The heavy breathing stops. Leo begins breathing again. He was not the one heavy breathing, that was the dark figure now five paces in front of him. If Leo could have, he would have held his breath until the dark figure was at least seven paces away. But the figure was moving slow, probably weighed down by the expansive cape flowing around it's back. And if there was one thing Leo was known for, it was being short of breath. A sticky string of sweat traveled down Leo's forehead. He shifted his weight, the sweat drips into his eyes.

Leo blinks.

"Prince Leo from the Imperial Senate," the dark figure breaths and turns around, "I hear you." It's voice darker than it should be for a figure smaller than it feels like.

He swallows, the large gulp of air choking him. He can't find his voice; the dark figure saunters closer, nearer, and higher. Soon Leo's frame smashed underneath control panel B is also confined by the dark figure's monster of a shadow. The shadow lighter than the actual monster.

"Darth Moeder," Leo finds his voice and immediately doesn't like it. He wishes he could have a redo. Leo's voice sounds scared, helpless and useless. He wants to make it clear; Leo is not any of these three.

Even as his heart bangs in his chest.

Darth Moeder does not bend her knees down, does not wave her hand up, or even try to remotely look Leo in the eyes. Instead, Darth Moeder's boots begin to click, as if the monster is impatient that he would rather be under control panel B then out fighting her.

"Don't make me," Darth Moeder states. The tone is robotic and bored like she is apathetic that she could torture others with the Force.

Leo glances over at half his crew, their stiff frames smashed against the back wall, Darth Moeder's powers still suffocating their body. Leo hopes Darth Moeder and her troops will not find his other crew, that being the women and droids hidden in the farthest corner of the ship.

A sharp wail burst from one of the found crewmembers, she clutches her body and beings coughing like a fish out of water.

"I'm here," Leo immediately stands up and out of control panel B. The crewmember stops choking as Darth Moeder turns back and lowers her hand, and this time stares into his eyes. At least he thinks so, Leo squints, the black helmet making it very hard to tell.

"Where are the technical documents?" Darth Moeder dictates. It's a question, so it deserves the mark, but Darth Moeder's steady voice never rises.

"The what?" Leo stumbles, this is definitely deserving of the elusive question mark, his voice rising higher than it had when he was in puberty.

"The technical documents to my -" Darth Moeder pauses, "no. You know what I am referring to because you have the documents, hand them over." The monster's dark gloved hand reaches forward, the black of the skinny fingers as shiny as her boots.

"No-" Leo spits in Darth Moeder's face, the saliva sticking to the dark helmet like glue. Leo smiles.

Then runs like hell.

He dashes over control panel D and doesn't stop as he jumps around the chair of control panel A. The sound of blasters echoing as the hidden half of his crew dash out. Those brave women pushing towards Darth Moeder and her troops as Leo dashes the other way.

He furiously slides, and stumbles to the back, trying not to hear the cries from his women. Or the sound of bodies falling. Instead, he focuses on the droid. "H4!"

"Dee DeDa Doo," the droid blares over, more excited than it should.

"H4...here," his quivering hands rush over the droid looking for the stick, "take this!" he shoves the memory stick full of the secret technical documents in the memory drive.

"Master I do not think you should trust-"

"Shut up B-5DO!" Leo pushes the tall gold droid away, she always has something to say about something. Always at the worst possible time.

"Dee Da Dee Doo," H4-C4 sings, signaling the stick's information has been transferred. In the back, Leo can still hear his crewmembers, but the sound is getting quieter and softer. Soon Darth Moeder's going to find him.

And she's not going to be happy.

"Go!" he begins to shove the two droids over towards the escape pod.

"But Master!" B-5DO complains.

"No, you two go, you have the documents, keep them safe. Take them to...well...somewhere safe. To someone safe!"

"But!"

"Dee Doo!"

"Now!" he opens the pod as the air hurtles around him. Leo can hear the heavy breathing behind him. It is gathering momentum. Leo's fist crunches against the lock, sealing the escape pod. He can hear the whoosh of air signaling the pod's launch, signaling the safety of the documents, and hopefully, his plea for help. Sending them to any place but here. To anyone one but here.

It's his last hope.

"Prince Leo…I believe you owe me an apology," he hears the dark voice behind him, "and a clean helmet."

Leo stops breathing.