Agent Kallus sat at his desk sighing greatly to himself. He leaned forward and placed his head in his hands, rubbing his temples in a circular motion. The deaths of Cumberlayne and Myles were still fresh in his mind, and he feared he would never forget the gruesome scene. It wasn't the first time he had witnessed death; he had seen many of his troopers shot down in the line of battle before. But the look of horror that crossed Myles' and Cumberlayne's faces before The Inquisitor's red saber cut through them stained his mind. They just looked so… confused. Unknowingly, Kallus rubbed the side of his neck almost as if he was checking to make sure it was still there.
Suddenly the door to his office opened, white light flooding into the room. Kallus slowly opened his eyes as they tried to adjust to the bright light. The door closed and Kallus was surprised to see Minister Tua standing before him, and holding two cups of caf none the less. " I would have thought you would have retired to your home by now." Kallus stated standing up from his chair to greet her. "I was checking up on a few things around here and I also didn't feel like going home just quite yet." Maketh explained walking over to him. "Why? Afraid The Inquisitor is hiding somewhere in your bedroom?" Kallus half laughed taking a cup of caf from her. She glared at him as she sat down in one of the sleek black chairs before his desk.
"You know full well that could have been you and me sitting in those chairs today." Maketh exclaimed taking a long sip from her drink. Kallus sighed, nodding in agreement. "I must say I wasn't expecting such a horrendous outcome for both my officers. I was expecting termination or reassignment, but certainly not death." Kallus huffed. Maketh slowly put her cup of caf down onto his desk and sighed. She looked at him warily, a look of unease hiding behind her brown eyes. "Is something bothering you?" he asked. It wasn't like her to be on edge, maybe the memories of the executions were getting to her?
"Kallus, is it okay to be afraid?" Maketh questioned staring into her cup of caf. "Sometimes, yes it is okay to be nervous, and yes you can be afraid. Are you scared of The Inquisitor?" Kallus asked with interest. "No, not him. It's Tarkin. He had two men blatantly beheaded and now is calling almost all the shots on Lothal! What's next? Base Delta Zero?" Maketh cried looking up at Kallus.
Kallus was taken aback. Never once had he seen her like this; his old friend, so beaten down and upset. He stood from his chair and walked over to the distraught Minister. "I'm sure Tarkin has better interests for Lothal than blowing it to smithereens. Plus didn't a new five year plan just get passed for Lothal?" Kallus said placing his a hand on her shoulder. Taking a moment to regain herself, Maketh look up into Kallus' eyes and semi-smiled. "I guess you're right, Kallus. Perhaps I have overreacted." Maketh chuckled standing up from her chair.
She turned to leave but before she could get more than a step away Kallus caught her hand, bringing her closer to him. He held her close in a tight hug, holding onto her like a life line. Maketh wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in the crook of his neck. They held the hug for a few moments, neither wanting to break apart first. "When this is all over, when the rebels have been caught and Tarkin leaves Lothal, everything will be back to normal." Kallus breathed. Maketh nodded as she broke apart from him. "I will be heading home now, I suggest that you get some rest." she suggested half heartedly smiling as she left him in his office.
Kallus watched her leave, hoping she would make it home safely. All of a sudden his comlink beeped rapidly demanding his attention. "This is Kallus." Kallus answered picking up his cup of caf again. "Sir, rebel forces have been spotted by one of our transmission towers! We cannot hail the crew inside nor get any reading from the tower itself!" a trooper responded from the other end. "I will be right there. Scramble the men for an attack, were going to bring those rebels in dead or alive!" Kallus ordered. "Yes sir!" the trooper acknowledged. Kallus downed his remaining caf and grabbed his helmet. Rest would have to wait, right now, he had a rebels to catch.
No Copyright intended. Hope you enjoyed!
Also find this story on Deviantart! Pain Of Yesterday