The Force's Shepherds
Chapter 136
Uncontrolled Escape
Ben could barely focus. The force screamed around him. Vibrating in his ears. Rushing through his thoughts like a mournful wail as thousands of deaths slammed into him at once. His heart ached in his chest, reminding him all too much of how he felt in the wake of Order 66. Just like then though, he did not have time to dwell on the horrors happening around him. He did not have time to ponder the tragedy brought about by the Empire as it unleashed its wrath on Ylisstol. He needed to focus, to live in the current moment.
Right now, the moment involved him piloting a bucket of bolts through an ever growing swarm of Imperial fighters. He was not alone in this endeavor. He knew Tiki, Nowi, and most of the Shepherds that made it onto the Ark were in the engine room. The Manaketes were busy powering the ship with their immense reserves of magic. Meanwhile, Tharja was rushing from one makeshift turret to the other, launching torrents of spells into the growing cloud of fighters swarming towards the Ark. She was the ship's only means of fighting back. Which left one other person in the cockpit with Ben. One of two experienced fliers in the ship, albeit with a much different beast than a starship.
Cordelia gripped the arms of the chair she sat in tightly, her knuckles white with strain. Her eyes were glued to the viewscreen in front of her as Ben deftly guided the Ark through the smoke filled sky.
Kriff, kriff, kriff!
A flurry of six imperial fighters rushed towards him, the sound of their loud engines screaming through the cockpit. He yanked on the controls as hard as he could, sending the Ark skyward, further up into the atmosphere.
"Naga above!" Cordelia cried as she braced her body against her chair while sinking further back into it.
"Steady…" Ben muttered, both trying to calm Cordelia down and hoping his words would get through to the ship around him. Of course, talking to the ship was a bit of a silly thing to do. But old instincts were kicking in, and usually when he flew like this, he had an astromech helping out.
The Ark shuddered as green flashes of light rebounded around the hull. Ben grit his teeth as Cordelia uttered an alarmed cry.
"There's a lot of flashing!" She called over to him as she frantically glanced at the many crude instruments in the cockpit.
"I'm aware." Ben replied, voice calm as he gave the readings a cursory look.
"What do they mean!?"
Ben grimaced as a red light flashed to his right, on the main console, "Nothing good."
At least there are no blaring alarms.
Fighters cut off his skyward trajectory, forcing Ben to grit his teeth and take a risk. He pitched the nose of the Ark down. Cordelia's eyes widened beside him as wind howled outside of the cockpit.
"B-Ben, the ground!"
Ben didn't reply. He kept the nose down, rushing faster and faster towards the burning city of Ylisstol. At the last moment, just before the Ark was about to smack into one of the Academy's tall spires, he pulled up on the yoke. The ark lurched. He could hear metal groaning in protest at the sharp change in direction, but it stayed together. Explosions rumbled outside, and Ben sensed several enemy fighters exploding behind the Ark, unable to pull off the same knee jerk move he did.
The Ark skimmed over the Ylisstol skyline, passing over the burning city one more time as Ben contemplated whether he could land one more time and get more people aboard. The various towers of the Exalt's palace were in flames, crumbing as smoke engulfed the space they once occupied above the city. He could still see small pockets of Ylissean soldiers doing everything they could to evacuate civilians from the fallen capitol. Stormtroopers in white armor were rushing through the streets as well, most of them heading back to their shuttles.
Why would they be-
His eyes widened.
"They wouldn't…" He breathed as he watched packs of landing craft take off into the air, heading back towards the Star Destroyer lumbering over the city.
"They wouldn't what?" Cordelia asked, eyes watering as she looked out over the burning city.
Ben did not have time to respond. Before he could open his mouth, the first blast rained down from the heavens. A pillar of green light slammed into Ylisse's southeast walls, obliterating them in one massive, fiery explosion. Violent light flashed through the cockpit, nearly blinding Ben.
"What the hell!?" Cordelia cried.
Ben banked to the right, and hit the throttle. More blaster fire chased after them, and more enemy fighters appeared in front of him. Not an ideal scenario, but at this point, he was out of options. He needed to get out of the shadow of the Star Destroyer, and fast.
More brilliant flashes of green light and fire exploded around them. Gigantic plumes of dirt, dust, fire, and stone burst forth from the ground with each impact. Cordelia leaned forward in her seat, eyes wide with horror.
"What is happening!?" She cried as she watched Ylisstol being obliterated.
"Orbital bombardment." Ben replied, voice grim.
