Chapter 15

Cassian drifted awake to a weight on his arm and tried to shift to a more comfortable position. The movement sent pain radiating along his back, eliciting a groan. The weight on his arm shifted and then disappeared, causing him to open his eyes. For a moment, he didn't know what exactly he was seeing, but then realization hit him. Jyn's room, the nightmare. He must have fallen asleep, and judging by the discomfort, he had not drifted off while laying properly on the bunk.

"Cassian?" Jyn's voice sounded as fuzzy as his mind felt. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Just stiff and sore. Falling asleep sitting up wasn't a good idea."

She sat back down beside him. "Get up and moving, change into clean clothes and then let Baze work on you. I guarantee you will feel better."

He wasn't sure why he had been hesitant to make use of Baze's skill with massage prior to this, particularly when the others set a ready example for him. Looked like now he needed to get over that reticence unless he wanted to continue to be uncomfortable all day. He'd fallen asleep in the pilot's seat more than once and he knew it wasn't easy to work out the kinks when that happened.

"Maybe I will." He slowly sat up and looked at her more closely. "You okay? Did you get any sleep?"

"Some." She ducked her head, to hide her pink cheeks giving away her embarrassment. "Thanks for talking, and staying."

"We do what needs to be done, when it needs to be done, for whoever it needs to be done," he told her with a grin.

Judging by her bright smile in response, he suspected she hadn't known if he had listened to what she'd told him then. He was a little surprised himself at how much he remembered of what she said. He hadn't thought he was paying that close of attention either.

He pushed to his feet, managing to suppress another groan, and waved a farewell as he continued out the door.

Normally, regardless of how he was feeling, Cassian actively made the effort to conceal it. A limp, stiffness, a weak arm – he knew how to compensate to keep others from noticing. For the first time, he didn't bother trying, trusting his friends wouldn't judge him for his 'old man' walk.

He shuffled toward the kitchen in search of caf and something to eat. Bodhi was just exiting the room and eyed him. "You…don't look good," he carefully remarked. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Cassian gave him a vague wave of the hand. "Just slept wrong. Jyn suggested having Baze work on my back."

"Yes, do that. It will help, I'm sure." He had caf and a protein bar in his hands, but held them toward Cassian. "Here, take these and I'll get another. You should go sit down."

After a slight pause, Cassian nodded. "Thanks."

The morning appeared to be off to a slow start for everyone. Usually Tonc would have been in the hold sitting at the terminal by now, and Jyn would already be moving. Instead, it was just Cassian, Bodhi and Melshi. Their leader was settled in a corner reading, a favorite pasttime of his, Cassian knew. Bodhi was idly eating his breakfast and playing solitaire. Cassian sat gingerly on a bench eating his own meal.

Eventually, the Guardians arrived, followed soon after by Jyn, but still no sign of Tonc. More than usual, the hold was quiet, a subdued atmosphere enveloping them. Cassian caught Jyn's eye and raised a questioning eyebrow. She gave a shrug and a slight smile of reassurance that she was at least partially recovered from the previous night's upheaval.

"Baze," Cassian said hesitantly, "could I trouble you for a massage? I seem to have cramped things up a bit during the night."

The big man nodded, indicating his food as a way of saying after he was finished eating so his hands were free. Silence resumed, but Melshi had looked up at the question and then glanced around at his team. Finally, he asked, "Where's Tonc this morning? I thought he said he wasn't hurt yesterday."

Bodhi paused in his game. "Migraine. I passed him in the hall. So, still in his bunk. I took him something to eat."

After a moment, Melshi set down his datapad and left the room. K-2 was in the cockpit keeping an eye on the controls, and he slid into the other seat, turned toward the droid.

"Did you need something, Sergeant?"

Melshi sighed. "I…need a favor." He glanced back toward the hold, then said quietly, "I suspect Command will try to contact us soon with new mission details. Can you simulate comm failure and make it appear we are not receiving their contact efforts?"

"Why would you wish me to do that?" K's processors whirred at this unexpected request.

Melshi again glanced toward the hold. "Several of the team are not feeling up to their usual standards. We could manage if one, or maybe even two, were a little off, but I think I've got at least three. I want to give them more time to get their feet back under them. Command isn't likely to heed a request for down time, but if they can't reach us, we can't be redeployed."

"You realize this would be going against Alliance protocols and could result in punishment."

