A Rougher Descent

Summer

The captured gunship cuts its way through thin air. Above, hangs a sapphire sky; below lies the dark forests. Outside, the engines rumble and inside is a stilled silence. The holding bay is littered with a thick line of dead soldiers that lead up to the doors separating the cabin from the rest of the ship. On the other side of the blast doors is Summer, sitting at the controls. Next to her, in the co-pilot seat, are the two secured corpses of the dead pilots.

Sunlight glints off the forward window. Through the wide, wrap-around viewport Summer can see tendrils of smoke, rising from Almega, whispering by the reinforced glass and curling around to the ship's sides. The tendrils twist and churn over the wings before being swept down towards the engines. There, the smoke is blown away into empty air. Dissipating into nothing.

Silence.

Summer's chair creaks slightly.

One of the pilot's head lolls to the side.

The on-board radio crackles to life with an automated voice.

"All forward units switch to secondary channel. Keep primary channel clear. Repeat, all forward units switch to secondary channel. Keep primary channel clear." The transmission ends. Back to silence. Earlier, shortly after Summer had first taken the ship, the radio had been crazy with chatter from the other pilots. Apparently they'd never expected one of their ship's to be hijacked. The transmissions had quickly ended when a commanding voice told everyone to switch to the secondary channel ASAP. Now an automatic reminder is being sent through every minute. To keep any people from, as the commander had said, 'transmitting any sensitive or classified data across the compromised channels'. At first Summer had tried to find the codes to this 'second channel' but had come up empty. So, now, it's just her and a robotic voice repeating the same thing over. And over. And over.

Sixty seconds pass and the message starts again. "All forward units switch to…" Summer tunes the voice out and turns to one of the screens set into the wide spread of controls. With a few taps she pulls up a live image of Almega. The screen cuts through the heavy clouds of smoke and brings up a hazy blue feed of the battle. C-sect, the bases command sector, is a blazing inferno. At least fifteen enemy gunships are swarming the air, raining down missiles. Half the Republic's buildings, the HQ included, are smoky shells of their former self. Crashed gunships stick up from the ground. Most of the anti-aircraft guns have been destroyed in the fierce air-to-land battle. M-sect and S-sect, in contrast to Command Sector, have only suffered minor damage. Two out of three sectors still alive. That's good. There's still plenty of time for the base to be saved.

Then a stray thought comes to Summer. She doesn't have a plan. Not really. Just a few ideas about killing any bad guy she can find. Even more important, she has no way of contacting Major Exx and Elicity once she lands. She left her comlink in her room before going out into the forest earlier in the morning. The communicator in the gunship can only contact other ships. Summer grimaces as she realizes her situation. She's just "winging it". Doing whatever comes to mind. In fact, she's winging it so bad it's almost humorous. No plans, no contacts, and a vague sketch of what's going on. Elicity would be furious. "I'll just figure everything out when I arrive" she mutters to herself—then adds "Here goes nothing."

Summer launches the ship into a speedy descent.

The pilot's cabin slants down, and she is pushed back into her seat. Red hot engines thunder and the gunship plummets through the sky.

From high above, the battle for Almega had looked pretty mild. It seemed like black dots (gunships) racing through clouds of smoke while avoiding sporadic flashes of light(explosions). But as Summer draws closer she see that things are anything but mild. The gunships look larger—more powerful. The explosions—more deadly.

Still in dive, Summer edges the gunship towards C-sect. Most likely Major Exx and Elicity are both down there, fighting to save the sector. Though the fighting may be fierce, Summer is confident that she can at least stay in one piece.

Diving, diving, diving. Gunship losing altitude faster and faster. Suddenly she pulls the ship upright and descends through a thick curtain of hazy smoke.

She soars into the heart of the battle.

Things are a lot worse than she thought.

Summer is a ground fighter, accustomed to personal and up close conflicts. Air battle is an entirely different experience. Nothing could have prepared her for what she sees. Crisscrossing lasers, fire laced explosions, anti-missile flares, and spiraling missiles blurring together in a chaotic display of color and light. Greens, reds, oranges, and blues are all mixed with the heavy hanging cloud of grey. Damaged engines let out horrible screeches and growls.

Missiles hiss and roar.

Thunderous explosions.

Gunfire is coming from all directions. Too much going on. Aircraft, friends and foes both, speed around her. Summer begins to regret her decision of flying into the battle. Flying is for droids.

