IE IX: BURNING VISION

Peyton shudders. She hears a wrenching scream echoing through the hallway. It's quickly silenced by the sound of a splattering slash.

What the hell was that?

Peyton gasps for air. Eva called her to check something out. She said it was some piece of tech she found, but Peyton didn't expect to hear a bloodcurdling scream ahead of her. Worried, Peyton taps on her E-10 hanging on her belt to check if it's there.

Dank Ferrik, I got it. Phew.

Peyton's heart pounds in her chest as she walks on with careful steps. She keeps her hand on her blaster, afraid of what's on her path. Peyton turns into another corridor and steps onto something. She looks down and sees the severed limb of an Army trooper. Her nerves ignite with anxiety and she jumps back. The hell happened here?

She shivers as her eyes land on the countless, dead troopers scattered across the floor. At the end of the corridor, Peyton sees a lavender-purple Twi'lek with a yellow lightsaber in her hand. It roars with fury as Peyton's muscles cramp in, unable to move. To her shock, she recognises the Twi'lek as the one she freed from her carbonite coffin. First, she was a castaway they found in an old wreckage. Now, she's on a rampage.

In front of the Twi'lek lies a trooper, gasping for air and his voice shivering as his slayer lashes out and slices his head off with a slash. Peyton shudders and pulls out her blaster. She aims and fires. The Twi'lek turns around, sweeps with her lightsaber, deflects the blaster bolts and raises her hand towards her. In an instant, Peyton feels something grasping her throat. She explodes forward with her feet slipping over the floor. The Twi'lek sweeps with her hand and Peyton is blasted into the wall. She collapses and Peyton's world spins out of control with pain all over her body. In the corner of her eye, she sees the Twi'lek walking towards her with focused eyes. Peyton gazes around but her blaster lies too far away to reach. She realises she's powerless and defenseless. Crawling away with burning nerves, Peyton looks with watery eyes at the Twi'lek and bumps into the wall.

The Twi'lek lashes out and Peyton gasps with terror. She feels the yellow saber burning below her chin as the Twi'lek holds it there with a steady hand. It scorches her skin like a blaze, and she fears whatever the tailhead might do to her with this. Severing her head off, that's what, and it's the only thought that races through her mind. Feeling the tears forming in her eyes, Peyton looks in the eyes of a monster, ready to kill her.

Instead, the Twi'lek does nothing. The yellow saber vanishes into her hilt and she hangs it to her waist belt. The scorching atmosphere turns tensely silent while Peyton stares at her with wide pupils.

"You seem like someone who would help me," says the Twi'lek, calm yet menacing. "I know that this is a military base. I don't want to leave with flames in my wake, so, advice me on how I can escape effortlessly."

Shivering, Peyton shakes her head, with a heavy knot in her throat, unable to speak. She can't let this demonic tailhead go.

The Twi'lek sighs and sweeps with her hand elegantly. "You will advice me on how I can escape this base without effort"

Peyton clenches her jaws. She feels something settling in her head, something grasping her. It feels like a peaceful sunset happening before her, but she shoves it off. Trembling, she shakes her head.

"No," Peyton stammers, barely whispering. "No. I can't."

The Twi'lek closes her eyes and lets out a faint sigh. She sweeps her hand again. "You will advice me on how I can escape this base without effort."

The words start sinking in. Peyton feels something heavy, yet blissful settling in her mind. Her tears dry up and Peyton's heart calms down. She swallows as she looks up with watery eyes. The Twi'lek's voice calms down the hurricane around her.

"I will advice you on how to escape this base without effort," Peyton responds, nearly monotone. "The Medbay has a backdoor. There are buildings to hide in their shadows. You will end up in the forest where you can escape. Do it right and no one will see you."

The Twi'lek nods and smiles. "Thank you," and she walks off, leaving behind the whirlwind of chaos she caused.

Her mind is released and Peyton grasps reality. She can finally breathe and gasps for air as she curls up on the floor. Her memories drain away and her head hurts, leaving her dizzy and disoriented. Blips of what just happened remain in her mind and Peyton squeezes herself in her arms, unable to process what just happened. That Twi'lek wielded something that swept her over the floor effortlessly. The invisible pull forward felt like she was leashed to a shrieking TIE Fighter. What kind of power did she wield? She doesn't know what and Peyton feels like she's sounding like a maniac on spice. All she knows is that she's lucky she survived. That Twi'lek was a monster.

