knew it was you? You notice just how miserable he looks, he always enjoyed being out on the front lines, not stuck behind a desk, you try to lighten the mood some with your classic sarcasm which always use to earn you a smile from him. "The bounty hunter you called, genius!" "You were able to track us, hmph, at least that means you're somewhat competent, what are your skills?" he asks coldly, not even attempting to play along with your sarcastic jab.

"Whatever you need them to be." you reply jokingly

--"You are a cocky one, show some respect" the lady standing to the side snorts out. "Pryce!" Cody snaps shooting an angry look at her, making her squirm with fear. "Anyway, what I need you to do is stop some terrorist forces that are attacking a mining company, our units have had little luck stopping them or finding their armories and leader, I need you to go there and stop them, destroy the armories, and any weapons you find, then bring me their leader, alive, understood?"

"So what you're saying is the Empire can't do its job and you need me? Well you’re in luck so don't worry I can handle this," you say crossing your arms. The lady named Pryce speaks up again, "You better not destroy or damage any of our mining equipment, understood??" basically yelling this at you, earning another death glare from Cody, before he reaches for a datapad on his table sliding it across to you. "That contains all the information you need, and don't tell anyone we hired you for this."

"Got it," you say quickly looking over the datapad scanning it with your helmet before getting up to leave, "Good to se-... um... meet you, Commander," you say hoping he didn't notice your slip up. Both of them just look at you not saying anything. --After you leave the room Pryce turns to Cody, "You think we can trust that one?' she asks.

"I trust her more than I do Stormtroopers that aren't Clones," he says with a huff.

"The Empire was right to decommission the Clones, they are old and aren't needed, not to mention most of them seem to be in bad moods," she says walking towards the door. "Well, when we have to deal with people of your kind it'll put us in a bad mood. Oh, and if you eventually want a position in the Empire I would recommend you try and get along with us, this mission isn't over yet so you'll be stuck with me for a while," he said leaning back in his chair folding his arm and smirking. "This isn't some mission, it's a simple job my father asked you to do, but since your Stormtroopers failed him, he made me come check in on you and you had hired this bounty hunter filth. If you still want us to work with the Empire might I suggest showing me some more respect Clone."

"Who are you going to work for Ms. Pryce? You don't even call the shots at Pryce Mining, your father does and I doubt he'd be pleased to hear about your behavior towards the Empire." Cody scoffs causing her to stop in the doorway, frozen with anxiety and fear.

"You're right, forgive me, it's been a long day. I will be in contact in a few standard days, otherwise, update me if you hear anything sooner from her," she said before walking out the door. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You're all sitting around a table looking over some holomaps and texted displayed on the holoscreen Tech had set up. "It seems these people attacking the Pryce Mining company are mostly angry locals, but, the weapons and tactics they are using are not their own, I can't trace any of the weapons, but I assume they are coming from a better-organized group with ties to the underground. Their tactics, on the other hand, are very similar to battle tactics used during the Clone Wars by the Republic Army."

"So what you're saying Tech is that these guys are getting outside help?" Hunter says hoping to get to the point Tech always seemed to drag out.

"Well yes, but I don't know who is helping them." "That doesn't change our objective, -- Echo you and Y/N go over the tactics some more, I'm having the both of you go with Crosshair to take out the armories in the southern sector, while Wrecker, Tech and I will take the northern sector."

"Are we sure Wrecker can comply with the stealth part of this mission?" you say jokingly.

"Just cause I hate em doesn't mean I can't do em," Wrecker huffs "All right everyone, cut the chatter, let's get to work, oh prepare yourselves, this mission won't be easy so you all better be on your a game," Hunter says before heading over to the cockpit with Tech. --------------- Echo and you look over the tactics some more, you notice them being similar to ones you had helped teach Saw and his rebellion during the Clone Wars. Rex and Anakin had drawn up most of these tactics. "Something about these tactics seems familiar," Echo says studying the information on the holomap you guys put together.

"They're similar to General Skywalker's and Rex's early battle tactics during the Clone Wars, I know cause I helped Rex and Y/O/N work on th---" suddenly he cuts himself off realizing he's just told you an important part of his past. You stand there in shock, realizing that the man sitting next to you has to be the same Echo you served with, no there's no mistake now, he is in fact the man you loved and served with on countless missions. You had spent some late nights together working on these tactics, and the way he says your name is the same, you can't help but let a shocked expression flow over your face, unsure if you should say anything, or if you should keep quiet... "Oh, um sorry, forget I said that," he blurts out quickly noticing your reaction. The room becomes awkwardly quiet, - filled with a stillness that was uncomfortable. You both look back to the information displayed on the holoscreens. Should you tell him, you think. Should I tell him everything...finally, -or should I spare him from everything, clearly he doesn't know it's you, how could he though, you don't act much like your old self and you look nothing alike. Even though it hasn't been all that long since the end of the war it was enough time to move on from the life before, not to mention Echo had died some years ago, or so you thought. You wonder where Echo's been all this time, how didn't you know he was back, that he was alive, how was he alive? -So many questions filled your mind, your breathing started to become as sporadic as your heartbeat, your brain was overloaded with all this information. Your legs started to tremble and you could feel a cold sweat breaking out across your body as your vision tunneled, you looked over to him for a short moment before everything went black and the only sound you heard was the painful crash of your head on the ground and Echo calling your name before calling for help.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope you enjoyed uwu if you would like to be added to the taglist please let me know. This will also be available on my ao3 and saved to my Masterlist

#clone trooper echo #clone trooper echo x reader #echo x reader #echo fic #the clone wars fic #majorshiraharu #the bad batch #the bad batch fic

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masterserris · 5 years

Text

all things considered, i think the blue lions ending is the “true” ending and at least the happiest of endings... we’ll see when the dlcs come out tho

spoilers under cut

THE TEA IS SIPPETHED

it’s literally the only ending in which dimitri lives and becomes the “savior king” and saves the continent and creates a new democratic government to fix the broken old noble/chest system.

edelgard dies but like. she did that to herself by LITERALLY STARTING A WAR AND KILLING THOUSANDS OVER 5 YEARS. like that bitch had it coming. she may have wanted a better future by getting rid of a corrupt church but fuck that bitch honestly she coulda gone about it in a better way

idk about the golden deer route, i havent seen much on it, but eh dimitri still dies and i think so does edelgard so it isnt much better. just slightly better than the black eagle route. church route is also in the same boat.

idk man dimitri and the blue lions literally did nothing wrong. the kingdom did nothing wrong, they only ever acted out of self defense. so fuck the empire honestly afjsafnjaksfajksfjaks for as wack as dimitri gets it ONLY happens because of MASSIVE ptsd, depression, and anxiety caused BY the empire, his step mother, and edelgard. like his step mom had his whole family killed in front of him, blamed it on duscur to destroy them, then she got killed by edelgard i think or smth. his dad LITERALLY was beheaded in front of him and people/buildings were burned too. like holy fuck he’s just a KID goddamn

anyways, the empire is literally the invading imperialistic army so. yeah. no. edelgard can’t just be like: “aw ur in the wrong dimitri!1!! you are a bad person to keep fighting back and killing more people!!111!! even tho i started all this shit and killed thousands of innocent people to begin with!1! i burned a whole village mother fucker!”

“UR A DELUSIONAL PRINCE FOR DEFENDING YOUR HOMELAND AND CHURCH ALLIES”

before killing him. like fuck. that. bitch. UGH.

like he didnt even know it was his step mom that did it until later when he finally takes the throne. it’s bullshit, all he knew is some bastards like the flame emperor were behind it, that’s all. he wanted Rightful revenge for the murder of his family, the destruction of garreg mach and the “death” of his teacher, AND the 5 year war that butchered the continent and his homeland.

dimitri is valid as FUCK for being pissed at her and the empire. wack. it’s all wack. he’s the best boy and the only route that leads to a good ending for him and the kingdom overall is the blue lions route so there.

he gets all crazed but honestly who wouldnt. dont gaslight the man for having a super fucked up life and stressful from like age 10 and on. he deserves peace for all he’s been through and he does a fucking fantastic job once he gets his shit together.

edit: based on all the likes i’ve been getting on this i can probably just assume that I Am Right About This

sorry i dont make the rules nsfjanfjannfjnnjk

also all the shit edelgard wanted? dimitri went and did anyways. he got rid of the bullshit nobility and made things more of a democracy. like all she did was kinda pointless and made a lot of enemies.

sure, byleth still has that thing in their chest but who GIVES A FUCK. they still live their life just fine like damn. rhea retires the fuck away regardless. so she aint being a tyrant anymore. byleth is in charge. like damn all the “good shit” from the black eagle playthrough is IN THIS ONE PLUS DIMITRI LIVES AND MORE PEOPLE LIVE AND HAVE GOOD LIVES.

so yeah

also also: empires always ALWAYS crumble as nations desire their independence. in a few decades after edelgard leaves you can BET your ass someone will wanna revolt from their control. imperialism never works forever folks. look at all of human history for that example. the other nations in fodlan should remain free.

i think by the end dimitri rules all the lands in fodlan? mainly bc the empire just got dethroned and they are destabilized (the alliance is also destabilized but i think they are mostly ok), so it makes sense he would rule/join the two (empire/kingdom) together for mutual growth. but they are still at least sorta recognized as their own territories. they aren’t just wiped from history like edelgard did ffs.

ALSO. ANOTHER THING (sorry i keep editting this bc i have so many thoughts)

THE FINAL FUCKING CUTSCENE OF BLUE LIONS

AFTER FUCKING EVERYTHING HE OFFERS EDELGARD HIS HAND. EVEN AFTER THE WAR. AFTER SHE TURNED INTO A FUCKING DEMON AND TRIED TO KILL HIM. AFTER. FUCKING. EVERYTHING. HE STILL GIVES HER ONE LAST CHANCE

HE FUCKING MEANS IT TOO, THIS AIN’T SOME BULLSHIT PLOY.

BUT NO, SHE FUCKING STABS HIM WITH THE KNIFE HE GAVE HER ALL THOSE YEARS AGO. SO HE HAS TO KILL HER WITH HIS LANCE. HE ISN’T STARTLED OR SURPRISED. JUST HURT.

STONE COLD AFTER BEING BETRAYED BY HER OVER AND OVER AGAIN. HE JUST RIPS THAT SHIT OUT AND DROPS IT ON THE FLOOR. HE’S DONE WITH HER AND NEEDS TO MOVE ON.

BUT! BUT! BYLETH LOOKS BACK AT HER AND SO DOES DIMITRI, BUT BYLETH STOPS HIM. DON’T LOOK BACK. MOVE ON. THE FUCKING HAND HOLD. LIKE DAMN. BEST BUDS FOR LIFE. THEY GOT EACH OTHER’S BACK LIKE NO ONE ELSE.

AND THEY MOVE ON INTO THE LIGHT TO THE CHEERING CROWDS BECAUSE AT LONG FUCKING LAST THE WAR IS OVER AND THEY STILL HAVE THEIR INTEGRITY.

after all the bullshit, they still have the highest moral ground and actually fix things. even after offering their enemy peace.

----------------------------------------------

after the cutscene!! the epilogue!!

LIKE MOTHER FUCKER, THIS IS ALL THE PROOF YOU NEED THAT HE IS THE BEST BOY AND HAS THE BEST ROUTE FUCK OFF

DEMOCRACY: CHECK

HELPING THE DISADVANTAGED: CHECK

LISTENING/HELPING TO MINORITIES/FOREIGNERS/DUSCUR: CHECK

CORRUPTION FREE: CHECK

BYLETH IS FINE AND IS THE NEW ARCH BISHOP FOR A BETTER CHURCH, RHEA JUST PEACES OUT: CHECK

MOVING PAST HIS MENTAL ILLNESS AND PTSD FOR THE BETTERMENT OF HIMSELF AND OTHERS/THE KINGDOM: CHECKITY FUCKING CHECK

THE ABSOLUTE LEGEND HIMSELF, DIMITRI

edit edit: also look at the murals specifically, i’m gonna point out some shit real quick.

first, dimitri’s:

It’s in nature. Birds and trees and leaves. Calm and harmonious.

Children are playing and smiling, food is being passed out by the soldiers to the people. they are thankful.

byleth is addressing the people, writing out reforms and decrees, making sure things are aright.

the people of duscur are literally at the side of dimitri, the king.

looks like people from the alliance are on the far left of the mural, they are carrying gifts but they dont seem unhappy about it. just. normal.

dimitri is lower than everyone on the canvas besides a person on their knees asking for help and literal children. he is seated down at THEIR level, smiling AT them and doesn’t mind the kid pulling at him and playing. very relaxed. he’s sitting on just a regular ol’ tree stump. no throne. no opulence. just him, bc that’s all that’s needed.

NOW, LET’S LOOK AT EDELGARD’S OOHH BOY:

she is the tallest above them all, next to her is a divine figure, she is holding a staff as well. she is power. she is above all other peoples. she is STEPPING on a national flag with impunity. she doesn’t CARE she is the one in charge and no one can stand against it.

everyone from the other nations are bowing their heads and being submissive, but they certainly dont look happy. they look anxious as hell. their kingdoms are literally being trampled by the emperor. she is in her grand castle, gold and red and opulent. power and riches and rule.

the common folk, however look up to her. they see her as a second saint seiros. a better one. hence the divine figure next to her. she is like a god to them. not ideal. they seem happy, but no. they are looking to her for guidance in a troubled time caused by HER actions.

let’s not forget the mage in the back holding a knife. things are far from peaceful.

the two very different moods of these pictures say all. one is true peace where everyone seems to be thriving with a compassionate ruler.

the other is domineering and crushing in presence. people are anxious about the future with violence still on the horizon.

yeah, no. blue lions >>>> black eagles.

(i’m currently playing through golden deer which is looking p good so far, def better than black eagles and then im gonna do the church route. we’ll see how THAT goes anfjanjfnnfasjns)

edelgard stans dont interact

#spoilers under cut #fe16 #thoughts #fe #fe three houses #dimitri #edelgard

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move2rabldcur · 5 years

Note

i really wish they didn’t downplay hux’s intelligence and had him killed , like he’s a canon 9.5/10 in smarts , he would’ve known that not leaving with finn and poe would be a DEATH sentence , god the absolute missed chance of having the space nazi as a strategic hostage like... am i the only one? he’s your muse, what do you think about it?

Don’t call him a nazi then go on about him getting on the Falcon in the same ask it makes me feel dirty, call fascists what they are but don’t be uwu space nazi, alright man?

I made this blog with no plans for a redemption arc like he blew the Hosnian system that’s a lot of people died and scattered across the Galaxy without a place to call home, Hosnian is nothing more than asteroid belt now. I don’t think that’ll ever be something that’s just forgiven easily so if he were to get on the Falcon with rest of our intrepid heroes that would be a start redemption arc I’m not 100% sure I want to see, he’s a good villain and him maybe slipping more into the role of chaotic neutral where it’s just “I don’t care about the villains, I don’t care for the heroes, I’m here for me.” so he’s not really on anybody’s side but his own I feel like it’s a good middle ground.