"Yes. And if it comes to that, I'll take the blame. But if you manage to make it look real enough, they may never know. Don't worry – I won't let them come after you." He looked down at his hands. "I really think this is necessary, K-2."

"Very well, I will grant you this favor."

"Thanks." Melshi smiled with amusement and stood. "Do let me know when they attempt contact, though. I'll have to decide how long I think I can realistically push it."

"Understood."

xx

Okay, Cassian would admit it – to himself, at least. He had been an idiot. He moved his shoulders, far easier than he probably had in months. Whatever reason he'd had why he was reluctant to let Baze work on him, he had been missing out. The man was a genius with those hands. It didn't seem like something such a big, brusque person would know, but when he had asked about it, Baze indicated that the training at the temple in Jedha's Holy City often left the trainees sore. Another Guardian had known how to do this, and after feeling how good it felt to an aching body, he had actively pursued learning it.

He dropped into the seat next to K-2. "Hey, K. How's it going?"

"All is quiet. No problems."

"Do you want a break? I can sit here for a while if you do."

"I am presently working, so I cannot leave. But thank you for the offer."

"Working?" Cassian's brow wrinkled at this unexpected response. "What do you mean? Keeping an eye on the controls isn't something you're tied to – you can have a break if you want."

The panel lit just then with an incoming comm and automatically Cassian reached to respond, but K bumped his hand away. "I will handle this."

He watched as the droid manipulated controls and even jiggled some wiring, making the comm cut out abruptly. "K! What did you do that for? You lost that comm signal. See if you can get it back. It might be important."

"Cassian, I must ask you to leave the cockpit while I work. I am under orders from the team leader, and I cannot permit you to interfere."

"What! K, what's this about?"

"Sergeant Melshi has instructed me to block incoming messages from Command for the time being."

"Maybe you misunderstood, K. I'm sure he wouldn't have told you to do that."

"I assure you, I understood him completely. He has concerns for the team at the moment and does not wish to be given a new assignment as yet. They cannot deploy us if they cannot reach us."

For several seconds, Cassian just stared at the droid, who continued to block any incoming comms. "I'm beginning to think Jyn has ruined you for following orders and keeping to the rules."

"Why would you say that? I am following the orders I was given by my team leader. The Alliance handbook does not specify a rebel is not allowed to block a comm signal from Command. I see no reason to blame Jyn Erso when I am, in fact, being obedient. Or perhaps you object to my not following your instructions to ignore Melshi's orders?"

"Uh, no, not that. I see your point. I appreciate that you are willing to follow my instructions, but you are right that Melshi's orders supersede mine for the team. My apologies for challenging you on it." He hesitated, then asked, "Melshi has concerns for the team?"

"He indicated that several of you were operating at substandard levels and he did not wish to take you on a mission in that state. It is a reasonable decision. It would reduce the likelihood of successful mission completion significantly."

"Yes, it would. Though now I'm thinking Jyn might have ruined Melshi. He's never been the type to question orders before she came along."

"Perhaps not, but it is my observation that Jyn concerns herself more with the rationale of the orders than the orders themselves. If the orders do not make sense, she is reluctant to follow through on them. Had she – and you – followed orders, none of us would have gone to Scarif. The Council's decision was not reasonable."

"You're right. I guess we needed that reminder to not blindly follow such orders. Discipline and obedience are good, but sometimes it is wise to go off script."

He stood. "I'll leave you to it, then." He patted the droid's shoulder as he departed.

Jyn was entering the corridor, wrapping her hands, and he raised a questioning eyebrow. She gestured toward their makeshift training room. "Thought I'd get in a workout. Care to join me? I haven't seen you doing your exercises for your shoulder, but after Baze's massage, maybe you feel up to more than that?"

He considered and then nodded, going to get in more suitable clothing. Over his shoulder, he called, "Just go easy on me until I'm fully recovered." He heard her chuckle as he continued on.

Tonc was just exiting the 'fresher as he approached and the man looked miserable. His features were pinched with pain and his eyes barely open despite the low light in the hallway.

"Hey. Can I get you anything?" he asked.

Tonc waved him off. "No, thanks. Just need to try to sleep it off, let the medicine do its thing."

"Keep your comlink handy and let us know if you want something – food, water, more medicine."

"Thanks." He stumbled back to his cabin and Cassian continued on to his own room.

To his surprise, working out with Jyn was remarkably invigorating. With everything else going on, especially all his recovering from injuries, it had been some time since he had actually had a true workout. It was nice to resume that routine, and though Jyn was careful not to push him too hard or fast, she also didn't make it easy for him either. He appreciated both.

