"Kai, go down to the market and get some cane syrup, and the rest of the list, will you? I'll be at work a little longer tomorrow, and I don't want to have to shop before I come home." Runa called to her 10 year old daughter, who was currently at the sink, washing her hands after peeling the fern potatoes for tonights meal. Except she had gotten distracted and was letting the water run over her hands as she watched it, most likely thinking about the bike she had been fixing all afternoon, going over the problems and various ways to fix it. That girl of hers had a busy mind.
Her daughters head snapped up, her blue eyes sparkling with excitement. Her mother wanted her to get cane syrup? They only used that for special occasions, for sweets. Sure, her birthday was tomorrow, but the price of syrup was always so expensive…and..they hadn't even turned in their first harvest yet.
Her parents had always taught her to spend her credits wisely, only spending what she had, and encouraged her to wait until she had the full amount of credits to buy something.
"What is it? I can hear your thoughts all the way over here, honey." Runa teased as she walked over, handing Kai the towel to dry her hands, and she accepted it with a thank you.
She sat on a stool, so that she was eye level with her daughter, and could see the wheels turning in her head.
"But the syrup is so expensive..and I know we haven't brought in the harvest yet. And it's smaller this year, than it was last. We'll have enough, but not enough to buy anything extra." Kai started to explain, and swallowed when she saw her mothers face grow emotional. She hadn't meant to make her upset, and she thought of how to fix it.
"I am ok if I don't have any sweets for my birthday, mama. I know we need the money to pay the rent and fix our speeder. I can wait until next year. I promise."
Runa leaned forward and pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Oh Kaishae…" she whispered as she stroked her cheek lovingly. "Im asking you to get the syrup because we can afford it. I've been saving." She winked at her daughter, and saw those blue eyes light up, out of hesitation and into excitement.
"Mama..you shouldn't have.." She protested and Runa covered her daughters mouth with her fingers.
"I do believe you are the only child who complains about having something sweet for her birthday." Kai laughed behind her fingers, trying to free her face, with no avail. Her mother was stronger than her small frame made her look.
"I love you my child. It was a sacrifice I'd make a thousand times over. I do it because I love you." She leveled her gaze at the child in front of her, and Kai stopped struggling and looked at her, her blue eyes now serious. "You are my world, Kaishae. Do you understand?"
Kai stared back at her mother, dark haired with green eyes, and nodded. Runa smiled, then suddenly her face morphed as she felt something wet on her palm.
"Kai, no! Quit doing that!" She called out and went to grab onto her daughter, but she missed her, and Kai ran out the door, laughing loudly at the game she and her mother played. She heard her mother call out to be careful, so she raised a hand to show she had heard, and raced to the speeder, turning it on in record time, and she took off toward the market.
Tomorrow was going to be the best day she would ever remember.
—
Kai heaved breaths in and out, enjoying the burn as she hopped back on the speeder. She was getting faster and stronger every day, and she knew it wasn't going to be long before she would be able to make this run in record time.
She turned so she faced the back of the vehicle, and fastened the two cloth bags into the back compartment and and snapped the lid shut. She turned back, and powered on the engine and took off towards the house, watching the lush country side whip by.
There were a lot of times she felt confined in her life, and because of these feelings she was fairly certain she was more cynical than an a girl her age should be. She knew some of her friend's parents got along, and others that didn't. So she knew her situation wasn't unique, but she just wished she could have what she wanted, what she saw in her head.
The times her father was gone were good times for her and her mother, and she knew that wasn't right. It wasn't supposed to be like that.
Her father had lost his job at the local med-center, and after he had become so angry and bitter, going to the different cantinas offered in their small town to try and drink away his problems. He blamed everyone but himself for the loss of employment, seeming to forget that he was the one that had a problem with those he worked with, and that he was the one that came into work late. No matter who tried to talk to him about it, they were unable to convince him otherwise. Her mother in particular was to blame in his eyes, and that caused a large amount of fights in their small home.
So when he was home, the house felt stifled and tense. Only when he was gone, could she and her mother laugh and joke like they used to.
She took a deep breath, and pushed the thoughts away. She let the wind caress her face, enjoying her small window of freedom. She passed brightly illuminated plants, enjoying the beauty of her home world, proud to be from such a productive planet. She was looking forward to settling down tonight and maybe watching a holovid together.
She pulled up to the front of the house, and she felt like her stomach dropped to her feet, the engine idling.
