Calon stared out the viewport of the small house in the warm . He was inside a room of that Alia let him stay in, enjoying the bright and florescent plants. He saw that Ked was still playing with the various Human, Twi'lek, and hybrid children. Calon noticed that Raidek and Jerriko were walking together, seemingly discussing something important. Calon payed no mind and turned from the window, readying for a night's sleep.
"What's the Force all about anyways?" Raided asked as he and Jerriko walked across the village. "It's the thing that binds us all together in the galaxy, it's in every living, breathing thing." Jerriko replied, still amazed by the very thought.
"Well, how the hell does that make you lift things with your hands?"
Jerriko let out a small sigh. " when one is particularly strong with the Force, we are able to manipulate it in other beings as well, which explains why we are able to move objects and the like."
"It can come in different ways," Jerriko continued, "for instance, this planet. Felucia is strong with the Force, everything here I strong with it. It's where Jedi master Shaak Ti stayed during her hiding after the...never mind, let's move on. Here, let's try to lift something." Jerriko quickly scanned the area. He saw a small pile of rocks with one large rock on the top. "Try to bring the rock over here, or just try to lift the rock. Focus on nothing but the rock."
"Hm, okay, I'll try…" Raidek stuck out his hand and focused on the rock. Soon, the rock trembled as it was weakly moved. Raidek furrowed his brow, "Clear your mind, ignore everything. Focus." Jerriko advised.
Raidek's fingers and head ached, the rock was now lifted up a few inches from the pile, and slowly, like a slug, dragging a it's way towards. "Remember, focus." Jerriko kept adding, much to the annoyance of the new learner. The rock started to wobble more and lowered. "Keep focus Raidek! It's important that you feel the Force."
"Maybe I'd focus better if you didn't whisper in my ear!" The rock stopped moving and remained still on the pile, much to the exasperation of both of them. "Hmphf, I told you to focus on the rock, Raidek."
"How was I if you whisper sweet nothing in my ear!?" He yelled, "Maybe if you shut up and left me alone I would lift the damn rock!"
"Watch your emotions, Raidek. It's important for a Jedi to keep controlled and calm for their emotions!"
"Whatever, I'm going to the ship. We'll do this, rock lifting exercise later." Raidek left the small area and toured towards the village. Jerriko just sighed and stayed at the pile. He lifted the small force rock effortlessly and brought it to him. "This is gonna be harder than I thought."
The Twi'lek boy named Zev walked along the the ridge with binoculars in hand and blaster rifle slung over his shoulder. "Why do I have to do this? Why couldn't Drian do this?" He sat down and viewed the bright landscape with his binoculars. He saw nothing, as always.
Suddenly, he saw a small glint of metal scrape against the colors and he quickly reached for his binoculars and took a quick view of the shine. Troop transports zoomed across the landscape, troopers riding along the vehicle's. "Oh no!" He reached for his comlink in the speed of light.
"Alia, are you there?!" The boy yelled.
"What's wrong, Zev?" She replied instantly.
"There's troop transports, heading right toward the village! Prepare yourself and the town!"
Calon's dream was surprisingly pleasing. It was simple, he was watching a child play in the field that reminded him much of his home. Calon couldn't tell who the child was, the sun was blocking the view, but he could tell from the laughter they were female.
The laughter was soothing, joyous. Like nothing bad was going to happen, Calon could be in the dream forever, he wanted to stay in the field, and nothing was gonna stop-
"Get up Calon!" Alia's voice yelled. Calon sprung open his eyes and sat up reflexively, scanning the room only to see that Alia was present, though tensed and stressed.
"Wha-what's happening?!"
"The Empire is coming to the village, we are preparing the able-bodied to fight!" Alia shoved his blaster into his hands. However, Calon threw it on the bed. "Fight? They'll destroy you guys, you need to evacuate the people, not send them to their deaths!"
"These people decided that they'll fight on their right Calon, so I suggest you do the same." She husked. "And besides, Lana told me about your desertion, so I would hope you'd fight as well!" Her anger showed a bit and it was a heavy impression. Calon was unfazed and continued to advise.
"Exactly! I know what will happen, because I've seen this before!"
"Damnit Calon I don't care if we win or lose, as long as we fought those bastards for this town then that's a battle won!" She yelled. Calon stopped and decided to change the subject.
"Well has there been any word from Danaki at all? Maybe she could send some help."
"I wouldn't know Calon, get ready!" She yelled. Reluctantly, Calon picked up the blaster from the bed and went along with her.
Once outside, he saw that the villagers, mostly the men and more capable women, getting out old Republic blasters and explosives from various hidden locations, getting ready for the battle. "All right! Get a defensive perimeter around the entrance of town, and then make a make a flank inside the buildings, and get every non-combatant into the bunker!" Alia commanded, everyone responded dutifully.