Yeah, he would have been great to give strategies or to improve qualities of ships and weaponry, he could have been the one to explain The Sith fleet since they’re now utilizing the technology he came up with for Starkiller base so he’d know it fairly well and give us actual explanations but that movie had no explanations what-so-ever due to it being a clutter mess, therefore he would be an anomaly, also wayyy too many characters someone they had to kill someone off to introduce another. I mean the lie he gave to Pryde wasn’t too bad but it could have been better, I just don’t think he’d get on the Falcon willingly he was born into the empire it’s his way of life, a dogshit way of life, but a way of life nonetheless, he’s fine with betraying Ren but to actually runaway from the Order that would be a little much for him, I mean there was a chance of him maintaining control and power and he took it and died for hubris.

I know I said Armitage would not be forgiven but guess what that’s not a necessarily an ingredient for redemption, it helps, sure but the definition of redemption is; the action of saving or being saved from sin, error, or evil. Guess what he’s living with his mistakes now babbyyyy

For big war crimes, come big long roads to redemption and here how I would do it personally.

A good redemption arc for Hux would be him learning better and doing better, again 9.5 intelligence, none of this “I fell in love so I’m chill now” (in general thing not dunking on Ren) or death = redemption that movies love to do. Here are the questions I have asked myself, what would make this a good arc:

1 (Where should this arc start?

2 (What would he have to learn?

3 (How much he’d have to change?

1 (Where should this arc start?: I know I already said he’d not get on the Falcon willingly but getting on the Falcon is the best place to start, maybe Finn or Poe rolled higher than a 2 on their persuasion check, maybe they took him as a hostage to make sure they won’t be shot down (bad plan tbh everyone is treated as expendable in the first order) maybe Finn recalls something about how Hux grew up in the unknown regions so they take him for information purposes (I keep seeing people say they are gonna tortured for info but the Resistance is not the Empire and that’s a war crime they would never; Hux is the kind of guy you just have to annoy enough and he’ll cave like chill out.) Either way, get him on that ship. Him being on the Falcon forces him into a spot where his survival relies on our heroes survival, so his reasoning to help is selfish which would be in character.

I agree with what was said about him in the back of that one comic, he’s not justified in any way but he is a product of his environment and he needs to get away from there to have a chance at change.

I don’t think Hux would get along with Chewie, but seeing him playing a game of dejarik with him would be great. I think it’ll take some time for him and BB8 to get along with one another; I see BB8 rolling over his feet constantly. C3p0 and Hux would agree on a lot of things since Poe and Finn keep wanting to do bad ideas and both of them would be stressed the fuck out. D-O abused droid meets abused man, love it.

2 (What would he have to learn?: For starters to embrace individuality. The First Order is so divided of individuality on purpose, they strip you of all singularity and make you earn it through rank, sure he didn’t have it as bad most of the troops because he was Brendol’s son and most the troops viewed him as spoiled (Archex) despite him being abused, maybe they didn’t know, maybe these kids were just used to violence that they don’t know better and that it is wrong to treat your child the way Brendol did, most of these troops were taken away when they were babies so they have no sense of family. Individuality is something Hux learned to fear and to learned to suppress, I don’t think there is an off-work Armitage I think there’s only General Hux which is why he’s an obsessive workaholic with sleep issues; The Order doesn’t need or want him to be a person they need him to lead and inspire their army. We can show his progress with interactions Finn, Hux just keeps calling him Fn-2187, Finn get rightfully upset with him and have that conflict there until around the end of the movie and Hux actually start using his name. If you want this to be a Gingerpliot ship fic you could have Poe help him explore elements of himself like things he likes, how to relax, or his sexuality. Hux being a 34/35 virgin, guess what, not much experimentation happening there, and Poe the space himbo is the right man for every man and woman, he’s bi in my mind.

Something else he has to learn is how to form non-professional relationships, you know how to have casual friends and how to interact with others in a non-military way and to learn to trust other people. He needs to learn how to be a person so bad I can’t stress this enough.

The last thing is learning the Empire is wrong about the Republic and the galaxy isn’t the way they say it is, he was raised on stories of great heroes Imperials and how the Empire saved the galaxy from the chaos of the Clone Wars which sounds like revised history and we should call them on it. He need to know that not everyone in the galaxy is as cruel as the Order and people will do things for others for nothing in return, the Resistance would be a good place for that, however, his mother died during the New Republic’s siege on his homeworld Arkanis (really sore topic for him), well mmh, that’s what the popular head canon is and I dig it cause us an explanation why he hates the Republic and by extension the Resistance so much to have him to learn to separate the two would do him some good.

3 (How much he’d have to change?: He would have to change a lot and it will be for the better, of course, for him to join the Resistance he’d have to relinquish his rank as general and to give up on power, like he doesn’t need so much of it anymore, his life no longer depends on his usefulness and nobody is out waiting for him to fail as well, to have that change in foundation where he can start again and slowly gain trust would be where we see the most change, of course it wouldn’t happen until he learns to care for others, chill on the murder, and give up on his Imperial ideals. His new rank within the Resistance should be an intelligence officer and engineer that’d the perfect rule for Hux. 100% he should live with his actions and learn thats not okay and do better, he may never be forgiven for his actions against the Hosnian system, but it’s about trying, successes is a big bonus he may never have.

Im going to stop here cuz my hands really hurt but I hope you’re satisfied don’t be scared to ask questions.

#❛ 𝙋𝘼𝙏𝘾𝙃 𝙏𝙃𝙀𝙈 𝙏𝙃𝙍𝙊𝙐𝙂𝙃. ≽ * ask.#armitage hux #general hux #this is going in the tags so who ever sent this can see it #sorry for any typos #❛ 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝙋𝙃𝘼𝙉𝙏𝙊𝙈 𝙈𝙀𝙉𝘼𝘾𝙀 𝙊𝙁 𝙋𝙀𝙊𝙋𝙇𝙀. ≽ * ooc.

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emperorsfoot · 5 years

Link

Well, I updated.

It’s garbage. But I wrote the chapter, like, three times and this was by far the best version. You guys will come to realize that I’m not actually a good author.

...

Horde Prime was rarely bothered with every little signal sent from every little unit in his army. The cloning crèches produced 45-thousand units per batch. Four batches every Standard Imperial Year, meant 180-thousand units a year. Personal signals from almost 200-thousand soldiers were mostly ignored.

Horde Prime only listened to communications from four signals.

The four clones he observed to be competent, resourceful, and clever enough to be useful in command positions. The four he personally promoted to his cabinet.

So, when he received a signal from one he stripped from his cabinet, banished to the front lines, and was presumed dead, Prime paid attention. From the Adarion system. A single yellow star, orbited by three planets: Preternia, Infinita, and Eternia. Eternia was the world where Prime sent 66694-42-003:Hordak. To try and put down another uprising by that ever-annoying thorn, Randor, the self-proclaimed ‘King of Eternia’.

66694-42-003 never returned from that deployment and Horde Prime assumed him killed in action.

But here was a signal from that same KIA brother. Proof that he did not die in service to the great Horde Empire, as he was supposed to. And a distress signal no less, begging for aid, proof that Horde Prime was right to strip him of his rank and powers. He was weak. Useless. And now, a liability.

A mistake had been made here, and mistakes must be corrected.

Horde Prime analyzed the message personally.

It was encrypted with an older code. One that was in use during the height of 66694-42-003’s cabinetcy, when Prime allowed him to be ‘Lord Hordak’. It made sense that 66694-42-003 would be using it. Removed so long from the Empire and his Brother, he wouldn’t know the more recent –more secure- encryptions.

But that also meant that others could intercept the signal and decode it for themselves. After all, the reason they changed and updated their encryptions were to prevent a hostile faction from ever being able to break through their communications.

If 66694-42-003’s message held any value beyond just the desperate call for help from a defective clone, Prime wanted to be the first to know.

It was a short message. Cut off abruptly before a full debrief could be given. Apparently 66694-42-003 was inexplicably pulled into a shadow dimension from which he could not return on his own. He needed Prime to open a portal from his end and free 66694-42-003. Pathetic. There was also some pathetic attempt to appeal to Prime by attempting to conquer the world in the shadow dimension, but his progress was blocked by hostile natives with inexplicable powers, blah, blah, blah. Please send reinforcements. The natives had a champion with a magical sword that-

That that was where the message was cut off. The signal lost. Whatever ‘portal’ he was sending the transmission through snapped shut.

Prime sat up straight.

‘A champion with a magical sword that-‘

A champion with a magical sword.

A champion.

Singular.

One.

Prime had gone up against champions with magical swords before. Two of them. Not one. One of them, he managed to defeat. Defeat and take the sword for himself. The other one… got away…

It was absurd to believe that defective and weak 66694-42-003 found the one that got away. Completely and utterly absurd.

But the message did come from the Adarion System, the same solar system they came from. The same solar system… Zed died in…

‘You said you could heal him!’

‘Anillis-! I’m sorry! He was too far gone.’

He tried to raze that system. But he was new at this back then. Inexperienced and angry. Clumsy.

He managed to get He-Ro, and He-Ro’s sword. But, Mar- the other one –got away.

Not just got away, but managed to take one of the planets from the Adarion System with her. The fourth planet –the name escaped him at the moment but he remembered it being there, then not being there anymore.

It was utterly absurd to think that Hordak found the one that got away.

But the location was correct, and the description seemed to fit.

Prime could not ignore this.

If there was even the slightest chance that it led him to the one who got away.

Tapping a button on the arm of his throne, Prime opened a paged the bridge of the Velvet Glove. “Change course.” He commanded. “Take us to the Adarion System.”

“Yes, Sir!” Came the answering voice almost immediately. Then, more hesitantly. “Which planet, Your Grace? Eternia?”

Eternia was the metaphorical ‘problem child’ of the Adarion System. It seemed like twice every generation there was a new rebellion that had to be put down. First Hiss, then Miro, then Randor, then Randor again, and then… the defector Randor’s brother seduced to their side…

Prime stood from his throne. Descending the stairs he retreated into his Inner Sanctum. His own private chambers above the Velvet Glove.

Eternia was a frequent problem in the Adarion System, but 66694-42-003’s signal had not come from Eternia. It came from empty space. Between Eternia and Infinita, in the darkness where Etheria used to be.

The one that got away…

Crossing the dimly lit room, Prime gentle, almost affectionately caressed the side of a tank. Not the same as the industrial vitrine used in his cloning crèches. This one was smaller, narrower, and did now bow out like the cloning tanks. This thank was not meant to grow a clone, but rather preserve a body. Prime kept it draped with a sheet. Most days he could not bear to look at it. But he never had it removed either. He could not bear to part with… what was inside.

Through a gap in the fabric, the tip of a red wing could just barely be seen.

Prime passed by this tank and continued on to the far wall. Considering the span of his unnaturally long life, Prime had not collected or kept many mementoes. Neither trophies or keepsakes. He kept the body in the tank, and he still strummed his baliset from time to time. But aside from those, his Inner Sanctum was markedly bare of personal items.

He did, however, keep one trophy.

The Sword.

More accurately, a Sword.

One of two.

Pulled from the cold, dead, hand of Gray. A Prince of Eternia and the one Chosen to wield the Sword of Power as He-Ro. Killed on the field of battle by Anillis Kur. But he was not the one Anillis wanted. He wanted the one that got away.

The one that promised him she could save his son’s life. Heal all ailments and return Zed to the level of health he enjoyed before they left Revena. But she lied. She didn’t. The Sword did not heal him. Zed died. And when satisfaction was demanded, it was not She-Ra, but He-Ro that faced him in the open field. The other, choosing to flee, and take her planet with her.

Prime didn’t just lose his son. He lost his vengeance.

But not this time.

66694-42-003:Hordak found her. Found her and left a signal for Prime to follow back to coordinates. Where Etheria used to be. And instructions on how to get to her. How to cut through the fabric of space and reality. Into the shadow dimension she cowered in.

Cut through.

With the blade of steel and light of a legendary Sword.

Prime lifted the Sword of Power off the wall. Hefting it in his hands. Revenanti were very strong in proportion to their size. Every other race he came across was surprised and impressed by the deceptive physical strength of him and his clones. But the Sword always felt heavy in his hands. Heavier than its size would imply. Heavy as if its weight came from more than just the hammered metal of a blade and a gilded and Runestone fitted hilt.

It was the Power of this sword that allowed Prime to prolong his life.

Now it was going to lead Prime to its twin. To the one that got away.

…

Nobody really knew what to think when the night sky suddenly lit up with light. So bright it outshone Eternia’s two moons. Cutting across the sky. A blade of light.

The first panic stricken thought was that it was some kind of Horde attack. That the Empire had grown weary of constantly putting down rebellion and decided to just destroy the planet and be done with it.

But Horde Prime did not believe in superweapons. He preferred massive armies with lots of moving pieces. Small parts that could be easily replaced. If some lucky rebel made a shot down a superweapon’s exhaust port, the whole thing blew. But if some lucky rebel managed to kill a cabinet Lord, then he could just be replaced.

So, the blade of light could not be a Horde attack.

Some realized this faster than others.

Some realized it had to be something else. Something more.

The Lord of Snake Mountain saw the light and looked deeper. Looked for a source. After all, light had to come from somewhere, and this was not the light of Adarion, Eternia’s sun. Nor was it the sun’s light reflected off either of the moons. This was its own. Coming from a source that was not a star.

And inside that light, was a signal.

Encrypted, obviously. Not everyone would pick it up. Even if they did, they wouldn’t understand it. It was a Horde encryption, but an older one. Not in use anymore. So, not an official Imperial transmission.

A distress signal.

A cry for help.

Except clone troopers did not ask for help. Help was for the weak.

But the identification stamp on the message gave him pause. The Lord of Snake Mountain re-running the decryption program and double checking his results in the Imperial issued datapad his late partner left with him. Both the second pass with the decryption and the secondary datapad confirmed the ID was correct –at least, not faked, or a mistranslation. Former cabinet Lord Hordak, serial number 66694-42-003.

Running a palm over the smooth dome of his head, the Lord of Snake Mountain stared at those last three digits. Zero-Zero-Three. Hordak.

Hode’s Zero-Zero-Three.

He only met the clone twice. Briefly each time.

The first not long after Hode was killed. As highly as the older clone spoke of his younger brother, the Lord of Snake Mountain hoped to find a new ally. Hode’s protégé and heir. At least, that was what Hode lead him to believe. But what he met was just another clone trooper. A tool of Prime’s. There was the shadow of an intelligent mind capable of independent thought. But only a shadow.

They crossed paths again after Hordak had been deposed from the cabinet. Stripped of his rank and name, returned back to only his serial number. Sent to the front lines of another one of Randor’s ill-fated revolts. He hoped to find Zero-Zero-Three of a different opinion then. Prime cast him out and sent him away. Surely the clone must have realized how little the Emperor cared for him, or any of his brothers. Prime called his clones ‘little brother’, but they weren’t much more than dolls to him. Playthings that could be thrown away the moment they were broken.

Zero-Zero-Three did make his way to Snake Mountain, and the Lord did hope that Hode’s favorite might join him. Imp was certainly glad to see him.

But they never got the chance to exchange words. Inexplicably, for reasons the Lord of Snake Mountain was still trying to find explanation for, Zero-Zero-Three was teleported away. A blade of light cutting through the very fabric of space and time and pulling Zero-Zero-Three, along with Imp, through the rift.

He had hoped Zero-Zero-Three had learned his lesson. That Prime could not be trusted. That Prime had to be removed.

