Chapter 3: Mending the Broken

Three years had passed since I joined the rebellion, and in that time, my skills (along with a bit of nepotism on Roe's part) bagged me the position of special ops head. About a year in, I also got myself a new apprentice in Kryss Mendia, a frighteningly young boy about Melody's age.

His grandmother, Aurora Eibarra, was a leader of the political opposition before she had been "dealt with", and Kryss, whose parents along with his grandmother were victims in an "unexplained fire" in the mental institution his grandmother was sent to after Lex was done with her, was set to take up that mantle before Lex dealt with him as well.

Driven by both his grandmother's death and a rare terminal disease he had contracted, Kryss had accomplished all his secondary and tertiary education requirements in the span of six months and was supposed to meet with Roe to join the political branch of the rebellion. However, the shuttle he took to Othros's capital region was "attacked by terrorists", and Kryss was critically wounded as a result of the crash. In fact, if it weren't for his latent Force sensitivity manifesting itself due to his shock, I wouldn't have been able to find him, and he probably would've died right there.

Even then, it took a good six months to treat most of his injuries, but thankfully, the Kaiburr's advanced medical technology and some innovations on my part allowed me to restore most of his body to the point that he looked completely normal on the outside.

More amazing than his recovery, though, was his will. As soon as he was able, he accepted my offer to train him in the ways of the Force, and in a year's time, he managed to master sword technique, basic Force skills, and infiltration.

Now, just two years after an accident that would've killed most, he had completed his first assignment: one of Lex's informants, the one, in fact, responsible for the fate of Kryss's own grandmother.

"I trust there were no complications."

"None, master."

Sensing a problem in his unusually frank answer, I prodded on.

"It's nothing, master," he insisted.

"Oh?" I said, "If it really were nothing, then I probably wouldn't be finding myself deprived of our usual intelligent banter."

A pause.

"She... She was the first person I've ever killed. I have no doubt that she deserved it, master; don't get me wrong. It's just that the feeling is... Chilling."

Understanding completely, I patted him on his shoulder.

"Kryss, sometimes I forget how young you really are. Any guilt or remorse that you feel is completely normal. In fact, it is when you no longer feel these things that you should be afraid; to cross that line is to lose oneself."

"I shall remember that, master," he said, but somehow, I felt that he still wasn't quite satisfied.

"Well, perhaps a little outing will make you feel better," I said, "Tricia's receiving an award for her research on your cancer. I think it might do you some good to rejoin society for at least one night."

"But master, won't my 'rising from the dead' call too much attention?"

"You can always wear a mask. Since the ER, masked men don't seem quite as outlandish as they did back when, what with all the different species you see around here now."

"Hmm..." he thought, "I think I will in that case. When do we leave?"

"The event's tonight, so you're leaving in about an hour. I'll prepare some transportation for you. Have fun."

"Wait, master, you're not coming?"

"I can't. Too much work down here, you know, not to mention that though rising from the dead will call more attention, being a wanted criminal gets more of the wrong kind of attention."

"C'mon, she's your sister. Plus, I bet Melody will be there as well."

"All the more reason not to go," I answered, "Wouldn't want her getting hurt because of me."

"Well, if I can evade detection, then you most certainly can as well," he retorted, "Master, it's been three years. Not seeing her dad for that long is hurting her too; believe me, I know."

He does, I thought.

"Fine," I said after a moment, "I'll go."

"Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great honor that I now present the Henning Award for Innovation in the Field of Medicine to Dr. Patricia Spade for her discovery, treatment, and continued research on sub-cellular cancer."

At the back row of the conference hall in Othros Cultural Center, Kryss and I joined the hundreds of people in attendance in a standing ovation for Tricia as she went up the stage to receive her award.

"Umm... Uh... Wow. Thank you very much... I..."

I looked down and shook my head a bit. My sister was never all that good at public speaking.

A few hours later, I managed to catch up with Tricia as she left the building and give her a quick scare for a greeting.

"Are you sure it's safe for you to be here?"

"Yeah, I just can't stay up here for too long. I don't want to give Lex enough time to find me."

She sighed in relief.

"So how was it?" she asked.

"Pretty bad," I answered, "And I'm sure you were up all last night preparing that, too."

"Well, everybody else said I did well, and that's all that really matters anyway."

I made a face as Kryss came to join us.

"Hey, doc."

"Oh my goodness," she said, eyes widened with her hand over her mouth, "Is that...?"

"Yeah," I answered, "He's all better now too, so I'll be taking that award."

"How?"

"Kaiburr Nanotech works wonders."

At that point, she wasn't even looking at me anymore, too busy analyzing with her favorite lab project.

As Kryss and Tricia were chatting, someone else joined us, someone I wasn't sure I was ready to talk with.

"Tricia, the car's ready," was all she managed to say before she stopped right in front of me, frozen.

She had done a lot of growing these past three years. Easily half a foot taller than she was when I left her, and with all her baby fat finally gone, she was now a very beautiful adolescent.

"Hi, Mel."

This is how Tricia and I are polar opposites. She can't speak with crowds, while I find my self completely speechless when talking with someone close to me face-to-face.

Unable to hold it in any longer, Melody rushed at me and held me in a tight embrace.

"I've missed you so much," she said.

"Same here," I answered, flashy words no longer needed.

At that very instant, I felt that despite the hard times brought about by the OEA and the rebellion, I could still be happy.

However, right at that moment, my blissful world came crashing down around me.

As I held Melody's warm embrace, I looked over her shoulder and chanced upon a plastic bottle, discarded and relatively worthless. It wasn't peculiar in shape either, but one thing really set it apart: it was floating. In an effort to block the panic trying to invade my mind, I forced my self to feel thankful for the fact that no one else was around at that moment.

With my worries in check, I pondered the possible causes of such an occurrence. I looked back at Melody as a thought entered my head along with a powerful tremble. However, I dismissed it faster than it was conceived and explained to myself that I was merely using the Force carelessly because of the strong emotions I felt that night, berating myself for letting my guard slip.

My explanation satisfied me for the duration of the night, but I soon came to realize that the calm I felt wouldn't last.

I assumed that Melody couldn't possibly be Force-sensitive, but was I ever wrong…