AN: Holy shit, it's Division. I've spent a year talking about this on Displacement, and now here we are.
For the uninformed: Go read Displacement. If you don't want to, honestly I get that, it's fuckin' LONG. And still a WIP. All you need to know going in is that in Displacement, the protagonist, Michelle Ketros, finds herself waking up in the Star Wars universe in between TPM and AOTC, with everyone around her convinced that she's a normal Jedi padawan with amnesia, instead of an Earth teenager. What follows is her attempts to figure out why she's there, how to get home, and failing those, not die when things go to shit for the Jedi.
This is the result of me early in Displacement, thinking that Michelle does not have the personality or skillset to survive if she had been dumped in the Original Trilogy timeline. And then following that up by wondering, what kind of person would?
And Division was born.
For those of you coming back from Displacement: That's pretty much all you need to know. There's a few repeating OC's from Displacement, but as I've mentioned, we're acting like they were all canon characters that just weren't interesting enough to get a spotlight. So they all exist in Division, but due to it being post-Order 66, and most of them being Jedi… yeah, it's not looking good for them. Genocide and all that.
On that cheerful note, enjoy!
Part 1, Chapter 1: Way Too Fast
Andy woke up to the sun on her face, cold, but bright as hell. She groaned, and covered her face with her hands.
The sun shouldn't have been on her damn face. She hated waking up to the sun in her eyes, so she was always sure to fall asleep facing any direction but east. Had she slept past noon?
Shit.
Reluctantly, she started to get up, her frozen joints objecting to the movement. She pressed a hand against the wall to steady herself, and winced as her hand landed on frost.
…Wait, what?
Where the hell were her gloves? Had she been robbed?
Andy looked at herself, and swore in surprise.
All of her clothing was different. She'd fallen asleep in a hoodie, with a t-shirt underneath, and woken up in a leather jacket, with a tank top she'd never seen before in her life. Even her shoes and pants were different.
What the actual fuck.
And this wasn't the alley she'd fallen asleep in. A quick look around made that obvious, as she was pretty sure she hadn't passed out in an alleyway with a giant graffiti mural, and yet there was one in front of her.
Outside of the alleyway, the street was fairly busy, people passing by without looking her direction, as always. And… not all of them were human.
Aliens. She was looking at aliens. Walking by. As if this was completely normal.
What Arthur C. Clarke bullshit was this.
Hesitantly, Andy approached the mouth of the alley, and noticed some posters on the wall. A closer look proved that they were propaganda, about some Empire knowing best or whatever, and to report any suspected rebels.
Did she say Arthur C. Clarke? She meant George Orwell.
Cautiously, she left the alleyway, and stepped out onto the main street.
She wasn't entirely sure what she was expecting to happen, but she was taking it carefully anyways. As it turned out, she shouldn't have bothered, as all that she got as a dirty look from someone dressed nicely. And that was probably due to her being clearly homeless.
Good to know some things never changed.
…Although she could probably use a shower. Her head was itchy.
That was going to be a problem, considering she had no idea where the hell she was. Or even when the hell she was. Time travel seemed about as plausible as anything else. But no matter what was going on, it was probably a safe bet that she didn't have the option of crashing on a friend of a friend's couch. She was definitely not in Toronto anymore.
Plus, it was cold out, and the clothes she'd woken up in weren't as warm as the ones she'd fallen asleep in. If she didn't find somewhere to sleep overnight, then things could get very unpleasant, very quickly.
Well, starting from scratch. Great. At least her family was probably out of the picture.
And on that cheerful thought, Andy picked a direction and started walking.
Her wanderings didn't take her far until she stumbled across a patrol.
Specifically, a Stormtrooper patrol.
Like, real Stormtroopers. Star Wars.
So it was George Lucas, not George Owell. Alright then.
She'd stared for a moment, before remembering that oh yeah, maybe she didn't want to do that. Fascist government and all.
Hmm. Was Palpatine better or worse than Trump? Maybe about the same. Palpatine was more organized, but he was predictable evil. Trump was just pure chaotic evil.
Eh, they both were pricks. Except now, apparently she was being ruled by Palpatine, which was not ideal. Back home, all she had to deal with was goddamn Justin Trudeau, and while that wasn't ideal, at least he wasn't actively trying to kill and/or enslave her.
Fucking dictators.
Her political musings carried her into a back alley, which, normally would not be the kind of place people chose to be. The fuck was her problem today?
But despite that, something told her to keep going down, and she ended up turning onto a back street.
She was glad that she did, considering what she rounded the corner to see.
There was a Twi'lek woman, short and dark blue, standing defensively in front of what was probably the back door of a shop. And in front of her was four Stormtroopers, all in uniform, and holding blasters.