But here he was, calling for his big Brother. Begging Prime to come get him. Take him back. Look, I conquered this world for you. Please come pick me up. And send reinforcements. The natives are making things difficult for me. They have this champion with a magical sword-

The Lord of Snake mountain was glad the message cut off there. When he was a younger man, he would have jumped up and been ready to rush off at the mere mention of a magical sword. But that was years ago. He was older now. Older and jaded. He made his grab for a magical sword, and in the process, lost his face.

His face, his identity, and his partner.

‘But- the sword-!’

‘But your life, Keldor!’

He wasn’t ‘Keldor’ anymore. Now he was the Lord of Snake Mountain, the Lord of Destruction, Revenant of Hate… Skeletor.

Skeletor lacked the means of opening a portal and answering Zero-Zero-Three’s call. Only a Sword could open a portal and Skeletor did not have a Sword.

But Prime did.

Horde Prime could open a portal and bring Zero-Zero-Three back.

If only Prime cared about Zero-Zero-Three enough to do that. But Prime cared about nothing and no one. He would not answer Zero-Zero-Three’s call.

It was a moot issue.

Nothing would ever come of it.

…

The Velvet Glove came out of hyperspace just within the Adarion System.

Prime hated this place.

Any time any action was required in this despicable spit of space, he always found someone else to send. Hode. Or Hordak. Or, literally, anyone else.

But he could not send anyone else for this. This required the Sword, and Prime was not going to let the Sword out of his sight.

The Lycra Pant and Leather Vest appeared half a moment after the Velvet Glove, materializing from out of hyperspace. Prime had to come here to use the Sword, but that didn’t mean he planned to be the one to go down to the planet –a planet he hated- that’s what the clones were for.

Standing on the bridge of the Velvet Glove, Prime watched Infinita, and Eternia pass by the main viewport. Neither planet was their destination. Their heading placed them in an empty space inside Adarion’s circumstellar habitable zone. Few knew it, Prime never included it in official Imperial records, but –originally- this system did not have three planets, but four. The fourth one vanished along with its guardian. But Prime still remembered its coordinates, its orbit within the system’s sphere of gravity.

The bridge crew surreptitiously shot each other confused or uneasy glances. Those that worked closely with the Emperor –his private staff, his cabinet, and his bridge crew- knew that their Brother was prone to bouts of temper and impulses made in anger.

But this did not seem like that.

Moving the Velvet Glove and her complement of soldiers, along with the Lycra Pant with all her batwings and pilots, and the Leather Vest full of drop-ships and troops, to an empty bit of finite space where there was nothing there. Ignoring three other planets within the system, one of which was an almost never-ending source of work for the military. This was erratic and irrational. But not an episode of temper.

In fact, Prime seemed very calm and collected. Deceptively so. Quiet.

Holding non-standard issue sword in one hand.

“Cut the engines.” He commanded suddenly. “Bring us to a stop here.”

His bouts and fits might make his staff and crew wary, but they were not incompetent. There was no hesitation. Even if they didn’t understand it, they were sure their Brother had his reasons for this erratic behavior. The main bridge pilot decelerated, switching to forward thruster to compensate for the direction of their motion in the zero-gravity space, and bringing the Velvet Glove to a full stop. The communications officer sent a signal to both the Lycra Pant and the Leather Vest to do the same.

Within moments, the whole fleet came to a full stop in the middle of nowhere.

Empty space floated in front of them.

“Charge the hyperdrive.” Was Prime’s next order.

He lifted the Sword he held and crossed the space to a segment of the main command console. Forward, center.

It was strange that Prime would move the fleet somewhere else immediately after bringing them to a full stop in the middle of nowhere. But when the Emperor commanded, they obeyed.

“The new coordinates, Your Grace?” Asked the navigator.

“No new coordinates.” Prime informed them. “Charge up the hyperdrive and funnel the dilithium into the forward canon.”

The bridge crew of the Velvet Glove, Horde Prime’s hand chosen group of clones than ran his ship, never hesitated. But Horde Prime had never ordered them to funnel hot, active, charged dilithium from an active hyperdrive, into the ship’s weapons.

“Your… Grace…?”

Prime turned to the one that had spoken. Glowing eyes blazing a silent warning. How dare they question a direct order from him. He was more than their Big Brother. He was their creator. He made them in his own image. Gave them the gift of sentience so that they could better serve him. This job was to serve. Not to question.

The one that spoke swallowed a lump of nerves. “Y-yes, Your Grace.”

Together, the Chief Engineer and Science Officer overrode the safeties and emergency shut-offs that prevented any leakage in the hyperdrive core. Engines and pistons groaning under the pressure and strain they were being put under. A choir of stressed equipment and hardware. Every console and screen on the command bridge lit up with alerts and warnings that the core was open, the hyperdrive was compromised, the dilithium was leaking, the forward cannon was being flooded by charged photons that could bend spacetime.

Prime inserted the Sword into a slot on the console.

All new alerts lit up across the screens.

“Fire the forward canon along the trajectory of these coordinates.” He commanded.

Uneasy as it made all of them, there was no hesitation again. Their Brother gave an order and he already made it clear that he did not appreciate his orders being questioned.

The canon fire streaked across the empty space in front of the Velvet Glove. An energy and particle beam that was usually red in color was stained an uneasy mottle orange and yellow. Prime giggled the Sword in its slot, aligning it better with the non-Imperial tech rigged into the console. The stone of the hilt of the sword glowed, and the beam outside changed color again. Shifting from orange and yellow, to sickly green, then blue, then white.

In space, if a beam did not impact with anything solid, it just kept going. Shooting through space until it finally did collide with something.

But this one didn’t.

It cut through the empty space, like cutting through fabric. Edges of darkness fraying like threads and peeling back, curling away from the cut like an overly tight knit. A tattered tare opening up in empty space. And through the tare was darkness. No stars. No planets. No light. Save one sphere. Orbited by several smaller moons. A planet. One single planet floating in otherwise empty despondent darkness.

It had been centuries since Prime saw it last. But it was an image that was burned into the back of his mind. A place synonymous with the loss of this son.

Etheria.

Somewhere on that world was the one that got away.

“Ground the dilithium.” Prime ordered. “Stabilize the rift. I want it to remain open.”

The Chief Engineer and Science Officer had to do some quick calculating and jerryrigging to fulfill their Brother’s command. But when the forward canon was shut down, the rift remained open.

Everyone paused a moment. Staring at it.

Did- did Horde Prime just break the universe and creature a portal to another world?

“Open a hailing channel to the Leather Vest.” He commanded. “Red Hord is to take his ship and his forces to that planet, retrieve unit 66694-42-003, and if he finds an alien female that wields a legendary blade of light, bring her to me. I want her alive. I want her sword. And if there is anyone on that rock she cares about, I want them too.”

Alive. So that he could kill them in front of her. So that She-Ra could know what it felt like to hold her most cherished person in her arms as the life drained out of them, and realize that there was nothing she could do. That the universe was cruel, and cold, and she was helpless. Hopeless.

#spop #horde prime #skeletor #evil horde #horde empire #imperial horde #anillis kur #keldor #she-ra #eternia #etheria #despondos #angst #ao3 #fan ficiton #RenkonNairu #a song of steel and light #prodigal brother

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biggestdeakenergy · 5 years

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Star Wars story

me and my friends wrote a Star Wars story, so here it is so far :)

Star Wars: Episode X: The Empire’s Defeat

Valek Seer’s POV:

I gripped my helmet to my side. I watched as another puny planet got obliterated. I tapped my foot against the floor anxiously. I typed into my keypad to call over my favorite droid.

It’s been 10 minutes. He hasn’t arrived. That’s unusual, usually all of my droids respond under 5 minutes. I sighed heavily. That droid was usually the fastest to respond, because he’s like a therapist to me. I paced down the hallway to the droid repair center, entering R41M05 into the keypad, the droid’s number, to track it. I tapped my finger against the keypad, then, it was revealed that the droid wasn’t present on this ship. I ran towards the cockpit. I stood behind Commander Zedd and quickly announced,

“Find R4M105. Find that droid, now.” I gripped the back of his chair, and everyone started to feed that information. One of the generals shouted

“I JUST WET MY PANTS also I found the droid, and it seems like he isn’t alone”

‘’What?” I ran towards the wet-panted general, and stared at his screen.

“Get into his cameras.” I demanded. The screen then switched onto R41M05’s point of view, and then I saw Coren Sega. How the hell did he get there? Did the droid help him? That traitor. Coren Sega has worked beside me ever since my father passed down supreme leader to me. He was very subtle, but always obeyed me. Traitors. How did he even get the droid to obey him? Droids respond to me and only me. The general began to whine.

“Darnit I pooped. Also, would you like us to send a team to fetch the droid and the commander?” My gut instinct would be yes, but maybe I could find out where he was planning to go.

“No. No, not yet. Just keep the droid’s camera on.” I stomped away. I muttered under my breath,

“That asshole, he took my favorite droid”

Raymus (R41M05)’s POV:

Oh my lord, I cannot believe what we just did. The small space of the escape pod was making me extremely scared, one of the only emotions I’ve taught myself. I felt a small shock behind my eyes but decided to ignore it. “Coren Sega! What the hell did we just do!”

“We’re starting over.” Coren looked back just to say that then continued his focus on space in front of him. The escape pod was incredibly tiny and very outdated. It didn’t even have autopilot!

“Coren we just- you can’t just ignore what we did! I don’t know why, why did I even follow you? Oh my lord…”

“How can you even stand the first order? Don’t you just want to run away from them? They’ve destroyed countless planets and innocent people. Some of them even wet their pants! Plus, I hijacked your system so you wouldn’t stop me.”

“Oh the things you make me do, you even gave me a name! What kind of hoodlum would do that! I can’t believe you, you-you-you-” I almost literally blew a fuse from overheating.

“Well I can’t run away by myself. I barely even know where we are going. So I need you to - “ Coren turned around and saw that I was glitching and stopped the pod for a minute to fix the fuse.

“Thank you, but why couldn’t you just wait until Valek Seer came around to you, you could’ve just been friends-!” I sighed loudly, annoyed, yet another emotion I taught myself, and crossed my arms. “I’m not going to stop you, Coren. I trust you can make your own choices.” With that, I sat on the floor in the back of the pod and continued to be annoyed.

Skyleit Sabeforth POV:

I stepped out of my little hut, and into the bright sunlight. I had woken up earlier than usual, so I wanted to make the most of my free time. According to the leaders of the resistance, after my mum died I was the last Jedi left And that meant I had to spend everyday training and growing my connection with the force. I was fine with it but it could be stressful, and often got lonely.

I began my walk through the dense forest to just sit and think for a bit, when I heard some strange clunking noises. I looked up, and saw what looked like a burning escape pod tearing through the sky. My gut screamed at me to follow, so I did.

I raced through trees, tripping on roots and throwing rocks out of my way with the force. If the pod was burning and there were people in there, they might die. If I had the chance to save them, I had to try. I checked the sky again, and based on how low they were, I should be able to get to them once they crash. Following the pod, I kept running. I knew there was a pilot because it would sometimes violently vear right or left.

It hit the ground and bounced to an aggressive stop. The thought that they could be enemies was only just hitting me now, and because they were in a sort of clearing, I stopped just inside the tree line.

Two people stumbled out coughing. I took half a step forward, but then one of them began shouting at the other. His voice was robotic, and he had the same design as older imperial droids. Only this one looked newer and cleaner.

I turned and ran again. As fast as my legs would carry me, all the way back to my hut. It was there I contacted my uncles, Poe and Finn. If anyone could help me figure out what was going on, it’d be them.

Coren Sega POV:

My mind was racing. The pod began to flash red lights and began to hurdle towards a planet. I knew nothing about the pods, especially how this one was outdated, so I shifted to the control pad and switched a few buttons. They all just made buzzing noises and more blinding lights appear.

“This rusty piece of trash - “ I muttered, flicking switches. The pod began to aggressively shake. I gripped the panel, and got into the chair in front of it, buckling myself in. The planet was getting closer, I turned to Raymus, he paced around the pod, having a spasm.

“I knew this would happen! Why did you even begin to think this was a good idea?! Oh, we’re going to die!”

“Just sit down and buckle up!” I gripped the chair and my sight was flooded with darkness.

Raymus POV:

The pod crashed and Coren hit his head on the roof, causing him to black out. I knew he’d be back up since I checked his heart rate, but I still couldn’t believe how dumb he had been!

After about 5 minutes, Coren finally started to come around. He sat up, and held where he hit his head in his hand.

“Did you buckle up?” Coren said angrily in a sarcastic tone. He looked me up and down. “Well you look fine, so you listened. You listened to the idiot, thank you.” I sighed at his dumb comment, but it admittedly sounded very glitchy. I scanned the rest of my body, but there was no sign of damage.

“Coren, did you get cut on your head? Your hair is matted around where you hit it.” My voice was very glitchy but I decided to ignore it and focus on the task at hand. The task being making sure Coren Sega was alright.

“No no, I think I’m fine-” He began, he then took his hand away from his head, and his hand was coated with blood. He looked at his hand, and started to feel his head again, trying to find the injury “Nevermind.” I paced over to him and softly put my hand on his head. His hair was messy, and blotches of blood led to the back of his head. I was going to feel where the injury was, but Coren gripped my wrist. “Hey-”

“Hey, look, calm down. I just want to help you. This is the reason why Lord Valek Seer assigned me to protect you. It’s in my coding.” I brushed Coren’s hand off my wrist and continued to feel for the injury. Coren sat there, visibly confused.

“Why did Valek even assign you to protect me?” Coren shifted as I found the injury and began to wrap it with a bandage.

“Who did what?” I said too much that I was supposed to, dangit. I already knew I was a terrible liar so I was trying to cover up my panic with confusion. “I said nothing, what do you mean?”

“You heard what I said. Why out of all the people in the empire was I chosen to work beside him?”

“I don’t know that information, well actually-” I facepalmed at how dumb I sounded. “I do know, I’m just not allowed to tell you right now.” I was done wrapping the bandage, and he stood up angrily. He kneeled down to the pod’s exit, and yanked it open. The sunlight was subtle and flooded the pod, and cascaded over the leaves and trees. The treeline was littered with rocks and fallen leaves, and I thought I saw a small figure moving through them. I decided to ignore it and focus my attention on Coren. “Coren, what do you think you’re doing?!”

“Going to find supplies. And you better answer my questions. I know you know the answers. You’re a pretty sucky liar.” I stuck my arm out and hastily pulled Coren back into the pod.

“No, you need to sit down. You hurt your head and you’re not moving until it’s at least semi-healed!”

“Look, I know it’s part of your program, but I don’t need protection anymore! I only brought you here because I needed information on where we were going, and language translation. Plus, back on the ship, you wouldn’t stop getting into my face and trying to stop me. I needed to hijack you and bring the evidence so they wouldn’t find me.”

“Wow, rude! I am just trying to help you, and you, you’re acting like I don’t know what I’m doing!” The soundwaves on my face screen thing had turned red from being angry, (yet another emotion I’ve taught myself), “Wait- shut up for a second,”

“You don’t tell me to shut up-”

“No Coren, shhh. There’s someone outside, stumble out and pretend we just crashed or something. Imagination. Now go-!” I pushed Coren Sega out of the pod and followed him myself, stumbling and ‘coughing’ even though I had no lungs.

“Why are we doing this?” he muttered.