The workout appeared to lift her spirits as well, whether the exercise itself or she had just finally shaken off the last vestiges of the nightmare.

With Melshi holding to radio silence still, it proved to be a lazy afternoon, and most took advantage to talk or get some extra sleep. Cassian had found that although his friends had hidden talents, only Melshi and Tonc really seemed to have what could be called hobbies. Possibly his cooking would qualify, except that he didn't pursue it actively enough, until recently, for it to seem in that category. Bodhi played card games, often solitaire, but that seemed more out of boredom than any eager interest.

Tonc didn't rejoin them until the evening meal, looking tired and drawn, but evidently in far less pain than before. He eagerly tucked into the meal Cassian had prepared.

Melshi was the last to sit down with them. "New assignment."

Apparently he had finally allowed their comms to be 'fixed'.

"It will take twelve hours to get there, so tomorrow. I'll brief you then."

There were murmurs of acknowledgement, but no one bothered with questions. Glancing around at the team, Cassian had to agree that he had been right to postpone this. Everyone did look much better than they had this morning.

Later, when Cassian headed to bed earlier than usual, he noticed Jyn's door open. Usually she kept it closed, whether she was inside or not, so his curiosity got the better of him as to why now was different.

He found her sitting on the bed, leaning on the wall and playing idly with her fingerless gloves. Her expression suggested her thoughts were anything but peaceful. She didn't look up when he moved into the room, nor when he took up a seat next to her, mimicking her position.

After several minutes, she finally spoke. "I hate being weak."

"Jyn, you are the last person I would ever call weak," Cassian assured her.

She scowled in frustration. "Okay, not weak, but I hate having a weakness. I've lived my life trying to avoid anything that could make me vulnerable."

He eyed her sympathetically, silently urging her to continue. When she remained silent, he prompted, "Is this about…about feeling abandoned?"

She stared at her hands, worrying at a loose thread on her vest. It didn't appear that she was going to answer him; maybe she didn't have an answer.

"Remember how you found me last night? After Tonc kept going when the stormtrooper grabbed me?"

He nodded.

She pinched her lips together, suppressing emotion. "I wanted him to keep going, to get to safety. That was the whole point of going to help him, after all. But I also...I desperately wanted Tonc to notice and come back to help me. And I hated that…that weakness, that need in me. People are always leaving me behind, but I still can't stop clinging to this desperate need to have them stay with me."

He slipped an arm around her shoulders and drew her close, pressing a kiss to her hair. "It's not so strange," he said softly. "All of us want a home, a family of sorts. When my family was killed, I found the Alliance as my substitute. It filled that need for me. But you kept going from one unstable situation to another. Until now." His embrace tightened. "You have us now, and we will move mountains not to leave you behind if there is any way at all to manage it. We…I will never give up so long as I think you are still alive."

He let out a humorless huff. "Even if I think you're dead, I still will probably keep looking until I find your body as proof. We may not be able to come for you, but it won't be because we didn't try everything we could think of in the effort."

They sat in silence for a while longer, Jyn trying to repress her tears and Cassian pretending he didn't notice them. Finally he added, "You know, even Bodhi didn't abandon Tonc. When he realized there was nothing he could do to help him escape where he was pinned down, and with a broken comlink, Bodhi ran back to the ship for help. You've said it yourself – this team is your family, and they are there for you no matter what." He smiled slightly. "We'll help you – we'll find a way to help you. Until the chances are spent."

She smiled gratefully, slipping her arms around his waist, but was content to say nothing more.

xxxxx

Melshi's scowl as he left the cockpit drew Cassian's notice. "Something wrong?"

The other man met his eyes. "Another skirmish on Yavin." He hesitated, then added, "At least a dozen dead, including Nioma."

Melshi watched him carefully for a reaction, but Cassian was too practiced in controlling his outward expressions. "That's…too bad. She was a good officer."

Melshi nodded. "We really need that blockade broken so the rest of the base can evacuate, but the Empire isn't making it easy. Vader in particular is keeping up the pressure. If they can hold the blockade until his monster of a flagship is ready, he'll use that in a final effort to destroy us."

"What are we going to do about it?"

Melshi shrugged. "Us? Just the usual raids and missions – keep their attention split. Others are doing the same thing. For the moment, there isn't much we can do to assist with Yavin directly."