See, the smart thing to would be to get the hell out of dodge. Unfortunately, Andy was a fucking idiot, so she stayed to watch, albeit hanging back out of the way, waiting to see if the woman could handle the situation herself.
The woman was arguing with the Stormtroopers, making increasingly angry gestures, and her voice raised enough that Andy could hear her from down the street.
"…is BULLSHIT, my merchants license doesn't expire for another two YEARS, check your fucking records!" She practically snarled, punctuating the words with something that was probably a rude gesture.
"Look, you stupid tail-head, if we say you're license is expired, it's expired! We're willing to let this slide for now, if you can prove that you are, in fact, running a legitimate business-"
"Oh, so I'm supposed to bribe you to make you leave? Fuck you! It's not happening!"
"Listen, you stupid slut-" One of the Stormtroopers growled, stepping forwards to grab the woman by the arm.
Which was pretty much where Andy drew the line, so that was fun.
"Hey, back off assholes!" She yelled, storming down the street. Sure enough, the trooper dropped the Twi'lek's arm as if it had scalded him, and retreated a few steps away from her. "The lady said her license is up to date, and even if it wasn't, I'm pretty sure that you crossed the line a while ago. What with the demanded bribes, and I'm pretty sure that last bit counts as sexual assault, so wow! You're all pieces of shit! So, wanna leave her alone, or should I go report you and see what happens?"
Through the helmet, she got the impression that the four men were glaring at her.
"You're bluffing." One of them accused.
"No, I'm really not."
Yeah, she really was. Andy was pretty sure reporting them would get her in more trouble than them. And besides, even if it would work, she didn't know how to. Or where to. Or who the hell she was reporting in the first place.
So she was really hoping they didn't figure that detail out.
Thankfully, they did not seem to figure that detail out. Or maybe not thankfully, because that meant the four of them started to advance on her.
Hm. She was having regrets.
Could she fist fight four Stormtroopers at once? It seemed she was about to find out. God, this was just like that one time when she was ten and got into fight with an entire hockey team. They'd deserved it though. Bunch of pricks. And she had gotten in a few good punches, even if it ended with two of them holding her back while the captain punched her.
That had certainly been an interesting tournament. Shame she'd quit hockey before she'd gotten far enough that checking was allowed.
"Go away, street rat. This isn't your problem." One of them said, tone threatening.
Behind them, the Twi'lek woman realised that the Stormtroopers had lost interest in her, and quietly opened the door behind her, slipped inside, and closed it.
...Always nice to feel appreciated. Thanks lady.
Well, nothing to do about. Time for Andy to square the fuck up, and probably go down swinging.
"SARAH! Where the hell have you been!?" Someone called, from behind Andy. Reflexively, she turned around, and saw a tall black woman approaching, dressed in heavy, oil stained clothes, and with a toolbelt on. Looked like a mechanic, honestly. Her hair was short and curly, brushing the top of her shoulders, and dyed a deep purple. And she was walking straight towards Andy, looking annoyed but unconcerned.
Andy looked behind her. The only other people on the street were the Stormtroopers.
The fuck?
The woman reached Andy, and slung an arm around her shoulder, making Andy squeak reflexively and stiffen at the surprise physical contact.
"Morning officers! I hope my employee here hasn't been giving you any trouble, has she? Ignore anything she says – poor kids got brain damage. Born with it, you know, her mum got exposed to some chemical shit when she was pregnant during the Clone Wars, so it made her come out extra stupid, damn Republic bastards. Still, she knows her way around an engine, so she's useful to keep around. Look, I'm really sorry if she said anything, she can't help herself. Last week she tried to fight a tree."
It took a moment for Andy to realise what the hell the woman was on about, and when it clicked, it was a struggle not to grin. The woman was giving her an out. Which… was probably for the best, because that fight would not have ended in Andy's favour.
"Aww, boss, don't say it like that! The tree knocked me down!" Andy whined, doing her best to sound like a bratty kid.
The woman rolled her eyes.
"You mean you walked into one of the branches, because your dumb ass wasn't looking. So, everything alright here, officers? 'Cause she was supposed to be at work fifteen minutes ago, so I'd like to get going, if we can."
The four Stormtroopers exchanged looks.
"Didn't know the kid had brain damage. Don't let it happen again, alright?" One of them said, putting on a patronizing warning tone.
Andy scowled.
"…Coulda taken that tree, if you woulda let me…"
Placated, and clearly seeing her as harmless, the troopers turned and left. Her rescuer prompted her to start moving the other way, and they left the back street, heading for the alleyway Andy had taken.
The woman did not remove her arm from Andy until they stepped onto the main street.