Bam! The cockpit suddenly shutters, rattling Summer in her seat. The ship dips and veers to the side before leveling back out. A chaotic symphony of alarms come to life. Reee! Reee! They shriek for her attention. A schematic of the ship blinks onto screen. Summer looks up and catches the left wing trailing a thin column of smoke. As bad as the chewed up metal looks, the screen says the damage isn't critical. Just a surface wound. Whew. Close one. Now, I REALLY need to do something before I crash—for real. Summer regains her composure. She ignores the alarms, takes note of the damage, and focuses. Focuses on what the hell she's supposed to be doing.

Below her is C-sect, which is starting to look more like a fiery wasteland than a military base. Clone troopers are scattered everywhere and most of them are running. A few braver ones are gathered in defensive positions amidst the piles of rubble. To the east a truck escorted by are couple of tanks is rushing towards M-Sect. The heavy laser cannons mounted on the tanks are firing off rounds to keep the enemy at bay. Apparently, the cannons are working. An attacking gunship takes a hard hit and almost loses control. Summer keeps her air position in mind as several of the tanks point their long, slender, guns in her direction. Gladly, she's too far off for them to take down. She reminds herself that at the moment the troopers are her greatest threat. They still think she's one of the enemy.

'Okay, now that I know where I am, I need to hurry up and land'. One well-placed rocket could end it all. Suddenly her gunship which had formally seemed like a giant mass of power starts to feel fragile. A Republic LAAT with one wing hurtles overhead, listing to the side. Stepping on solid ground is starting to sound better than ever.

Summer scans the ground for a safe place to set the ship down. She sees several possible areas but they look dicey at best. Too much fire.

Wait.

Her gaze is drawn to a clear lot of gravel practically overrun with grass. It is nestled between the primary communications building and a destroyed AA gun turret. A long stretch of debris littered dirt lies behind the lot. A cluster of clone troopers are hunkered around the 'Comms' building with their guns at their sides. That will do. Now she just has to get there.

Summer turns the controls and brings the ship into a sloping arc. The damaged wing protests a little with a harsh shutter but complies. The gunship straightens and lines up for a clear landing. But then…

An alarm goes off. A single warning bell that only means one thing.

A curse escapes under Summers breath. She had been expecting this to happen but was hoping against all odds that it wouldn't. At least not now. Not when she was so close from getting out of this blasted cockpit…sitting next to two dead bodies. Not when she was so close to landing. She casts an obligatory glance at her radar. Sure enough, one of the Republic gunships has stalked up behind her. It slows for a moment.

Crouches.

Pounces.

The gunship bursts forward and charges like an enraged predator. Two missiles detach themselves from the ship and streak ahead. Black spears of death baring down.

'Don't panic. Just launch some flares and escape.' Summer frantically scans the controls. Chaff and flare. That's a lever right? Where the fuck is the lever?

Ree, ree, ree!

The alarms are going crazy. Worse than when she first got hit. Wailing like their life depends on it. The missiles are closing in. No flares! Screw it. I'll just have to fly my way out of this mess. Summer jerks the controls to the side. Trying to whip the gunship around in a sharp turn for a fast escape. No such luck.

The back end of the ship suddenly explodes. Fiery heat engulfs Summer as the flames burst out from the blast. The entire rear end of the fuselage disintegrates, leaving only the cockpit, bits and pieces of the rear, and one wing. The ship groans through the air, trailing a black stream of smoke. Summer grapples helplessly against the controls. Suddenly the ship is spinning. Summer is jerked around in her seat. Falling to the left. Then to the right. Then upside down. What remains of the engines are squealing high and loud. The ship skips through the sky, shaking itself apart. Still spinning, the ship blows by the already heavily damaged Communications building. Past plenty of burning structures. Over a line of tanks. Summer closes her eyes.

Spinning, spinning.

Falling, falling.

It all blurs together. Then it climaxes with one last hiccup from the engines and a bone jarring impact. The ship skims the side of a building and plows into the ground. The pilot cabin collapses onto itself. Metal closes in from all sides. Screeching hull. Shattering glass. Summer vaguely remembers slamming up against the window. She almost blacks out. The darkness stalks up across the edges of her vision. Don't lose consciousness. Don't lose it. Already passed out enough for one day. Please don't…

Everything goes black.

But only for a moment. Barely a few seconds. When she opens her eyes again the room around her is all sparking wires and twisted metal. A brown fluid is dripping down from what used to be the floor. Summer is still strapped into an uprooted pilot's chair which is now pinning her down. The side of her face is pressed up against the forward viewport. The two former pilots are crushed.

