In life there are meetings which seem
Like fate.
- Lord Edward Robert Bulwer Lytton, 1st Earl of Lytton ("Owen Meredith"),
Lucile (pt. II, canto III, st. 8)
Prologue
Sometimes I wonder what I would have done had I known the path of her destiny before hand. Would I have run and cowered in the opposite direction? Would I have given up before the journey started and gone down with the Endar Spire? I'd like to think I would have done things better. I would have taken back a lot of things that hurt her. I would not have been so hard on her, would not have snapped at her, would not have been such a downright bastard when she tried to help me. But those things are in the past now and there's nothing for me to do about it now. I simply must receive what she has given me, and accept her for who she is.
My first awareness of Danica came when Ensign Howell and Davies were discussing her one day with great animation. From what I gathered from their conversation, she was a civilian who had a special contract with the Republic. No one seemed to know what service she provided to them, but everyone seemed to know she was specifically requested by the Jedi, Bastila, who had taken over our ship, the Endar Spire. As a civilian this made her quite tempting in the eyes of the young ensigns on board. They did not have to worry about rules regarding fraternization with other officers. But I could tell by the tone in which Howell and Davies were that so far no one had succeeded in that area. She was playing hard to get according those two. I don't think it ever occurred to anyone on the crew that maybe she simply wasn't interested.
Our first meeting did not transpire until several weeks later. She came to inform me that Bastila, the Jedi in charge of our vessel needed to see me.I took that opportunity to study her. She was not a gorgeous beauty but something about her appearance made you forget that all of her features were somewhat unremarkable. She was rather pale, with heart shaped lips, light chestnut colored hair that fell straight to her chin, and a spattering of freckles across her nose. But it was her eyes that gave her such a striking appearance. They were almond shaped with no decipherable color. They seemed to be a contrast between blue, green, and grey. The second you seemed to decide what color they truly were, they seemed to change again. They reminded me strongly of the ocean.
I clearly showed no intention of going to see Bastila right away because she interrupted my thoughts saying, "You might want to hurry. Bastila gets crabby when she's kept waiting."
"When is she not crabby?" I mumbled.
She laughed, "Good point. I'll see you around Commander."
She spun and walked away, and I turned to find every male staring after her.
"Stop gawking and get back to work," I barked.
We did not meet again until the day the Endar Spire was attacked. The attack came so suddenly, there was no time to warn the crew. Many were caught off guard and were caught like flies in a spider's web. My first responsibility was to ensure Bastila's safety. It took us fifteen minutes to reach the escape pods and I sent her ahead of me. Our target was Taris, a nearby planet and there was little time to guarantee a safe landing for all the escape pods. The few crew members that made it to the ground were so badly injured, they later died. Bastila made it, in large part, due to her Jedi Powers.
After sending Bastila out on the escape pod, I accessed the security terminal to see if anyone was alive. I only read one friendly life sign, steadily moving toward me, clearing anything in its path. And somehow, I knew who it was before she ever opened the doors I was standing in front of. Danica smiled when she saw me.
"This wasn't quite what I had it mind when I said I'd see you around."
I was all business, amazed that she still had any hint of a sense of humor still. I guess that's how she dealt with the pressure, the strain, and of course, the shock of seeing so many of her crew members die.
I was all business, ushering her into the escape pod. We had already launched before I noticed that her seat belt was broken. She just gave me a grim smile. Before I could do anything about it, we hit the turbulence coming into Taris' atmosphere. She was immediately thrown from her seat and knocked unconscious.
And that's how it all began.
I've been trying to find time to write a piece of fanfic for a very long time and I've finally got around to it. I'm also working on a prequel and after I finish this fanfic, I will start on a sequel. Who knows how long it will take. I'm currently looking for a Beta reader not only for this story, but also for my prequel. Please review!
Some things, including characters, events, and places are the property of George Lucas, and LucasArts. Please don't sue.