"No.." She whispered. He wasn't supposed to be home yet. He was still supposed to be away selling the latest harvest of their sufar greens, and Nysillin plants, the sources of income for their small family. They had managed to convince him that he could fetch the best prices with the market owners, with him being well known. That was the only reason he would ever leave.
But when he was home, he usually stayed in modified shed at the back of the house, shutting himself away from her and her mother. She took a deep breath and shut off the speeder, and made sure it was covered. She grabbed the bags out of the back compartment, and walked up the door, and put an ear to it, listening carefully. She didn't hear any conversation so she walked in the house, and started to put the food in the conservator.
"Shae, there you are!" She heard her father, Harand, call out to her and she took a deep breath before she turned around with a smile. She wondered if there would ever be a day that it didn't feel forced. "Did you get everything for your birthday tomorrow?"
She nodded, stuffing down the sad feelings she felt around him and nodded. She could smell the alcohol on his breath. "I did. I also got some of those fruits you like." She looked to her left, and felt her dad give her a hug. He was always kind to her, no matter what. Even after a fight with her mom, he'd be all smiles with her and she hated it.
"Thank you." He said, and walked over to the bowl, pulling out a ripe fruit, and taking a bite.
She heard Runa walk into the room, holding her tablet, most likely finishing up things for work. Kai she turned back to the sink, grabbing the fruits she had brought and started washing them.
"You're home early." Her mother said, her voice even, but her gaze fixed on the task in front of her.
"I thought that would be a good thing." Harand responded to his wife, his eyes sharp and defensive. "I wanted to be here for Shae's birthday. I didn't know you'd have a problem with that."
Kai's eyes burned as she focused on getting a particular dirty spot clean on the melon, wishing that she was anywhere but where she was at that moment. She didn't want there to be a fight again tonight.
"Thank you, dad." She said quietly, trying to smooth everything over, taking a towel and drying the melon, and walked it over to a small table they had set up in the corner.
"And you are allowed to. I never said I had a problem with it.." Runa answered with a tight voice. Harand was quiet for a moment, and Shae took that opportunity to breathe, hoping the he would just let that conversation die. It was simply a hope however, because she knew he wouldn't let it go. He never did.
"And you never do have a problem do you? You're always the calm and collected one, the one with out the problem. Runa, the perfect wife and mother." He mocked her, his voice cutting deep. Kai wiped the tears off of her face, as she edged towards her room. She walked around the corner and sunk to the floor, her chest aching as she hugged her knees to her chest.
"You need to stop Harand. You're drunk, and I won't have that in my house." Runa said, her voice shaking but Kai knew her posture was firm.
"Oh, your house. Hear that Shae?" He called out, not seeing her daughter, but knowing her well enough that he knew she could hear. "This isn't even my house. A stranger on my own property."
"You were the one that chose to move out and modify the shed. I didn't choose that for you. I didn't choose any of this for you, Harand. So don't you blame me. Not for any of this. You chose. Not me." Runa stepped closer to him, her green eyes spitting fire.
"Yeah, it never is your fault is it." He snorted and walked to the door. "You know what? I'm done with constantly being put down, and ridiculed. A person can only take so much. I'm leaving, Runa." He said, and she heard her mothers feet move quickly, probably stepping back. Kai stood up from where she was, and peeked around the corner, blinking away the tears. Her mother had moved away, staring at him.
"Leaving?" Runa asked, her voice sharp enough to cut the air and Harand met her eyes with a self satisfied smirk. "Leaving to where?"
"I found a crew that will take me in, and give me a ride to the inner ring. We have to make some stops to nearby systems, but they'll take me to where I want. It's time I found someone who really appreciated my presence, not to mention my work."
Kai wanted to cry until there were no tears left, but she held it in. She couldn't cry, not right now.
It had been so good before. They seemed like a good, sturdy family. They had their troubles, but they worked, and sacrificed, and laughter. Why was he leaving. He couldn't.
"But you can't leave." Kai said quietly stepping away from the corner, and her father looked at her for a moment, and then he narrowed his eyes.
"Oh, honey. I wish I had a choice. But it's clear your mother doesn't want me here. I have no choice here." He smiled at her, walking over and giving her a hug. Her arms stayed stiff against her side, her skin crawling, and she wanted him to get away from her.
What she didn't see was the triumphant look in her fathers eyes and the broken one in her mother's.
He walked out, letting the door hiss closed behind him. Her mother sat down at the table, and laid her head down in defeat, and dragged in a long,deep breath.