"Alia, they're only coming because of us, if we just leave they wouldn't bother you." Calon said, hoping to dissuade the ambitious Jedi. "We both know that's a lie, they would destroy our town for aiding Rebels. Calon, Lana told me of your defection, now's the chance to fight back!" Alia quickly responded. Calon sighed, and started looking for his compatriots. He ventured towards the town center, but he saw none of them, and reached for his comlink.
"This is Calon, where are you guys?" He said, his voice authoritative and demanding. The comlink buzzed back a few moments later with Lana's voice. "Im at the ship with Raidek and Jerriko, where's Ked and Khan?"
"I don't see them anywhere, but I'll bring them to the ship." He put the thing away and readied his blaster before he was interrupted by Gies. "Calon? What're are you doing?"
"I'm helping you fight."
"You must leave Calon. This isn't your fight. Go while you have a chance." Suddenly, a large explosion knocked both of the men to the ground, that's last thing they hear a tidal wave of blaster fire.
Calon gets up first and helps up Gies to his feet. He turns and notice that the line of Imperials are getting deeper and closer as the minutes goes by. These villagers were simply no match for the numbers. "Gies, you need to find help and hide. Don't worry about me." Calon said, grasping the smaller man's shoulders. "Do it for Alia, make sure she sees your face one more time."
Gies looked him in the eyes, conte contemplating his new command. Gies gave him a respectful nod and left running to help aid the civilians in the town who were still evacuating. Calon grabbed his blaster and began looking for his compatriots once more.
A few minutes earlier...
"We are nearing the town Commander Sion, we are ready to begin our assault." The transport driver announced through the comlink. She grabbed her com and reported back with instructions. "Roger that, stop a hundred meters away from the village entrance. Let's see if these traitorous scum have any diplomacy."
"Yes Commander." The numerous troop transports and speeders stopped exactly where they were told. Serpion got out her personal speeder and was followed by Vrega and Amon. She stood in front of the wall of metal and plastic and called out a sign of peace. "People of village Nyongo! I am Serpion Sion, I represent the Galactic Empire, who may I speak to so that we don't have to figh-" she was almost cutoff as ared blaster bolt zipped past her head, singing some of her hair.
"Open fire." She husked with a flick of her hand. Soon green lasers shot out of the transport cannons as Stormtroopers and Storm Commandos began pouring in the village, the villagers returning fire with desperate and all out hipfire attempts. "Sergeant, have your team of commandos locate Calon and his crew."
"Yes ma'am!" The man said. Serpion wasted no time and brought out her blaster pistol, and began blasting along the others. "Vrega, flank around the village and through the forest, kill any on sight. Amon, follow me." The Mandalorian and the Inquisitor did what they were told and ventured forth into the village.
Serpion walked calmly as these sloppy rebels missed bolt after bolt at the woman, who shot them square in the heart with no remorse. She past by a collapsed column where two rebels were covering behind. Serpion shot them both directly in the face before they could raise their blasters.
Among followed behind with a squad of Stormtroopers as they cleared the way for the transports. He deflected the bolts easily to return to their senders, pinning them down. The troopers would blast those who manage to get close enough as they walked into the village, ensuing chaos going behind them. One villager manage to do a foolhardy attempt of bravery and began running towards Amon. The acolyte simply raised his hand and clenched it, choking and snapping the Twi'lek in a second. He continued to follow Serpion as they broke through another line.
As they pass farther in more and more townspeople started to lose their sense of courage. As the continue to try to suppress the opposition the Stormtroopers would just hit the villagers without trouble, they just weren't as skillful. Some of the villagers pleaded for surrender, but they were finished off by Serpion herself.
"They're all hiding in these kriffing buildings." She said, as she shot a woman out the viewport, her heated blaster and body falling to the ground below with a heavy thump. Amon threw his lightsaber like a disc and cut down another rebel guns nest, slicing them both in half. "I agree, we must clear the buildings."
"I'll give the command, Amon. These soldiers need to know who's in charge. Clear out the buildings! Any civilians found I want captured or killed!" Serpion yelled. The soldiers did so obediently and began teaching the doors to various buildings and effectively ridding the rebels inside.
In an attempt of flanking, Vrega went on the top of a roof with his jet pack and entered through a window into a rebel gun nest. He blastedtheturrett operator before he met returning fire from the others. Quickly, he dropped a smoke grenade and effectively confused the remaining soldiers. In quiet, stealthy tries, he slit the throat of each member of the barricaded house one by one, getting the floor dead before their blasters hit the floor. Vrega calmy walked out of the house and went back into the dense forestry, looking for any more rebels and hopefully Calon.
