Disclaimer: I do not own Star Wars or any of the characters in it.
A/N: It's been a while, guys! I've been so busy with education at the moment that I just haven't been able to find the time at all. If you're a reader of my other fanfictions, I sincerely apologise for the lack of updating. If I find the time, I will try and get back to them, I promise. As always, if there are any blundering mistakes, please point them out, please feel free to review my work (it all helps), and thank you for taking the time to read! Hope you enjoy!
Lost
ONE: Freefall
The low buzzing hum of the dropship muffled the outside from my thoughts. It was like a numbing trance, soft and soothing. In the back of my head, and my temples, eye sockets. But not really there. An invisible barrier. I stood gripping the overhead strap and looked down at my feet, waiting for the drop zone.
ETA: ten minutes. Not ideal. Too much time to think.
As the dropship neared the DZ, the doors lifted. A great rush of air swelled in.
'I said - are you all right Rex?' shouted General Skywalker, monotone, in order to be heard over the sound of the dropship and the wind whipping at our ears.
I came to as his free hand settled on my shoulder. It was like getting my character back.
'Yes sir, sorry sir. Been having some trouble hearing through the old girl recently,' I said through gritted teeth, tapping my helmet. 'Been meaning to get it looked at.'
General Skywalker nodded. 'As long as you're all right. I need you at your best today. We've finally tracked down Grievous to this forest moon in the Outer Rim, and I'm not letting him get away this time.' he bellowed over the noise. There was a distinct bitterness and severity in his voice. And a hardness to his gaze. He's been harsher recently. More coarse. Not hard to work out why.
What do you mean 'got your character back?' How can you possibly have it back when she's still..? When she's not..?
The General let out an almost inaudible sigh.
'I know, Rex.' said the General. Quieter this time. Softer. Almost as if I wasn't supposed to hear it. 'I miss her too.' Maybe I wasn't.
We stood for a moment in sombre silence, bar the whirring of the ship, remembering his Padawan. Ex-Padawan. I felt his hand slip from my shoulder.
I parted my lips to speak. Then came the chaos. The dropship suddenly lost its balance and veered off to the right. The alarm bleeped chaotically from the cockpit. Red. Flames. Smoke. The whir of the engine began to rise. We were losing altitude. Fast. The floor of the ship tilted. I felt my legs falling out beneath me and grasped the grip handle with both hands.
'What's going on up there?' shouted General Skywalker to the pilots, clinging on to the grip handle equally as hard I was. No reply. And the ground was getting too close for comfort.
Every man was scrambling for the straps. One fell. He screamed as he went. The General caught the next one and held him suspended while his brothers reached out for him. The transport was now fully on its side and sliding at a deathly speed towards the treeline.
I heard a cry above. A flash of white. I instinctively reached out and caught hold of the trooper's wrist.
Thank the Force. I got him.
He dangled beneath me on a background of streaked greens and browns for a millisecond. Then I felt the strap give way a little. My stomach lurched.
'You've got to be joking…' I muttered under my breath. I could feel my shoulder straining in its socket. I looked down at my brother hanging from my arm, and back up to the strap. 'Make sure you save them, sir!' I yelled to the General. He was busy trying to make his way to the cockpit to steer her in for a safer landing.
'Rex?' His eyes. He didn't understand. And I didn't have time to explain.
'I'll catch up to you, sir! Give 'em hell!'
And the bar gave way. He yelled it again as I fell, my brother just a foot beneath me. Free falling. I know it sounds cheesy, but as I fell, it felt like an eternity. My breath was loud and fast, ricocheting around inside my helmet. It was hot. I couldn't see the horizon. Just the crystal blue of the sky. It was odd to be weightless. And yet, it was almost peaceful.
I was suddenly reminded of Padawan Tano as she caught me that time on Geonosis. That smile…How I wanted her to catch me again.
And then the heavy thud and splintering crack.