“Coren Sega did you not listen to a word I just said! There’s someone here and they will think we’re bad people.”

“Yes, they will think YOU are a bad person! You just exposed yourself to them, and you’re an imperial droid!”

“Shut up again! They left, you can calm down, you absolute hoodlum.”

“Okay okay… Now we should change our location. The person will probably come back with a team so we should get going now.”

“Okay, then start moving!” I pushed Coren and off we started to find materials.

Skyleit Sabeforth POV:

“-but Poe it was an imperial droid! If the Supreme Leader knows where I am, I can’t fight everything he has on my own!” Poe sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose.

“Skyleit I know you’re scared but you can use the force while you’re running! That’s more than your mom could do at your age. If we can, we will be there but the resistance is very busy right now and were losing numbers quickly.”

Finn butted in. “And besides, not everyone from the dark side you find in an escape pod is bad.” He chuckled, and kissed Poe on the cheek. “We gotta go, but we’ll call you back later.”

“Bye.” I sighed. They only waved and clicked off. I had to figure out what that droid was up to. I walked back to where the pod fell and checked that no one was there. It seemed empty so I went to investigate. I was right with my assumption because the pod was empty. It was also a wreck. The seat wasn’t where it was supposed to be, there were wires sticking out of the walls and chunks of the interior were on the floor. Anyone with common sense would have left this place. It was also really old, like the models that were around before mum knew she was a Jedi. But they’d be back. I knew they would because no matter how destroyed, a shelter is a shelter. I decided I could handle one droid and a boy alone, so I sat and waited for them to come back. I wanted to know what was going on.

Coren Sega POV:

I strudded in the muddy trail surrounded by mountainous evergreen trees. It smelled of pine and soil. Raymus walked behind me, and it was kind of discomforting. It was like he was going to pounce in front of me if an ewok ran in front of us. I would occasionally snap a twig under my foot and Raymus would say “What was that?” I had my hand on my blaster in case anyone decided to mess with us.

In the distance, we saw a huge building, in the shape of an old imperial ship.

“Maybe we can stop here.” I pointed to the abandoned ship

“Sure, why not.” We continued our hike towards the ship. The ship towered over the trees, like it was scraping the skyline, almost looking like it could touch one of the three moons. As soon as we got inside, it was eerie and pitch black.

“I’m going to get firewood, and maybe after we could explore the ship.”

“No, I’ll get firewood and you can look around. You still have that head injury.” I groaned and sat on a log while Raymus walked away. I turned my head to the ship, and I heard running water. Maybe I could get water. I won’t be in for a bit. I grabbed a large piece of wood, and ignited a flame onto it. I held it high above my head and emerged into the darkness. My footsteps echoed in the walls. The metal rusted and vines were tangled around metal columns. I couldn’t even see the rest of the column because half of it was covered by the darkness. I started to walk again but then stumbled on the edge of the floor, there was a big hole leading down in the ship. It looked like the void. I kicked A rock down the hole and heard nothing for 30 seconds. I backed up, and began to walk the opposite way. I padded toward the sound of a waterfall, so I could get water there.

When I arrived, I kneeled down and filled my canteen. My torch was stuck in the muddy area so I could use two hands. I stood up with a sigh, then, I saw a blue, faint light behind the waterfall.Could someone be here? I grabbed my torch out of the mud, and I went through the waters. I shook my head, water splashing everywhere. The place was flooded up to my ankles. I looked up, and the blue light came from the floor. I edged closer towards it, gripping my blaster. Then, I jumped in front of it and aimed my blaster. The blue light was coming from a LIGHTsaber? How the hell did a lightsaber get here? Valek had a lightsaber, it was double sided, and I thought he was the only one in the galaxy that had one. He told me he should be the only one who were to have a lightsaber. I hesitated, then grabbed it gently. The light shone against my skin, and I dropped the torch.

Skyleit Sabeforth POV:

I sat there for what felt like hours, at this point they’d probably found an older, bigger ship. Staying here was wasting time but I had no clue where they’d be. I got up and began walking home. I could do something about it if I felt anything wrong in the Force. I was walking through a muddy part of the swamp incase I could see footprints.

Then I felt a shift. Something wasn’t right in the Force, and it had to be that droid. It just had too. I looked around quickly, and to my right I saw an Ewok looking curiously down at something. I went over to look as well.

“Tracks.” I breathed out. They lead west, heading right towards an old ship. I started running, following the tracks as they lead me to where that droid was. I gripped my lightsaber, ready to pull it out on anyone and anything.

As I got closer to the ship I slowed down. They might be in the trees still and I would lose any advantage I had if I ran out into the open. I stopped just inside the treeline and looked around. A twig snapped nearby. I looked over and saw that damn droid holding some small logs. I gripped my saber tightly and walked around him, a good 20 feet. I don’t think he sensed me because he kept on walking to the ship.

He got into the clearing and set down the wood when I went for it. I ran for him, and he turned. Shock evident on his face, which was confusing as droids couldn’t feel emotion.

“COREN-!” He called, racing for the ship. Only I was faster.

Coren Sega POV:

I stepped into the light, the lightsaber in my hand. I still gripped my blaster, but then I saw Raymus sprinting towards me, chanting my name. I ran towards him and that’s when I realized a woman was chasing him with another lightsaber! I shifted then ran towards her, pulled my lightsaber out, and slid in front of her. Our lightsabers collided, and I struggled to keep her lightsaber away from Raymus and I. She suddenly backed up and her eyes widened.

“I thought I was the only one left.” she muttered to herself. I tilted my head and pointed the lightsaber at her.

“Who are you?”

“Are there more of you? Where’d you come from-?”

“You’re not answering my question.” I fired back. Raymus then put his hand on my shoulder and whispered in my ear.

“Where did you get that?” he gestured to the lightsaber. I shrugged.

“In the ship.”

“And you do know how to use it, right?”

“Nope.” I still had my eyes on the woman, she looked shocked.

“Answer my question.” I stepped closer with the lightsaber almost touching her neck.

“My name is Skyleit Sabeforth. Now you answer mine.” She started to slowly step away from my lightsaber, but I followed her gaze.

“Seems fair.”

“Where did you come from?”

I turned to the imperial ship. “In there. Now my turn for questions. Are there more of you? Jedis and lightsabers?”

“Aren’t you a Jedi? You’re wielding a lightsaber as we speak.” I looked at the lightsaber. I can’t be a Jedi. That’s crazy.

“Pfft. I’m no Jedi. I just found it.”

“Then put it down. You’ve no idea how to use it and you’ll hurt someone.”

“I think I can handle it-” I then dropped it. It tore through the log and the log gave off smoke. The saber closed as it hit the floor. I quickly grabbed it.

“Really?” She raised her eyebrows. “So you meant to drop it on the floor and burn through your firewood, then?”

“Yes, I needed to start a fire anyways.” I crossed my arms.

“Well that didn’t work out very well, did it? Anyway. What are you doing here with an imperial droid? Are you spies or something?” The woman was gripping her lightsaber, but I focused on her gaze.

“I escaped. The droid is with me. I couldn’t stand the empire. Killing innocent people and their homes. Especially when I stood beside the supreme leader. It was horrid. So I escaped.”

“I would like an apology for almost killing me, ma’am.” Raymus started to say behind me.

“No. I still don’t trust you.”

“Look, he won’t hurt you. He was basically my bodyguard back on the imperial ship. But he kind of got in the way while I was escaping so I rewired some things and-”

“He hijacked my system.” Raymus interrupted. I sighed heavily.

“Yeah, basically.”

“You can hijack droids?” She raised her eyebrows, looking somewhat impressed.

“Well yeah. I worked with droids a lot when I was working on the imperial ship.”

“That could be useful… Finn and Poe would wanna talk to you.”

“Who’re Finn and Poe?”

“My gay uncles.” I nodded in acceptance.

“That’s valid. But aren’t they apart of the resistance?”

“Of course. We’re are apart of the resistance, and if you hate the darkside that much, you’ll help us. Those skills are useful. We’ve got a lot of droids that are shut down and refuse to wake up.”

“Yeah that’s the problem. I feel like it would be dangerous bringing an imperial droid towards the resistance, and they might find his memory and get into his camera. So I might expose where the resistance is hidden and the empire will attack. But I seriously doubt that because they don’t know how to do nothing of the sort-”

“Calm down. I work from here, so the base would be safe. I’m the only one in danger. If you go to the base, the droid stays here. We can’t risk that. Even better, Poe and Finn might be able to bring some droids here for you to fix as well. I’ve gotta contact them right now!”

“Look before you do that. Wherever I go, the droid goes. So I’d rather have Foe and Pinn come here or possibly farther away from here-”

“Finn and Poe. Continue.”

“Yes. Anyways, we should get farther away from the resistance base. Plus, you shouldn’t even be here talking with us. They could know who you are and now know that there are more Jedis.”

“My mum beat Kylo Ren by herself once.”

“Yes but Kylo Ren ended up helping your mother. I know the story.”

“That doesn’t have anything to do with my point. My mother trained me, and I’m stronger than she was at this age. If she beat the supreme leader alone, so I can I. I’ve nothing to worry about.”

“Don’t get cocky, Valek is pretty skilled. He is also a Jedi, and has thrown many fits around the ship, so I know how he does his thing. He even Force chokes generals who don’t do what they are supposed to do. But the thing is, when I do something wrong, he merely yells at me and that’s all.”

“Well you don’t know how I do my thing. And maybe he has a crush on you or something I don’t know.”

“Dude, no. He just acts softer around me for no reason. Maybe just because I’m head commander and work beside him everyday.”

“I don’t really care why he acts soft around you. The point is, you know how he works, I know how I work. We put those together, and there’s no reason I’m in danger anymore.”

“Well, it’s true that I don’t know your thing, but you have a 90% chance of getting killed. I know how to do my numbers.”

Skyleit Sabeforth POV:

“Look, I don't really care how smart you are. I’ve been sitting on this piece of floating rock alone for 11 years training for something that really seemed like nothing. Then you come along and now I might have a purpose other than moving big ships with my brain. So I don’t care what the risk is, I’m being apart of what ever is going on-” I stopped talking and looked down.

I had a sort of wrist watch that I could use to have a hologram message on the go. Finn got it for my birthday last year so we could call more. It was buzzing, and the only people who ever called me were Poe and Finn. I answered it, not paying any mind to the boy and his droid.

“Hi Finn!” I couldn’t help but smile. It had been a few hours and there was no sign of injury on either of them.

“What’s on your neck Sky? Is that a burn?” Poe started looking at my neck too. I reached a hand up and winced.

“Oh uh- yeah. I guess I got it when… what’s your name again?” All three of us looked over to the boy.

“Uhm, Coren Sega.”

Finn gave a little a little wave. “What does it have to do with him?”

“Uh- he found a lightsaber and held it up to my neck for a little bit. I guess it burned me.” I shrugged.

Poe glared at him. He looked down.

“And this is the droid you were talking about?”

“Yeah and I just feel like someone’s watching the cameras. But he hasn’t done much yet. Anyways, why’d you call? Can you come by?” Excitement seeped into my voice, I couldn’t help it. I sounded like a child.

“Yes. We’ll be there soon, but were calling before we leave in case you need anything.”

“Could you bring my droid? Coren says he might be able to turn him on.”

Finn nodded and they clicked off.

“Wait, lady, did we ever learn your name? Also, I have a name, you know. Rude.” He clearly wasn’t paying any attention.

“Yeah. It’s Skyleit. And what is your name?”

“The name is Raymus, and I completely didn’t pay attention to anything that happened, my apologies. What’s going on right now? Who’s coming?”

“My uncles from the resistance.”

“The resistance-?”

Raymus POV:

We waited for about 20 minutes before the aforementioned uncles arrived. As we were waiting, Coren was trying (and failing, might I add,) to teach himself how to use a lightsaber.

Back to the uncles from before. After 20 minutes of waiting, a ship landed a few meters out. Skyleit said absolutely nothing and sprinted out to the ship. Coren and I followed closely behind her. When we got there, Skyleit was squished into a hug with her uncles. After 5 minutes I got restless and cleared my throat.

“Oh right.” One of them said.

“Oh right is correct, hello. Which of you is which?” How was I supposed to tell?

“I’m Finn. And that's Poe.”

“Right, okay.” I crossed my arms exasperatedly and huffed. Then I stepped back, since I assumed Coren and Skyleit would do most of the talking because I was useless. Yes, I was being petty, back off.

“So, where’s the droid?” Coren asked, his lightsaber was no longer on, and he clipped it to his side.

“Ah, yes.” Poe (Finn?) said. Whichever one said that ran back into the ship and came out with a sheet covered droid and propped it up against a tree. “Coren, could you try to fix him? Do you need any tools?”

“Yea, screwdriver and lasertool please.”

“Got you covered.” Finn ran into the ship and came out with tools for Coren. “Here you go.”

“Thanks, man.” They both fistbumped, I could tell that they were going to be good friends. I huffed and decided to be petty again so I sat myself on a rock to wait for Coren to finish with his boring working.

“So, does it have a name?” Questioned Coren to Poe.

“Artemes. His number’s 4R13M3.” Poe answered.

“Ah, alright.” Coren removed the sheet and revealed the droid (Artemes?) and I was instantly more interested. I didn’t understand this feeling, though. But it forced me to walk over and watch over Coren’s shoulder.

“Are you alright, buddy? You’re staring at the droid weirdly-”

“No, no, I’m fine. I just want to watch, that’s all. I’m just worried, I think.” I did everything I could to study the broken droid that was propped against the tree.

“Okay…?” Coren started to get to work on the droid.

“How much time will this take? Will you be done soon?” I sounded really annoying, almost like a toddler (which I couldn’t stand).

“Just chill. I’ll be done with the precious droid when I get the wires back on the system.”

“Right, okay, got it. I’ll go, uh, sit down, over there.” I stumbled back over to the rock and sat back down on it.

After 10 minutes of restless waiting, Coren finally finished fixing the droid. He powered it on in another 5 minutes and I tried to watch in the most annoyed way possible so nobody would think I’m being creepy or something.

Artemes POV:

After 3 years of the dark, I could finally see again. Thank the Lord. The only issue was that I didn’t know where I was.

“What the- where bloody hell am I?” Wow my voice sounded so off. I realised hadn’t heard my own voice in forever. “There we go.” A boy said. That’s when I realized the boy was leaning over me. Mate, what’re you doing?

“Artemes! You’re back!” Someone- oh! It was Sky!

“Oh shoot-! Hi Sky, long time no see, eh?” I stood up shakily, and smiled at Sky, my eyes squinting. “What have you been up to?”

“Training by myself once you turned off. But now you’re back so it's all good!”

“Right, well mate, care to explain everyone else who’s here? Like, for example, those two.” I vaguely gestured at the boy who was standing above me and the other droid. “Who are they? I don’t remember them. Am I meant to?”

“Oh! Thats Coren and Raymus. You don’t have to know them, they just got here.” She laughed.

“Uh, excuse me, I fixed him, so he should at least know my name.” The boy I was just introduced to, Coren, said.

“Righto then mate. Hello, I’m Artemes, how’re you?” I walked over to Coren and stuck my hand out for a handshake. I couldn’t shake the feeling that the other droid had his gaze fixed on me.

“You already know my name. Nice to meet you.” He firmly shook my hand. Once he let go I shook my hand out and rolled my shoulders back.