"Get this door opened! Set blasters to stun and get ready to fire!" The Stormtrooper sergeant dictated. Another Trooper planted charges along the door of a house and set them to a thirty second fuse.
As the time ran out, the door electrified and exploded in a burst of blue and orange fire. The smoke cleared as the Troopers stormed in. In the corner, a huddled family kneeled as the mother draped her arms around her two kids, cuddling them together as the troopers came closer. "You're coming with us, all of you." The lead Trooper announced, raising his blaster.
"No you won't."
Suddenly the Trooper was knocked back into the wall by a large, heavy arm. Before the other Stormtroopers could see where it came from, another one was pulled into the shadows and thrown fast and swiftly into the other two, knocking down the final two into the wall, knocking them out.
The Tarc stepped out from the blackness to help raise the mother and children to their feet. "Thank you! Thank you!" The woman repeated, as she hugged her kids again. "Don't worry ma'am, just get the kids down to evacuate with the others!" The woman nodded and dragged her kids towards the door, narrowly dodging blaster bolts.
Ked followed soon after the family, walking into the fire as he was in the middle of a crossfire. He dodged red bolts as the zipped near him , running to the line of the rebel townspeople. He ducked as a bolt nearly hit him in the back of his head, speeding up his pace. Fortunately, he made it behind the more secured line and rested. "Ked! You're safe, thank the Force!" He heard Khan yell, running up to him and hugging him, eyes shut and her panting.
"Don't worry, Kahn, I will not abandon you yet." Ked replied, returning the hug. Unfortunately, the hug was broken up as the enemy fire was being more constant, and the line was again near broken. "Retreat back to the next line! This one is broken!" A soldier said, as he blasted an incoming stormtrooper who was coming over the barricade, causing him to fall down. "You heard me!? Retreat bac-GAHH!" He didn't finish as the familiar red glow spun towards him and lived through his chest, before it disappeared and the metallic handle was brought back to the thrower.
"I think we'd better head back to the ship!" She said, tugging Ked as they ran back towards the ship. After turning through empty streets and corners, they crossed a certain corner and bumped into Calon. "Ah shavit!" He exclaimed as he hit his head with the Tarc's bulky chest.
"Calon! Where's the rest of the crew?" Khan asked.
"We're waiting for you! I came and tried to find you to say it's time to go. This isn't our fight."
"But-"
"It was told by Gies to leave, and I listened, this battle is a lost cause." Khan looked back and saw that the villagers had finish evacuating, but the people defending where retreating closer towards the edge. "What about Alia, she wouldn't do this, she wouldn't retreat!"
"That's why she was knocked unconscious by mortar fire, she's on the ship. Now I suggest you two get on as well before you're nothing but a smoking cinder!"
The blaster fire sounded closer and closer as they heard feet rumbling around the corner. Acting at the moment, she grumbled something and listen to Calon, as they followed Calon Near the edge of the town. There she was, the Dynamic-class freighter they were happy to see. As the three ran closer to the hangar door, a sudden flash came from the thicket that surrounded them, and Calon yelled in pain as something hit his leg.
"Calon!" Ked went down and inspected his leg, seeing a small but bloody wound on his thigh, soaking through his pants. The tarc made use of his smaller arms and grabbed the thing that hit his leg, protruding from his thigh.
It was small, sharpened dart, strong and shiny in color. It took a moment to realize that the dart was familiar, and his eyes widened once he realized where it came from.
"*Su cuy'gar..."
(*Hello, Lit. You're still alive)
The Mandalorian stepped out of the brush, his red armor contrasting against the vivid blue and greens of the life. It was the same one they encountered on Coruscant, his sharpened horns and green visor were instantly recognizable . He held his wrist out, prompting shoot another dart from his wrist launched if they moved. "I honestly hadn't had this much fun since the Jedi I hunted in a space station near Nar Shaddaa." Vrega stated, chuckling at the memory.
"Vrega right? Who sent you, Haron?! Do you know what that sick witch does?! She'll have you killed!" Vrega walked closer with his wrist still pointing at him. "I respect you Calon, I understand your unfortunate hatred of the Empire, but I suppose an idiot like yourself couldn't comprehend that they're valuable allies." He then brought his blaster and aimed at Calon. "Alas, you should have known that you wouldn't win from the start. Now it's your time to-" he was cut off as he was tackled down to the floor by Ked, who caught the Mandalorian off guard.
"Run to the ship! I'll hold him back!" He said, as Vrega tried to pry his claws of him. "No! I'm not gonna leave you Ked!"