"What!?"
"Not now."
He needed to focus. No time for chit chat. These Imperial Fighters swarmed like bees, and seemed to be just as quick and nimble. The ark was anything but agile. Outmaneuvering the Imperial forces was going to take a miracle. But, he had pulled off miracles before. Usually they happened when Anakin was the one piloting, but hey, if that reckless boy could do it, then so could he.
He let the oncoming fighters get close enough that he could see their pilots through the tinted, oval cockpit windows. Then, Ben yanked on the yoke. The Ark shot upwards, soaring higher and higher, towards the stars.
Out of the corner of his eye, Ben could see the Star Destroyer growing larger to his right. If there was one thing Morgana and her group of mages spared little expense on, it was this thing's engines. Force above, they were powerful. That, or the amount of speed being produced by the Ark was a testament to how absurdly strong Tiki and Nowi actually were. It didn't matter either way, so long as they could outrun the Empire, they stood a chance.
Green flashes rocked the Ark, making the entire ship shudder, and Ben was reminded of why outrunning the enemy was still a longshot. The Ark was, for all intents and purposes, well built. Especially given the availability of advanced technology on this planet, which was none. Under any other circumstances, Ben would have marveled at the immense intellectual and reverse engineering achievement made by Morgana and her followers. There was, however, one thing they failed to put into place: proper deflector shields. There were magical wards crawling all over the Ark, but how long could those hold out against constant, blaster bolt bombardment.
Not very long, I think.
He needed a way out of this mess, fast. If the wards around the Academy were any indication, then the ones placed on the Ark would only last so long before blaster fire penetrated them and tore the ship to shreds. He couldn't keep flying around Ylisstol, not with the orbital bombardment turning the city to ash. Imperial fighters would chase after the Ark, no matter where it flew on the planet. He felt like there was only one option.
"Tharja! Get inside and seal the turrets!" Ben shouted over his shoulder, praying she heard him
Cordelia gulped beside him, "What are you planning."
Ben gripped the controls with both hands, "Something stupid."
He twisted the controls, and the Ark spun, narrowly dodging a flurry of green blaster fire. From the corridor behind him, Ben heard Tharja utter several loud curses. Relief flooded him. She heard him.
Once out of the roll, the Ark shot higher into the sky, breaking through the thick cloudline and rocketing up higher into the atmosphere. Any blue tint remaining in the night sky began to fade, replaced by the pitch black of outer space. As they went higher, Ben found himself muttering a prayer to Naga under his breath. He might not believe in a divine entity such as Naga, preferring to instead believe that the Force controlled all things, but saying that little prayer did fend off some anxiety for him. For all he knew, the Ark would break apart as soon as it was exposed to the zero gravity of space.
Then it would all be over.
Instruments frantically blinked all around him. Ben gave them all a glance before deciding it would be in his best interest to disregard them. At this point, as the Ark ascended beyond the pull of the planet, there would be no going back.
Green flashes continued to rock the Ark, even as Tharja and Gaius stumbled into the cockpit, faces white with fear.
"Benny!" Gaius cried, "We've got a situation back there."
"Not now, Gaius." Ben replied, his grip on the controls tightening as he fought to stay ahead of the enemy fighters.
Tharja sank into a seat behind Ben, exhausted from the battle and from defending the Ark. Gaius leaned over Ben's shoulder.
"It's Stumbles," Gaius gulped, "She's-"
"Gaius not-"
A violent shudder rocked the ship as a blaster bolt slammed into the hull, slipping through the protective wards. Cordelia yelped, Tharja stiffened in her seat, Ben grit his teeth, and Gaius fell forward. On instinct, the thief reached out to catch his balance, accidentally shoving a lever forward. A lever Ben was not sure would work or not.
The engines whined loud, then they roared. From down the corridor, Ben heard a woman screech in pain. Through the force, he could sense Tiki in intense pain. Her scream crescendoed into a draconic roar that made his seat and the controls vibrate.
Before Ben had anytime to even figure out what was happening, the loud whining in the engines ended. The stars beyond the planet's atmosphere turned into brilliant streaks of white light. Ben's eyes widened.
"Oh no."
With a massive wham, the Ark shot into an uncontrolled hyperspace jump.
It was a sight Ben never thought he would see again, and one he really wished he wasn't looking at right now. A great blue tunnel surrounded the ark, the telltale sign of a hyperspace jump. It caused him to remain frozen in his seat, wide eyed. For a split second, he was not sure of what to do. Hell, he wasn't even sure if the Ark would last another ten seconds traveling at such a high speed, or if it would have the power to complete whatever jump accidentally occured.
