'May We Meet Again in the Afterlife'
Day 271-20:21:44
Sgt. Numa Bril
Spectre platoon, Free Ryloth Movement
Galaxies Opera House, Coruscant
I discreetly headed towards the arc of spotlights on the side of the opera house, with Ion next to me and a couple of other soldiers following behind me. This was where we're supposed to link up with our Terran support, and collect our lightsaber-resistant armour and weapons in case Maul decided to pay Ahsoka and us a visit.
A VCX-100 freighter landing some distance away caught my attention. There wasn't much of a paint job on it, but I could tell it wasn't a regular civilian ship, as the people flooding out of the ramp weren't just guys in tuxedos, but broad grunts with crammed duffel bags behind them. Besides, I know that my peer mentor has a ship just like that.
That's our support all right. Hope they know how long it took to narrow down the searching area.
We walked up to each other, and before I knew it, I was standing in front of a Terran fire team, with practically identical blue shirts and dirty cargo pants, in addition to their duffel bags with an obvious military marking, meaning they used to be property of the United States Army. Except one, who had a green fleece and a set of heavily customised armour on his right arm. He also kept his hair, and even had a ponytail behind his brain, unlike the majority of the Terran squad who were all bald.
They're sending their best guys too. Looks like they're aware of Maul as well.
"This bag's yours. Don't put it on in public." A blond man with a tough build said as he handed me a bag filled with our equipment, while the soldier in green gave Lubo(Spectre 2-5)her package. "And try not to lose it." He added and lead us to a series of elevators, where we could find a room to stay, monitor the activity outside and wait for Ahsoka(if what Ion found was solid)to show up.
I gotta admit, it's been a while since I was ever truly afraid, about death. In fact, the last time was already way back when I didn't know a damn thing about how to defend myself from slavers, and I was stupid enough to think nobody would try to mess with us ever again.
The Sith are back. And they're after you this time. There's no getting out.
I never bothered to look outside and enjoy the view like most of my comrades did when the turbolift leading to our place to stay for the night rushed down the opera building. Since when was I such a 'fraidy? I've never feared anything like this in my life. Not even the Separatists.
What made matters worse was that everybody in this lift is about to pass away, just like the week when the lords of the Sith decided to toss out the trash in the outer rim, and left my home with hundreds of noble men and women dead and the evil having the time of their lives. And they didn't leave this galaxy in peace. They were slaughtered under the blades of a Sith. They don't deserve that. Nobody here deserves that.
But I guess I'll have to keep it to myself. I can't let my fears jeopardise the mission, or take its toll on the team's morale, even if it's gonna cost me a big piece of myself.
After a few minutes the elevator decelerated, and came to a pause at the middle of the opera building. A muted hiss followed, revealing a bright and circular reception lobby. I only paid attention to its details after I convinced myself I was here on a mission, to recover an informant on the run from Maul and the Empire.
The floor was nicely cleaned and reflected the lights on the ceiling like a mirror, in addition to the reception where several silver protocol droids stood. I was surprised the expense for this op didn't already made the Movement bankrupt, and that's probably thanks to a fellow team from Javelin who raided an imperial vault during their trials.
Gobi was already waiting for us there, with his team tuning the probe droid we were going to use to find Ahsoka in the endless sea of people upstairs. Normally I would've paid close attention to everything I see or hear, but not this time, for some reason.
I tried. I did notice how everyone here's neatly dressed, the exact position of the air vents and vantage points I could use tomorrow, but unlike other times, fear was always trying to make its way into my head, and it's difficult to stop it.
C'mon! I'm a sergeant already! I can't be like this in front of all my men!
That night Ion didn't even bother to eat anything from the restaurant just inside the hotel, or possibly from anywhere else, saying he wasn't hungry. And neither did I, only I was present, while Ion was hanging out in his room, probably practicing his fight moves or whatnot.
After a while I decided my appetite wasn't going to boost all of a sudden, and so I excused myself to head back up to our rooms, where Ion's probably already waiting. I took the stairs and headed to the floor above us, and as I opened the door to a corridor, I saw Ion standing at the middle of it, with his hands inside his pockets and his ears covered with his headset as always.
Can't believe he's still in the mood to enjoy the music. How is it that he's practically gotten immune to fear? Or is it me that is too afraid?
But he wasn't listening to anything like I thought he would, because he heard me instantly, even though the noise I made when I opened the door and walked up to him was practically inaudible. "You don't look too well." He said.
"Shouldn't be surprised." I sighed, with the sensation of death still lingering in my lekku. "Only three people here truly know what a Sith is like. Gobi's seen too many deaths, you're fearless. And there's me: a little outlaw girl that's too afraid to die."
He simply lowered his head and apparently drowned himself into a deep processing inside his head, leaving me waiting impatiently for his answer. I inclined my head horizontally to get a glimpse at the clock around the corner and inside a room filled with washing machines and towels. It says roughly around 21:30, with a holographic date displayed under it.
"Can we talk inside?" Ion requested after moments of silence. Instead of replying, I simply nodded, and handed him the card-like keys for him to open the door of our room. Inside the room sat our new gear, on an unfolded chair next to a cabin with a holocaster fixed on top of it.
Ion extended his arm and switched on the lights hanging on top of the ceiling. In an instant everything that I missed to the darkness was revealed in front of me, though I didn't pay any attention to it. I just wanted some company, with this one guy that's like my family. My real family, not my biological one.
"Nobody can be fearless. I'm no exception." He simply said, without even bothering to look up. "Especially when it comes to death. Some people just respond differently from others." He paced towards the relatively small living room and plopped down on the sofa bed opposite to the holocaster.
"And as much as it might seem weird, I chose to accept it." His voice grew weaker as he spat out each word of his statement. His cold forearm stayed in position and his hands remained inside the pockets of his desert-coloured trousers, as cold and powerless like his voice right now.
"Because for a Terran...a Terran that has to live more than half his life with exam papers, swimming upstream in class and...missing all the fun in childhood...death isn't that bad anymore. It's a liberation." He said hazily, with a tone so unusual like he's about to burst into tears.
"Numa...Numa, can I tell you something? I might never have a chance if I don't." Ion extracted his arms from his pockets, and rested them on my hands. I couldn't tell for sure what's making a strong and usually emotionless person like him become so emotional all of a sudden, but if it's that big to him, then I probably should really hear it.
He didn't make a long speech or rewinded his past, instead he made it as short as just three simple words.
