Disclaimer: I don't own Star Wars, if I did, I would be cruising the Mediterranean with Hayden Christensen, yum. This author is supported by the Star Wars Unlimited Fan Club so check them out sometime. Here is chapter 5 of From One Exile to Another. Other than the dream things in italics inside quotes are being said inside of peoples heads to each other.
Ebon Hawk; Night in the Cargo Hold"Sister, we were wondering when you would return to us." Says a Handmaiden sister. "Yes, Exiled sister, you have returned for judgment." Says another. "No, I have brought a Sith, she is a murderer." I say, I'm confused, what is going on here?
"Dear sister, don't you understand? You have been exiled. You have betrayed Atris and your family." Now I'm scared, they are surrounding me from all sides. As they form a circle around me, they chant, "Betrayer, betrayer…"
I back away as they chant, there's nowhere to go. Suddenly I feel something warm and hard behind me. I turn its Caleb! Why is he here?
He looks different, his eyes are no longer warm brown, they are yellow and red and bloodshot. His normally healthy-looking tan skin is gray and sickly looking with a few veins popping out.
He looks as if he has been through Hell and was spat back out again. What happened to my love?
He moves to kiss me, but his lips are so cold, his eyes are burning. Oh force! He has turned to the dark side! "Help! Somebody help me!" But no one comes. My sisters are almost on top of me, their weapons drawn.
I have nowhere to go. I have nothing to do to protect myself but fight, murder even. I can't do this. Caleb, my handsome Caleb, why, why is this happening? Caleb draws his twin cyan and viridian light sabers, the ones I watched him make just before Malachor. Why are you drawing your weapon?
Your face its normal again, why are you attacking me. Caleb? It's me! Brianna, your lover! Don't you recognize me?
What's wrong with all of you? I trip and fall to the ground. In the shallow fountain's waters in the center of the room, I see my face. My skin, it's pale. My eyes, those eyes that you loved so much, Caleb, my eyes are turning yellow.
I don't understand! Why is this happening! "Betrayer, Sith betrayer." Chant my half sisters.
"Sith whore, you have betrayed me. My love, you have forsaken it as you have your oath." Says Caleb. No! No it's not that way! I love you! Can't you see? I'm not a Sith! I'm still Brianna, your love. I still love you.
"I love you no longer. BETRAYER!" As Caleb's new cyan and viridian light sabers slice down.
"CALEB!" Screamed Brianna, as the cold air of the cargo hold seized her lungs in the harsh land of the living. Caleb began to stir next to her, as tears began to fall from her eyes at the realization of where she was and what had happened.
"Sweetheart? Brianna, what's wrong, are you OK?" He asked, fully awake now and sitting up next to her. It was obvious to him now that she had had a nightmare of some sort and was extremely distraught.
She was coated in sweat and couldn't speak. She looked over at him briefly before collapsing into his arms. He held her tightly as she sobbed. He rubbed her sweat covered back to sooth her apprehensive nerves.
She began to shake badly in his arms as she was wracked with sobs and fear. She must have had one hell of a dream, it takes a lot to faze her, and she's hyperventilating, he thought to himself.
In the back of is mind he could sense how sick she felt. Oh force I hope she doesn't get sick on me here. "I'm going to be sick!" She thought in her head as she rushed out of his arms and to the refresher just out side the cargo hold.
He heard her say, "I'm going to be sick!" inside his head. Our bond must be getting stronger, he thought, as he ran after her.
There she was slouched down on the floor over the toilet, puking her insides out. "You must have had one hell of a dream, my love, if you're so worked up." He said into their bond. "Can we talk about it latter? I'm a bit preoccupied." She thought back.
He sat with her rubbing her back until she was finished. He helped her stand up and walk to the sink where she splashed some cold water on her face and washed out her mouth.
He then walked her back to bed and held her as she shook as a reaction to being sick and her panic attack. "Do you want to talk about it?" He asked her.
"OK," she whispered, "I keep having dreams about what happened on Telos. In my dreams I do terrible things, this was the worst by far. In my dream my sisters were on the dark side and so were you and where chasing me. I slipped and looked at my reflection in the water and my face, it showed the evil and guilt I felt in my heart. In my dream you killed me for being a betrayer."
She turned from him as she said how she was a betrayer. He saw her pained expression, and felt the sorrow coming from her in waves. He then turned her head towards him.