It took Gaius groaning in pain for Ben to shake himself out of his stupor.
"Wh-what just happened?" Gaius mumbled as he pushed himself off of the lever that had buried itself in his gut. He flicked his eyes up and saw the hyperspace tunnel wrapped around the ship. A sharp breath shot into his lungs, "What just happened!?"
Ben leaned forward in his seat, letting his face fall into his hands with a long groan.
"I screwed up, didn't I?" Gaius muttered.
"Ben?" Cordelia spoke up, eyes flicking between the thief and the strange sight outside of the cockpit.
Ben rubbed his eyes, then rested his forehead in his right hand, "An uncontrolled hyperspace jump."
Everyone else in the cockpit regarded him with puzzled expressions. A long sigh escaped his lips.
"It means I have no idea where we are going."
Cordelia's brow furrowed. She glanced over at an exhausted Tharja, who merely shrugged, unsure of what Ben meant. Ben picked up on their growing confusion. He let out a long exhale and sank further into the pilot's seat.
"We just entered an uncontrolled hyperspace jump. Which means we are currently traveling faster than lightspeed. Normally, when traveling at speeds like this, a computer is used to calculate the jump. That way the ship doesn't accidentally shoot through a star, stop in an asteroid field, or bounce too close to a supernova."
Gaius furrowed his brow, "Which means-"
"Those are all very quick ways to die." Ben clarified.
The thief paled, "O-oh that's um-" He cleared his throat, "How likely are we-"
"Considering we just did an uncontrolled jump, with no calculations, and no galactic map, the odds are not in our favor."
Ben ran a hand over his forehead, mind quickly running through various mental calculations. If a protocol droid were here, the odds would be even worse. He closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath as he resolved to remain calm. No one else had ever been through this kind of situation before, hyperspace being the newest marvel to them and all. He could not afford to panic, because then everyone likely would.
He needed to steer the topic away from what might be their impending doom. With a heavy sigh, he turned in his chair to face Gaius.
"You ran in here because?"
Gaius's already pale face blanched completely, "Y-yeah… um…"
His throat bobbed, and Ben knew it was bad news. Gaius was never nervous about anything. Well, unless Panne was involved, he usually wasn't nervous. He certainly was not someone to dance around a topic. Not unless it was extremely bad news.
Ben quickly delved into the Force as his mind mentally brought up the people he knew made it onto the shuttle. He could see Cordelia, Tharja, and Gaius. Obviously they were all unscathed. Exhausted, perhaps a bit traumatized, but uninjured. He sensed Aversa, Severa, Noire, Brady, and Cynthia off in a part of the ship away from the engine room. Likely a small bunk room of some sort for crew. Luke was there as well, but his signature in the force was faint. Luckily, Brady was there to make sure the boy lived. Ben was confident in the drunken priest's ability. After all he did heal Luke multiple times in Valm.
The others should be in the engine room then. Anna was in the engine room. She seemed… off, for some reason. Not her usual, chirpy self. Not surprising given what everyone had just gone through.
Nowi and Tiki's signatures were beyond anything he expected. They fluctuated wildly, fading to near nothing then exploding with sudden raw power, only to dim like a slowly fading fire once again. Something had gone wrong. He didn't sense it as life threatening, but he was concerned.
That scream, Ben recalled someone yelling out in pain when the hyperspace jump occurred, That was Tiki.
He started to rise from his seat, then froze as he sensed Panne. She was… sad. Panne did not show much emotion anyways, as human emotions and behaviors befuddled the Taguel at times, but her sorrow did not escape the Jedi Master's attention. He then sensed Chrom, and heartache washed over the Jedi Master. The intense sorrow could be linked to only one thing. Or rather, the lack of one person that Ben could not sense.
"Oh no…"
He surged to his feet. Tharja tried to get up and follow him, but her exhausted form slumped back into her seat. Her body too spent to move anymore. He didn't even hear Cordelia's worried calls to him as he left her to handle the cockpit on her own. The ship was in hyperspace, which meant she didn't have any piloting to worry about.
Besides, if the ship crashed landed somewhere, or shot through a supernova, or a star, Ben would have likely not noticed at that moment. His mind remained glued to the intense pain he sensed Chrom was in. As he rushed down the corridor, he noticed scorch marks peppering the wall opposite of the Ark's ramp. Even more concern rushed through him, and he barrelled into the Engine Room.