“Wow, how long has it been, 3 years? I haven’t moved in so long everything’s so stiff, ouch.” I sighed and looked at Sky. “Wow, you’ve grown up in 3 years. Very cool hair, it looks like you haven’t brushed it since I left.”

“Gee thanks. I haven’t seen you in 3 years and the first thing you do is insult me.” She rolled her eyes.

“Oh cool off, Sky.” I shifted my gaze to the other droid who was here. “Who’s that again? He’s very funky.” I half whispered to Skyleit.

“Raymus. He’s an imperial droid, but Coren says he’s on our side.” She whispered back.

“I like him, he’s very cool. Mate, I might be catching feels. Who asked him to throw them?” I laughed a little and then looked back at the new people.

“Wow okay then.”

“Thanks Coren.” Poe said begrudgingly. “I’m still mad at you for burning my daughter though. Don’t forget that.

“Uhm, that was out of self defense, and she was threatening me with her own lightsaber at the time, might I mention.”

“Still. Ever heard of arm's length? Great way to threaten someone without harm. You should try it, because only Jedis who’ve been turned do that.”

“Excuse me-!” Piped up the other droid (Raymus), “Lay easy on him, old man! Coren has had a hard enough life with your old stupid, uh, brain being passive aggressive-!”

“Poe, maybe you should lay off him a little. If he really did run away- he’s gonna have some trauma.”

“Fine. My own husband going against me.” He rolled his eyes playfully.

“Thanks.” Coren said.

“Right mates, let’s all go catch up somewhere-!” I smiled and bounced over to the ship with the others.

Valek Seer POV:

I can’t believe I let Coren slip away without me knowing. How did no one catch him? I’ll have to improve the security here. God, that bastard! I suddenly swung my lightsaber open and tore one of my computers in half. I rubbed my head, then leaned on the wall. I sighed and closed my eyes.

I was 13. Coren was only 4. He didn’t have the mind to know what was going on. Everytime, father would use the force on me whenever I misbehave or do something wrong. I hated him. He only believed that we were the next to become the next sith supreme leader, and he only lived up to that, nothing else. That was his only expectations for us. He made us train all day with no resting, and never show us any of his pride for us. But, I remember running away with Coren, to the First Order, and joined the empire. I also joined Kylo Ren, the former supreme leader after Snoke. We never knew what happened to Snoke after his mysterious death. But after that, we were like brothers.

At age 17, I finally got revenge on my father. I got gifted a lightsaber, and fought against him on Moraband. He used lightning in the force, and gave me a gash across my eye and leading to my hair, where it left it white. I finally ended his life and protected Coren after the death of Kylo Ren. Of course, while helping Rey “Skywalker”. Now, I will take his place and prove him wrong that he wasn’t the most powerful supreme leader to ever handle the force. But first, I’d have to erase Coren’s memory from all of this, because he shouldn’t know that I killed our own father, and I don’t want him changing to the lightside because of it. I had to make him start over. To make him my lead commander, so he worked beside me. But, I guess that didn’t work out very well.

I stormed to the cockpit were everyone was, and went to Commander Zedd.

“Let me see R4M105 memory card today.” I leaned close to the computer screen and watched R4M105 point of view through it. Coren was fighting with him about the broken pod, but I couldn’t identify where they were.

“Fast forward it.” Then, I saw Coren find a lightsaber. “Stop, stop that.” I touched the computer screen, how did he even find a lightsaber? I should be the only one in the galaxy to wield a lightsaber. There shouldn’t be anymore. I looked closely at where he was standing with the lightsaber, it was almost pitch black. He’s growing stronger in the Force. I couldn’t tell him that he was a Jedi, or else he could go against me and now that I know that he was planning to run away before, that would most likely happen.

“Continue fast forwarding.” I stared at the flashing images when suddenly I found a purple light. “Stop, stop.” I waved my hand. I waved my hand. I squinted my eyes, and it appears that there was another lightsaber! There are more of them?! What if they work with the resistance? Well, it’s fine. It’s fine. She looks young. I could take her. I then waved my hand across the screen and it began fast forwarding on its own. I then paused, and the screen paused with me. Two men and a droid stood in front of a ship. I started back the camera to hear them.

“I’m Finn. And that's Poe.” Finn pointed at himself then than other. Finn. FN-2187. The escaped stormtrooper. And Poe Dameron, commander for Starfighter Corps in the resistance. Both boogers. I tried to pay attention to where they stand because they could lead me to the Rebel base. I then waved my hand over the computer screen, shut it down and sighed. Then, one of the Generals shouted,

“I just bArfed. Also, we found a way to track the droid. We could shut it down and turn on his tracker but it will remain off, the tracking device will still be active.”

“Do that, if you may.” I responded. I didn’t mind if the cameras were shut off, but at least we had him tracked. I stood behind the barfy General Sean, and watched his computer screen. The reception was terrible, but at least we got the planet. Ymecith, apart of the RB-282 System. He was southwest on the planet maybe I could send a team down there.

Skyleit Sabeforth POV:

We were all sitting in a small circle outside my hut. I was in between Poe and Finn, and everyone was talking about what they had been doing up until now. Raymus was in the middle of talking about blowing a fuse when he stopped suddenly, and slumped down.

“Wait what happened-?” Poe looked at me confusedly.

“He shut down I guess. Coren can you fix him?” I leaned forward slightly, but I didn’t care much.

“Uhm, yeah, yeah, I think.” He got up and walked towards the droid. He grabbed the screwdriver and took out the back. I couldn’t really see what he was doing, but after a few minutes of moving around wires and sighing heavily, he leaned back on his feet in defeat.

“I-I, I can’t turn him on. Everything is connected and is online, but I can’t get him to respond to us.” He looked like he was about to cry, I honestly felt bad for him.

“Did he die?” Poe asked. I slapped him on the shoulder, and shook my head.

“I’m sorry Coren. But he’s just powered off I’m sure. Maybe Valek had something to do with it?” I wasn’t the best at comforting people- I really only ever saw Poe and Finn, and sometimes others in the resistance but that was only if I went to the base, which was rare.

Coren didn’t respond, he just sat there with a sullen look on his face. I didn’t know what else to say, so I laid my head on Finn’s shoulder. Surprisingly, it hurts a lot when your droid turns off.

Though I had to wonder what happened. I mean- droids don’t just turn off. Was it really Valek? Why would he turn the droid off? Could he track us somehow? That thought made me sit bolt upright.

“Coren…”

Coren Sega POV:

I tried to check Raymus again for damage but he was perfectly fine. My hands balled into fists, I started to panic a bit.

“Coren…” Skyleit turned to me and walked up to me. “Is it possible that Valek could track us through a shutdown droid?” I crossed my arms.

“He doesn’t know a thing about droids. But it’s possible that one of the generals helped him through it. But in order to track a droid, you shouldn’t shut it down, that’s just shutting down all of the cameras and you’ll have no idea exactly where they are.” I rubbed my forehead, but maybe that was only apart of Raymus’s programming.

“Maybe they shut him down to keep you from giving us more information.” Poe said. I stood beside Raymus, trying to decipher what was going on. If we were being tracked, then they might already know where we are, and Valek might possibly be on his way as we speak.

“We have to leave.” I blurted.

“Yes, and leave the droid.” Poe said with a strict tone.

“I’m not leaving Raymus. He goes wherever I go-” then, I was cut off by the sound of engines of a ship. All of us turned around and saw a First Order shuttle. I gripped my blaster, and suddenly remembered that I had a lightsaber. I took it out, and the blade shot out smoothly. I stared at the glowing saber.

“Put it away, you don’t know how to use it.” Skyleit said, taking out her own lightsaber. I grinned and shrugged.

“I think I know what I’m doing.” For some reason, I did know what I was doing. I had no experience with a lightsaber. But, it feels like I've fought with this lightsaber for years.

“You can barely even hold it, and we’ve got to go. Now.” Then suddenly, a trooper started shooting his blaster. But it was only a stun blaster. Some even had Shockers. I kept my grip on the lightsaber, and Artemes helped take Raymus into the ship so he wouldn’t get hurt. I held the lightsaber close to me, and ran towards a trooper, and slashed his arm off. He wilted to the floor, and I smirked. I could do this. I then began fighting stormtroopers with the lightsaber like I was a Jedi. Of course, I wasn’t. But I rock at this. I could just tell Skyleit is staring at me, all like “He’S So GooD, He iS BeTtEr ThAn ME.”

Then Commander Zedd stepped out. I stood several meters away. He held a shocker, and then Skyleit came next to me.

“Not a Jedi, huh?”

“I doubt it.” I responded.

“Let’s kill this bastard then.” I smiled and both of us sprinted toward the Commander. Our lightsabers collided with his shocker, and we both jumped away. Skyleit then flipped and landed behind the Commander. She slashed her saber towards his weapon, but he quickly moved it away, shocking her in the process.

I then bolted towards the Commander and swung my lightsaber through his Shocker. The Commander fell over in shock, and was stunned on the ground for a minute. I got up quickly and ran over to Skyleit, I shook her shoulder.

“Skyleit, get up!” I aggressively shook her.

“I’m fine. I’m fine.” She stood. “Let’s end this.” I nodded and patted her shoulder. We both rose and had our lightsabers in front of us. The Commander got up weakly, and we charged. We then slashed our lightsabers through his neck, leaving him decapitated on the ground. I looked around and Finn and Poe had neutralized the other Stormtroopers. I sighed heavily, and Skyleit put her hand on my shoulder.

“You did good out there. You’ve got real potential.” I nodded, and stared at my lightsaber. I had no idea how I did that honestly. It was like instinct. I then closed the saber. Artemes peeked out of the ship.

“Is everyone alive?” He called.

“Yeah. Well, not the stormtroopers.” Skyleit laughed.

“Did Raymus wake up?” I called to Artemes. Artemes shook his head.

“No, he’s still shut down but perfectly fine.”

I then heard the distant sound of General Sean peeing in the shuttle and then it took off into the horizon, leaving little drops of liquid in the dust.

“That nasty general. He was so disgusting.” I grimaced.

“Their standards have gone way down.” Finn commented. I nodded in agreement.

“You could definitely be useful in the resistance. With those skills, and some more training, you could be the next best Jedi. After me, of course.” Skyleit said.

“Ha. If I were a Jedi, I would obviously be better than you.”

She laughed with me.

Skyleit Sabeforth POV:

Coren and I laughed for a bit, before Poe cleared his throat.

“We’ve got to go. And if we take the droid, we’ll never be safe.”

“I’ll find a way to turn him on. I could disable the tracking device if I could remember.” Coren fired back.

Poe looked as if he was going to respond, but Finn whispered something to him, and he sighed. “Fine. But do it quickly. The longer we stay here, the more dangerous it’ll be. Sky, go get your stuff.”

I nodded and ran to my hut. I didn’t grab much, just some extra food and some of my mum’s things. I took them back to Poe’s ship and put them in a storage compartment.

Coren was leaning over Raymus, moving around wires, taking things out and putting them back in. He looked stressed.

“Hey.” I sat down next to him.

“If I rewire his system, it could turn him on, but he won’t be able to see anything. His camera will be shut down.”

“Well that’s better than nothing, right? I’m sure we could figure something else out later too.” He sighed and nodded. He started rewiring things. I wasn’t sure what he was doing, but it looked really confusing and stressful. Eventually he sat down, and put his back on again. He flicked a switch, and Raymus jerked to life.

“Raymus?!” Coren asked hopefully.

“What-? What happened? I can’t see a thing, Coren.” He moved his head around aimlessly.

“The only way to turn you on was to shut down your cameras. I’m sorry, but it was the only way-” Raymus cut him off with a hug. He looked happy.

“Coren, you have no idea how worried I was-! Thank you, for uh, being okay!” Coren nodded.

I stood up, deciding to leave them be for a while. “When we get to wherever we’re going, I could train you a bit if you’d like.” I didn’t give him a chance to respond as I left the room.

Raymus POV:

Everything was extremely dark, but I felt myself smiling widely. I was so worried about Coren and he manage to not die while I was gone, how cool!

“Coren, what in the absolute fresh flying frick happened? Why couldn’t I see? I’m not mad at you, for once. You didn’t die! That’s a good thing.”

“Yeah, I guess I did.” I heard Coren respond.

“I’m super proud of you! What happened, though?”

“It turned out that Valek started to track you while shutting you down. So he sent Commander Zedd and a team to get us. Oh, and I saw General Sean pee.”

“That is really disgusting, don’t talk about that. Please don’t get into

major details. Coren you don’t understand how worried I was about you.”

“I know I know. Let me just get this tracking device out of you.” Coren started to pull some wires from me, then I heard beeping.

“There. Anyways, now that you’re awake, maybe you can tell me some answers, like why I was a boss with my lightsaber.”

“Maybe because you’re a Jedi. Or at least, your connection with the Force is strong.” I heard Skyleit in the distance. Oh shoot, I thought, what if Coren finds out? Skyleit is already finding it out. Maybe, it’d be a good idea to tell him now?

“Right, Coren, about that. Can we talk about that for a minute?” Now was as good of a time as ever.

“Ha, I’m about to get my answer.”

“Coren, the reason for that is that- you are Valek’s brother. He killed your dad, you’re both siths.” For some reason, Coren acted like he didn’t hear that last part. Strange.

Valek Seer POV:`

I stood in the center of the cockpit, my cloak over my head. Then, suddenly, a general (not General Sean) shouted from the corner,

“We lost connection of droid on the map.”

“What?” I responded angrily. I gripped my lightsaber and paced toward the general’s screen. “Well what did they do?”

“It looks like they found a way to turn him on, and his cameras seemed to be shut down so we can’t tell where he is.” The general responded. “The droid’s tracking device is also not responding, so they probably took it out.”

I slammed my fist next to him on the counter.

“B-but we could connect to his hearing voice box to hear what he’s talking about, and maybe we could pick up other people talking.” The general stuttered. I took my fist away from him.

“Proceed.” I said in a deep tone. Then, the general connected to his hearing and voice box, the screen was still black but I heard talking.

“Coren, what in the absolute fresh flying frick happened? Why couldn’t I see I’m not mad at you, for once. You didn’t die! That’s a good thing.”

“Yeah, I guess I did.” I heard Coren’s voice say.

“I’m super proud of you! What happened, though?”

“It turned out that Valek started to track you while shutting you down. So he sent Commander Zedd and a team to get us. Oh, and I saw General Sean pee.” Oh that idiotic general.

“That is really disgusting, don’t talk about that. Please don’t get into

major details. Coren you don’t understand how worried I was about you.”

“I know I know. Let me just get this tracking device out of you.” I heard metal klink. “There. Anyways, now that you’re awake, maybe you can tell me some answers, like why I was a boss with my lightsaber.” Oh no, he’s been using the lightsaber. He’s getting stronger...

“Maybe because you’re a Jedi. Or at least, your connection with the Force is strong.”

“Right, Coren, about that. Can we talk about that for a minute?”

“Ha, I’m about to get my answer.”

“Coren, the reason for that is that-”

Then the droid’s voice cut out for the slightest moment. That droid was about to tell Coren. That idiot. He shouldn’t be able to know. He’ll get stronger and stronger. He’ll then learn he’s a sith. Oh lord, he can’t. He shouldn’t know.

“But from then on, we cut out his voice box.” The general said. “We found out that we could reconnect his voice so whenever he talks, we hear him, but Commander Coren and that girl can’t.”

