Mirta yawns and tries to find a comfortable position on the lumpy cot. Mirta had to spend every damn credit she had to purchase this ship and it was worth it. It was hers. Not shared, not borrowed, but hers. She named it Nyx, it reminded her of an old tale, it spoke to her like a whisper of a long-lost friend.

She closes her eyes and wills for sleep and the darkness that accompanies it to overtake her. Marry the nightshade. She felt wakefulness slip away.

Something shifted the cot. Eyes opened, blade at the ready. Akial curled up next to her. He changed from his Jedi grey robes to a dusty white long night shirt. He kept the black fabric on to conceal his face.

"What are you doing?"

He ignored her, instead, he hugs the lumpy pillow and snuggles

Maybe they sleep together in groups like pack animals?

Mirta waits a few moments. The Jawa makes a sound that Mirta supposed could be snoring. Mirta rolls onto her back, the blade still in her hands. Just in case.

His arms are rather furry.

Mirta looks over out of the corner of her eye. Felling brave, she moves her hand closer, and using the tips of her fingers, she gently taps his furry exposed arm, ever so gently and lightly. She quickly removes her hand.

Huh.

Dense. Soft, yet coarse.

My new brother is hairy as a Wookie.

Mirta laughs but covers her mouth quickly. She turns her head, Akial is still snoring. Mirta closes her eyes.

I should adopt a Wookie next.

What follows is a strange dream in which Mirta brings Akial and a Wookie brother back home.

"These are my brothers," she says to Ghes.

"How?" He shakes the Wookie's hand, who raises her husband in the air without effort. Akial mimics physical laughter and jumps up and down in excitement.

"Someone's mother's been busy." Novoc Vevut says. He eyes both the Jawa and Wookie. Mirta lunges at Vevut, but he deflects her attack, and she lands on the ground hard.

The impact wakes Mirta. She sits up. Again. BANG. She and Akial are thrown off the cot. The ship has been hit by something.

"We hit something."

Mirta runs to the cockpit, Akial not far behind.

"Do you see anything?" Mirta engages the scans. There is nothing except the expanse of space and darkness in front of them. Mirta turns to face her adopted brother, waiting for his signage.

(I'm not picking up anything. Passing debris?) Akial shrugs. He checks the NAV systems once more.

"Yeah, but we would still see—"

CRASH.

BANG.

BOOM.

Both are knocked from their seats.

"What is that?"

She turns to Akial.

(Faulty computer?)

"I ran a full diagnostic scan before I left."

Akial jumps to his feet and back to the co-pilot seat.

"See if you can find anything. I'll check the damage."

Mirta heads off and Akial beings his work.

"Aaaki, where aare you? Aaaki," a soft voice giggled, Akial tenses. He pauses.

That cannot be.

"Aaaki, come find meee," her voice is soft and sweet as honey. It touches him in the soft fabric. His body tingles. Her voice did always do things to him.

"Can you see me?" A whisper, soft, seductive.

Akial closes his eyes.

"Can you feel me?"

This cannot be. She is not here.

The fur on the back of head emits a sharp static charge. Something is behind him. He dares not look. He keeps his eyes tightly shut.

"I'm right," her breath caresses his ears.

"Here," The voice is loud like an explosion. The ship quakes and the power shuts off before restarting.

"Akial, did you find anything?" Mirta returns to the pilot seat.

(The ship shut off)

"I know. Maybe there's a storm or something we're not picking up. We'll pass through it soon. Hopefully."

Akial nods. He taps her arm. (How is the Trandoshan?)

"No idea. I'll go check." Mirta heads off to the cargo hold, Akial hesitates but follows.

"Safety in numbers." Mirta says in a sing-song voice.

The Trandoshan is not where they had left him.

"That's not a good."

Akial taps her arm, (Maybe he's doing it?)

"Good thinking. We'll split up. Non-lethal takedowns, he's worth nothing dead." Akial nods. He does not want to be alone. Mirta remains rooted to the spot as well.

After a moment, Mirta exhales and tugs at her face and runs her fingers through her hair.

"I'll check the sleeper, you go back up and see if we missed something."

Akial nods and follows the path back to the ladder up.

"Akki." His body tingles. He turns ever so slowly. Her face is illuminated slightly in the shadows.

"This way," she sings, her hands urge him to follow. She starts to slowly fade. He follows her ghost into the dark.

Mirta opens the sleeper. Nope. Nothing. She exhales slowly and sits down on the cot. She closes her eyes and rubs them.

"Is it safe?"

She opens her eyes. No one. She slowly stands.

"Hello? Akial?"

He can't talk.

Panic sets in. If something does happen to her new brother, unless she sees it, she has no way of knowing. He can't cry out for help. She picks up her pace. She ignores the images of his corpse running through her mind like a skipping holo-horror vid.

It was stupid to split up.

Mirta leaves the sleeper and follows the path back to where she left Akial. She stops when something in the corner of her eye catches her attention.

Mandalorian armor is placed neatly in the center of the room on the floor. Candles are placed in a circle and are lit. Mirta walks closer. She knows the armor. It was lost with the Mando who wore it. She knows that it cannot be here.

"What is this?" She reaches forward. Something behind falls from the shelf, she turns. Nothing, she looks back to the shrine, but all that remains is bare floor. Mirta slaps her face.

"I'm losing it."

"Probably." Says a rough voice.

Before Mirta can react, something grabs her by the mouth and pulls her into the shadows.