Slowly, the Medroom blurs into focus. The sterile scent prickles in her nose as consciousness gradually returns. The overhead lights ache in her eyes and Eva blinks. She feels a mild headache pulsating in her mind like a burn. She takes a big gasp of air as the memories flood back. They rush back as violently as the crash she made into the cabinet when the Twi'lek played with her like she was a toy. Eva puts her hand on her face, feeling the shame, the frustration, and the fear whirling in her mind.

"Blasted," Eva whispers.

Eva remembers the Twi'lek as the images flash before her eyes. The girl had disproportionate reflexes. The second her finger crawled closer to the trigger, she disarmed Eva with a single sweep of her hand. That girl overpowered her in an instant. It leaves Eva behind, shaken and afraid.

Eva sees the face of Ashara leaning forward, looking at her as she rubs Eva's cheeks. Her blue fingers are cold and Eva feels relieved to feel them.

"Hey," Ashara greets with a thin smile. "Welcome back to the overworld. How do you feel?"

"Bad," Eva sighs, barely whispering. "What happened?"

Eva pushes herself up from the stretcher and Ashara gives her a hand. Her back feels sore by the slam she made into the hospital bed.

Ashara chuckles. "You sent yourself to Corellia with a hypospray. It was a full dose of Hypothantonol. Pretty strong of a drug you knocked yourself out with."

Hypospray? The fragments then hit back. She remembers the thud the syringe made when the Twi'lek smashed it into her chest. Eva's lungs shudder with distress.

"Right," Eva stammers. "I was inspecting her bag when she stood up out of a sudden. I tried to stop her, but…"

Eva stops. Ashara already knows what the outcome is, and Eva feels ashamed of it. It was an unfortunate accident, but it is enough to make her cheeks burn.

Ashara nods. She grasps the Medisensor and scans her body temperature with a faint laser line on Eva's forehead. "I let her go. I came in and I saw her, here with your unconscious body in her hand and a lasersword in the other. She held it to your throat and demanded that I let her escape. It seemed like all she wanted was to get out alive. She even said 'please' with the voice of a Loth kitty, so I exchanged your life for her freedom."

She wanted to kill me? Blast it. A surge of sweet relief rushes through her veins and Eva smiles. "Thanks."

Ashara nods with a smile. "At your service," and she focuses her eyes on the Medisensor as its screen illuminates her face. "You have a fever."

"Is it bad?" Eva asks.

Ashara puts the Medisensor aside and shakes her head. "No, not in the sense of an emergency at least. It's the usual side effect of a full dose of Hypothantonol. I administered an antidote to your blood vessels to counteract it. But it's gonna take some time until all of it is gone."

Ashara grabs a little jar and pushes it into Eva's hands. "Got you a prescription. Take two every day until your fever is over. Start with one capsule today and start taking two tomorrow. Can be taken all at once or spread evenly over the day."

Eva nods and looks at the label. So, it's gonna be swallowing rock-hard pills every day. How fun.

Clenching the meds in her hands, the fragments of her earlier conversation with Ashara rush in. Eva remembers the frustration that came out of Ashara when she confronted her about love and duty.

As she passes the body bags of Army troopers in the adjacent corridor, Eva feels remorse building up. She recognises that perhaps, she sounded too hostile. It wasn't her intention, but it was definitely what happened. Ashara's frustration was something Eva had rarely seen and now, the outburst stays with her. Eva feels like should've been more open, even if she believed love was an obstacle to their duty.

Eva taps Ashara on the shoulder as they step out of the Medbay, onto the muddy ground. "Ashara."

Ashara glances over her shoulder. Night has already fallen and the moon is faintly shimmering in the girl's golden eyes.

Eva's feet trip over themselves and she stumbles over. Ashara grasps her arms and keeps her upright. The Hypothantonol makes her feel dizzy. Dank Ferrik. Can't even walk because of that Hypothantonol.

"About earlier," Eva stammers, "I'm sorry that I was so hostile. Maybe I should've been more open."

"It's fine," snaps Ashara. "I'm needed at the Medbay, so I'll see you later at the barracks, okay?"

Eva hums with a nod.

"And I've dismissed you from your training for the upcoming three days. You're in no condition to even walk, so take some rest, soldier," says Ashara, clenching her jaws. She said it with an almost taunting tone.

With that, Ashara walks off and vanishes into the Medbay. She seems to be in a rush, and Eva can't help but feel like Ashara shoved it off, especially with the taunting tone of soldier. It seems like her confrontation left a sour aftertaste behind, and understandably so. It might not have been the right timing to apologise when the frustration was probably still brewing.