Her blood is pumping hard with a rush of adrenaline. Summer methodically unstraps herself from the seat with bloody hands. Careful not to fall to the ground, she slides herself down to the ceiling…which is now the floor. She goes to the door. It is a crumpled mess. She kicks it in and steps outside. Smoke tinted sunlight blinds her and air-raid sirens call from all sides. The burning gunship rises up behind her like a giant claw. Summer is partially aware of the clone troopers running towards her. She turns like a zombie and subconsciously begins moving in their direction.

"Holy…it's Commander K'Ull's apprentice, Alee!"

"Someone contact the Lieutenant!"

Summer finds herself dropping into a barely coherent haze. "Where is Elicity?" she asks. Hardly even hears herself. Apparently no one does. Two of the troopers reach her side. They wrap her arms around their shoulders and lift her up. Between them they carry Summer effortlessly.

"Don't worry Commander" one of them says. "We'll get you to safety." Between bloody strands of hair, Summer can see that she's being rushed towards a one-story, armored building. Two AA artillery cannons sit atop the roof, shooting up at the black phantoms swarming C-sect. Boom! Boom! The ground shutters with the cannons' recoil.

"Hang on" says the other soldier. Running. Blast doors pull open and swish shut. Summer is inside, surrounded by dim lights. Shadowy shapes shove past. She's brought through the room and to another set of blast doors. Down a turbo-lift. Through unrecognizable hallways then into a hospital-like chamber lit by off-white lights. A medical droid stands dormant in between a row of three cots. The two troopers set Summer down on one of the cots then turn to leave. As Summer lays down she mutters something about Elicity. A little bit louder than last time. One of the soldiers turns. Summer stares into the black reflection of his visor. He pauses a moment. She can sense his sudden uneasiness. No. Oh no. NO! The trooper stands still for a moment. He never replies. Rushes after his comrade. Noo! The door closes behind him.

The spindly medical droid appears at Summer's side. Four insect like arms move towards her. Summer leans away from it while trying to sit up. Her effort is rewarded with a sudden blast of pain. It cuts down her side like a blade buried deep beneath her skin. Her shoulder and her neck go cold. Her leg is on fire. Head is pulsing. Vision blurs with each painful throb. Summer gasps and lays back down.

"Ma'am, your injuries are substantial." This is from the droid. There is a sharp pinch as a needle slips into Summer's arm. "This will help with the pain." The needle draws out. "It may take a while."

Summer groans in reply. Elicity is dying. Dead. Hopefully neither. A breathing mask goes over her mouth. The droid straightens her left leg, sending out streaks of pain. It doesn't take an expert to know this is where Summer belongs. She feels horrible. Like a bloody, useless mess. Stupid for flying that ship down into the battle. If Elicity is really hurt they'll bring her down here with Summer. This is how Summer consoles herself. By telling herself she'll stay until she can make sure her master is okay. Then she will leave. Yes, that sounds like a good plan. Her pain begins to feel more distant. Reality blurs. What did that droid put in that needle? And for the second time, she goes under…

Life under the needle is strange. It's not a dream and it's not reality. It's an uncomfortable mix of both. From the vantage point of a medical cot, Summer sees scant pictures of reality strung together with periods of blacked out sub-awareness. Many times she catches glimpses of the medical droid bustling about its work. Other times she stares blankly at the plain ceiling. At one point she thinks she sees Captain Grey coming in. His armor is scathed and streaked with blood. Another clone trooper is close on his heels. For a while they stand by the cot, arguing back and forth. "Look at her!" the other clone says "She's a mess! Who's our Commander now?" Then the two clones leave.

Who is Commander now? The words float through Summer's thoughts. Who is commander now? Master Elicity is Commander, that's who! That is what she thinks but the truth of the matter begins to set in.

Elicity is gone.

No!

Yes she is, just get over it.

She's not gone.

Fading, fading, fading…

She is dead.

Silence and then darkness.

Lights come back into focus. Slowly, steadily they come back. The stark white medical bay looks down at Summer. She sits up with a slight effort and a little pain. She feels better. Not best. Just better. She feels weird too. For some reason the lights look a little brighter. A little too bright. Everything is a little too detailed. Her vision a little too sharp. Her hearing is better than it has ever been before. Summer notices two additional needle marks on her arm and feels another one on her neck. That would explain things. The medical droid stands by eerily, quietly monitoring a screen. It's photoreceptors flicker towards Summer then back down to the screen. She can hear the fan inside the droid, cooling off its circuits.