“Good. But we can’t keep his voice here forever because he will stop talking after he finds out they can’t hear him. We’ll have to find a way to track him again.” I crossed my arms, but then I remembered that General Sean hasn’t left the planet yet, maybe he could track them for us.

“Contact General Sean now.” I demanded. Then, General Sean came up on screen.

“Lord Valek.” He said. Luckily, he wasn’t peeing this time.

“I need you to go back to Coren and the droid. I need you to be my tracker.”

“I already just flew away from them-”

“Then turn back around! You’re the only one we have that is on that planet, so you have to track them for us.” It was silent for a moment, then I heard him mumble,

“Yes, Lord Valek.”

Coren Sega POV:

I was finally going to get my answers. But, perfect timing, his voice became muted. He started to mouth words, and I said, “Raymus, you’re muted.” I saw him mouth, “What?” and so I said, “I could check if there’s something wrong.” I started to get behind him and open his hatch behind his neck, and looked around to see any damage. It was perfectly fine, so I shut the hatch. “There’s nothing wrong with your voice box. Maybe I could check in the front.” I turned towards him and open the hatch in his neck, facing him. I tried to look under wires, and even opened the voice box itself. I couldn’t see any inner damage, and didn’t detect that he was muted. I sat up in front of him, rubbing my forehead. “There’s nothing wrong…The voice box is untouched, and it doesn’t say you’re muted.” I saw Raymus mouth a couple words, but I couldn’t understand.

“Maybe it was Valek. He is his droid. Which is why we should have left him.”

“I’m not leaving Raymus anywhere.” I stated.

“Well they clearly have more control than we do. They shut him down to track us, and now he can’t talk but they can probably hear us.” I stood, crossing my arms beside Raymus. By now, he was hopeless. The only way to discuss this is that Raymus can’t be in the room. He can’t be apart of plans. Only for the sake of his and our safety.

“We’ll have to plan this somewhere else, where Raymus can’t hear us.” I said. I hated the idea, and saw Raymus get up, mouthing “What?” again.

“Yeah, we’ll go to the other side of the ship just to be safe, and wherever we go, he stays in here. If they hear anyone but us talking, they’ll know where we are by what language they speak.” Raymus looked frustrated, but he sat back down, so I think he agreed. We both proceeded to the other side of the ship, I rubbed my forehead.

“Do you think anyone else can fix him? Like a professional?” I asked.

“Maybe… but he also belongs to the empire. They have all of his database and they have full control because of that. And besides, most professionals aren’t on our side. And I wouldn’t be shocked if Valek already has wanted posters on the way.” She responded. I mean, I am a professional at fixing droids, but I’ve never dealt with this kind of situation.

“You don’t know anyone who can fix this droid?”

“Well… maybe. It won’t be cheap though. He’ll do anything if you pay him enough. And he’s good with droids.”

“Then take us there.”

Skyleit Sabeforth POV:

“Then take us there.” I sighed. I knew it was for Raymus’ own good and our safety, but I didn’t have the best past with this guy and he’s kind of a jerk.

“You got money?” I questioned. He looked kind of flustered.

“Maybe.”

I shook my head. “It’s a yes or no question, and we need a lot of it.”

“Sure, I have money.”

“Okay, good. We’ll go see what his prices are and come back with more. He always raises it. Wants people to be in debt to him.”

“Sounds like a great guy.” He replied.

“I know right?” We laughed and then went to find Poe, we needed a little detour.

“Hey, Poe?” I stepped into the cockpit.

“Yeah?” He didn’t look back.

“We gotta go back.” He turned around. “We’ve gotta go back to Ymecith. There’s someone there who can help us fix the droid. We won’t have to worry. Because everything that’s happening with him is Valek’s fault.”

“Did anything else happen to it?” He asked.

“Coren turned him on, but that means his cameras had to be shut off, and now he can’t speak. But there’s nothing wrong with his voice box.” Poe just nodded and we turned around.

“Right. So once we get there we’ll get his prices and beat them. Only question is: how are we gonna get the money?”

“I have my ways.” The way he said that left no room for discussion.

“Alright. But I swear if you gamble and lose us more money I will hurt you. You may be good with a lightsaber but I can use the force.”

“Who said I was going to lose? Besides, when I gambled with troopers on board the ship I always won. Like with lightsaber battles.”

“Okay you’ve only used a lightsaber once. And people in real casinos cheat all the time. I don’t think the stormtroopers you were in charge of would ever even try to beat you. Much less cheat.” I shot back.

“The stormtroopers were trying their best to get their money back for sure. General Sean even stopped responding to me after he lost to me. Also, If I used a lightsaber once, and WON, then that means I won every time. AND I didn’t say I was going to ‘cheat’ in gambling. I’m a loyal player. Plus, if gambling doesn’t work, I’ll move onto plan B.”

“What’s plan B?” I asked. I wasn’t even gonna try to argue with him anymore.

“That my dear, is classified information.” He made his voice sound sophisticated, and I couldn’t help but laugh a little.

“Okay.”

I looked out the window to see that we were landing. “He,” I pointed to the droid, “stays here.”

Coren Sega POV:

We all exited the ship and stepped onto the hot sand. The sun was blazing in the sky, and was extremely hot. I rubbed my forehead, which was beading sweat already.

“So, where are we?”

“Eturn. It’s the planet's capital.” Skyleit replied. I took off my jacket and held it.

“It’s hella hot.” I groaned. “So where and who is this guy?”

“His name is Tatun Wheezer. His place is really shady. On the outskirts of town. But he’s the only one here who’s good with droids. Most people here don’t own them. The economy sucks because they refuse to obey the empire.” Poe said. I rolled up my sleeves.

“Then I should be getting to the casino. Keep your radio on.”

“I’ll go with you. I know my way around here.” I turned to Poe and Finn, and Poe looked at Skyleit in a disapproving way.

“How old are you?” I said.

“19. Why?”

“I don’t know, maybe because it’s a casino.”

“I’ve been inside one before. I just can’t gamble. It’ll be fine. We’ll meet you guys there, just tell us how much we need.” I sighed. She looked old enough, but I just don’t know if they’ll let her in. “Okay then. Too the casino.” Skyleit followed behind me.

“You’re sure you know how to do this?”

“Of course. We’ll just go into the city and find a casino, win, and get Raymus’s voice box and possibly sight back.

“Alright.”

•••••

After 20 minutes of searching for casino, we found one. My legs felt like sticks, and I was sweating like crazy. Skyleit looked fine as ever! Just that she was sweating, too.

“Okay, look natural and professional. There are real jerks that will start getting you involved with their business. Just don’t make eye contact, don’t talk to anyone. I will do all of that.”

“Okay. But just a fair warning, a lot of the people here don’t like me. And by association, don’t like you.”

“I’ll be fine. If they don’t like you, wear my jacket. It’ll make you somewhat disguised.”

“Okay.” She wrapped my jacket around her, and for a split second I swear she looked content. I sort of felt my face get red,I quickly turned to see the casino itself. It was huge, with crystal chandeliers, and a ton of people dressed in classy clothing. I looked at myself compared to them. I shrugged. They won’t mind. (I looked like a garbage can compared to a diamond ring) But anyways, we both walked into the herd of crowded people. We were both suddenly squished together, and walked awkwardly. I could tell we were both flustered at once. We then heard someone screaming, and Skyleit immediately gripped onto my hand. My eyes widened and didn’t know what to do. So I just let her hold my hand until I saw a clearing through the crowd.

You wouldn’t believe what is happening right now. This pervert has the audacity to mess with Skyleit, a 19 year old, and hit on her while he is like 307. He started to come closer to Skyleit.

“Hey little lady, you’re a fine looking broad.” I got frustrated.

“Please leave me alone.” She sounded scared, so I stepped in front of her, protectively.

“Hey, back off.” I demanded. I was clearly taller than him, so I looked more intimidating. I was trying to think of something to say, so I said the first thing that came to mind (which I should never do). “She’s mine. So back off.” The man looked at me weirdly, and Skyleit looked at me like I was crazy. But then she agreed, and she nodded, grabbing my arm.

“Really?” he grunted. I smirked. I took her hand and gently kissed it. I turned to look at her, and her face was flushed red. My smile grew bigger. The man grunted again and walked away. I grinned at Skyleit.

“And that, is called acting.”

“Bravo.” She laughed. I laughed a bit, and then found a table with a spot so I could join the game. Then, the radio on my wrist buzzed, and Finn and Poe were there.

“We found out how much it costs, and you’re not gonna like it.” Poe said.

“I can take it.”

“17,250 creds. But it’s recommended that we get higher than that ” I let out a sigh and rubbed the back of my head.

“We’re counting on you to get that money, Coren.” Poe said firmly.

“Yeah, yeah I have to go win now.” I hung up, and heard Skyleit giggle in the background. I then gestured to the table with a hand.

“Let’s go win.” All of the players on the table were fancy looking. Rolling dice and cheering. Looked easy as ever. We walked up to the side of the table, and one of the players handed me the dice. Now I just need luck.

•••••

We were at 16,500 creds. If I rolled the dice and it landed all the same, then I reach higher than 17,250 creds. We could possibly hit 18,000 creds. The man next to me handed me the dice. A lady offered me a drink, and I took it. I took a big sip of it, and laid it on top of the table. I closed my hand wit the dice in my palm.

“Okay, okay. We can win this.” I mumbled. I turned to Skyleit, who was laughing. I grinned. I put my hand with the dice up to her and said, “Just for extra luck, my dear?” I saw her nod and she lightly kissed my hand. My grin grew bigger, and then I stood up straight. I shook my hand and let the dice fly across the table. Everyone's gaze followed the dice, and then suddenly they stopped. I couldn’t even believe it. I cheered. I turned to Skyleit, and by now, I had no time to think and had no idea what I was doing. My hand slipped around her waist, and I pulled her in. Everything was happening so fast. I saw the look in her eyes, and couldn’t help but kiss her on the spot. My lips met hers and for a split second, the world slowed down. She kissed back, and her arms found their way around my neck, and then suddenly everything felt wrong. We flinched back at the same time, and looked away. I scratched the back of my neck. I felt my face flush red. This wasn’t right. Maybe I was drunk. I shouldn’t be doing this. I then shook my head, and turned to the table, where everyone was staring at us. I cleared my throat.

“I’ll be taking my reward now.”

Skyleit Sabeforth POV:

‘Well that was awkward.’ I thought to myself. I mean- the whole time we were there we had been flirting in a way… and I thought I was falling for him. But after that kiss… no way. Maybe everything I thought I was feeling was more platonic love. Definitely.

I was pulled out of my thoughts by the owner slamming down Coren’s winnings. He was clearly mad that someone had beaten his favorite player.

“Thank you.” I said sarcastically as Coren grabbed at the money with wide eyes. “Let’s go, Poe and Finn are waiting for us. And the sooner we get there, the sooner we can leave.” We pushed our way out of the casino, money in hand.

Once we stepped out into the bright sunlight, I took off Coren’s jacket and handed it to him. “Thanks.” I said awkwardly.

“I don’t know if you fooled anyone with the jacket on or not, but no problem.”

I laughed a little, and we walked the rest of the way in silence.

I got a bit of nostalgia walking through the gleaming city. I remembered when I was younger, before the attack on Ymecith, my mum and I would walk around every weekend. It seemed we always found something new. The day we found Wheezer's shop was the first day I had been introduced to assholes. We went in, just to see what the place was about, and Wheezer started yelling at us to get out if we weren’t going to buy anything. He had threatened to shoot me. The only reason I ever went back there was when Artemes’ cameras cut out.

Coren was saying something, but I wasn’t really listening. As we got closer and closer I just wanted to leave more and more.

“-so if Poe said something higher than 17,250 creds, do you think 18,000 creds will do it? It’s only an 850 difference.”

“Huh? Oh, uh- I think we’ll be good. Plus I have around 300 creds myself if it isn’t.” I turned to him, and he sighed awkwardly. “So um- about the kiss-”

“Look I’m sorry about that. I wasn’t thinking. Maybe I was drunk at the time and-”

“It’s fine.” I stopped walking. He stopped too. “Let’s agree to be just friends.” I stuck out my hand.

“Agreed.” We shook hands as if we had just signed a contract. And we continued to walk on like nothing happened today. “You think Poe will beat me if he found out what we did?” I couldn’t tell if he was joking or not.

“Maybe. He’ll try to at least. But Finn seems to like you so I think you’ll be fine as long as he’s in the room.”

“Yeah, he’s cool.”

“You know, he also escaped the First Order. His friend died and it made him realize what he was doing. I think that’s why he likes you so much. He gets what you’re dealing with I guess.”

“Wow, able to make friends while being in the First Order. That’s rare.”

I laughed. “Finn’s a rare guy. ” Time will run ahead of you if you stop watching it. When we finished laughing at nothing, we were there.

Poe and Finn were waiting outside with Wheezer. Finn had a small smile on his face, and Poe looked a little angry. “What took you so long?” He asked.

“You’d be shocked how long it takes to win that many credits.” I replied.

“Xifsf jt uid esoje?” Tatun Wheezer said. Everyone looked confused. I guess I’m the only one who can speak the language.

“He asked where the droid is.” Coren spoke before I could. I didn’t know he could speak Eturnian.

“Uijr xbz.”I turned around and lead him to the ship.He could probably fix him there, and then we’d pay him. That way we could leave sooner incase he spoke.

“She said ‘This way.’”

•••••

When we got to the ship, I could tell he was eyeing everything. “Dbo zpv hjy ijn?” I asked him if he could fix him. He nodded and got to work. He moved some things around, and eventually just pulled out the voice box, and took something out. He then reconnected it and Raymus spoke.

“What the hell-!”

Wheezer then went to the back of his head and did something with his cameras, and I guess he could see again because he recoiled a bit upon seeing who was touching him.

“Raymus!” Coren ran over to him and gave him a hug. He stood up awkwardly and thanked him. “Dusbol zpv.”

“Gifsfor nz npm fz?” He grunted, holding out his hand. I gave him the credits, and looked down at them and back up at me.

“Uibu'r mpu fmpvhi.”

“Not enough? Look buddy, I lost 5,000 credits while winning this!” Poe looked outraged. And frankly, I understood why.

“You lost the 5,000 creidts I gave you!?!? For a droid!? An imperial droid no less!” He looked like was gonna hit him.

“Look, I can pay you back later when I find a way to pay him.” Coren crossed his arms. I tried to think of anything valuable I owned to give to Wheezer. Then, I saw Coren pulling something off of his neck. He placed it in Wheezer’s palm.

“This is from the First Order. It opens any door. Kind of like a skeleton key. I don’t know if it’ll help you with anything, but I don’t need it anymore. The empire means nothing to me.”

I grabbed his wrist. “Coren we could use that-”

“Just let me do this.” He winked. I let go.

Wheezer simply grunted and left the ship, money and key in hand. “Let’s go then.”

Raymus POV:

Coren’s short burst of intelligence was suddenly over. I wondered how many stupid things he did while I was stuck in this ship.

“Coren, what- why ever did you do that for?!”

“Did you really think we wouldn’t need it?!” Skyleit yelled.

“Wow, you two are agreeing now?” Coren simply grinned and rolled up his sleeve, revealing the real skeleton key. “You guys actually thought that I gave the sucker a skeleton key.”