Tiki was slumped at her pedestal, hands still clutching the device that powered the ship. Her entire body sagged forward, all of her weight leaning up against the machine. Her eyes were closed, and her breathing was even, signaling unconsciousness. Nowi was next to her, back against the pedestal. She was still awake, but barely. Her half lidded eyes flicked tearily over to Ben. The little Manakete sniffled then nodded across the room, towards three other figures.
Panne stood beside a curled up Chrom, her furry head bowed in solemn silence. Chrom's form was hunched over Sumia. When Ben saw the smoking hole in her chest, his heart stopped beating.
Everything went numb for him. He hardly noticed his own feet carefully inching towards Chrom and Panne. The Taguel flicked her head up to look at him, before taking a deep breath and stepping away, leaving Ben to try and speak to the grieving Ylissean ruler.
For some reason, Ben struggled to find words. When he first arrived in Ylisstol, other than Chrom, Robin, Frederick, and Lissa; it was Sumia who befriended him first. She was the one who decided to help him find the bathroom when the shock of his unique scenario took place. She was always a ray of hope and light in their war councils, throughout the Plegian War, and the Valm Campaign. As Ben looked down on her now cold body, one thought ran through his mind.
Why her?
It was a thought that plagued him whenever someone close to him, or his friends, passed. He asked that question when Satine was killed by Maul. He pondered it when Emmeryn died. He even asked the same question to himself when Robin was slain at Demon's Ingle. Even after so many times asking what should have been a simple question, he never received an answer. And he couldn't give Chrom an answer either, even as his friend looked up at him, tears running down his cheeks.
The Prince tried to say something, but it came out as a choking sob. His hand gripped Sumia's limp one tightly, refusing to let go. His head fell forward until it rested against the wall of the ship, beside her head. Chrom sobbed, his shoulders heaving up and down with each breath he took. Ben did not say anything. All he could do was place a reassuring hand on his friend's shoulder, then walk away.
Chrom needed time to grieve, and Ben would give him that time before speaking to him. As Ben spun away, Chrom managed to croak out words.
"She had Cynthia." He croaked through his tears.
Ben froze where he stood. His eyes closed as an iron ball lodged in his throat. He fought with all his might to swallow it.
Two lives…
That must have been what Chrom and Sumia were holding the ball for. It wasn't like it was a special Ylissean holiday occuring that night. It was probably one of those formal balls the nobility required them to do whenever something important happened in their family. It was supposed to be a joyous occasion, but the Empire ruined it, as they did all things.
The iron ball finally ran down his throat, and Ben managed to inhale a shaky breath.
"I'm so sorry." He managed to whisper before moving towards Tiki and Nowi.
Nowi now lay unconscious beside the pedestal, her own small form exhausted from the strain the ship put on her. Ben knelt down and placed a hand on her forehead. He didn't feel a temperature, nor was she freezing. Both were positive signs. She probably just needed rest, and a lot of it. He suspected magical exhaustion had claimed her and Tiki. He knew the toll such a thing took on Tharja, and suspected it would be magnified in Manaketes (given their enormous reserves and the strain it would take to use them).
When he shifted towards Tiki, he reached up and carefully pried her fingers from the pedestal. Her fingertips were raw, nearly bleeding, from how tightly she was gripping the device. He saw evidence of faint burns on her palms. Her skin felt cool to the touch, which caused some more worry to flare inside of him. He quickly placed his hand on her forehead.
Her emerald eyes shot awake, and her hand snapped out and snatched his wrist. Ben froze, staring into the narrowed eyes of a predator. He could feel a sudden surge in raw power, making the force twist and turn in ways that he had never sensed before. Just as quickly as the surge came, it went. Tiki's grip on his wrist slackened, and her hand fell with a thump to the metal floor. The feral glow in her eyes evaporated, replaced by weariness.
"What…" She swallowed, "What happened?"
Ben took a deep breath, "Something unexpected, but that doesn't matter right now. Are you alright?"
Tiki winced as she tried to sit herself up against the Pedestal. As she shifted, Gaius inched his way into the engine room.
"Been… better." She admitted as she sagged again, giving up on her attempt to sit taller, "It has been a long time since I've felt like this." She flicked her eyes towards Nowi, "Is she-"
"Asleep." Ben said, calming Tiki's concern, "I checked on her, and she should be fine."