Caleb looked into her pained eyes, now bright blue and irritated red from the tears.
"I will never hurt you." He said simply, and that was all that needed to be said, for she relaxed into his embrace and let him passionately kiss her.
Still kissing her he said into their bond, "Our bond is growing stronger, I can talk to you in my head."
"So I've noticed, what does this mean?" She asked, slowly pulling away from his lips and resting her forehead against his.
"I don't know, but my life is tied to yours, in the force and in love. Where ever you go, what ever you do, I want to be with you, I need you." He said looking into the deep cyan pools that were her eyes.
"I need you too, as I told you before, I want to follow you into battle, I want to fight with you side by side. I want to feel what my mother felt when she became one with the force. I want to feel what she felt when she was with my father."
She threw her arms around him and caressed his broad shoulders with her hands. "I love you, so damn much." He sent her through their bond as he moved to kiss her again.
"I love you too." She said softly against his lips. They kissed in the darkness of the cargo hold for a few long minutes, she moaned with pleasure as his tongue caressed hers.
He pulled away, needing air and she opened her eyes slowly. The first thing she saw was his face, his handsome, yet rugged face. His brown eyes were so warm and loving, she couldn't help but feel attracted to him.
He could see some of the feral thoughts running through her head and just smiled at her. Part of him, and a large part of him at that, would like to help her live out some of those ideas, but the rest of him wanted to wait.
Wait for the perfect moment, but with her every moment was perfect. And it was that moment that he realized he wanted to be with her for the rest of his life, one in body, one in mind, one in the force, he wanted to marry her.
He just needed to find the perfect time to ask her, but would she say yes? And he needed a ring. He hid these thoughts from her to keep it a surprise for latter.
He then noticed also that she was exhausted, but at least she had stopped shaking so badly.
"Hey, do you want to try to get some sleep?" He asked her.
"I'm so tired, but I'm scared. What if I keep having these dreams? Caleb they are the only things I have to be afraid of, I've never been scared like this before. I don't know how to end them." She said.
It was obvious to him that she was still scared, what worried him was that through out their entire journey together; he had never seen her scared.
"You have to try and fight them, maybe you just needed to tell someone. But know this: what ever happens, I will be right here when you wake up to chase away your fear."
She nodded and thanked him for being there for her. He lay down on her makeshift bed on his back so she could lay her head on his shoulder. She lay down on her side close to him and lay her head in the crook of his right arm.
He then realized how cold it was in the cargo hold, how could she stand this every night? The woman had almost no modesty; she probably slept in the nude for all he knew.
"Your right, I normally do sleep that way, but you're here and since you like it better with my clothes on I kept them on. I don't understand your modesty, and I would be willing to bet that you sleep that way too. And to answer your other question, again I slept outside once on Telos, I am used to it."
He was utterly shocked as he lay there with her in his arms. She let out an un-lady like snort of laughter at his expense.
"Would you like to sleep this way every night? With me? We don't have to do anything; I just like holding you while I sleep." He asked.
"Of course I would." She said with a smile, snuggling a bit closer to his side.
" I have one request though, tomorrow, can we stay in my quarters? It's a whole hell of a lot warmer in there!" He said, hoping she wouldn't mind staying with him in the eastern crew quarters.
Since Kreia was dead, and nobody wanted to go in there while she was living, he decided to make it his quarters. Nobody disturbed him back there, at least nobody he didn't want to be disturbed by.
"That sounds good. I haven't slept in a bed for a while. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't even have this to sleep in." Said Brianna, gesturing to the sheets and pillows.
Soon they were both asleep again in each other's arms.
Mira sat out in the main hold with HK 47, she couldn't sleep and now that she was thoroughly freaked out, she wasn't going to get any. Judging by the noises that had been coming from the cargo hold, some one was having a late night adventure of the naughty type.
Or at least she thought so. She didn't know what actually had happened in there. Which for the most part, was nothing.
"Statement: Judging by the gurgling noises coming from the cargo hold and the screaming of the name 'Caleb', it seems that the Meatbag Master has finally gotten rid of the Slave of Atris Meatbag. I knew I liked him." Said HK.
Mira just sat in shock and took a swig of her Tarisian Ale they had found in a hidden compartment in the cargo hold after they had visited Dantooine.
Ebon Hawk; morning in the cargo hold
Caleb woke up before Brianna did. So he got up, used the refresher, and then headed out into the main hold to get some breakfast.