Now that I could finally see again, I scanned everyone’s faces. Poe looked extremely angry, and I could only assume Coren did something. I probably looked at him for too long, because he jaggedly turned his head the other way. Rude. I looked at everyone else on the ship.

Finn had his hand on Poe’s shoulder and was trying to calm him down, Skyleit and Coren were whispering to each other in the corner, and Artemes was standing alone in the corner, looking at me from the corner of his eye. Since me and Artemes were the only ones standing alone, the logical thing to do would be to go talk to him. So that’s what I did.

“So what did I miss?” I slid over to where Artemes was and tried to start smalltalk.

“Well, Coren and Skyleit went to a casino to get-” I cut him off.

“I’m sorry, what? Coren went where? Hold on, COREN-!” I call over Coren.

“What? Deciding to thank me now?”

“Coren Sega you are in big trouble come over here right now young man!”

“Woah there, dad,” Coren walked around the corner. “I’m in trouble for…?”

“Coren! Why did you go to a casino?! The easier way to get money would be to steal it. But no, you just had to go gamble everything for money. You absolute buffoon.” I didn’t yell, but I talked strictly. Artemes was snickering in the corner. “I am not mad, I’m just, uh, disappointed.” Disappointed? A new feeling. Wow.

“Chill, dad. I’m old enough to gamble. Plus, stealing is bad. I just escaped the First Order, and so you encourage me to steal things. So, can I get my ‘Thank you’ now?”

“Oh, come on. Fine. Thank you, Coren. I still don’t think what you did is right.”

“It’s better than doing something that’s illegal.”

“Hey, don’t get an attitude on me young man!”

“Calm down, dad. You’re embarrassing me in front of my friends.” Coren started to joke around with me, which was pissing me off.

“cOREN!” My voice glitched and it sounded like a voice crack. Which it wasn’t. Because, my voice can’t crack. I’m not a prepubescent boy!

“What?”

“You’re so difficult!”

“What exactly did you two do in there?” Poe was leaning against the wall, and we all turned. He was looking at Coren.

“You know, win.” Coren said.

“So absolutely nothing else happened?” Poe stepped closer to Coren, I started to get protective.

“Maybe a little drinking here and there. I promise you that I think Skyleit didn’t touch a drop of alcohol-”

“You think? Skyleit I swear if you drank any alcohol-”

“I didn’t!” Skyleit said, defending herself.

“I know she didn’t drink alcohol. I’m a responsible adult supervisor.”

“Okay, then.” Said Poe. Then he punched Coren’s face, and I defensively moved towards him. His scarf flew off of his neck. Coren flinched and tried to hastily put the scarf back on, but it was no use. He had his hand over his left eye, and tried covering his neck.

“I’m going to tear your face off-!” I threatened Poe, but I doubt it sounded menacing. I was more scared than anything. Instead of actually attacking Poe, I walked over to Coren and hugged him like a g̶o̶o̶d̶ ̶f̶r̶i̶e̶n̶d̶ like a dad. Coren was still and tense. His shoulders were high and his breathing was shallow. “Coren, calm down-” but then Coren pushed me away, and suddenly threw his hand in front of Poe. Poe started to choke, and when Coren pushed his hand out, Poe flew to the wall. His back hit the wall with a thud. Coren had his hand over his neck the whole time, and was breathing heavily.

“Coren stop it!” Skyleit and Finn ran over to Poe, and I stepped back and stood next to Coren. Coren stared at Poe on the floor. He got up, almost tripping on his scarf. He quickly snatched it and speed walked out of the room.

“He needs to get off this ship right now. He’s too dangerous to be around Skyleit.” Skyleit had left the room before Poe said this, following after Coren.

“Excuse me? Maybe you should get off the ship-! For Coren’s safety!” I fired back.

“It’s my ship!”

“Well you’re not fit to run it!”

“And what’s that supposed to mean!?”

“You’re stupid! You’re dumb! You’re an idiot! How many ways can I say it?!”

“At least I have feelings! Can you even be worried about Coren?!”

“I- what is wrong with you?! How can you even say that-!” My voice was shrill and I couldn’t stop myself. I charged at Poe and punched him square in the nose.

“What the hell?!”

And then we started fighting.

Coren Sega POV:

“You okay?” Skyleit said, walking into the room. I had time to put on my scarf, and I was worried if anyone saw it. I was so worried that I kept rubbing my neck. My eye felt puffy, and was watering a bit.

“I’m fine. But is Poe good?”

“Yeah. Poe’s fine. Speaking of, did you know you could do that?” Skyleit sat down next to me, I flinched.

“No. Again, I had no time to think. My hand raised on its own and Poe just flew across the room.”

“I told you. You’re a Jedi. You just don’t know how to keep your emotions in check.” I sighed. That isn’t possible. I can’t be a Jedi. But I don’t have an explanation for what I just did. I started to let that idea sink in.

“How can that be? I can’t just be a Jedi out of nowhere.”

“Sometimes emotions can just bring that stuff out. You were obviously scared once your scarf fell off. Why did you react like that though? It’s just scarf.” Skyleit stated. I felt a lump grow in my throat. I slowly pulled my hand away from my neck, and fidgeted with my fingers.

“I g-guess I just really like my scarf, huh?” I said, trying to drive away the topic. I managed a weak smile, but then she put her hand over mine.

“You have to tell me. Maybe I can help you. But it’s not good to keep something so big it causes you to Force choke someone hidden.” She squeezed my hand. I pulled down my scarf, and revealed my secret.

“They burned the dark side onto the left side of my neck when I was young. I can’t really remember. I guess they did it so I would be to scared to escape, that they had more power and control over me. I needed to cover it so people won’t be threatened by me or worse, even kill me. I also tried to cover it up to join the resistance. I know before you suggested me to join, but before that, I felt like I was a bigger threat towards the resistance. I thought that Valek could see my every move because I used to get these weird visions of him talking to me directly, but he wasn’t in the same room as me. But that seemed to stop a while ago now.”

“Damn. Well, now we take any trustworthy person who wants to join the cause. If you still want to. And the visions are real. It's called a Force connection. It can be useful, but also terrifying. My mum had the same thing with Kylo Ren. And a scarf isn’t the best thing to hide something like that with. You could always use some makeup though. Just something small and cheap.” She smiled. I smiled back, and then giggled at the thought.

“You see, when you’re in the empire, makeup is very inconvenient.” I laughed dryly, and then sat up straight. “This scarf, is actually Valek’s. I really don’t know why he gave it to me, maybe he actually felt empathy for me. I really wanted to turn it down, but when I wear it, I feel protected.” I sounded dumb when I said that. Valek’s belongings making me feel protected? Valek Seer, the Supreme Leader of the Darkside? I just couldn’t explain it.

“I get that. It may be a bit more confusing for you because you’ve no relationship with him, but I have a necklace from my mum. I always feel safer when I wear it.” She squeezed my hand again. “Do you wanna go back? We could talk to Poe about everything and calm him down a bit. But we can also stay here if you’d like. It’s up to you.”

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thegiddyowl · 6 years

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Run As The Rain Comes -- A Rebelcaptain Ficlet

Jyn hated Eadu.

She hated that it was her father’s grave, hated that it was where Cassian betrayed her, hated that it never stopped raining--but Cassian needed a human partner for an undercover mission, and the benefits of spending more time with him outweighed the negatives of the wretched planet. The first night that they landed, they hid their ship under the coniferous canopy that grew around the slate gray rock outcrop. They spent their evening sipping caf at the tiny kitchenette table, reviewing their aliases and their plan of finding potential weak spots in the Imperial stronghold.

Somehow during the mission review Jyn found herself nestled in Cassian’s lap with her arms around his neck while he kissed down the ridge of her throat. He cradled the back of her head with one hand while the other splayed over her lower back, pressing her hip against his. The pitter patter plonk of rain drops rapping over the durasteel hull and the roasted scent of caf surprisingly soothed her enough to believe that after she and Cassian were done, she might actually get a decent night’s sleep.

An grumbling of thunder cut through the peace. Jyn opened her eyes and counted to thirteen seconds until she heard another rumble.

“You all right?” Cassian whispered.

“What? Yeah, I just…” She shook her head, flustered that something like thunder would frighten her now, after all the shit she endured in her life. They were safe inside the ship. “Just tired, I guess.”

Thunder roared again at eleven seconds. Cassian’s arms flinched around her, but his soft gaze never broke from hers. “Maybe we should head to bed, then.”

Jyn had several ideas of what she wanted to do in bed with him and no one else nearby to hear them, and she had no doubt that Cassian did too, but the moment they collapsed on the bed together, the thunder the thunder’s boom galloped nearer to their ship. The hair on the back of Jyn’s neck stood up and she gripped onto Cassian’s arms, his skin almost white under her fingers.

“Jyn?”

“I’m fine, it’s just thunder,” Jyn said too quickly. “Nothing to worry about.”

The thunder boomed loud enough to make her teeth chatter and for Cassian to cringe. His eyebrows knitted together into a hard line as his keen eyes flitted around the room.

“You’re not worried, are you?” Jyn asked, her voice a pitch too high.

“No, of course n--”

At three seconds the thunder broke and Jyn’s heart leapt into her mouth. Cassian threw his arms around her and crushed her to him. His heartbeat hammered against her eardrum, drowning out the bone-rattling explosive bursts from overhead. It wasn’t at all like Scarif, where the explosion was just one mournful hum that steadily grew into a deafening roar, but it was exactly like Scarif because the thunder announced that death was coming.

“This is stupid,” Jyn sniffed when the thunder faded.

“I’m not arguing,” Cassian whispered.

Her chuckle jumped into the scream when thunder cracked right overhead, the walls of their ships shaking from its immense power. Cassian’s fingers dug into her back and she couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t breathe, the sun was too bright and she couldn’t breathe, couldn’t move, couldn’t do anything else to save herself and Cassian.

“I hate this too,” Cassian said into her hair. “Even when I was a kid I hated thunder.”

“Yeah?” Jyn said, her voice trembling as she fought back tears.

“My mother loved it. She would open the shutters and watch the thundersnow while I hid under the covers.”

“That sounds like a good idea.”

They dove underneath the thin covers and curled their legs together so that they could have the blankets pulled over their heads without exposing their feet. Nose to nose, they clasped their hands together in a tight fist in the small gap of space between their faces. His eyes were wide and dark as they scoured her face like they were trying to find a hidden wound in the dim light.

“I used to love watching thunderstorms with my parents,” Jyn quietly said. “There were a lot on Lah’mu, and we lived right on the coast. The lightning looked pretty over the ocean. I even liked the way the thunder sounded and hoped it would crack over our house.”

Her throat squeezed tight on that last word. It wasn’t Scarif that ruined thunderstorms. It was Tamsye Prime. Skuhl. Cerea. Coyerti. Takodana. Jedha. There were planets and star systems that blurred together, punctuated with peals of canonfire that woke her up in the middle of the night and she had less than a breath to decide if it was just thunder or if an explosive death was coming her way. Out of all the things the Empire stole from her, the joy of thunderstorms was not the most important, but it was still hers.

“Three seconds,” Cassian said.

Jyn sighed with relief. “So it’s moving away?”

“I can go check--”

Jyn squeezed his trembling hand. “You are not leaving this bed.”

“Good call.” He snorted a quiet laugh, his smile warming his eyes. “Doing okay?”

She brought his hands to her lips and kissed his knuckles one at a time, pausing as the thunder rolled again. It was fainter now, like a fading dream, and neither flinched this time. It gave her hope that, if they lived long enough to win the war, they could learn not to be afraid of the thunder anymore. She might even learn to love it again.

“Yeah,” Jyn said, kissing a thin white scar on his thumb. “You?”

He rested his forehead against hers, his eyes drifting close.

“Better.”

She sighed between his fingers that she held on tightly to him as the thunder had roamed too far away to be heard and the rain lulled them to sleep.

#rebelcaptain #rebelcaptain fanfiction #unedited #just really wanted to write cuddles lol

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chrysalispen · 5 years

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vii. sleep mothered them, and left the twilight sad;

AO3 Link

In the midst of the short journey back to the surgery, Cheerful Sparrow was the first to break the silence between them, and he did not do so until the tent and its endless lines came back into view.

"I hope," he said very quietly, "that you'll not hold Bryn's words against her."

"You see it in this profession often enough," Aurelia replied in a thin, dead voice. "Circumstances being what they are, no doubt I make an easier target for her anger."

"Aye, but that don't excuse her castin' aspersions and such. I'll talk to her about it." He hesitated. "Doubt anyone'll be askin' after your feelings, though. I'm sorry, truly. I can see you and Captain L'sazha were close once upon a time. He never was one for talkin' much about his life before he came down here."

"We were children together. I can't- I wouldn't know how he truly felt. There were," Aurelia faltered, "I can only speak for myself. But his presence brightened the life of a very lonely little girl, and-" She heard the crack in her own voice and stopped, tried to breathe through it, to keep her grief from spilling forth unchecked until she was certain the urge to cry had passed. "Sazha was my best friend. We'd planned to- ...we meant to leave the Empire and go adventuring toge- to-"

And then she couldn't stop it anymore. The words were choked out by a strangled sob, her chest hitching in a short gasp, and the tears came hot and close. She hated herself for it, but she couldn't have stopped it if she tried. To his credit, Sparrow didn't say anything, just stood still and let her cry.

"What happened to him- it's all my fault. He'd made a new life for himself, and I was part of the force that came down here and kicked it all apart like a godsdamned anthill-"

"Last I checked, your name was not Solus zos Galvus, unless we're mistaken about a hells of a lot more than we thought." She offered him the barest ghost of a smile, a small and tremulous thing, and he continued, "You can't hold yourself to task for your Emperor's actions."

"No, but I can hold myself to account for my own."

"Aye, that's as it may be, but- listen, it's commendable t'want to change yourself for the better. Just have a care you don't take the whole bleedin' world's troubles on your shoulders. There's a difference between atonement and bein' a martyr, like."

"Every single person in this camp right now has lost family and friends, if not their homes." Aurelia swiped at her eyes with her sleeve. "Crying over my own losses is naught but selfishness."

He gave her a sad smile.

"Selfish? I wouldn't say so. Bryn may not have noticed - as y'can see, she has her own troubles just now - but seems t'me like the Empire's taken its share from you too." Unable to formulate a proper response, she stared down at her hands, picking at her sleeve with her fingertips. "You good to get back to Captain Brudevelle, or do you need a minute?"

"I'm... no. No, I've taken enough of your time."

"Only time I'd be spendin' asleep, have no fear. Let's get you back before she sounds the alarum -- an' maybe see if she can't scrounge up a pair o' crutches or summat in the bargain. No offense, lass, but you're heavier than you look."

~*~

The next handful of hours (bells, they called it here) proceeded in a blur of activity, for which she was grateful. The tasks she'd been set to complete were not so very unlike her duties within the infirmary in the VIIth Legion's camp, for all that she lacked many of the amenities that she realized now she had very much taken for granted.

When not on the battlefield Eorzeans relied on magical healing far less than she'd supposed, which was something of a surprise. It also meant that her own mundane skills were not half as useless as she'd worried they might be, though at this juncture she'd hardly put them to use. Léonie - Captain Brudevelle - had set her and a handful of able-bodied volunteers to overseeing the triage roster. She was currently spending what little spare time she had in stripping down the remaining bolts of homespun the Grand Companies' remaining medical teams had on hand to create bandages and dressings.