Whatever that Twi'lek left in her wake, it's sure that it was a trail of chaos. There are Army troopers everywhere and rows of AT-ST walkers are standing by on the training field. The presence of so many security forces makes a shiver rippling through her skin.

With a headache pulsating in her head, Eva stares down at the water splashing in her cup. In the reflection, she sees her cheeks are burning red and swollen. The fever that remained from the Hypothantonol is ravaging her like a haze of heat, scorching her from the inside. It feels like a supernova is bursting inside of her.

Meanwhile, Peyton sits on her bed, letting out a shivering sigh. "That tailhead-, she was invincible."

Peyton's words warp in her ears as each beat of her heart makes her fever ripple with pain. Eva dances around with the capsule in her mouth, playing with it with her tongue. It feels smooth, but terrifyingly big and it makes a shiver quiver through her spine. I want to be done with this shit already.

Eva swallows the pill and drinks up all of the water. She gets to her bed and lies down with her back leaning against the wall. The cold concrete wall in her back feels pleasant amidst the internal heat.

Peyton curls up on her bed. Her eyes are drenched in disbelief, staring at the floor.

"She lifted me up like it was nothing," Peyton stammers.

Eva presses her lips. The Twi'lek did the same to her. She can remember the elegant sweep of her hand that launched the hospital bed into the ceiling. Seeing it happen again sends shivers down her spine.

"I know," Eva stammers.

"She didn't even touch me," Peyton shivers. "What kind of power did she have?"

Eva shrugs with a sigh. "I don't know," she barely whispers.

But what she does know is that the Twi'lek's reflexes were inhumanely quick. Eva has a hunch that this girl wasn't normal. Her skills and her movements were so efficient and swift that Eva couldn't even find an opening in her defense. There's a lot that makes Eva feel like the skills of this Twi'lek shouldn't even be possible. However, Eva keeps it quiet. Thinking back to every hit she took, Eva feels the headache quivering with pain.

"She had some reflexes though," Eva whispers.

"Not just that," Peyton responds. "She had a kriffin' lasersword like a yellow blaze. It went through everything."

The heat covers her mind with a heavy fog and Peyton's words fall apart before they reach her. Eva then hears a pound on the door. She makes eye contact with Peyton as she looks up.

"I'll see who it is," says Peyton and she uncurls herself from her bed.

Peyton walks out of her sight as Eva leans with the back of her head against the wall. The capsule she just took doesn't seem to have an effect right now. It feels like her fever's heat evaporated the capsule before it could even reach her stomach. Hopefully, all of it will go away soon enough. Duty can't wait long.

She feels a tap on her shoulder and Eva sees it's Peyton again.

"Someone wants to see you at the door," says Peyton.

"Who?"

Peyton shrugs. "I don't know."

Eva presses her lips and she gets up. It might be someone important she can't miss. Whoever it is, Peyton got her intrigued. With a tired feeling, Eva walks to the front of the barracks. She follows the railing of the beds with her hand to keep her straight. As the blast door slides into the wall, Eva sees it's Daxan standing in front of her. It's the boy who unjammed her blaster yesterday. Eva freezes, surprised by his visit.

"Hey, good evening," greets Daxan. He's holding a helmet in his hand and wears a thick, bulb winter hat on his head. It's as if he's already prepared for a vicious winter season. It's merely spring.

Eva tilts her head. "Hi," she stammers. "You're Daxan, right?"

Daxan nods. "Yeah, Daxan. Am I here at a convenient time?"

The night breeze crashes into her face and Eva shivers. It feels pleasant with the fever scorching her from within. "Not really," she sighs, "but go ahead. I'm standing here already."

"Okay," he nods. "I heard you were in quite the scuffle this morning. Didn't hear much but I heard it was tough. I thought I'd pay you a visit to see how you're doing."

Eva blushes. She didn't expect Daxan, pretty much a stranger she's seen only once, to care about her.

She shifts from foot to foot and presses her lips. "Well, I don't feel great. I'm left with a fever and a headache, so… terrible is not enough to describe what I'm feeling."

Daxan raises his eyebrows. "A fever? How did you end up with that?"

Eva closes her eyes and sighs. She fears her unfortunate accident with the Hypothantonol might crack her shine.

"You-, don't wanna know," she stammers, ashamed.

Daxan smirks. "Well, anyway, I'm sorry to hear that. I brought you some Conergin to help you to get to sleep. I figured it would be hard to sleep through the pain after all."

He grabs a weathered medicine box from his helmet and holds it out for Eva to take. She grasps it and tries to read the label, but the letters blur out of focus.