Cassian nodded, though the information was troubling. He couldn't help thinking he should be there, doing his part. Not floating around the galaxy as little more than a pilot and cook. As much as he'd hated some of the things he'd done on behalf of the Alliance, they had been necessary. His absence put more pressure on fellow Intelligence officers like Nioma. More guilt to eat at him, make his stomach churn and cause lost sleep. He felt as though he was being swallowed by a sarlacc.

Even remaining on the ship during missions wasn't as helpful against his nightmares as Cassian had hoped. The tendency now was to replay old missions during the night, waking gasping and sweating. Part of him wanted Jyn to hear, to come to him with her soothing ways. But the more reasonable part knew that she would, even if it meant going on a mission worn out from little sleep. He couldn't be that selfish.

Though she hadn't heard him in distress, neither had he heard her. Knowing his dreams still took him to dark places, he doubted that Jyn was sleeping any more blissfully than he was.

His thoughts chasing in circles, looking for a rational solution, kept him up even longer after the nightmare itself woke him. Sometimes he could tell what had been said or had happened to trigger a specific dream – references to Scarif invariably did it. But he hadn't slept much more than a couple of hours the last four nights and it was becoming more difficult to conceal his exhaustion from the others.

He couldn't believe none of them had noticed, which would have to mean that they simply hadn't mentioned it, rightly assuming he would be uncomfortable talking about it. At least they weren't counting on him during missions; he wasn't sure he'd be of much use to the team until he was more rested. And that wasn't likely to happen until he got a break from the dreams. He didn't like taking anything to make him sleep, but it might occasionally come to that if he couldn't manage to shake free of this.

The news about Yavin, and Nioma's death did not improve matters.

"Did you even tell her I was dead? Or how I died?"

Cassian couldn't meet Tivik's accusing glare. "I didn't get the chance. Your sister wasn't at the Temple. I looked for her, but I never found her before…before Jedha was destroyed."

"And you didn't save her either. You could at least have done that, a poor attempt at an apology, but no. Your life was more important. What do the rest of us matter to you?"

"You mattered! You did. I had no choice. I knew what would happen to you in an Imperial prison. I had to shoot those troopers."

"You didn't even try to find a way to get me out. You just shot me and ran. Don't pretend otherwise."

"The Alliance needed to know about the planet-killer. It was the only way. One of us had to escape and I had the best chance."

"You keep telling yourself that, and maybe one day you'll believe it. And then you'll feel better about killing innocent people."

Cassian woke, curled in a tight ball, tears on his cheeks. "I'm sorry, Tivik. I had to do it. I truly did. But I am sorry." His whispers felt cold and empty in the darkness. What good was an apology to a dead man anyway?

He got no more sleep that night.

xx

"Hey, Tonc. I'll take over for a while." Cassian dropped into the co-pilot seat, checking the readouts to avoid looking at the other man.

"Uh, okay. Thanks." Tonc rose hesitantly, suspecting something was wrong, but the man did outrank him. He was within his rights to relieve the corporal. Still, Tonc thought it best to alert Erso.

Jyn had gotten a late start on the day, but now she and Bodhi were continuing his training in defense. Since that fight against a stormtrooper had been successful, his confidence was greater. It was a relief to see it as she had worried about him before.

Just as they were concluding, Chirrut appeared. "May we join you?"

"Sure," Jyn replied, unwrapping her hands. She eyed Baze. "You're actually going to spar with him?"

The Guardian shrugged. "I do have to keep in practice, even if it makes him insufferable." They ignored Chirrut's chuckles behind them.

"Want to watch?" Bodhi asked her.

"Yeah." She took a seat on a bench and Bodhi plopped down beside her.

"I've never seen Baze fight. Just shoot his gun."

She laughed. "If you're good enough with a gun, they may never get near enough to you that you have to get physical."

"Yeah, guess that's true," Bodhi agreed with a smile. He sobered and added, "I'm sorry to see this be necessary, though." He gestured to the two men squaring up on the floor. "Their skills in fighting were supposed to be used to defend the Temple and the pilgrims. Not battling the Empire. I mean, their skills are useful for that, but it isn't what they were intended for."

Jyn had forgotten Bodhi was native to Jedha. She slipped her arm around his. "Maybe someday, when we defeat the Empire, a new Temple can be built and they can return to their original purpose."

Bodhi smiled. "I hope so. I hope I live to see that."