A weak voice comes from one of the other beds. "Summer?" Summer looks over towards the other cots in the room. The two ones nearest hers are empty. The next one over though is occupied by a new patient. "Summer?" the voice calls again. Summer climbs out of her cot and stands. She feels light. With each step she feels like she's floating. Drifting towards the voice. And then she stops. In the medical bed is Elicity. Or is it Elicity? At first all she sees is a broken body lying in bloody sheets. But behind all the blood, she sees her trainer. Her friend. It's horrible to see her messed up this bad. Wasn't it only several hours ago that they were sitting in the forest. Together but alone in a world of peace and nature? Summer feels hot tears building up. Her little-to-sharp vision loses its clarity. Colors dull and sounds become muffled. Her head begins throbbing painfully. Elicity lets out a long breath. So, she's still surviving. That's good. She is awake and alive…barely. She looks up at Summer and manages to hold out a hand. Summer takes it. And then she cries.

And cries.

And cries.

She cries until her eyes feel swollen and sore. But she isn't the only one to shed tears. Elicity cries too, but not near as much. Instead she buries her own sadness and squeezes her padawan's hand in a comforting gesture. Elicity talks quietly to Summer, telling her that she's sorry and that she loves her. Then she finally tells her to be strong. "A time for more tears will come soon" she says in a quiet voice. "But until then, you have to be strong." She reaches up and with shaking hands, wipes the tears from Summer's eyes. Summer nods. She closes her eyes to still the downpour. When she opens them, Elicity is watching her. "You are strong Summer. Remember that. Always remember."

Summer nods again. "I will." She says. "Always."

Elicity nods. And for a moment there is silence. The room shakes and the lights flicker, shooting distorted shadows across the room. Elicity seems to fade in and out of focus like a blurred lens. Summer closes her eyes again and holds Elicity's hand until the lights return. Time passes as she simply stands holding on to her trainer. Several times Elicity says something about a coming storm but Summer isn't really listening. She's too busy trying to freeze her final moments with Elicity in time while simultaneously holding back another wave of tears that threaten to burst from her eyes. It's not easy. The memory won't stay put. Several tears run down her cheeks.

"Tell me about the cave." Elicity says. The command is quite and Summer almost misses it entirely.

Summer looks up. "What…? The caves?" Her voice is still shaky.

"The cave that I told you about…" Elicity coughs and blood dribbles down her chin. She grimaces as she wipes it away. "…the one in the forest."

Oh, that cave. Why am I being so stupid? Get it together Summer!

"What did you see?"

"Well, I..." Summer suddenly seems to have trouble remembering what happened. It all seems like something centuries ago that was buried in time. Her mind is in a haze. She struggles to recall what happened. "Well, I saw…the water. And something talked to me—or not—I think." She opens her mouth to talk, pauses and gives up. "I don't know." She lowers her head.

"It's okay. Tell me this then. What do you know about your past?"

"My past?" Of course my past! Who else's? What is wrong?! "I don't know that either."

"I can understand." Elicity says. "Here, let me help." Their hands are still linked together. Elicity closes her eyes and goes still. Summer almost gives a start but catches herself. She's still breathing. Not dead. Just…

"Ouch!" A ripple of energy twists up Summer's arm. It feels electric and burns. She instinctively tries to move away but her hand is locked and won't let go. She turns to Elicity. The electricity doesn't seem to be bothering her. She is still lying motionless in her cot, with closed eyes. Another surge of energy rushes up Summer's arm. She cringes slightly. "What are you doing?" she asks tentatively. Another surge. Ouch.

Elicity tilts her head slightly to the side but says nothing. She has just motioned towards their interlocked hands…which are now glowing. The light pulses in time with Summer's headache. Soon the pain fades but the glow remains.

Our minds are connected now. Elicity's voice sounds like the end of a distant echo reverberating through Summer's thoughts. Now, just think about what happened earlier today. Let your mind wonder back and I'll do the rest. Soon you will remember everything. Maybe even more.

Summer doesn't respond. Instead she obeys and drifts back to the beginning of the day. It's harder than she expected. Her thoughts keep racing back to what's happening now. Her trainer is right next to her DYING. Trying to pick up a few memories about a cave doesn't seem like a priority. At least not now it doesn't.

Don't worry about me. Elicity communicates. Just focus on what happened. Close your eyes this time. Summer does as she is told. As her eyes close the glow of their hands brightens. The connection grows stronger. Summer concentrates. Broken snippets of her memory begin returning.

An image of a glimmering forest surrounded by black rock.

The sound of rushing waterfall.

