AN: I know that I'm having to evacuate due to Hurricane Florence so for anyone else who is doing the same, please be safe! This storm is nothing to joke about so to everyone traveling; be safe, to everyone staying put; please find shelter and take care of yourself! Also, here's a new chapter to enjoy while we all still have power xD. My prayers go out to everyone. Love y'all!

Chapter 6: And Then There Was One

Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OC.

Eirian shivered as she slowly regained consciousness. As her brain slowly began to regain functionality, she coughed and tried to move. However, her movements were wasted. She was unable to move. Her breath catching in her throat, she frantically flailed her arms as she attempted to gain purchase from her surroundings. Unfortunately, there was nothing for her to grab on to and nowhere for her to go.

She tried to open her eyes but all she registered was darkness. Straining against the blackness Eirian fought to make out anything but it was futile. Deciding to focus on her other senses, she quieted her mind and tried to focus on what she could hear. Her ears ringing, she was able to distinguish little apart from screaming and explosions.

After floating in weightlessness for another few moments, she collided with a wall. Knowing this would most likely be her last chance to grab onto anything before being weightless again, Eirian was quick to wrap her fingers around the first thing they came into contact with. Not sure what she was snagging, Eirian pulled herself against the wall, hugging it with her entire body. Her eyes still refused to work and she was beginning to wonder if it wasn't from a lack of light.

Shifting her grip to better hold on, Eirian gasped when she felt the metal bar she had been holding onto for dear life drop down. This was followed by a quiet whoosh that meant a set of double doors had been open as a result. Holding onto the bar with one hand, with the other she felt along the wall in an attempt to find the opening left by the doors.

Having nearly lost her grip several times, Eirian finally managed to find the opening. Shifting her position so that she was facing the opening feet first, she swung inside the opening. As she did so, the doors closed shut behind her. Grappling around in the dark, she finally managed to find a chair.

Cracking a smirk, she murmurs, "I may not be able to see but being the best pilot in my class I can fly with my eyes closed." Despite it being alien technology, Eirian easily recognized the vessel as an escape pod. From her knowledge of ships from the Garrison combined with what she had learned from her now deceased alien friends about their ships, as well as what she had observed about the Galra ship before it began exploding, Eirian felt comfortable in her ability to pilot. She may not have known anything about alien life or war, but piloting came as easy to her as breathing.

Checking the controls, Eirian buckled up before moving the ship forward. It let out a low moan before booting up. Despite the fact that the ship should have been flooded with light as it came to life, Eirian still couldn't see anything. She recognized the sounds of the engine humming and the anti-gravity thrusters engaging, but the lights and flashes she should have been observing were nonexistent.

Thrusting the ship forward into full throttle, Eirian counted down in her head as she mentally went through the procedure of takeoff before doing so in actuality. She heard the sound of Galra shouting and rapidly approaching footsteps, but by the time they opened the bay doors that led to the escape pod, Eirian had already taken off.

"Haha!" she laughs to herself as she turns around. She is unable to see the look on the stunned troops' faces but she can easily imagine the expressions of anger and frustration.

It had occurred to her that once she left the Galra ship she would be unable to see where she was going and a crash would be imminent within a matter of seconds. Fortunately, she had been well trained to rely on senses other than just her eyes. The ship was an extension of her very self. When it came too close to another ship, subtle vibrations would run throughout the ship's framework, directly through her arm, and into her very core.

This was easier said than done, especially considering she was in the middle of a war zone. Galra fighter ships clashed with rebel ships, gunfire from both sides filled the surrounding space, and Eirian was completely unfamiliar with the surrounding area which was made worse by the fact that she was blind.

Nevertheless, she made due. As she piloted the ship, she reached for the communication device she had been given and shouted into it, "This is Eirian Shirogane. All three members of my crew are dead. I have commandeered a Galra escape pod and am currently on an uncharted course. Does anyone read me? I repeat-" She continued this twice more but there was no chatter on the com.

"Dammit," she mutters in frustration. In that moment of absolute frustration, the backend of the escape pod was struck by gunfire. Unable to tell if it was Galra or rebel, not that it technically mattered at this point, Eirian flew back into her seat as the ship spiraled out of control. Her grip on the steering shift had been so tight that upon impact she had wrenched it off.

Letting go of the broken part before she could accidentally bludgeon herself with it, Eirian covers her face with her arms to shield herself from potential injury. As though caught in a broken pinball machine, Eirian bounced back and forth among the ships and stars and soldiers.

Frantically shaking her head from side to side as the ship shook, Eirian braced herself for impact. Whether she would plummet into a ship or a planet or simply fly through space forever she knew naught. She only hoped that if she were to crash, it would crash into the Galra who had taken her brother from her in the first place. Eirian could die knowing she had done that much.

Unfortunately, she noticed herself flying past the heart of the battle as the sound of gunfire, explosions, and screams died down. With the steering disabled, there wasn't much she could do to change that fact. Bracing herself for impact, it wasn't long before the escape pod crashed.