Whispers woke Sabine.
"She was alone, Kanan."
"That's an Imperial ship, Hera. There's no way she's alone."
Okay, so she had names. That was a good start.
"Kanan." Hera had an amused, female voice. "She's just a girl."
"That wouldn't stop the Empire." Kanan said gruffly. Sabine thought he sounded uptight, like her instructors. "And besides, she's armed. What if it's some sort of trick?"
"If it's a trick, it's a lousy one," came a third, male voice, accompanied by heavy footsteps. "The ship's empty, and the tracker's disabled."
"Probably stole the ship," Kanan said, instantly sounding calmer. "Good for her."
Huh, so she was with people who didn't like the Empire. Was it luck, or were there more people than she thought out there? People… like her.
"She was clearly running from someone," Hera said.
A hand touched Sabine's forehead, and it was all she could do to not flinch. But the hand only brushed back her hair with a gentleness she hadn't felt since… well, ever.
"Let's find someplace to lay low," said Kanan. "When she wakes up, we can figure out where she's headed and if the Empire is after her."
"What's with the armor?" asked the unnamed voice, causing Sabine to realize her armor was missing.
"Mandalorian," Kanan said. "Which makes it even stranger that she's alone."
The trio left, murmuring amongst each other. Sabine heard a door hum shut, then she was alone in the silence. After waiting a few seconds, she opened her eyes.
She was laying on a bed in a small room. The walls and shelves were bare, giving Sabine no hint as to who had found her. Her armor sat in a neat pile in the corner beside the door.
Sabine sat up slowly, stifling a groan when the movement sent a flare of pain through her skull and stomach. She made herself swing her feet to the floor. Squinting against a fierce headache that had decided to make itself known, Sabine considered her options.
She could wait and see who had found her, and see if they really could help her get someplace safe. She wasn't afraid to work to earn her keep.
On the other hand, she was a traitor to the Empire. While these strangers sounded like they disliked the Empire as well, what if they turned her in? Everyone knew returning a traitor to the Empire meant a reward.
No, it was a risk she couldn't take. If there was anything she'd learned in her whole mess of leaving the Academy and her family, it was that she couldn't trust anyone with her life. Never again.
With that thought in mind, Sabine pushed herself to her feet. The room swam, forcing her to grab the wall. She swallowed against a wave of nausea, willing herself to not throw up.
Once she felt a bit steadier, Sabine crossed the room to her armor. She had to pause again when a cough shook her frame. She grimaced at a stab of pain in her stomach, and pressed her hand to her mouth to stifle further coughs.
Sabine knelt carefully. She put her hand into her armor and dug out her belt. To her surprise, both blasters were still nestled in their sheaths. She silently slid the belt around her waist.
That's when the door slid open.
Sabine jerked her head up, then sighed in relief when just an orange astromech rolled into the room. It stopped at the sight of her with a startled-sounding chirp.
Sabine glanced quickly behind it. The hall was empty, for now.
"Okay, little buddy," Sabine said softly, rising to her feet. "Don't worry about me. I'm just going to slide past you. Don't-"
The astromech shrieked!
"Do that!" Sabine hissed.
"Chop, what's wrong?" asked Hera's voice.
Sabine thrust herself away from the door as a Twi-lek woman ran up behind the astromech. She froze when she saw Sabine. Sabine took a step back when she saw a blaster on the stranger's belt.
"Don't move!" Sabine ordered, whipping up one of her blasters on instinct.
At the same time, a human man slid beside the Twi-lek.
"Look out!" the man yelled, raising an empty hand.
An invisible force struck Sabine's arms. The sudden attack was hard enough to cause Sabine to drop her blaster and throw her off-balance. She staggered sideways, then tripped over her own feet and fell. Her head cracked against the wall and, once again, everything went dark.
A/N: Darn it, Sabine and Kanan, this isn't how you introduce yourselves!