It was nearing time for the midday meal when Chirrut and Baze concluded. "Dibs on the 'fresher," Bodhi told Jyn, before she could claim it.

"A gentleman would let a lady go first," she retorted.

"We're okay, then," he teased, "since I'm not a gentleman and you're not a lady."

She smacked his arm playfully. "Hurry up then. I'm hungry and I want a shower before I eat."

They parted in the hallway as Jyn continued on to her room, calling over her shoulder, "Knock on my door when you're done."

As ship and Alliance resources were difficult to come by, sonic time was kept to bare minimum. It was less than ten minutes, before Jyn had her turn, and another five before the two of them headed for the kitchen.

"I wonder if Cassian cooked anything."

Jyn shrugged. "I haven't seen him today, but I don't smell anything so I'm guessing not. His cooking is usually pretty fragrant."

"True."

They settled for ration packs and drinks, then headed for the hold to eat. Tonc looked up as they entered, but before he could speak to Jyn, Melshi arrived. "We'll be setting down in an hour to refuel and pick up what supplies we can, and then we're off on a new mission."

Tonc decided maybe he should talk to Erso later. There wasn't enough time just now to let her know of his concerns about Captain Andor.

The refuel and supply run only took a couple of hours and they were quickly underway to their new assignment. Cassian hadn't cooked anything for supper. In and of itself, that wasn't entirely unusual – he didn't cook for every meal. However, as Jyn left the galley with her food in hand, Tonc pulled her aside.

"Hey. What's up?"

He glanced around to make sure they wouldn't be overheard. "I…I thought you should know…this morning Captain Andor relieved me in the cockpit. I mean he can do that, but I was scheduled to be there so it was a little…odd." He rubbed at his neck. "Maybe I'm making too much of it, but he avoided looking directly at me and I sensed he was…tense." He shrugged. "I don't know. I just thought maybe something…" He trailed off, not voicing a specific concern.

Jyn could guess anyway. She grasped his arm, reassuringly. "Thanks. I'll look into it."

They continued on to the hold, where Bodhi was seated, eating. "Bodhi? Aren't you on duty?"

He looked pointedly at her. "Supposed to be, but Cassian offered to take my shift. So I could rest in case I was needed for the mission tomorrow."

Jyn's lips pursed. Alone, Tonc's concerns might have meant nothing; this put it in a new light. "That was nice of him." She sat down without saying anything more, and ignoring the glance between Tonc and Bodhi. As soon as she had scarfed down her meal, she stretched and excused herself.

She wasn't surprised that Cassian was alone in the cockpit. If he was avoiding people, he would also distance himself from K-2 so the droid wouldn't notice that he was troubled. It was easier to get away with that on the ship than at other times.

"Mind if I join you?" She sat down in the second chair without waiting for an answer.

"No, of course not." His voice was toneless, devoid of all emotion.

"You're working pretty hard – first finishing Tonc's shift and now taking Bodhi's." She watched him from the corner of her eye, but there was no visible reaction to her words.

"It is part of why I'm here. I ought to do some work, and this frees them up to be put to other use."

"Yes, it does that." She sat silently for a couple of minutes, eventually feeling him shift beside her. Tonc was right – he was tense. "It also lets you hide from us when you are troubled and don't want anyone to know."

He went still in the chair, before carefully saying, "I'm fine. Don't worry about me." Despite his words, his hand was agitatedly rubbing at his thigh. She had seen him do that before when he was troubled. Almost as though he hoped to wipe them clean of something.

She leaned back in her seat and swiveled to face him. "Well, that's not going to happen. So why don't we talk instead."

His jaw clenched. "What did you want to talk about, Jyn?"

She reached over and caught his chin, tugging him to face her. "I want to know what's bothering you. I can't help if I don't know what's going on in your head."

"You can't help anyway." He pulled free and turned forward again.

"No?" She stood and then abruptly moved behind him, bending down to wrap her arms around his neck. "Too bad. You don't mind if I stay and waste my time, do you?"

"Jyn…"

"Cassian. Talk to me. I know it's hard and I know it hurts, but holding it all inside just makes it worse."

"I'll be okay," he murmured, even as he leaned into her touch.

"I know. And I'm going to stay here until you are."

He rubbed a shaky hand over his face. "Jyn…I can't."

"Tell me," she said softly in his ear. "What happened? What did you dream?"

He stayed silent, but she waited him out. "Tivik. He…he was an informant, one of Saw's Partisans. He's the one that told us about the cargo pilot that defected, about the planet-killer."

