THE COUPLE'S TALE
"Steela, come in!"
The sound of Tandin's voice snapped Steela from her mental focus. She looked away from the lock she'd been trying to pick, irritated. "Tandin, what have I said about talking to me while I'm picking locks?"
"Forget about the lock!" Hero cried shrilly into the comm. "We've all been calling you, but you've been in the twilight zone!"
Tandin continued, ignoring Hero's outburst. "The con's fallen apart. Sierra's alias is in tatters, Hutch is locked out of the system, and Lux is out of plans. You've got to leg it – run for the nearest exit as fast as you can!"
Steela jumped to her feet, lockpick clattering to the floor. "We're blown?"
"They're shutting down the floors. Get out of there!" Tandin ordered, and cut out of the comm.
The lock forgotten, Steela bolted into the hall. "Hutch, I need you to get me a turbolift."
"No can do, Stee." Hutch's voice shook with nervousness. "I am completely locked out. And you can forget about hardline access; I've just stuffed my computer into a briefcase and I'm running down the stairs before they lock. What floor are you on?"
"Uh, the eighteenth? The nineteenth?"
"They started sweeping at the tenth!"
Her eyes narrowed. "Hutch, what do you mean 'sweeping'?"
"They have goons casing every floor and locking it down when they're done. They started at the tenth and divided the building in half. You're never going to get through there."
Another strategy formulated in Steela's mind. "Got it. I'll meet you all outside!" she said, and raced for the staircase.
Hutch didn't know exactly what that meant, but he trusted her to find an exit. Heck, she could find exits better than anyone else on the team. So he ran through the side door to wait for the rest of his team.
Meanwhile, Steela found the staircase, threw the door open, and tore up the stairs, unshouldering her pack and starting to get her rig in order.
…
Unbeknownst to her, she wasn't alone in the staircase. One floor beneath her, a group of enforcers silently stepped into the hallway and immediately took notice of her sharp, rapid footfalls echoing in the chamber.
With steps silenced by booties, the enforcers slithered up the staircase and onto the roof. Their leader held up a hand in a "stop" gesture while he watched Steela strap herself into the harness.
"Why don't we go now before she jumps?" One on his right whispered.
"Because," the leader replied as Steela hooked her lines to the harness and to a sturdy metal pipe. "She'll jump without her rig, and I don't want to have to clean up bodies today. Wait until she jumps, and then go quickly."
As if on cue, Steela stood on the end of the building, took a breath, and jumped. The lead enforcer raced through the door over to her rig, grabbed the lines, and crossed them.
"And that's how you stop a thief with a rig." He said proudly.
…
Steela knew something had gone horribly wrong with her rig when she felt her path change from straight down to a slight spinning that got greater and greater. She looked up – and there it was. A great and terrible X of a crossed line loomed above her, growing closer and closer with every instant.
Of course, Steela couldn't see it very well. She was spinning out of control, the building looming dangerously close with each revolution.
And then she stopped. No slowdown, no slack, just an immediate stop.
The spinning line snapped her away from the building, leaving her to watch upside-down in horror as she swung toward the building. There was no escaping what was to come; if she released her line to guard her head she would flip upside-down, and then her whole body would be painted on the building.
As she hurled headfirst into the wall, she could only think one thing: Oh, this is not good.
…
Through the comm, Lux Bonteri heard a sharp "Oof!" and then a comm cutting out.
"Steela?" Captain Rex asked. No answer. "Steela!"
"Guys, that didn't sound good." Sierra fretted.
"Rex and Sierra are right. I'm sensing a disturbance in the Force," Ahsoka confirmed. "Someone needs to go check on her. Where is she?"
"The roof," Lux exited the staircase. "I'm closest to her, and I should be on the roof in a minute. I'm sure she's fine. This is Steela we're talking about here."
Right? He asked himself as he climbed out a window onto the fire escape and ran up, huffing and puffing once he reached the fifteenth level. He reached the roof with his lungs screaming and legs burning, but all his discomfort was forgotten when he saw the scene on the roof.
A cluster of people stood in the center of the roof, watching as a man laid a limp young woman on the floor.
Steela.
Lux's stomach flipped. She was completely unresponsive, didn't even grunt or whine when her captor roughly yanked her out of her rig. And the blood on her head couldn't be good.
"Gentlemen!" he called, steeling himself. "I see you've stopped my thief here. Clearly you're all worthy of my time, maybe a cut in this job?"
The man who had been holding Steela considered him. "So, you're the brains?"
"That would be me."
He had barely spoken it before the muzzle of a blaster jabbed into his spine.
"One false move," the enforcer growled, "And you and your friend are going off the roof."
…
"Where are they?" Ahsoka demanded back on the ship.
