Run.
That was what he had told her.
Run.
That was exactly what she was going to do.
Ahsoka was running straight through the thick brambles of the trees, the darkness clouding her vision as the trees made the night even more terrifying since she had left over an hour ago.
Alone, hurt and on the run from numerous people that want to torture and then kill me in the most gruesome fashion possible. Just typical.
The still recovering wound on her left leg, seemingly listening to her thoughts, stung with furious anger as branches slapped hard on the leg; Ahsoka running with a slight limp as a result of it. Unfortunately for her, the flashes of sharp light trying to light the forest up behind Ahsoka meant that she couldn't afford to have any time to rest.
If they got past Rohm then it's probably better that I don't get caught.
Despite the old man maintaining a relatively cold and distant distance from her since she was brought here, Ahsoka couldn't help but to feel some sense of worry for the man; he was old after all, probably in his sixties by any indication, and was the only figure that Ahsoka had seen that had always been ready to protect her and not dismember her limb from limb. Something that neither Kaylin nor Shay can claim wasn't what they had tried to do to her before.
Ahsoka could hear shouts now from increasingly closer voices; guards shouting out to each other for possible sightings of the 'Jedi'. Her leg now throbbing in pain, Ahsoka couldn't help but stop and quickly hide behind a large oak tree, resting on her right knee as she tried to soothe her pain ridden leg.
This blasted knee's gonna kill me!
She soon noticed a short distance ahead of her, was a clearing in the trees.
Better for me to hide in the long grass and not the maze of perpetual darkness filled with gun-toting soldiers.
"I see her, she's in the trees!" A male voice cried out, his light pointing straight at the oak tree that apparently failed to hide the Togruta.
Ahsoka, startled by the sudden voice of alarm, realises its do or die and sprints towards the clearing as best she could, her leg slowing her down slightly as multiple lights narrowed on her and piecing shouts filled the air.
Blaster fire whizzed past her, light blue streaks of light rushing at a blinding speed, Ahsoka doing her best to dodge them; her speed, whilst hampered by her injury, still allowed her to gain ground from her attackers.
A soldier in near black armour and a short cloak over his right shoulder, runs into her path from ahead with speed; his dark white skull visor giving him the appearance of a dead man as he raised his rifle and fired blindly at her, grazing her right shoulder and causing her to shoulder barge him into the ground with Ahsoka following suit.
Urgh... stuns.
Quickly getting up to her knees she viciously strikes him in the back of his knee with a palm, the guard crying out in pain before getting force pushed into a nearby tree and out of the padawans way as she clears the forest.
Her hope turned into despair as Ahsoka realises she is at a cliffs edge; high above a distant city of lights. Desperately moving forward in the slim hope of a miracle, Ahsoka suddenly gets bombarded by multiple blaster fire from seemingly dozens of skull wearing men and forcing her to crawl to the edge despite the pain coursing through her, panting slightly as she struggles to move.
Looking back through exhausted eyes Ahsoka could only watch as a woman with a mocking smirk strides towards her, her guards lighting her up with their lights.
Oh just end it then, coward.
"Krava!" A male voice shouts in righteous fury, forcing both Krava and Ahsoka to look back to see a furious and enraged Shay Horis, flanked by Kaylin and Rhom.
"Shay... What are you doing here?" A suddenly terrified Krava asks, whispering his name as a shiver goes down her spine and her eyes wide with fear. Ahsoka slowly starts to crawl away once again, simply wishing for this nightmare to end.
"Leave. Now." Shay states ominously in a cold voice, pacing ahead until he is at eye level with Krava.
"But Milord if you let me explain..." The spymaster begins to state before a look of deadly warning kills the words from her mouth.
"I will deal with you later. Now take your thugs and go." Shay coldly concludes before pushing past her, Kaylin and Rhom following his lead; both giving her their own stares of anger.
Enough of this. I've had enough.
Standing upwards once more and now at the very edge, Ahsoka turns back with a steel look in her eyes at the approaching party.
"Not one step closer!" She shouts, causing Shay to quickly stop his comrades in their tracks and gaining Krava and her guard's full attention.
"Easy Ahsoka, let's not do anything drastic-"
"No! I'm sick of these lies. What now, are you going to chain me up like an animal until I spill any useful information? I'd rather die than risk my friend's lives!" Ahsoka cries out in a wave of emotion.
A frantic and worried Shay quickly signals his daughter and friend back, pushing them back towards the soldiers, before ever so slowly taking a step forward.
"Please don't do this Ahsoka. Your selflessness is admirable but please don't take your own life because of it. I will tell you what you want to know, but just come back from the edge." He pleads with a caring tone to his voice, his entire face worried for her well-being. He slowly takes out his two lightsabers, briefly causing Ahsoka to tense, before dropping them to the ground.
"See, no weapons. Just let me talk to you." He asks her.
Taking her silence as an answer, Shay steps forward again until he is side by side from her, looking down at her with concern. Ahsoka however, not able to bear the pain any longer, falls to her knees, waving off any attempt to help from Shay.
"What did Kaylin mean by my 'heritage'?" Tell me!" She asks through gritted teeth, her eyes focused on Shay's.
"... The reason why I saved you when we fought was because of your name. It's a fairly common name here on Omnilus but not on your side of the galaxy. A strand in the force beckoned me to investigate so I saved you and took blood samples from you. You have blood found from my people Ahsoka." He whispers.
"But... my parents-"
"Belong to my people; therefore, you are one of my people." He almost fidgets from the discomfort of what he is saying. "That means I must help you in guiding your own future where you can fully understand where you belong."
"Then why did you attack our ships? Why kill our men?" She pleads a sense of desperation and confusion evident as she still struggles to come to terms with his answer.
"They attacked one of our patrolling vessels. We believed it was a declaration of war and so acted accordingly. We still did but mere hours ago when our men salvaged some of your ship's terminals and telling us the real reason why your here." Guilt echoed from his voice then, a sense of shame for bringing the deaths of his men perhaps, Ahsoka didn't know.
"Then all of this?"
"Was a misunderstanding. One that can be rectified." Shay states with a small sense of hope.
"How?" Ahsoka asks.
"Ahsoka, you have the blood of my people yet you have lived a Jedi. You are the perfect person to help bridge our people together in peace."
"What, are you mad I'm barely an adult and you want to make me an ambassador to what could possibly be the biggest peace talks in history?" Ahsoka spews out, her shock at the notion obvious.
"If I can teach you the culture that we live and you teach me yours we can help both of our civilisation from a war neither wants." Shay argues.
"But-"
"I swear. No harm will come to you whilst I live and I will attempt to find your family. I beg of you, please help me save the sons and daughters that would die if we do nothing."
Ahsoka looks at him for what felt like an eternity, studying his face that was filled with hope and sadness. She slowly sighs through her mouth in almost frustration before looking Shay dead in the eye and saying "let's go save our people."
Shay smiles brightly, whispering a single thank you to the young woman, before helping Ahsoka up to her feet and almost carrying her back due to the immense pain that was still coursing through her body, not checking to see Kaylin and Rhom walking besides them protectively; the old man picking up Shay's lightsabers from the ground before joining them.