"Tell me."

Slowly, stumbling over his words, he explained what had happened on the Ring of Kafrene. What he had done.

"Was there any other way, Cassian?"

"Yes. I mean, I should have helped him climb – it was the only way out of that alley."

"Would that have worked?"

"Maybe, if I helped him…"

"Would that have worked?"

Reluctantly, he admitted, "No. We both would have been caught if I hadn't left him behind."

"Could he have escaped from them, from an Imperial prison? Could he have withstood the torture?"

Softly: "No. He would have tried, but, no."

"It wasn't a good choice, but it was the only one you could make under the circumstances, Cassian. You at least spared him the horror of the Empire's methods for extracting information."

"I didn't save his sister either. She was on Jedha. I told you we were going to see her, at the Temple."

"I remember. I never saw you speak with a woman, though."

"I couldn't find her. I spoke to someone else instead."

"So how could you have saved someone you couldn't find? In the middle of a Partisan skirmish with Imperial forces? If she had been with us at Saw's hideout after the Death Star fired, I'm sure you would have taken her with us, just as you took Bodhi and Chirrut and Baze. There wasn't time to search for anyone, and when K got to us, the Holy City was already destroyed. If she was there, she was dead."

He knew, rationally, that she was right, but it couldn't entirely drown out Tivik's words from his nightmare replaying in his head.

"How long has it been since you've slept?"

He shrugged. "A while."

"I want you to take something and get some sleep." He started to protest, but she covered his mouth to stop him. "I know you don't like to; I don't either. But exhaustion is not your friend, Cassian. It makes it harder to cope with everything, and really, an exhausted man has no business flying a starship." She raised a pointed eyebrow. "I'll get Bodhi, and something to help you sleep, and then stay with you until you drift off, okay?"

He closed his eyes, but gave an accepting nod.

xx

"Jyn Erso. What are you doing sitting in the dark at this time of night? Is there a problem? Do you require assistance?"

"No, K, I'm…fine."

The droid came farther into the room. "I find that answer unconvincing. It has been my experience in dealing with Cassian that 'I'm fine' usually means that he is not 'fine' at all, but does not wish to admit it."

She couldn't avoid a soft snort. "I'm sure that's true."

"The same is true for you, isn't it?"

K-2 could be annoyingly persistent sometimes, but Jyn knew he meant well. "Maybe so."

The droid moved over and sat down beside her. "I have heard humans say that 'it helps to talk about it'. Would you like to talk about it? I will listen if that is your wish, though I am not adept at 'comforting' anyone."

"Thanks, K." She sighed. "It's just… The last time I talked to Dr. Lesorid, he mentioned that…that Cassian can't be 'fixed'. That what he struggles with will always be with him. The goal is more to help him cope with the memories of the past, do things to lessen his thinking of them, but they'll always be there." She stopped and rubbed her face. "I just thought…I hoped to see more improvement than I do. I don't know. Maybe I'm being too impatient and it's too soon for any improvement, but it seems like nothing I'm doing is making any difference. Maybe I'm just not cut out for this nurturing stuff. Maybe I'm even doing more harm than good."

The silence blanketed them like the darkness for several minutes. Finally, K-2 said, "I believe you are mistaken. Cassian appears to find your presence, your nearness…soothing. He has been sleeping more and eating better than before he joined Sergeant Melshi's team. Well, for the most part he does. I must attribute that to you as I do not see that he has the same closeness with others. And when he does have a difficult memory, he seems to recover more quickly when you are with him than he did before. You may not be able to see it, but my impartial observation would be that you have helped more than you think."

Jyn's head thunked back against the wall, and she smiled. "I think maybe you are better at comforting someone than you know, K-2. Thanks. I'll…try to keep that in mind when I get discouraged."

"Good. Then you should return to your bed. Loss of sleep will harm you as much as it does Cassian."

"Okay, okay. I'm going." She stood, then turned to where she could see little of the droid other than his photoreceptors. "Thanks, K. For what it's worth, you help him, too. I'm not sure he would have lasted as long as he has if you hadn't been beside him along the way."

To be continued…

invented characters:

Sergeant Daster – head of the tech shop on the tech frigate

Dr Lesorid – kind doctor caring for Cassian

All other characters actually are taken from the existing Star Wars universe.

Ch 15 note: Nioma was a female individual who served as a Captain in the Rebel Alliance Intelligence. She is mentioned in the Rogue One novelization.