"So, that was a hell of a stunt you pulled there. Who are you?" The woman asked, continuing to walk, and clearly expecting Andy to keep following on her own.
Well, not like she had anywhere else to be.
"Thanks for the save back there. I'm Andy."
"Interesting name." The woman commented, voice non-judgemental in the sort of way that made it clear she was judging.
"It's short for Andromeda. My parents are weird."
"Yeah, on that note, where are your parents? Do they know you like to pick fights with Stormtroopers in your spare time? How old are you even?"
Andy scowled.
"Can you stop calling me kid? I'm seventeen, okay? And my parents don't give much of a shit about what I do, considering they kicked me out a few years ago. Don't even know where they are now." Andy said, unable to help the bitterness in her voice at that.
The woman frowned, sympathy in her eyes.
"Shit, kid, that's rough. Where are you staying?"
Andy winced.
"Um… nowhere, right now. Kinda just got here yesterday, I slept in an alley last night. You know if there's any shelters or something?"
"Well… there's two shelters, but they're both government run, and don't allow minors, so that's not an option for you unless you've got a really good fake ID. Which I'm guessing you don't."
Yeah, she didn't have a fake ID. Didn't think she had a real ID either, so that was going to be a problem.
"Wouldn't even know where to get one if I could afford it." Andy said, shrugging a bit. Her options were rapidly dwindling.
"Alright. Tell you what, you know anything about mechanics?"
"…No, but I can learn?"
"That's what I like to hear. I run a shop, and I've been meaning to hire an assistant for a while. You want a job? My apartments over the shop, there's a spare room you can live in. Fair warning, this is not a free ride, you are going to be working for your keep. Hope you don't mind getting your hands dirty."
Andy grinned, somewhere between thrilled and relieved.
"I don't mind at all. That – that solves like, so many of my problems, thank you so much. You're not going to regret this." She said, voice breaking a bit in relief. She didn't even care if it was embarrassing how grateful she was, she was just glad to have somewhere to settle into being in a different fucking universe or whatever the hell.
"Hey, no problem kid. My shop's just up ahead."
As they walked the rest of the way, Andy remembered what she had forgotten to ask.
"So uh – what did you say your name was?"
The woman blinked, and then grinned a bit sheepishly.
"Right, forgot to introduce myself, sorry about that – oh, here we are, it's this one."
Andy and the woman entered the door of a building that resembled a typical garage, albeit a small one, with a shop attached to it. Inside the garage part was two different speeders, both with the engines exposed, and a few parts around them. More tools were inside the garage, hanging from the walls in what looked to be a complicated organizing system, not helped by most of the tools being unfamiliar. The shop area was small but cozy, several shelves displaying various gadgets, tools, and containers – probably all related to machine upkeep. A few chairs lined the wall attatching to the garage, with some windows allowing the shop to look in, and a door for access. There was a counter against the back wall, and the access to behind it was blocked by a chain and a sign declaring the area to be employees only. A narrow flight of stairs led up, presumably to the apartment.
In short, it was awesome.
Andy might actually like working and living here.
"Welcome to your new job, Andy. I'm Neria."
AN: So, again this is the part where newcomers go eh cool whatever, and Displacement veterans flip shit. I'm gonna stop you right there: Yes. She's that Neria. Jedi Knight Neria. Who, apparently, survived Order 66! Upside of mostly working to develop new starships, means that you don't work with clones on a regular basis, so there's nobody around to kill you before you can get the fuck out of there.
So, we know about Neria. What happened to Ketros, Coltin, Zinnia, Isaac and Seha? You'll find out. And yes, Ketros and Isaac are wildcards, because remember, the events of Displacement didn't occur in this verse, so actually, we don't know what happened to them yet. Well, I do, I know what's up with all of them, but you don't, so enjoy that mystery, nerds.
Also, welcome Andy to the stage! She's definitely more reckless than Michelle, as you probably guessed by like everything that she did. In her old life, she was one of the thousand-odd homeless kids in Toronto, due to being kicked out by her parents at fifteen. So there's some baggage there. That'll get elaborated on, don't worry. It's probably a good thing that she's got a more gung-ho personality than Michelle, as Michelle probably would have had an existential breakdown before leaving the alley, while Andy just kinda shrugs and rolls with it.
And for those of you who don't know Canadian politics, Justin Trudeau is our prime minister right now. He campaigned on a very liberal platform, heavy on indigenous rights (Canada is SUPER racist fyi, we treat our aboriginal population pretty badly, look it up it's a fucking outrage), and has spent his time in office cheerfully breaking all of those promises, so that's got a lot of people pretty annoyed with him. Andy is included in this count.
See you next Friday!