"Thank goodness." Tiki exhaled, "That was… I had to…" A sudden fear latched onto her. One she worked hard to quickly repress, but Ben managed to notice it before it disappeared, "It was a lot." Tiki said, her tone now guarded, "Too much for her."
"Hopefully it won't happen again." Ben glanced over at Gaius, then nodded at Nowi, "Let's get them to wherever bunks are located in the ship."
"Just down the hall." Gaius nodded. The thief glanced over at Chrom and Sumia. His face turned white, and his chin quivered. He quickly averted his eyes, and moved to gently pick up Nowi. As he picked her up, he grunted, "Naga, when did she get this heavy?"
"When another Manakete started growing in her." Tiki said, a dry, weary laugh coming from her throat, "One that should be among us soon." Her eyes widened, "Hopefully nothing-"
"I don't sense anything wrong, Tiki." Ben interrupted as he put one of her arms over his shoulders, "I'm sure you don't either."
Tiki furrowed her brow, "Too exhausted to tell. Will…" She uttered a long, loud yawn, "Will check when I wake up."
All of her weight slumped against Ben as she slipped back into unconsciousness. Ben staggered, adjusted his grip, then hoisted her up into both arms. Before he left the engine room, he looked over at Panne, Chrom, and Sumia. He didn't even need to say anything to Panne to get a message across to her. She simply nodded back to him, telling him that if Chrom needed anything, she would fetch him.
Good.
He and Gaius carefully carried both Tiki and Nowi into the bunkroom at the opposite end of the narrow corridor.
The bunkroom was small, to say the least. It contained eight bunks, which meant some of them would be sleeping on the cold floor, or in the cockpit chairs. Not the most comfortable of situations, but Ben had slept on worse. He doubted he'd be able to sleep right now anyways.
Luke already occupied one bunk. It was the first time Ben had a chance to get a good look at the boy. What he saw made Ben's stomach turn. There were not a lot of obvious physical wounds. Bad scrapes and bruises, obvious signs of physical and mental exhaustion, that was all he could see on the outside. Most of his body was hidden beneath a thin sheet Cynthia had placed over him. Through the force, Ben sensed how drained and injured Luke really was. A faint green glow took over the small bunkroom as Brady remained seated near Luke's side, his staff hovering over his body. The priest glanced over at Ben as Tiki and Nowi were carried in. He simply nodded over to two bunks nearby.
"I'll look at 'em in a second."
Ben gave Brady a grateful nod. He turned to a bunk, and found Aversa laying on it. The dark mage glared at him, forcing Ben to move over to the next one.
The next bunk was occupied by Severa. She was curled up into a tight, shivering ball. One shake of Brady's head, and Ben knew not to bother her.
He reached the third bunk, then gently set Tiki down on it. He noticed Noire sitting on the end of that bunk. The sudden change in how the bunk felt beneath her made his daughter shift and turn her head in his direction.
"Wh-who- wait!" Noire inhaled, "Sense it… sense… oh…" She sniffled, "Hi dad."
Ben gave her a small smile. He took a seat down beside her, wrapping an arm around her slim shoulders. She sank into his embrace, sniffles rushing through her nose as she fought back quiet cries.
"I sensed it." She muttered to him.
Ben closed his eyes, "Do they know?" He whispered back, briefly glancing over at Brady and Cynthia.
Noire shook her head, "Not yet."
He didn't blame her for not saying anything. How could she say anything? Cynthia had been her closest friend since they both arrived in the past near each other a couple years ago. They lived together, ate together, fought together; all of those things would have made it beyond difficult for Noire to tell Cynthia that her mother had been killed, with her younger self now no longer going to be born. How could anyone be able to say something like that to a close friend? He was certainly not a model example on breaking world shattering news to someone.
Ben rubbed her shoulder gently, "It's going to be okay."
Noire sniffled again, one hand reaching up on reflex to rub one of her blind eyes. She nodded against his shoulder.
"Is mom okay?" She asked.
Ben nodded, "She's tired, but alright. Do you-"
"L-let her rest." Noire stammered out, "I know she was really going crazy with her magic earlier so…" She gulped, "She needs to rest." She looked up to his face, "Are you okay? I can sense anxiety?"
Ben sighed, "I'll be fine. I was just worried about you. Right now, you need to rest too. If you need anything, come and get me in the cockpit."
"Right… the cockpit." Noire pursed her lips, "That is er-"
"Where I pilot the ship. I'm sure Gaius or someone else can lead you to it."
