"Eyes up, Winter!"
Caleb Dume leapt from the rafters and brought the blade of his brilliantly blue lightsaber upon her. Winter cursed his upper hand and cartwheeled out of the way. The younger Padawan, a boy of 12 years and slender physique, charged in her stead. Winter landed gracefully in a lunge stance, her two green lightsabers ignited now and ready for him.
The boy was far more determined today, Winter noted. Good. Maybe this time he'd put up a real fight?
Caleb and Winter's lightsabers met fiercely as each youth pushed back with comparable strength. Winter, though, had been training longer than Caleb had and by a Jedi Council member for that matter. It was obvious she held the high ground.
"Give it up, Caleb," Winter taunted, "There's no way!"
Her overconfidence in her lightsaber skills drove Caleb crazy. He secretly wished that she'd spend more time in the Temple Library and less time gloating.
"Yeah, says you," he snapped back.
Winter grinned and sidestepped behind him with a smooth elegance he was definitely not ready for. She held her lightsaber at his throat triumphantly; Winter 1, Caleb 0.
"It isn't over yet," Caleb knocked the hilt of Winter's lightsaber with his elbow, sending the weapon flying into the air.
No worries, she still had the other.
Winter swished her single blade back and forth, showing off her skill, as she spun on her heels and swung at Caleb's torso. He jumped back instinctively, just barely dodging the blade. He gulped nervously; that was too close.
"Okay, okay! That's quite enough, Padawans," a familiar voice interrupted the duel.
Master Kenobi entered the training room confidently and with his usual, commanding presence. The fighting youths immediately disengaged and put away their lightsabers. Winter's secondary lightsaber, which she'd been relieved of moments earlier, now rested in Kenobi's right hand. The older Jedi Master examined Winter's weapon with great interest. He spun it effortlessly between his fingers, testing it's balance, before tossing it back to Winter.
"An excellent weapon, Padawan. But it does seem off balance, from my observations. It may need an adjusting," Obi Wan cautioned graciously but with the air of superiority he had rightfully earned.
"Thank you, Master Kenobi. I hadn't noticed, to be completely honest," Winter admitted regretfully.
The older, wiser Jedi Master appreciated the honesty. It was an exceptional trait to have. However, she needn't feel regret for admitting it.
"Never be ashamed of your honesty, Winter. Humility is necessary to the Jedi Code. Without it, the Force cannot flow freely within us."
Winter nodded. She still had much to learn.
--
Dust. It was in her shoes, his joints, and every crevice it had no business getting into. Winter sat down on the stone ledge to empty her boots of the dust particles that inhibited her. General Grievous hovered nearby, his golden eyes ever watchful under his dark cowl. Although it had been her idea, Winter found it unusual to see General Grievous wearing clothes, or whatever those were called. She had rummaged through a cargo container on the Marauder, before their departure, to find something, anything, that would fit him. It took some convincing but he finally seceded to her idea and she was glad now that he had; a pair of what looked like bounty hunters were eyeing them from across the street.
General Grievous had noticed, of course, but wasn't about to let them know that. He and Winter needed to keep their heads low and stay out of trouble if they had any chance of finding a ship. Winter finished what she was doing and followed after Grievous as he walked away. She had to make an extra effort to catch up with him due to the immense difference in their strides. The moment she'd drawn close enough Grievous wrapped his left arm around her shoulders, pulling her into the confines of his cloak, and took a sharp right turn down an alleyway. Winter struggled at first but he was persistent. He grumbled at her inability to just cooperate because, unbeknownst to the Jedi, they were being followed and not just by two bounty hunters; it appeared to be a small troupe that had taken an interest in them. So much for the disguise.
What started as a brisk walk erupted into a full-on sprint with the hunters tailing them every step of the way. By that time Winter realized the gravity of their situation and picked up her pace to keep steps with the general. No matter their direction, though, the hunters stayed on them. Grievous knew they couldn't keep running indefinitely. He needed to get them somewhere safe. But where? He didn't even know what city this was. His eyes glanced from wall to wall as they flew through the alleyway, searching for anywhere they could hide. The thought of hiding was unappealing to the proud commander, but he couldn't risk being recognized; the presence of the Supreme Martial Commander of the Separatist Droid Armies would probably not be welcomed with open arms.