Hutch hunched over his computer. "I'm working on it, but whoever has them took out their comms. The last ping was from the building, but there's no way of telling which floor they're on."
"Are the earbuds still operational? Do you know what happened to Steela?" Rex asked, wringing his hands.
Hutch shook his head. "Lux told somebody he saw that she was 'taken out'. I can only assume that means she's hurt."
"Well then let's go kill them!" Saw roared. Rex and Ahsoka were slightly inclined to agree with him.
"We can't kill anyone until we know who and where they are," Hutch announced. "And even then we have to wait. We have to work out a plan to get them back without getting the rest of us killed. Guys? You need to calm down."
Ahsoka opened her mouth to snap something at Hutch, but she stopped when she saw Rex. Her friend was pouring sweat and shaking, clearly concerned about his girlfriend. Ahsoka didn't blame him. She was every bit as worried about Lux.
She scanned the room. Hero babysat Tav, Katooni, and her daughter Molly, but Ahsoka caught her biting her lip. Mina drummed her fingers on the table, one bit of bad news away from going into full-on BonScary mode.
And then there was Sierra. Calm. Cool. Collected. She sat without so much a nervous twitch.
Not normal behavior for someone whose brother and sister have been kidnapped. Ahsoka noted.
"Okay, everyone. Back to your cabins until Hutch finds something." She ordered, sending a quick glance to Rex, then to Sierra.
Rex returned a quick, nearly imperceptible nod and led the way to Sierra and Steela's cabin. He waited for Ahsoka to catch up to them, then knocked on the door.
Sierra opened the door, stepped aside, and let the two of them in.
"So, when are you two going on your rogue rescue mission?"
Darn, she's pretty spot-on. "As soon as you tell us whatever you clearly know."
Sierra snorted. "So, here's the thing: the building's locked down, and there's no way you're getting in as yourselves. You don't have an entrance.
"But grifters?" she opened her closet. "We don't need entrances. We are entrances."
…
When consciousness finally returned to Steela, three thoughts pushed into her mind.
One: My head really hurts.
Two: Where the heck am I?
Three: Oh man, Ahsoka's going to kill me for crossing my lines.
"Wakey wakey."
"The wall really did a number on you, girly."
And then Lux's voice: "Leave her alone!"
Someone nudged her with the toe of their boot. "Isn't that cute? Your boyfriend's looking out for you." He kicked her harder. "Wake up. I didn't haul you onto the roof for this."
Steela forced her eyes open, wincing at the headache blooming in her temples. She made out the dark of some kind of cellar, and the fuzzy image of a tall, heavyset Zabrak man in front of her.
The Zabrak smiled down at her, revealing a set of sharp, pointed teeth. "You'd be pretty if it wasn't for that blood."
"I said leave her alone!"
Steela followed the voice to Lux, sitting against the opposite wall with no small amount of blasters trained on him.
"Lu -."
"Steela!" he interrupted. "Steela, stay there. You have a concussion."
"Steela," the Zabrak mused, bending over her. "That your name?"
If she could see straight, Steela would spit in his face. "Go fly a kite."
The Zabrak growled, hoisted her from the back of her shirt, and tossed her across the room. She would have tumbled to the floor once again if Lux hadn't reached out and steadied her so she could sit safely.
"Come here," he pulled off his suit jacket to cover her. "Hang on, we'll be out of this soon. So, ladies and gentlemen? Would any of you like to tell me why you turned down a thirty percent cut of the con?"
"Simple, boy." Another enforcer, this one a Weequay, approached. "Because that money is ours in the first place; we were thinking more of a hundred percent stake. You return all our money, as well as a little … compensation for our troubles." His gaze settled on Steela. "We'll start with Little Miss Head Case here."
"Does it look like she can talk?" Lux protested. "Why don't you and I have a chat and we'll let her rest a while."
The Weequay kicked Steela hard, ripping a grunt from her throat.
"I think not."
…
Ahsoka and Rex strode through the front door and up to the desk.
"Alarm personell." Ahsoka shouted. "We're here to shut the thing off!"
The woman at the front desk couldn't be more relieved. "Of course. Go straight down the hallway and be mindful. Some of our men have two of the intruders downstairs, but they shouldn't be a problem as long as you stay away."
"Thank you for the heads-up, ma'am." Rex said and headed for the staircase.
"How far downstairs do you think they're holding them?" Ahsoka asked.
"Probably as far as they could go. There's no way Steela could run up all these stairs if she was so badly injured." Rex starting taking the stairs two at a time. "We need to hurry. It's not that I don't trust them, it's just that -."
"I hear you loud and clear, Rexster." Ahsoka replied and resisted the urge to force-jump down several flights.
…
Lux and Steela's location became clear once Ahsoka and Rex came within earshot and heard the shouts.
"What were you after?"
"Your ugly face, sleemo!"