"Oh good." Noire said, relieved, "Last… um… question before you go. Who's in the bunk now?"
Ben laughed quietly under his breath, "Tiki. She's spent."
Noire opened her mouth, "Ah. Well, I'll find another bunk." She got to her feet, and hesitated, her head briefly turning in the direction of Cynthia and Luke, "She needs to know."
Ben did not say anything as Noire took a step towards Cynthia, hesitated, then closed the gap. He watched as Noire knelt down beside Cynthia and spoke quietly in her ear. Through the force, he sensed overwhelming terror shoot through the Princess. Like a terrified pegasus, she shot out of the room, her hand slipping from Luke's grasp as she sprinted towards the engine room.
"C-Cynthia!" Noire called after her.
"What's the matter?" Brady asked as he moved away from Luke and towards Nowi.
Noire gulped, "Sumia's-"
"The queen's hurt?" He jumped away from Nowi, "Why didn't ya'll-"
"She's dead, Brady." Ben muttered.
Aversa stiffened in her bunk, Severa stopped shaking, Brady froze in the doorway, Gaius coughed in his hand and decided to step out, and Noire hung her head.
"You're…" Brady looked back at both Ben and Noire. Their words confirmed when a blood curdling wail echoed down the corridor. Brady blanched, lost strength in his legs, then slumped against the wall, using it to hold himself up, "Oh Naga…"
Ben grimaced. He got to his feet and walked over to Brady. Without a sound, he patted Brady on the shoulder, then moved out of the bunkroom and back towards the cockpit. As he walked down the corridor and re-entered the cockpit, he heard Cynthia's sharp, mournful cries all around him. Even when he closed the door to the cockpit behind him, he could hear them.
Cordelia turned her head to look at him from the co-pilot's seat.
"Ben?" She knew something terrible had happened. She knew someone had died. The Wing Commander gulped, "Who?"
Ben sank into the pilot's seat, then ran a hand over his mouth, "Sumia."
Cordelia didn't register it at first. She stared at him, unblinking, and unbelieving. But when Tharja nodded her head, confirming what Ben had told her, Cordelia's lips began to quiver.
"N-no…" She swallowed hard as tears ran down her cheeks, "Not…" She whipped her head back over to Ben, "How?"
"I don't know." Ben muttered.
"That blue man." Tharja croaked, her tone exhausted, "He shot her."
Ben furrowed his brow, "Blue man?"
"Thrawn." Cordelia replied, choking back quiet sobs. She reached up and wiped tears from her pale face, "That's what he called himself. Admiral Thrawn of the Galactic Empire."
Ben furrowed his brow. Thrawn… Thrawn… it had to be someone new. He did not recognize the name. All he knew about the man was that he was not human (due to Tharja calling him the Blue Man), and he was tactically ruthless. Without a conscience when it came to casualties or collateral damage. The worst kind of commander, in Ben's opinion.
Apparently the most desirable for the Empire though.
Cordelia sniffled again. With each breath she took, she fought back sobs. Ben pursed his lips, glancing over at her.
"If you need to cry, don't be afraid to."
"You two aren't." Cordelia pointed out, glancing over at Tharja.
Tharja exhaled, "I am barely awake."
"And I," Ben grimaced, swallowing hard as some tears threatened to bubble in his eyes, "can't afford to right now. Someone needs to focus on… on…" He motioned to the controls in front of him, "this."
"What can you do right now?" Cordelia asked him, wiping another tear from her eyes, "Given our out of control situation."
Ben flicked his eyes over the controls. The lack of a computer, or map, made it virtually impossible for him to do anything. He glanced back over at Cordelia, saying nothing in return.
Cordelia pressed her lips into a thin line, "Then… we hope and pray."
Ben nodded. Hope and pray, that was all any of them could do in this situation. If by some miracle they didn't crash into anything deadly coming out of this hyperspace jump, then he would do everything in his power to pilot them to a safe landing. Then… then… Force only knows what would happen then.
Live in the moment. Ben exhaled as he rested his head back against his chair. Behind him, he heard Tharja doze off, finally too tired to remain awake. Cordelia quietly cried in the co-pilot's seat, and Cynthia's wails came in muffled waves through the cockpit door. He closed his eyes, feeling a stray tear drip down his cheek.
What a cruel way to make me do it.