"Damn it Khan listen to me! Get Calon out of here, or else none of you will make it!" Ked ordered,his voice modulator distorting as Vrega punched him. The woman hesitated at first, but powered through and lifted up Calon and hurried him to the ship door. She looked over her shoulder, and saw that Vrega had gotten up, and was beating the Tarc to a stalemate. She saw how tired Ked was, he wasn't gonna last.
As the reached the open hatch, she placed Calon on the center before standing up herself. "I'm sorry Calon." She muttered, looking over her shoulder at Ked. "Sorry for what?"
"This." She pointed the blaster at him and shot him with a stun Ray. Calon was unconscious when she closed the hatch. She cooked Lana and told her lies. "We are on the ship, leave now."
"Roger that, Off we go!" The ship's engines roared as they went into the air and out of the planet in seconds. Khan threw down her blaster, she used her last shot on Calon. She turned and ran to Keep to join herself in the fight. But she was stopped dead in her tracks as she saw the scene. Ked was bleeding everywhere, knife wounds that penetrated his thick shell as Vrega stabbed him with his wrist blade, the metal itself covered in the crustacean's blood.
Vrega punched the kneeling Ked as he gave up the fight. Khan just stood there tears swelling up in her eyes as she saw it all. Vrega finished his savage beating and decided to end all of this. He brought out his blaster pistol and aimed it at Ked's head. The Tarc turned his head to see a still Khan, her eyes now red and streaming with tears down her tanned cheeks. He gave a last goodbye with his smaller arm, a little wave. And that then and there,she could've heard his mechanical voice say: "I love you, Khan."
But all that was heard was the sound of a blaster firing.
Vrega turned and aimed the blaster at Khan, who didn't bother or react as she got closer to the two until she finally held Ked's cold, large, crabby hand.
She smiled one last time at Ked's closed eyes, before closing her own. "I love you too, Ked."
Then there was another echo of a blaster bolt.
Then silence.
Calon laid on the bed in the small medical room. He had realized what Khan had did, and he couldn't forgive himself for acting like an idiot, just like what Vrega said. You couldn't win from the start.
Alia nursed his wound as she herself had a bacta patch on her head, carefully not trying to ruin Calon's cargos. "We received a transmission from Danaki, she says Dantooine is clear for the moment. We are heading there now." She said, attempting assuring him.
"If it wasn't for Ked and Khan, we would probably be in Imperial hands." Calon blankly said, his eyes never leaving the ceiling. Even though they've known each other for a short while, the crew became a tight knit. Calon guesses a few days in hyperspace would do that to you.
"Without them, we wouldn't have made it. They're heroes to us. Gies would've approved as well." Alia agreed.
"What did Lana say about them?"
"She said something Mandalorian and said something along the lines of 'We remember their presence they left here instead of focusing on their very long march'. Long March meaning, you know..."
"I bet Raidek and Jerriko were easy about it. Raidek doesn't know anyone still and Jerriko is a Jedi, he shouldn't get his emotions in the way." Calon added.
"It's okay to have emotions Calon, even for Jedi. It makes us alive and well and in tune with the Force. Jerrik is probably letting it out in a way we don't understand." Alia retorted.
"I guess you're right. But this thing we are doing, our long march, it's just beginning to get tougher every day." He finally concluded. And they sat there, enjoying the silence as the ship ventured towards their new objective.
A\N: Hooray! A new Angsty chapter! I hope you've all had wonderful holidays and a amazing winter break. Here's my late present!
I had many ways that I was gonna write out this chapter. At the beginning, I knew that I was gonna kill of Ked and Khan because they kinda weren't very important, as I focused on Ked's companion more than Ked himself. When they were sent, it was mentioned that they kinda loved each other but they were both unsure about the nature of it, so I decided to leave the 'I love you' open to interpretation of either platonic or romantic love.
And also, I haven't heard anything from his creator Vulkolak at all so I decided he wouldn't be part of the story. This is something I'll likely do in the future as well.
I write SYOC's in order to for their creators to see how the character they sent plays out, and when they send in a character I accept and don't bother to leave any type of response to indicate they're reading or not makes me mad. It bothers me even more when they read only when their OCs are introduced. And then stop when the OC is gone for a while.
Anyways, I'm opening up OC Submissions again since I need new ones, especially since I'm categorizing them, like as side or recurring characters versus main characters. They depend on your effort to see how much you care about the story and not just your OC.
As for my more loyal readers, thank you. I understand your patience and it's greatly appreciated. Also, stormrunner74 and BrenRome, I'll introduce your OCs soon enough! (I think you'll know who it'll be, stormrunner!)
Leave a review and follow\Fav.
-Big Bravo (1/8/16)