There was the sound of a hard blow, followed by a woman's gasp of breath.
Rex's speed doubled, as did Ahsoka's.
"For force's sake, you don't have anything better to do with your time than beat an injured woman?" Lux shouted.
"Oh, we've got plenty in store for you. Your friend is just closer to talking."
Ahsoka jumped down the stairs, igniting her saber blades as Rex charged across the landing and silently opened the door.
In the corner, Lux's eyes widened and the mask of rage he had been wearing dropped from his face.
And from her position held against the wall, Steela started laughing hysterically.
"What is it, missy?" The tall, ugly Zabrak holding her taunted. "Finally lost your wits?"
"No," Steela laughed, her words slurring together. "I forgo' to tell you something: my boyfriend's a clone captain. An' he's gonna kill you."
"Kill me?" He laughed. "You sure you aren't losing your head?"
" 'M not, but you're 'bout to." Steela slurred, looking over his shoulder.
The Zabrak turned around in just enough time to see a Togruta woman holding twin lightsabers plus the angriest clone he'd ever seen in his life burst into the room.
Steela wrenched out of his grip and tumbled to the floor. The instant she was out of the way, Rex raised his blaster pistols.
The Zabrak raised his hands. "Everything I said -!"
Before he could finish his sentence Rex tackled him to the ground, pinning him to the ground and locking him in a hold.
Rex pressed the pistol to his temple.
"Tell me," he growled. "You were the one who crossed her lines?"
The Zabrak's second of hesitation was all he needed. Fury filling his veins, he squeezed the trigger.
Ahsoka's sabers tore through the other enforcers, leaving them in pieces. Rex swiveled his aim around the room, sweeping for enemies as Steela groped for the Zabrak's blaster and Lux tackled the Weequay to the ground, putting him in a headlock to cut off the blood supply to his head.
Ahsoka took one last look around and deactivated her sabers. "Lux, are you all right?"
"Better than our friends here," Lux admitted, rubbing his neck. "I'm glad you got here when you did."
Rex was already on his knees next to Steela, who had pushed herself up into a sitting position. "Steela, are you okay? Can you walk?" he asked, taking the blaster from her hand.
"Hey, Rex." Her staggered on the end of his name, and Rex thought for a minute that she would pass out. "It ain't bad. Jus' an accident with the rig."
"It's not 'just' anything," Lux argued. "And no Rex, she can't walk. I'll help you carry her if you'd like."
Steela slung her arm over Rex's shoulders. "You always were the drama king, Lux."
"No," Rex corrected, easing an arm around her waist to support her. "You've always been stubborner than ten ARCs put together."
…
Steela wasn't exactly sure when she passed out, but she knew she did because the next thing she recalled was the common room, and Saw's and Tandin's shouted concern, and the warmth and security of Rex's grip.
The thought Tandin and Saw are never going to let me use a rig again.
And then there was Mina, holding her upright and systematically unbuttoning garments; stripping her bare and washing her while she examined her battered body.
"You need stitches in your forehead," she prescribed as Steela watched the rust-red of blood swirl down the drain. "Goodness knows why Tandin didn't put them in immediately. The big one just burst from the water – Steela, are you going to faint again? Stay with me."
"Steela, wake up."
She startled awake, a knife of pain slicing into her head. Rex looked down at her, concerned.
"Oh…"
Steela grit her teeth. "What's up, Rex?"
"I need to wake you every once in a while," he sat on the edge of her bed, his hand on her shoulder. "You have a massive concussion; we're on our way to Senator Organa's for a head X-ray."
She groaned. Sure, she appreciated and respected Senator Organa, but their crew had been in his Med Bay way, way too much lately. And considering that he asked Sierra about her leg every time he saw her, Organa was never going to let Steela live this one down as long as she lived.
Rex snorted. "You sound thrilled."
"Was that a joke?"
"No," he straightened up, again the picture of a born-and-bred soldier.
Steela closed her eyes again. "So, can you drop the other shoe now?"
"Gladly. You're officially banned from using your rigs for the next month. Two if I have any say in it."
He watched, mouth twitching in a smile as her eyes snapped open again. "You're not serious."
"Completely. Is there anything I can do to make up for it? Tea? A kiss? Some – woah!"
Steela's hand shot up and wrapped around the front of his shirt, pulling him down until his face was only inches away from hers.
"Excellent," she whispered devilishly, and closed the distance between their lips.
A/N: Wonder of wonders, I actually updated on time for this story!
For now, this is the final chapter of Dating in the Dark Times. I have a larger, far more interesting project in the works right now that should be up soon. I think you all will be very, very pleased.
Thank you to starwarshobbitfics, McAwsome, and Rose Ravenclaw for your reviews. And speaking of which, please review!
Until next time,
Lux's Sister