Corellia: the crazier, seedier, crime infested cousin of Kuat. At least, that's how Ahsoka viewed this place. The one place in the core worlds very few people really wanted to visit. Sure, this planet produced some of the finest freighters, starships, and fighters in the world; but at a cost that made Kuat look like a lawful paradise. Ahsoka had already been to this world several times on errands for the fledgling rebellion, and every visit made her want to come back less and less
Currently though, the general dingy atmosphere the main city of this world possessed was a benefit for her, as much as she did not enjoy them. There were enough outlaws, bounty hunters, and criminal scum on this planet so that she could easily blend in with the crowd. And unlike Kuat, there were plenty of non-humans here as well. Which meant she no longer stood out like a sore thumb anywhere.
She let out a long breath as she sat on a crate near the landing gear of her ship, an empty meal tray in her lap. It was something bland, as always. You could take the girl out of the Temple, but you could not take the Temple out of the girl. The bland food gave her comfort, reminded her of better times. Times where she served aboard a Republic star destroyer, fighting a massive galactic war alongside her now dead Jedi Master.
Huh… hard to believe that I consider death defying missions better times.
She shrugged, shifting the hood that was drawn over her head. Couldn't be too careful in the core worlds. Despite the more criminal inclinations of Corellia, the Empire still had a massive presence here. Stormtroopers patrolled the spaceport in their usual, orderly, timely fashion. So much so, that she already had the pattern committed to memory. Just in case she needed a quick escape, she'd know exactly when it would be best to do so.
But… thanks to her low profile, some credits placed in the right hands, and a slight mind suggestion here and there, no one asked her any questions. In fact, the only person that seemed to pay her any mind was the curious human sharing a meal with her.
Gerome sat on a crate a few feet away, his masked face looking down at his half eaten tray of bland sustenance. It was nothing more than some gray protein paste, a slice or two of hard bread, and some blue milk. A solid meal, all things considered. It wasn't like the Rebellion had much to go around at the moment, and Ahsoka was wary with what she bought using Bail Organa's credits. The less of that floating around, the better.
In fact, Gerome hadn't touched his food in a good ten minutes. At first, he quietly ate bits of it at a time, before deciding to stop. She arched her brow beneath her hood.
"Not hungry?"
The masked boy glanced up at her, his usual scowl on his face.
I swear, the only person I've seen frown more is Master Windu.
"It tastes terrible." Gerome said, voice monotonous and cold.
Ahsoka shrugged, "Your opinion."
"My opinion is right."
She smirked over at him. During the few days they had traveled together, Ahsoka had been slowly trying to get a read on her new traveling companion. She had a feeling he was one of the strange people Master Windu told her about during their last conversation. The giant winged lizard, archaic armor, and choice of weapon (who the hell uses steel for a weapon anymore?) were dead giveaways that Gerome was not from anywhere remotely advanced. So at first, she assumed his general grumpiness was likely due to confusion and frustration. If she were in his shoes, she would have been extremely irritated with not knowing how anything worked around her.
But after trying to talk to him several times, and being nice (as Master Kenobi often told her to be growing up), she came to learn that Gerome was neither confused or frustrated. He was simply an ass.
"Would your lizard eat it?" She asked.
Usually, she failed to get any sort of rise out of Gerome. I mean, she did try. She got bored flying around, all alone. Actually having company gave her something to do. When Gerome refused to speak with her, refused to eat with her, even refused to sit in the cockpit with her, she decided the best use for him was as a source of entertainment. Thus, her poking him with comments every so often became their new way of communicating. The only time she ever managed to elicit any shred of emotion other than grumpiness out of him, was when she called Minerva a lizard. Then she would sense some anger flare, and at least that was something of substance.
"She is a Wyvern." Gerome growled, his grip on his spork tightened, "I've told you that a million times already."
"Hmmmm… a million?" Ahsoka chirped back, "I don't think we've been around each other long enough for that." Gerome hung his head as she kept talking, "I think you've said it at least twenty times though."
"A hundred." He growled back.
She chuckled, "I've mentioned the lizard that much?"
"One hundred and one."
She snickered again, and that only made his frown grow. When she saw that, she exhaled and set her tray down on the crate next to her, "Listen, Lizard Boy-" He growled, but she ignored it, "In case you haven't noticed, your little tough guy act isn't going to work on me. I mean, why would it? I did save your life."
He narrowed his eyes at her, "Last I checked, you needed me to get out of that bar on Kuat."
"Last I checked, you needed me to fly you off of Kuat." Ahsoka replied with a wink, "And let's be honest, of the two of us, who do you think would have fought off those bounty hunters?"