Standing there was Atton, Mira, Visas, and HK 47. "Good morning, crew." Said Caleb, caffa in hand.
"Good for you, I'd bet." Said Mira, "So how was your night in the cargo hold, with the Handmaiden?"
"Alone with the Handmaiden." Said Atton, amused.
"Impressed remark: Yes Master, tell us how you tortured the Echani Meatbag."
"OK, I did not torture, kill, maim, or take the innocence of Brianna last night so I don't know where you got that idea from." Said Caleb, quite confused.
"Oh we heard you last night, the way she was screaming your name, she must have enjoyed it." Said Visas.
"Oh, that. You think we did THAT don't you? Well we didn't, I wouldn't do that to her or anyone for that matter, not like this. She had a nightmare and screamed my name upon waking up, that's all."
"Sure you did." Said Atton.
Brianna then walked into the main hold; wearing the same thing she had been the night before. Which brought a few stares from the crew.
"Morning." She said groggily. "Hello love, want to hear something funny? They all think we 'did it' last night." Caleb said laughing.
"I don't understand, what it was there to do?" She asked, confused.
"Haven't you ever had 'the talk'? I'm sure Caleb would be glad to give it to you." Said Atton with a smirk.
"Yes I have had 'the talk' just because I was cloistered away with Atris for nearly 8 years doesn't mean I'm not… oh you think we, no we didn't." She said, rather offended.
"So, you didn't do the nasty with the Exile?" Asked Atton.
"No the only thing nasty I did last night was vomit after having a panic attack." Said Brianna.
"OK, since we dispelled that rumor, how long until we reach Telos?" Asked Caleb.
"We should be able to leave hyperspace in one hour and we will be landing on Telos Citadel Station by afternoon. Oh and Brianna, do you think you could put some clothes on?" Said Atton.
"Ha! Good luck with that!" Exclaimed Caleb laughing.
"I don't understand you people with your customs on modesty. Are all people from the core worlds like this?" Said Brianna, still confused. These people had such strange customs.
She walked off to the cargo hold to grab her Jedi Padawan robes. Caleb had given her the very robes he had worn as a Padawan, when she began to train in the force.
After they went to Telos they had to make a stop at Courscant. Caleb was going to present Visas, Mira, Atton, Bao Dur, and Brianna to the council to become Jedi.
Brianna walked back to the main hold, wearing the robes, and playing with her Padawan braid. She had gotten rid of one of her twin braids that framed her face and kept one.
Those braids signified her status in Echani culture as the last of the Handmaidens. A trainee of sorts. Now she was a different kind of trainee. One she accepted gladly.
Even though Caleb trained Mira and Atton as well, he had spent the most time with her, now she knew why.
"How come you never put on clothes for me?" Asked Caleb.
"Because you never ask me to." Said Brianna with a smile.
"Once we reach Telos, we will be picking up a few members from Revan's crew: Admiral Carth Onasi has put commanding the Republic fleet on hold to find his old friend, and Revan's fiancé Bastila Shan is obviously coming along. Mandalore has also decided to come along as well as a Jedi Master named Jolee Bindo; all other members of Revan's crew are either occupied with rebuilding the Jedi Order, or else where." Said Caleb outlining their current mission.
"Afterwards, we head to Courscant, where we pick up Master Bindo and have the rest of you accepted as Jedi Knights into the order, if you accept the honor that is. That is for you to decide. I have already sent a holo to the council telling them about your skills. At first they thought you may be too old, but then they came to the conclusion since there are hardly any Jedi left, they are overlooking things such as age and love, to rebuild the order."
The group soon broke the meeting to prepare for the mission ahead of them. Atton went to the cockpit to fly the ship out of hyperspace, Mira and Visas went to set up rooms for the new crew members, and Bao Dur and T3 went to make final repairs on the ship.
Caleb and Brianna set out to make a list of the weapons and armor in the ship.
"So, do you still want to stay with me? Even after half the ship thinks that you and I are having explicit relations?" Asked Caleb, hoping she would say yes.
As she sorted through a box of light saber parts, she said, "Of course, its not your fault that the crew has their minds in the gutter."
Just then Atton came on the Comm. System. "We will be reaching Telos in about a half hour."
TBC… like it? hate it? Tell me so in the review page is it really that hard?