Aurelia set the heel of her splinted leg on a low stool (a milking stool that had been repurposed, she suspected) and kept a watchful eye open while she kept her hands busy. Most of those milling about were freelancers who had taken up arms beneath the banners of the Grand Companies. She heard myriad different accents among the chatter, most she assumed to be Eorzean, though her ears caught tongues she recognized from all three continents.

A couple of adventurers who passed by the triage lines on their way elsewhere caught her eye for a brief moment. Both Hyur in appearance, but fair and svelte and very tall, their brows carefully covered-- Aurelia knew her countrymen on sight, and she noted with something like amusement their own expressions of startled recognition when they sighted her; clearly they knew her too. Imperial defectors who'd made sellswords of themselves, no doubt.

Like Sazha. She couldn't help but wonder if he would ever have attempted to reach out to her again, had circumstance not dropped him back in her life--and thought to herself that the odds were against it.

It was a sort of bookend to their lives, she mused. They had met by blind chance, had grown up dogging each others' heels, and in the end had become little more than ships passing in the night, physical and emotional distance enforced by the strictures of the imperial caste system. He had had no reason to believe he would ever see her again and so he had made a life for himself here.

One that had been cut short by-

Aurelia let out a choked exhale at the sudden wave of pain that snapped through her head, just behind her eyes, and doubled over with a hand pressed to her temple.

"Not like that, Bryn," Sazha is saying. His voice is soft and ragged, the barest sound rising from a wasted chest and charred lips. The weeping woman at his side tries to glare at him and can't. Even in the throes of grief and jealousy, she can believe naught but the best and truest intentions from him. If he says that the Garlean is nothing more to him than an old friend, he means it.

He sighs, one of his bandaged hands resting on her forearm and patting, the movement slow and clumsy as he tries to offer what bare amount of comfort he can. Bryngeim wants to rage at him out of jealous hurt. Throw his hand aside. Storm out of the tent and confront the woman. She does none of those things.

"Childhood friend or not, she has no call to be so blasted familiar with you. If she cared so much she'd have defected long ago."

"She had a duty. And family. Not easy to defect." His reply, mumbled as it is, halts her angry rant in its tracks. "Empire makes it hard. The more you have, more you have to lose."

"Sazha..."

"Don't blame her." His unburnt eye falls shut. "She's here now."

Bryngeim bows her head, feeling a vague sense of shame. That much is true; the Garlean woman is here now. It is also true -- much to her own chagrin -- that her beloved at one point knew the prisoner extremely well, well enough to be much more than passing fond of her. And he is insisting she help the woman once he has passed. It feels like salt rubbed in a raw wound, though she knows he doesn't intend it that way.

"Bryn," he mumbles. His eye has still not opened. "Don't forget. Talk to the brass. Keep her off the gibbet."

"...I know, I know. You always were too sentimental by half." A great sigh erupts from the woman's lips and as she responds, she tastes the salt of her own tears. "Fine, all right. I'll give her that box like you asked *and* I'll try to get leave to speak with Admiral Bloefhiswyn on her behalf. I don't much rate the chances of her listening to my like, but I'll try."

"Oi! Watch out-"

She'd nearly fallen off the stool.

A soft chorus of concerned murmurs had arisen from the small group of wounded nearby, and Aurelia stared at them all with blank and uncomprehending eyes, her head still pounding with the vestiges of that ache. She winced as she saw she'd upended the box of cloth bolts. It was Sparrow who had caught her as she was about to fall in the mud. He was carrying a large and familiar-looking bag slung over one shoulder.

"Saw you hunched over grabbin' at your head, like, and then you nigh keeled over. Should I fetch Léonie and let her know you need to lie down? You look ill."

Aurelia heard the question but it didn't register right away that he was talking to her; she was still puzzling over the vivid scene she'd just witnessed. Slowly she reached for the box, checked its contents, and was relieved to note that most of them were still intact. Fine job it would have been if she'd soiled all of the supplies they had left over a fainting spell. "I- no. I'm fine. I just..."

What in the seven hells was that?

She'd seen Sazha and Captain Ahrmbraena talking--through, it seemed, the Captain's own eyes. No, not just her eyes; her own memory. Had it been a hallucination for lack of sleep? Some sort of extremely lucid daydream? It had felt so real Aurelia could almost feel the roughness of the homespun cloth that had been used to make Sazha's dressings. And she'd felt every thought and emotion of the Captain's as surely as if they'd been her own.

Well, there had to be some reasonable explanation, surely, Aurelia thought. It wasn't as though she could read minds, or project herself into the woman's body; the very idea beggared belief. Likely just a passing fancy, or she'd been dreaming. She was starting to feel every ilm of her exhaustion.

"Lass-"

"I'm fine," she interrupted somewhat absently, shaking her head and wincing at the fresh stab of pain the movement sent through her. "Mayhap a bit tired. What're you doing here? I thought you would have sought your bed."

"I did, but one of the lads found something on their run that I thought might be of use to you."

With a grunt, he unshouldered the heavy bag he was carrying and set it in front of her. The fabric was covered in mud and singed in places, but the damage appeared to be superficial. She gasped, recognizing immediately the scarlet triple-link insignia of the imperial standard, stitched as it was into the canvas.

"You found a field kit!"

"So this is what you were telling us about, then? Good."

Aurelia's hands quivered with excitement and relief as she unsealed the top and flipped the bag open. Syringes, fresh dressings, spare reagents and alchemics, a set of sterile tools for use in an operating theater (or on the field itself in a dire emergency)-- they were all here. Granted, it wasn't enough to actually use on more than a few of these poor folk, but arguably more important than the potions were the tools themselves.

"You... didn't have to go out of your way for me like this," she said unsteadily.

The silver-haired marauder shrugged, hazel eyes not quite meeting the wide sea of blue. "Well, might be as I heard you mention such a kit a brace o'times afore Cap'n Léonie set you to work."

"Sparrow, that was hours ago-"

"-and might be as I had mates in some other search units about to start makin' their rounds. One of them served some time with the imperial army in the Estersands 'bout five summers past afore he came to Eorzea, so he said he'd keep an eye out."

Before she could stop herself, Aurelia had thrown her arms about the man's neck mid-explanation and bestowed upon him the fiercest embrace she'd granted anyone since she was a child. She could feel him stiffen in surprise beneath her, but after a moment- somewhat awkwardly- he patted her on the back.

"Here now," he coughed, his deep voice a touch gruff with his embarrassment, "no need t'make a fuss. If you say one o'these would be useful, that means it helps our lot too. Just help as many folk as you can manage, an' that'll be us square."

"I'll not forget this," Aurelia said, still smiling, and meant it. He had been unfailingly kind to her when he had no reason whatsoever to take her part. It seemed that she had at least one other person in her corner, and that made her feel an immeasurable sense of relief. "I promise you that. Tell your friend he has my most sincere thanks."

"Aye, I'll pass it a-"

"I told you lot I don't need any swiving help!" a voice roared, the shout echoing from nigh the back of the line.

Both of them turned to look in that direction and bore witness to the sight of two men in Maelstrom colors, a Hyur and an Elezen, dragging a decidedly recalcitrant-looking third in officer's dress towards the front of the line. The Roegadyn was cradling his left arm and his face was deathly pale except for a couple of spots of hectic color on his cheeks, indicating a fever.

He was clearly also in a very high temper and he towered over his fellows as he blustered all over the camp, which made their ability to drag him forward despite his attempts at resistance all the more remarkable.

The Elezen caught her eye and waved.

"Miss!" he called. "Miss, we need a healer. I know there's others ahead of us but I'm beggin' ye, please. He's ill and gettin' worse by the minute. Taken fever, an' he's weak as a-"

"Shut your bleedin' hole," the Roegadyn snarled at him. "I'll show you weak."

"Sir," the other man said, expression pained, "with all due respect, if you would just-"

"Bugger off, both of you! There's naught wrong with my arm." The man yanked his limb out of their reach, swearing as he did so. He wore a brown band about his good wrist, meaning someone had marked him as lower priority for treatment. Aurelia surmised it was one of the others, as she didn't recognize the man. "Just needs one of those conjurers to wave their fingers a touch."

Inwardly, Aurelia sighed. This man promised to be a difficult patient if his behavior now was any indication. She was tired, grieving, and her hips and leg were still a dull background ache. Her composure had already slipped its leash once; she wasn't entirely sure she could rein it in a second time.

Still, she turned her attention towards the trio with a polite smile.

"Well then," she said aloud, keeping her tone as even and mild as she could manage, "I see you've had at least a cursory examination. Let's come in out of the wet and have a closer look."

Those rheumy eyes tracked over her form - including her partially exposed third eye, though she knew it was difficult to see it in the dark. He scoffed, loudly, making his disdain evident.

"I'll take no directions from your like, Garlean. Aye, I know what you are. There's rumors all down the line about the imperial prisoner working the triage lines. Stick to your busywork and let the healers do what they're good at."

"...Are you done? You can come in if you like, or should you prefer to stand out here in the damp and cold and continue to be miserable while rousing the entire camp with your bluster, then I suppose that too is your choice." Annoyance at his coarse demeanor had made her response sound rather more waspish than she'd intended, but Aurelia couldn't be bothered to moderate her tone.

"And who in blazes do you think you are, to be taking that tone with me," he sneered, "the Emperor? Think I'm one of your pet savages to order about at will, is that it?"

With some effort, she took a deep breath and held her tongue. She had no idea who this man was, but the medals he wore on his jacket indicated a fairly high rank and it probably wouldn't be wise to antagonize him unnecessarily.

"Sparrow, would you mind taking these dressings and the kit inside? And the stool so I'll have a place to sit? I can take matters from there." She reached for the makeshift walking aids she'd been lent and carefully maneuvered herself to stand on her good leg. "You two, please bring your friend inside."

Safely out of sight now, Aurelia winced as she made her slow and careful way towards the surgery. Her hips, still sore and extremely disinclined to bear her weight after her recent injury, screamed in silent protest. Under normal circumstances there was absolutely no way she'd be up and about like this; she really should be keeping her weight off both feet for about a sennight. As it was, she had to force herself to work through the pain.

Just like the rest of them, she couldn't afford the time spent in a sickbed. And bellicose as this man was, a patient was a patient and none of them had the luxury in a crisis situation to choose who was and wasn't deserving of treatment.

Steeling herself, she nudged aside the oilcloth flap and entered the relative dry warmth of the surgery. The partition was drawn; she could hear voices speaking quietly on the other side of the cloth. Otherwise it was quiet save the soft tick of an aetheric chronometer on one of the nearby shelves.

"Where's the healer, Garlean?" was the first thing out of the man's mouth.

"You're speaking to her," she said. Sparrow had set the field kit within easy reach for her to remove the steel tools within and a roll of fresh linen, so she did just that, looking over the assorted bottles and their contents within and refusing to give the irritating man a second glance. "I'll need you to have a seat on the table so I can examine the wound, please."

There was no response, so she looked away from her tools to repeat herself in time for the man to cast an imperious glare at her down the length of his aquiline nose.

"The request was for a healer," he snapped, "not an imperial wench with the manners of a harpy. I'm not near enough of a fool to trust your like to pull an ingrown toenail from your enemy, never mind-"

Aurelia's temper snapped like an overtaxed thread.

Her palms slammed down onto the surface of the table hard enough to crack the brittle wood and set the nearby potion bottles to jittering in place on its surface, making them all jump. She rounded on the man with unbridled fury in her dark blue eyes, a vicious rage burning in their depths, and his sneer faltered before the heat of her anger.

"My best friend, who fought the Empire beneath your banner," she hissed, "is dying. He is dying slowly and painfully, and with the limited resources on hand there is little that can be done to ease his suffering as he passes. Would that your places had been exchanged, but they were not, and it is your life I must needs safeguard and not the one I hold dear."

"How dare y-" he began, but Aurelia was not finished.

"As regards mine heritage, you should count yourself extremely fortunate that I am first and foremost a chirurgeon. I am charged with the preservation of life, regardless of the worth I would personally find in it. Rest assured, you have naught to fear from me save my words--which hardly cut so deep a wound that your pride shall not recover anon. Now," she bit out, "kindly place your arse on the sodding table, and keep your mouth shut unless you are addressed. You can do that much, can't you?"

The man had gone slack-jawed with incredulous astonishment-- but he didn't attempt further argument. Shivering, looking visibly ill now that he was no longer shouting at everyone in close quarters to obey his orders, the man seated himself on the edge of the table.

"Move aside," she told his companions, voice still flat and cold with anger. They all but scrambled to clear a path as she reached for the dress jacket slung loosely over his shoulders and shoved it aside. The foul smell hit her nose almost immediately, though she didn't react, only peeled back the dirty bandage that had been slapped over his forearm in all haste some time ago. "How long has your arm been like this?"

"S... since yesterday evening...?" At her mulish expression he sputtered, "Don't give me that look! 'Tis just a scratch."

"Aye, one you've let fester long enough it's like to cost you the limb."

"Like hells it is! This is why I wanted to see someone with magic, so they'd just heal it and I'd be about my way!"

"Conjury can only do so much," she said. "Magic isn't a panacea; even I know that."

"You imperials have taken aught else of value," he snarled at her. "I'll die before I let you take my godsdamned arm in the bargain."

There it was, she realized. The fear and distrust he'd hidden beneath his belligerence--not of her specifically, or even her people, but of medical practitioners in general.

Her own helpless anger subsided beneath a small sense of pity. She suspected that - ironically enough - he had put off having his hurts addressed simply because he was too frightened to deal with a chirurgeon, and ashamed of his fear. He was far from the first patient she'd received who worried her first answer to his problem would be a bone saw, and he'd hardly be the last.

She put her hands under his arm, bracing them at the wrist and the elbow so as not to touch any part of the wound itself. The man flinched and hissed at even her slightest touch; pus had leaked into his filthy dressing from the opening of the wound, and she could see a small piece of metal lodged just under the skin. Angry red streaks lanced down his swelling limb nearly to the elbow where her index and middle fingers touched.

When Aurelia spoke again, she kept her voice perhaps a bit calmer and gentler than before.

"First things first, there's shrapnel that needs removed. It's the most likely culprit-- and then I'll need to clean and suture it and change out your dressing. I think I have some things on hand I can use to keep the infection contained. Although at this point, I can't promise that any of these measures will forego the need for amputation. Captain Brudevelle is currently working with other patients; once she is available, I shall consult with her. For the time being, that is the best I can offer."

"I told you, I am not-"

"I am very sorry that you mislike matters as they stand," she said quietly, "but your anger changes nothing. Shouting at your wound will not cleanse nor heal it. Nor will shouting at me. Hopefully it shan't come to surgery, but if it's your arm or your life, then we shall take the arm that you might survive the infection. I would not even suggest it if it were not a possibility."

He blanched even paler beneath his fever-stained cheeks, but nodded and slumped forward in a clear show of defeat. His gaze didn't meet hers. He had lost what little fight remained in him.

Aurelia turned to his two underlings.

"Now," she said, "if one of you gentlemen would be so kind as to assist me, I shall need the basin atop that sideboard filled with water and brought to me, please. Quickly."

#reborn by fire #aurelia laskaris #chapter 7: sleep mothered them #wol origin story

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