AN: So this begins around the time when they got the freighter. Welk and Lomi Plo aren't in this as I never saw them as needed or liked them very much. Hope you enjoy!
The wound in Anakin's stomach flared with pain as he came up from on his knee to slice the Vong in half. He stood up and surveyed the damage this attack had caused, mentally counting each strike team member. Somehow, they had all survived this attack, but it had drained them all immensely. He called a retreat back to the protection of the freighter.
"We can't take an another attack like that, we need to cut our losses and get off this hell hole" Jaina said as she reached the ship. Some of the team looked at her in shock but others looked appreciative as they had all been thinking it. But it was very apparent on Tenal Ka's face that's not what she thought.
"And what about the lives we have already lost? They will have died for nothing!" Tenal Ka shot back. "We may not die here but within the year even more will die from the voxyn attacks. We all knew we were very likely to die coming into this mission. It needs to be finished here and now."
The two women debated the debate for a while, but no one took true sides. In all honesty, he had no idea what to do. He was having trouble thinking clearly. The heavy blood loss and the energy he had exerted had taken its toll. Suddenly, he saw out the corner of his eye a lone voxyn that had survived the attack and had been playing dead. "Voxyn!" He shouted to the rest of the group as he took off at a sprint to reach it before it reacted. He immediately reacted to the threat, when he came into range the voxyn spewed its acid at him, Anakin ducked but a few drops hit his shoulder. He was up in a flash bringing his lightsaber directly to the voxyns head shoving it up through a weak spot in the neck. He quickly moved himself out of the way as the voxyn spewed acid and fell to the ground. As he stood up the world went fuzzy and that last thing he saw was his team mates running towards him as he collapsed onto the ground.
Tahiri reached him first and kneeled down next to him, his face was pale and some blood seeped out from a wound on his head from where he had hit a rock when he fell. She let out a small choked weep when she saw the wound in his stomach, it had reopened and she saw how deep it was, blood spilled from it. She began searching for a pulse, she found one but ir was faint. Tekli reached him next, practically shoving Tahiri away so she could have more room to examine. "He has a pulse" was all she was able to choke out. The rest of the team was on her heels, Jaina was practically in hysterics. Not that Tahiri blamed her as she was on the brink of screaming. Lowie let out a groan as he hugged Jaina. Jacen stood next to her but seemed to be lost in his own world of pain and shock. The rest of the team surrounded them. Tahiri could only look on in shock as Tekli did an assessment of the situation with a expressionless face. "He's still breathing but we need to get him proper medical attention, a healing trance won't heal this. Zekk, Tesar, help me get him to the ship"
Without a word, they did as she asked. This brought Jacen out and he realized that command now fell to they moved him, the team started to follow to bring up a defensive position and she only registered that Jacen sent Tenal Ka and Alema to scout and see if anymore yuahzon vong were coming their way. Jacen told the rest of the team to go into healing trances and he would keep watch. She settled herself farther away from the rest of her teammates. Too tired to cry and too numb to to comprehend anything else, she fell into the trance.
While everyone else slipped into their trances, Jacen went into the ship to see how Anakin was. As he entered the med bay he saw Raynar laying on one side of the room and Anakin on the other with Tekli holding a wad of bandages to the wound in his stomach.
Jacen cleared his throat to announce his presence which made Tekli jump. ''How is he?" Jacen asked. She gave him a sad glance "The same, the healing trance is only keeping him from getting worse but he won't last more than 24 hours this way, if that."
"Is there anything that we can do?"
"No, he needs a real med center with actual equipment. Which we very obviously don't have." She gestured to the room around them. "And who knows how much longer we can hold this position? And then there's Raynar, his wounds are not awful but infection could get in if he doesn't get in a bacta tank. He is most vulnerable for infection for the next 12 and after it sets in I'd give him 14 more if not treated."
"So you're saying that if we don't leave soon then they will both be dead within the next 30 hours?"
Tekli solemnly nodder her head "That's what it about amounts too"
Jacen sighed and walked out. He had only come on this mission to protect Anakin and Jaina and he had failed. Quite miserably. And now the rest of his friends lives were at stake. But he knew a way that he could protect all of them and finish the mission. No one would ever go for it, especially Jaina. But then again, he didn't have to tell them anything. He had an even greater mission now then to just kill the voxyn queen. He had to keep those he loved safe, even if that meant his own death.
He walked down the ramp and saw Tenal Ka, he went over to her. "Why aren't you in a trance?" he asked. She sat up"I was worried about you. Your brother is currently dying and you are not talking to anyone and when you do not talk to anyone you make rash decisions." she observed. Jacen gave a weak laugh. "Yeah, you're right". They sat in silence for a few moments. Jacen broke it "How many jedi do you think you would need to get to the Queen and complete the mission?" he asked. Tenal ka slowly answered "You could set a bomb in the heart of the cloning facility with just one person. But they would never be able to get back out…." she stopped "Jacen, you are not thinking what I think you are thinking" She looked him straight in the face. Gosh dang it he was the worst liar. "Of course not Tenna I'm not that stupid" he said weakly. Her expression showed she wasn't buying it. He sighed, the confident persona he had been trying to hold had fallen. The reality had set in "I can't let any more of us get hurt or killed. We cannot hold this ship for any longer but we have to finish this mission. This is the only way." he looked at her pleadingly. "Tenna please, you know I'm the only one who can do this." He said softly. She wasn't buying it. "But why does it have to be you?" though her face was as expressionless as usual, the words came out choked. There were very apparent in her eyes.
"Out of my entire family, I'm the odd one out. Jaina is the pilot who can single handedly save planets and the darling of the Jedi Order. Anakin is the hero of every situation he's been put in, a born leader and commander, the apprentice that thrived under Luke Skywalker. And what am I? The person who consistently lives in Jaina's shadow. I argue with the almighty and brilliant Anakin Solo at every turn. I did not follow in Uncle Luke's footsteps like Anakin." He lowered his head. "I have always been the kid that never lived up to the right expectations. I'm not the leader mom is or the pilot that Dad is. I'm not the type of Jedi this war needs, those roles belong to Jaina and Anakin not to me." He met Tenal Ka's eyes "I'm the expendable one".
Tenal Ka had agreed to help him in the end. She would make sure that the others wouldn't come after him. They had assembled the weapons and prepared the detonators he would need. Luckily no one else had noticed them doing this. Jacen swung the bag of detonators over his shoulder and clipped the lightsaber to his belt and looked at Tenal Ka "I guess this is goodbye" he said awkwardly. She smiled at him and stepped closer."For the record Jacen, you were never expendable to me." and with that she kissed him.