No matter what happened after that, Kai knew that her life was never going to be normal again.
—
(2 months later)
They never heard from him again. Kai knew she shouldn't have been surprised.
They saw on the holonet almost every night, that the rate of pirate attacks in the next two systems were increasing, giving local militia far more trouble than before. In the last month, the fighting between rival gangs had now traveled to Felucia, so they made sure to lock their doors and windows at night and her mother had told her to never answer the door if she was home alone.
So, with all the fighting, they had no way of knowing whether Harand was dead or alive, whether he had made it to the inner ring in time or not.
And they tried not to care. Of course, that was near impossible, but all they did was try to take it day to day. That was all they could do.
Kai finished up with her speeder, finally finished with the repairs that had taken her all week, and walked inside, stopping for a moment on the threshold to admire the stars in the sky. That was one of the nice things about having to do more of the farming. She got to stay out under the stars.
And the pirates had ruined that, she thought with irritation. Night time was one of her favorites, solely for that reason. The sky came alive at night.
A growl of her stomach encouraged her to step inside, and she washed the grease off her hands in the sink. She looked over at the chrono, and jerked with surprise.
It was almost 9 and her mother wasn't home yet. Maybe work had gone over, and the boss had asked her to do some extra work. That had happened before, especially lately. And the market was almost 10 miles away. It always took time to get home, especially at night, when you had to go slower.
Her gaze flickered towards the blaster by the sink, and made sure the safety was on, before moving it closer to her. Just to be safe.
She might as well lay some food out on the counter for when her mother got home. She was never later than 10, and there were things that wouldn't spoil being out that long. She walked to the cabinet and got out some meat and bread, and sliced up a plate's worth, putting a glass of water next to it.
With that done, she wandered to her room and laid on her bed, picking up her tablet. Maybe just one holovid episode before bed.
An hour later, she was asleep.
—
Sunlight filtered through the tiny spaces in the shutters, and hit Kai in the eyes, waking her upl and she blinked long and slow, as she got bearing of her surroundings.
She slowly slid her way out of her bed, and walked over to the refresher. She walked in, used the restroom, then went to the sink, washing her hands. She splashed water on her face, rubbing her eyes, feeling the cold water wake her up.
She dried off her face, and ran a brush through her hair, gathering it into a ponytail. She wandered out into the hall, her door opening and closing with a hiss.
She walked to her mom's room, ready to go wake her up, or maybe just lay there and talk with her, but the hair stood up on her arms when she saw her mom's bed.
She always made it in the morning, and she constantly got after Kai to do the same.
But yesterday, Kai had ran into the room, and jumped on the bed, leaving a messy indent right int he middle of the bed.
It was still there.
She backed up and ran into the kitchen, and her eyes flew to the counter.
The plate of food still laid there, the cheese soft and limp. The water lay untouched as well.
"Mom?" Kai called out, her voice sounding terribly small, even in this small house.
"Mom? Where are you?"
No answer.
"Mom!" She called out again, trying to quell the panic in her chest. Maybe she had stayed in town for the night, with one of her friends. But why hadn't she sent a message? Kai had been sure to keep the comm close to her, for that exact reason. Nothing had come in.
She had to get to the market. Something must have happened. It wasn't like her mom to forget. She ran to her room and hurriedly changed into some clothes, and grabbed her jacket, and on a whim her backpack from the floor.
Just as she ran into the kitchen and was grabbing some breakfast from the fruit bowl, she heard the sound of multiple speeders approaching. They were coming from the left side. The parking space for their speeder lay on the right.
She grabbed the blaster from the windowsill, and turned off the safety, as she walked to the window.
She stopped, and peeked through the slats, and gasped, covering her mouth, hoping irrationally that they hadn't heard.
Pirates.A whole group of them, mismatched, and very frightening. They were here. At her house. And she was alone.
She fell back against the couch, and forced her legs to turn and run in the direction of the door.
Throwing it open, not thinking about the noise it would make, she ran out into the yard, and hopped on her speeder, turning it on quickly, watching it fully power on.
A man stepped around the corner just as she grabbed the throttle and he raised his blaster.
She panicked and threw the speeder into full speed, and the man barely had time to jump away, before she flew by. Blaster shots echoed behind her and she felt one graze her arm, causing an intense pain to bloom in her arm.
But she kept going, not letting up on the throttle, narrowly missing some of the rocks that littered the trail, until she caught a glimpse of the tall buildings that made up the market.