Akial stops. He cannot see her anymore. The room is too bright, he must put a hand in front of his eyes to protect them.

"You promised," says a voice to his left.

"You said we'd dance," says a voice to his right. He looks both ways the best he can, but his vison is compromised.

"I waited," its behind him.

"I waited," Right at his ears, he can feel hot breath.

The light goes out.

The scream brings Akial to his senses. He ducks and turns and hops down the ladder. He can't call out to her. He checks those corners. He can't ask for help.

He finds her on the floor, out cold. He checks for injuries, nothing. No blood. He presses her nose closed. She jolts back to life.

"Hey."

He helps Mirta to her feet.

"Something odd is going on. I don't like it."

(No.)

"Have you seen anything—oh never mind."

(Did you find the Trandoshan?)

The ship returns to normal power.

"Maybe we left—" Soft music plays in the distance.

Mirta and Akial walk forward as if in a trance. Akial sees her full figure. She dances, twirls, spins. All elegant movement

Her colors are like paint on water. She stops abruptly, she notices him. He can smell her now. She beckons with her hands, pulling him into her embrace.

(Mission)

"Come here," her voice was always his favorite melody; He reaches out and their fingertips touch

Everything shakes, rumbles, quakes, and shatters. Hot. Cold. Electricity runs through his veins. He can see its face. White. Skeletal. The Trandoshan lies on the floor behind it. Akial is frozen. The creature grabs onto him and their faces meet.

Akial can feel something being pulled from him.

This is it

He does not resist

Everyone is dead.

His former clan.

His Jedi.

Mission.

Mirta is alive.

Mirta is alive. He's forgotten about that. Mirta is somewhere out there.

Mirta is your clan. Your sister.

Akial narrows his eyes. He raises his hand and pushes the vile thing back.

Mirta follows the music. There is a plate on the center of a small metal table. Rations and have been arranged on the plate to form a smile, in front of the plate is a holo-card,

"brikase gota'tuur, Mir'ika." Happy birthday, Mirta.

Mirta stops at the table. Her hands are trembling. She reaches out.

"Do you like it?" The air leaves her lungs. She doesn't dare turn. She covers her mouth with her hand.

"We don't have much, but I think I did alright." Her buir, her papa. His voice. She shakes her head, closes her eyes tightly, and bites her hand to keep herself from screaming.

Arms that cannot be wrap around her.

"Papa."

Tears threaten to break free. Her beloved papa gently caresses her cheek with his thumb.

"What's wrong?"

"I miss you."

She can't keep the flood back. Tears stream down her cheeks. Her eyes and face burn red. It's so very hot here.

"Miss me? I'm not going anywhere."

"I'm sorry."

Her buir chuckles. He wipes the tears from her eyes and kisses the top of her head.

"Sssh. Don't cry, everything's going to be okay, I promise."

"Please." Breathing is becoming increasingly difficult.

"I'm not going anywhere."

The ships normal internal power shuts down. The emergency reserve power activates. The red glow unnerves Mirta. The memory floods her mind and senses. Red lights. Red death. Mirta hates the color red.

"I'll check this out."

"No!" Mirta grabs onto him.

Akial searches the Trandoshan's corpse for a weapon, he finds a blade. The foul unknown creature jumps onto Akial knocking him down, pinning him to the floor. Akial loses the blade in the scuffle.

He reaches out with the force, but creature thrashes out, breaking Akial concentration. Akial tastes his own blood. The creature leans in close, their faces meet once more, and Akial feels his life force being sucked out of him.

Akial concentrates all he can into pulling the blade back into his hand. He wastes no time and stabs it in the neck. He slides out from under it, as it screams and grabs for the blade.

Akial uses the force to knock over boxes and other items at the creature as he runs down the path to the sleeper. He finds what he needs, his lightsaber. He engages the blade and with a sharp jab backwards, he stabs the creature. He twists his weapon and then puts all his strength behind a vertical cut. The creature is sliced in half.

Mirta holds her papa's hands.

"Stay here, I'll be back."

Mirta shakes her head. Her buir laughs softly and touches he hair and cups her face with his hands.

"Buir, don't go."

"I'll be back, I promise." He kisses the top of her head before letting go and steps backwards into the shadows.

"I want to go with you."

This can't be real.

Mirta holds onto his hand and follows him into the dark.

I don't care. He's here.

"Been putting off getting maintenance work. It shouldn't be anything too serious."

Mirta nods, she smiles sadly. She knows what's to come. She's counting the seconds. She squeezes his hand.

One.

We'll die together this time.

Mirta shuts her eyes tight.

Two.

I'm sorry ba'buir.

She holds her breath.

Three.

Goodbye.

Mirta feels herself being pulled, pushed, tugged. She opens her eyes, a white skeletal thing falls at her feet, dead.

Akial stands behind the creature, his saber engaged.

They look at each other a long time before either communicates.

"Airlock," Mirta whispers.

Two monsters less later, Mirta and Akial return to the cockpit. Neither want to sleep or attempt it.

"What did you see?" She asks quietly.

(The one wanted I to marry. I brought her to meet my original clan. They were slaughtered. I brought her to her death.)

"Oh."

(You?)

"My buir, my papa. He died while taking me somewhere I—he wouldn't have done it if I hadn't forced him. He's dead and I'm still here." Mirta looks at her hands. She looks back at Akial.

(It's not your fault your papa died.)

"You didn't kill your girlfriend."

(Thanks)/"Thanks"

They reach out wordlessly for each other's hand.