He was quiet for a moment, "I haven't seen you fight."
She nodded, "And hopefully you never have to."
A bright light burst through the dark sky over the spaceport. Ahsoka furrowed her brow as she glanced up at it. It looked like a ship was entering Correllia's atmosphere, and it was coming in hot.
A group of stormtroopers marched past, and she quickly ducked her head. Once she was sure they were gone, she reached out with the force, trying to sense if it was a ship coming into the atmosphere. She glanced up, still attempting to sense it. It wasn't slowing down, which did not bode well for her efforts at finding crew members on it.
"Crash landing…" She muttered.
"What are you talking about now?" Gerome grumbled.
Ahsoka glanced at him, "Does everything I say have to revolve around you?"
"You make it revolve around me."
"I do, and it is fun. But this time it is not." Ahsoka snipped back, making Gerome grip his fork even tighter, "I think someone's about to crash land outside the city."
While a curious thing to see, it was also none of her concern. The last thing she needed to do was get involved in an emergency like that. Crash landings attract unwanted attention, especially when they occured on a world like Corellia. Right outside of Coronet City no less. It was as if a beacon was arriving on the planet with a signal saying, "Here Empire! Check me out"!
Yeah, I'll stay… away…
Four force signatures. Three of them were faint and weak. One of them was bright and strong, a telltale mark of a Jedi Knight. Ahsoka's blood ran cold in her veins. The smirk she had on her lips evaporated as she stared at the ship crashing down to the surface, outside of the city.
"Done teasing me?"
Ahsoka blinked when Gerome spoke, "I-I'm sorry, what?"
"You're not smiling."
Ahsoka barely paid attention to him. If there was a Jedi on that crashing ship, then they were about to be in an entire galaxy of trouble. She bit her lip, debating whether or not she needed to get involved. She had already been driven off of Kuat, which rendered their drive yards almost useless to the rebellion. If she was driven off of Corellia, then the rebellion would have to get their ships and parts through less savory means. Possibly by dealing with criminal gangs like the Hutts or the Shadow Collective.
Perhaps it wasn't worth the risk. But… if there was a Jedi Knight on that ship, then they would prove far more valuable to the Rebellion than a few ships from this Empire infested place.
To hell with it.
"C'mon Gerome." She said as she got to her feet.
Gerome frowned, "Where are we going?"
"To a crash site, before the Empire gets there."
He scowled at her as she started walking away from the ship, "You're not taking Minvera. She is not your-"
"Does it look like we're riding the lizard?" Gerome growled as she spoke, but she returned to her amused look, infuriating him even more, "We're renting a speeder, now c'mon."
"Why do I have to go?"
Ahsoka rolled her eyes, "Do you want to deal with passerbys on your own?"
Silence.
"Didn't think so. Now lets go."
With a heavy sigh, Gerome got to his feet, setting his food down on his crate and marching after Ahsoka. She could hear him grumbling under his breath as they marched towards a line of speeders for rent, but she did not care. Let him grumble, she was not about to let him jeopardize the chance at rescuing a Jedi Knight. One last time, she looked up and briefly glimpsed the crashing ship break out of her line of sight, falling behind the skyline of Coronet City. As it plummeted, she could see emergency vehicles in the spaceport loading up and readying to move towards its location.
We need to hurry.
Before the large Bith renting speeders could even say a word, Ashoka slapped down a wad of credit chips.
"I need your fastest speeder."
And chapter! I LIIIIIIIIVE! It's been a while, hasn't it? I apologize for the wait on a new chapter. I got hit with a really, bad case of burnout. And after writing over 1 million words, 135 chapters, and doing this for over a year and half, I decided it was probably a good idea to take a little time off from this fic. In the meantime, I was working on my Awakening SI (Shameless Self Promotion: Check out Rigged from the Start), just so I could keep writing and not get thrown into any deeper funk. But now, the burnout has finally worn off, the writer's block has broken, and I've finally gotten another chapter out!
This one is shorter than the past few, but it is packed with stuff. We got our heroes making their escape, and Ahsoka witnessed something strange. I wonder what it could be? You'll find out soon enough.
I probably won't be updating this fic at the rapid pace I had been before, mostly because I do need to get back into the groove of writing this one. But I'll do my best to get chapters out as often as I can! With that being said, let me know what you all think of this chapter! As always, I hope you all enjoyed it! Have a nice day!
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