A dead end was all Grievous saw up ahead but it looked like it was their only option. They would simply have to turn and fight their way out. He reached into his cloak to retrieve his lightsabers as he shoved Winter behind him. Their pursuers had just begun to turn the corner when the ground beneath them opened, dropping Grievous and Winter into the darkness below.
Unexpected though it was, General Grievous found enough time to grab hold of his Jedi companion as they descended into the unknown. He held her firmly into his durasteel form and braced himself for the landing. The bottom of the dark pit came quickly, but was not the hard surface he was expecting. Instead, General Grievous and Winter Vance fell straight into dark, murky waters. Winter held her breath as they were submerged.
The waterway flowed heavy and fast, aggressively pulling the pair apart despite Grievous' earnest efforts to hold onto Winter. The Padawan herself was a decent swimmer but this current flowed so violently that she found her strength meager against it. Winter kicked her feet back and forth, trying desperately to keep her body afloat, but was dragged further and further away.
His metal frame was heavy and almost burdensome in the water. He knew how to swim just fine, growing up near the formidable Jenuwaa Sea, but General Grievous' durasteel body wasn't built for aquatics. The water beat against his armor and tossed him roughly, back and forth, through its grasp. He was so busy fighting to keep his head above water that he almost didn't notice the undercurrent suddenly pull Winter below the surface. Grievous anxiously watched the last remnants of Winter disappear into the water beneath before he stopped fighting and, at once, dove after her.
The dark waters were void of life. There were no signs of aquatic creatures or even plant life. It was simply a vast open void of impenetrable darkness. Grievous searched frantically for the Jedi, but to no avail; he couldn't see anything. He felt his lungs finally start to give way to the crushing pressure and made for the surface to get air before venturing back down into the abyssal pit to continue looking. This time he swam deeper, forcing his armored body to the point of exhaustion.
Minutes passed with no sign of the Jedi and Grievous' determination to locate her had crumbled into the fear that she was gone; he prepared himself for the inevitable. She wasn't like him. Winter's body was almost entirely sentient and he highly doubted she could have held her breath this long. The last remnant of hope within him had begun to dissapear when he noticed a distant flickering along the conduit floor; Winter's cybernetic eye! Grievous pleaded with the gods of Kalee to let her be alive still as he propelled his hulking body towards the light.
Once he was within arms reach, General Grievous grabbed Winter by her still hand and paddled back to the surface. Her body was limp in his grasp; had he been too late? Against the raging current, Grievous swam with renewed determination towards the nearest ledge and lifted Winter out of the water, laying her down gently on the dry surface. Her body was limp and he realized her breathing had stopped. Grievous thought quickly about what he needed to do.
Unsure if it would even work, Grievous layed his hands, one on top of the other, onto Winter's chest and pushed with as much strength he dared use on her fragile body. With each decisive press, Grievous berated her frail, organic form and demanded she fight harder. She couldn't die like this, not after everything she'd survived through. It was unacceptable. He pushed one last time with his force intensified and at last her chest heaved into life.
Winter Vance gasped and coughed up the water that had been choking her. Her chest heaved up and down laboriously as her breathing attempted to achieve stabilization. She was so preoccupied with calming herself that she almost hadn't noticed Grievous looming over her. When finally Winter did become aware of the droid commander, she perceived he was also in a state of panic.
"W-What happened," her voice ached.
Although the danger was no more, General Grievous couldn't shake the overwhelming fear that had taken hold of him. The grim sight of Winter's body floating lifelessly in the dark water resurrected memories within him that he had successfully kept buried for years. His body trembled with emotion as he was forced to relive the agonizing pain of losing Ronderu lij Kummar and their unborn child to the Jenuwaa Sea. Overcome by the remembrance, Grievous slumped backwards against the tunnel wall and shut his weary eyes.