But there was smoke rising from more places than one, including in the direction of where her mom worked.
She swallowed, her throat dry, as she parked the speeder behind a building. She had to go find her.
She ducked around the corner and ran down the long alley way, diving behind some crates as she heard voices approach. They came into view, 2 men and a woman, all carrying heavy guns.
"That store was easier to clear than I thought, for being so big. Wonder why they didn't guard it better. Some of those goods are going to fetch us a handsome price. We'll have to come back again soon." The man in the front exclaimed to his companions.
They laughed and agreed, hefting their weapons, as they continued walking, their footsteps slowly fading as they slipped out of view.
—
The store.
That's where her mom worked. Every day for the last 12 years.
Kai threw caution to the wind, and stood up. She took one deep breath, and sprinted out of the alley, taking turns around overturned containers, and vaulting over tables. All those times racing through the market, dodging speeders, animals and people was finally paying off.
She got to the store, and skidded to a stop. Police droids and local authorities lay on the ground, unmoving, their weapons knocked out of their hands. Of course they had taken out the local protection first.
Hot tears sprung into her eyes, and slipped down her cheeks. They had killed everyone.
As far as she could see, no one who had been in the market that morning moved. She recognized her mother's coworkers, owners of neighboring shops. There was Jaqs who could handle any household droid issue, his fingers still wrapped around his blaster, and Bayla the specialty baker.
She stood there in shock, not seeing another group of pirates walk up, and didn't turn to look at them until someone called out to her, one, twice.
"You! Little girl!" A man came up to her and shook her shoulders, and in a panic, reflexively threw her fists up and hit the man square in the jaw.
He stumbled back with a grunt, and the pirates behind him burst into laughter, slapping each other's shoulders and wiping tears from eyes.
"She got you good, Mar!" His friend came up, and was shoved out of the way, as Mar stalked over to her, and grabbed her by her hair, gripping it painfully
"You don't go around hitting me, and expect to get away with it, girl. How about I break a couple bones to teach you a lesson?" He snarled, his eyes flashing with anger, and Kai cowered from his gaze, and his raised first, not able to close her eyes as he stared her down.
"Mar, mar. That's enough. Let the girl go." Their captain commanded, and he scoffed, and shoved her down to the ground. The dirt puffed as she landed, her face in the dirt, and Kai glared up at the both of them as the captain walked over, after few moments to collect herself.
"What do we do with her, boss?" One of the girls asked, staring at the captain with an excited look in her eyes. "We could use another crew member."
The captain walked over, her long grey coat clean and pristine despite the firefight that had obviously taken place. She crouched, her brown eyes taking in the small frame in front of her.
"You have spirit, little one." She reached out, probably to soothe her and Kai slapped her hand away, glaring hatred at her front where she sat.
"You killed all of them…." She accused the woman in front of them, and the captain took a deep breath, her brown eyes glittering warning.
"Your people were well armed, and gave a good fight. Better than I have seen in a long time. But I couldn't have my crew harmed." She shifted her weight, still watching Kai. "I had to protect my people. Surely you can understand that?"
Kai scrambled up and clenched her fists. "What about my people? Bayla had a family…You probably killed them..You killed everyone in the market, didn't you?"
The captain sighed again. "The house down at the end of the street, the one she ran towards? They were strong, and fought well. She taught her children well, it seems."
Kai stepped closer, her voice shaking. "Didn't you?" She repeated, her voice breaking on the last syllable.
She was greeted with a simple nod and those brown eyes glinted in the sunlight again. "I did, yes."
Kai wiped the tears away with the back of her hand, the dirt smearing on her face from when she had fallen. "There was..a woman. Brown hair, green eyes. She was wearing a brown shirt with laces on the front." She didn't dare breathe, and her pulse hammered in her head. Not her mother too.
"Please say you didn't kill her too." Kai whispered, as she stared at the woman's boots. "Please."
The captain turned and started to walk to the ship, but stopped, looking over her shoulder. "She fought well, young one. She was a fine warrior. Take comfort in that."
She then turned and instructed the crew member she passed. "Cuff and hood her. We are going to Jabba's immediately."
Kai felt all the air rush into her lungs with a searing breathe, and she screamed out in anguish, fighting against the two men that picked her up, her feet swinging frantically in the air. Her wrists were brought behind her and cuffed, and a bag was shoved over her head.
She didn't stop screaming until a needle was jabbed into her neck, and then the world faded into black.
—