The memories began coming faster. The few unconnected images begin to piece themselves together one thread at time until they begin to run together. Brief scenes unfold into a progressive story. The entire episode at the cave comes back stronger than ever. Summer relives her blind descent into the tunnel and then her trek into the forest. The "talking" water almost makes her smile. She sees the dream of the mother and daughter hiding in the house. The two staccato blaster shots that killed the mother make her shudder. When it all ends, Summer keeps her eyes closed.

The girl. Was that me?

Yes.

My mother was killed?

Yes, I'm sorry Summer.

No, it's okay, I…don't remember her at all. It's like she never existed. She's only a dream. Why I don't remember her though. If I was five, then I arrived at the temple not even a year later. What else don't I know about myself?

There's a lot you don't know.

Summer opens her eyes and lets go of Elicity's hand. The light disappears and the connection dies. She looks at Elicity. "There a lot you know about me, but I don't? Then why didn't you ever tell me?"

Elicity looks defeated. "Back in the forest, I lied to you Summer. I didn't want to, but I felt like it was I all I could say. After I told you that the dreams meant nothing, I immediately regretted it. That's why I sent you to the cave. You would be able to find the answers you needed…more than I'd be able to tell you without taking the blame."

"The blame? You'd be blamed for telling me about my own childhood? Who would do that?"

"The Jedi Council."

Summer is shocked. She stutters over what to say next. "What?!" She catches herself and lowers her voice. "Why would they?"

"Because, even the Jedi have flaws. It's not a perfect Order, Summer. There are corrupt people on both sides of this war. No one should ever have their own life hidden from them. Especially someone with a background like yours." Elicity coughs. More blood. "Before I took you as my padawan, they told me everything." Elicity is looking through the ceiling and off into outer-space. She's slips into talking to herself. "They told me to never let the information get out and to keep her away from everything having to do with it. I should have known. We were trying to contain something that couldn't be stopped." Her eyes shift to Summer. "But you're unstoppable."

"What aren't you telling me?" Summer says a little louder than she needs to. "You're not making any sense, Elicity. All I know is that my mother was killed by soldiers and I was captured. Why wouldn't the Jedi want me to about that? It doesn't make any sense!"

Elicity sighs. Eyes closed again. She is visibly growing weaker. She seems to talking to herself again.

"Everything that's happening is because of him. We should have known he would never keep his side of the agreement." Suddenly Elicity's expression hardens. Anger or desperation. Maybe a mixture of both. She looks at Summer. Fire burns in her eyes. "You have to leave here. Go to Coruscant and talk to the Council. They will tell you what happened…but don't believe everything they say." She pauses and takes a sharp breath. "The Captain. Captain Grey, he'll be with you. I can see it in him. He would do anything to protect you. Will always have your back. Trust him and no one else."

"Elicity, stop! What are you talking about!"

"I know, I know!" Her voice is faint but determined. "It may not seem to make sense now, but soon things will begin to come together." Beads of sweat are forming on Elicity's brow. Each breath is heavier than the last. She's struggling to stay alive. "Your mother. This attack. They are because of one man. And he won't stop until you're dead. He will kill you, but not unless you kill him first. Do it Summer. Promise me you will."

"Don't trust anyone? Kill who? Elicity! Stop! Please!" Summer is on the verge of crying again. What she's being told is coming in as an overload. Her trainer is slipping away. Farther and farther. Out of grasp.

"You wanted to know about your past, Summer. You have to destroy your father. It was your destiny and always will be." Elicity shudders. The urgency in her voice melts away into a quiet whisper. "I'm so sorry." Tears slip from beneath her eyes. "So, so, sorry." And then she is gone. Nothing. Elicity is dead. Everything begins to look blurry. Summer can't tell if she's just standing quietly in shock or screaming. Elicity starts to dissipate from in front of her. The body becomes haze of whirling energy. It builds up into a glowing sphere before firing up into the air. Summer falls backwards and scoots away from the raging column of lights.

"No." she murmurs. "No…"

The bright energy tears through the ceiling. When Summer looks up into the gaping hole it's like she's staring down from the sky. From her view she can see Almega burning under the pressing attackers. More gunships have arrived and now the base is crumbling in from all sides.

You have to leave here.

Four-Sect, Almega's external air base is being overrun with enemy soldiers. The surviving clone troopers are being gunned down. Slaughter.

He won't stop until you are dead.

The funnel of energy grows wider, blocking out Summer's view.

Light.

Dark shadows dance across the medical bay. One by one the lights burst.

Dark.

Growing and growing, the energy gives a final surge.

Light.

Then it peaks in a raging blast. Summer screams as she is swept into oblivion.

A place where darkness reigns.

Author's Note: Super thanks in advance for any reviews and helpful criticism! :D