-- Chapter 1: Carth tells Bastila --
"What? What do you mean?"
Her voice snapped all heads in the room, to stare at her as the woman started to works herself into a panic.
"Calm down, Bastila… I know you're scared, but you have to know."
Carth grabbed Bastila by the arms and shook the pale woman.
"Its better coming from me than the Council or the Fleet;" the newly appointed Admiral sighed as his face betrayed his anger and pain. "Revan went on ahead and forced us to go back – he only took HK, T3, and Canderous with him."
"But, he's… he's not MIA…" Bastila whispered, stuttering over her words as Carth realized that the woman was starting to grow faint.
She looked into Carth's brown eyes and shook trembling, as the shock and denial set in. "Please, you should know, he's not dead…"
"He's not! He's not! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT! HE'S NOT!"
Bastila struggled in Carth's grip as he cursed with emotion; he had expected Bastila to be upset, but he had underestimated her. She was hysterical now, and it was all that Carth could do to keep her restrained and even that wasn't enough. Bastila's fear and anger, her denial… she drew into the Force and went berserk. The room came alive with anger and power, as crates careened into the air and conduits erupted in exploding power blasts.
"…Sir! What's going on? Are the Sith attacking us?"
A young ensign ran up to Carth and his eyes widen at the slight of the revered Lady Bastila slumped in Carth's arms, seemingly cationic and lifeless.
"Um, Sir, is she alright?"
"She's fine soldier," Carth reassured the ensign as he lifted her up in his arms, "what's your name, kid?"
"Ensign Carlos McCrow, Admiral, Sir! Rank 3…" The Ensign snapped off a salute and came to attention before Carth could even stop the young man.
"Stop that, Carlos! If you keep going on with all of that, you could get shot or something might happen while you're distracted!"
Carth relented at the look on the young man's face and sighed, "look kid… come with me and watch my back – whatever posting you had previous is gone. You're staying with me and Bastila now as a bodyguard."
"But… but, Sir! All my belongings, my superiors…" Carlos stuttered in shock as he stared at Carth in surprise. His face was slack jawed and eyes were as wide as saucers.
"Forget them, kid. And stop acting like one!" Carth groaned at Carlos and his actions. "Why even Mission is much better at this than--!"
"Better at what?"
Carth and Carlos turned around to see a young girl, scratch that – Carth thought as he looked at Mission; she was a young woman, now seventeen. It's been a while since I've thought about our escape from Taris, Carth thought as he stared at Mission unconsciously. She was only fifteen then, turning sixteen the next day after Taris was destroyed and now she's grown up, too fast, much to fast… because of the war…
"Hey, bantha breath! What's with you?"
Mission was in his face now, talking rapidly, not stopping for a breath as she ranted away. "I go away for a week and now, I come back too see you and – wow! The place here is a mess! What have you been up to redecorating in ruined style?"
Mission's eyes were wide as she assessed the damage. She did a full turn about before she turned back to Carth who was still staring at her. She stared for a full complete second before she was able to comprehend that Bastila was unconscious in Carth's arms.
"What happened to her?" Mission was suddenly not so much chirpy as she inspected Bastila with a quick, but critical look.
"She doesn't look like she was hurt or anything…"
Mission trailed off and then she looked down at the ground.
"Revan…" "It's something to do with Revan, isn't it Carth?"
Mission's eyes were bright with tears starting to shine in them as she looked at her friend. Carth knew he couldn't lie to her, she'd know and with Bastila hysterical as she was, she was going to need all the help her family could give her.
"Revan's MIA… Mission, him, T3, HK, and Canderous, they're all missing…"
Carth said bitterly as he motioned with his head for Carlos to follow him as he walked out of the ruined bay with a stunned Mission in tow.
"What do you mean MIA? You mean Revan, T3, HK, and Canderous are MIA?" Mission was confused, as she tried to think straight for a minute."And what's MIA?"
Mission watched as Carth opened the door to his office and laid Bastila down gently on the couch, covering her with a blanket Carlos offered him. Carth took it with a nod, and turned to face Mission who was being unnaturally quiet. Carth couldn't remember a time other than after Taris had been destroyed basically ...well, Malak hadn't blown the planet up, but he might have done that as well. But this was the most silent, that Mission had been, or at least, what Carth could remember.
"MIA is missing in action, Mission," Carth said heavily. "Why do I have to be the one to tell her this?" Carth berated himself inside his head with passion as he started to tell Mission what MIA meant.
"It means we think…"
Here Carth paused and let out a heavy sigh, "it means that they're missing and we're not sure if they're dead or not, but we think that they are…"
Mission just stared. She just started at Carth until she suddenly made the connection.
"But that can't be true!"
She leaped at Carth and started pounding on his chest, as the tears rolled down her face.
"You're lying! You're lying, you old geezer." Mission whispered brokenly as Carth grabbed her arms and pulled her into a tight embrace. Carth held her while Mission shuddered and sobbed, not caring if Carlos saw this at all.
"Let the damn kid think what he wants," Carth thought callously. "I could care less if this got to another superior of his. This is my family now and that's all that matters."
Carlos saw the girl's intent an instant before she leaped at Carth and would have intercepted her, expect for that moment when Bastila grabbed his arm with incredible strength. Carlos turned to the unconscious woman and tried to soothe her or at the very least, to let go of his arm for she was beginning to hurt him with her grip.
"Revan… why…?" "Why did you leave me?"
Bastila's whispers filled Carlos with his memories of when Revan had recruited him for his skill, not too long ago. Revan had pulled strings and favours from who knew where to get Carlos posted onboard the same ship as Carth Onasi, and the Lady Bastila at the same time… especially when Carth told Bastila that he was MIA. Revan had mentioned that Bastila might react somewhat to his disappearance, but Revan had indeed not thought that Bastila would have reacted this way… That had been the impression, Carlos had gotten from Revan.
But then again, women were always difficult to understand or even to predict. Hell, you say one wrong thing and they'd give you the ice treatment for days on end – Carlos could count the number of times where that had happened to him. But that wasn't going to help the Lady Bastila now. Carlos sighed and turned to face Carth.
"Sir… I think the Lady Bastila needs some help?"
Carth and Mission turned to look at as though they had forgotten he was there. Carlos decided he wasn't far off the mark either. Mission walked over to the desk littered with papers and files on the top of the desk. She pulled out a bottle of some green vile looking liquid and a cloth or two. Turning around to the Admiral, she ordered him to get some food and water while she attended to Bastila.
The Admiral smiled, relief on his visible, as the young woman… Mission started to tend to Bastila. The Admiral turned to Carlos with a stern look on his face and tugged the boy over to the door.
"I need to go and make a few calls, Carlos. You stay and guard the two of them," Carth said and Carlos nodded in agreement. Just before Carth got out of the door, he leaned in close and whispered in Carlos' ear before he left; "and if you don't then there'll be hell to pay, kid."
"Yes, sir… I understand." Carlos started to salute but stop at Carth's grimace as the Admiral left.
"Of course I'll watch them. I've got my orders and nothing will get in my way… Carlos said quietly to himself. Nothing short expect for a new directive could change my orders… As my Master commands me, I shall obey no matter what..."
Okay, here's the second chapter - and R&Rs please! It helps to write more stuff for this story!