"Con-, Conarg… Blast it, I can't read anymore," Eva whispers with a sigh.

Daxan chuckles. "Conergin."

"Conergin," Eva repeats, the blurred letters falling into place. "Right."

The letters start falling into place. Conergin PharmaCo. Compatible with any medication already administered.

"Yeah," Daxan answers. "It's very effective and relaxing. Two will put you to sleep like a brick."

"Is it spice?" Eva asks.

"No, of course not, it's just sleeping pills. I'd be jailed if I had spice in my pockets," Daxan responds.

Eva nods. She hesitates, but she recognises she might going to need it. Her fever is scorching her so much that it might keep her up all night. If Daxan is right, she can return to duty in no time, rested and well.

"Well," Daxan stammers. "I'll get going. I can see you really need the rest."

With a blush, Eva smiles a little. "Yeah."

"Alright. I'll get going," says Daxan. "Good night."

Eva nods. Daxan walks away and she feels like she's left in a cold wake. Her finger hovers above the button of the door but she hesitates to press it. She can't leave him without a simple thank you. She turns back to Daxan. He's almost out of view.

"Daxan," says Eva, her voice echoing through the silent night.

He turns around.

"Thanks," she says. "I'm Eva, by the way."

Daxan smiles and nods. "At your service, Eva. Good night, and rest well."

Out of the blue, she sees the blurry face of Roslin, looking at her. Waking up, Eva feels the sunlight burning in her eyes as she gasps. The freezing air of outside rushes into her lungs and she shivers.

Roslin smirks. "Good morning, Eva. Finally, you're awake."

Her eyelids feel heavy as Eva's mind slowly emerges from the fog of sleep.

"You slept through all of our alarm clocks," says Roslin.

Roslin's words falter in her ears and Eva pushes herself up from the mattress.

"What?" Eva lets out.

"You were in quite the sleep," says Roslin.

Slowly, Eva grasps the world around her and she realises how late it actually is. The sun is shining fiercely and Roslin already has her trooper outfit on.

"Really?" Eva asks. Those Conergins really did the job then.

Even then, the fever she was left with yesterday still remains. It is still frying her, but fortunately, it's not as scorching as before.

Ashara joins in and drops herself down next to Roslin. "Good morning snooze-droid. Finally awake from your hibernation, huh?"

Eva groans. She feels like she's still in her dreams. "Is it actually that late? Where are the others?"

"Peyton and Ecklund are prepping your breakfast," Roslin responds. "You missed it, so they're handling it."

Eva nods, feeling grateful for her squad to have her back, even when an innocent fever is taking her down. Seeing Roslin and Ashara already dressed up in their trooper armour surprises her. Yesterday was a disaster, yet it seems like the regular training schedule is still active, as if the top of Malstrom Base doesn't care about whatever happened yesterday. Just shoving it aside as a nuisance.

"Is training still continuing?" she asks.

Roslin nods. "Yeah," and she scoffs a little, "even after yesterday."

It sounds like even Roslin herself is surprised by command's decision to proceed.

Ashara leans in with a Medisensor in her hand and scans Eva with a red line on her forehead. "So… how's the fever going? Do you feel any better?"

"I guess. I feel better than yesterday," Eva responds.

Ashara nods. "41.1. Still scorching you."

"But it's becoming better, right?" Eva asks.

Ashara pulls back the Medisensor. "Yeah. You were 41.3 yesterday, so you're going well."

Eva nods. Hearing the reassuring words of Ashara, Eva feels the urge to return to duty. It's late and her assurance in her own skills got a hefty dent yesterday. If an alien overpowered her with air, her skills are pretty much worthless. She feels like she needs every bit of training, even if it goes against the limits of her body. Besides, the squad needs her. A squad with one man less is in no condition to fight. She can't leave them because of such a silly fever.

"When does training start?" Eva asks.

"Seven minutes," Roslin responds.

Eva sighs. Time to get up then. "I'm joining."

"What? What do you mean?" Ashara asks, leaning forward.

"I'm joining the training," Eva responds.

Ashara shakes her head and pushes Eva down with her hand as she's about to get up. "No no no, you can't. You're in no condition to go. That fever is still scorching you. It's better for you to stay in bed until you've recovered."

"Ashara, I have to," Eva stammers. "I don't want to let this squad down because of a kriffin' fever. I need that bit of training and you need me."

"No," Ashara snaps, shaking her head. "You're not going."

"Why? It's better for me and the squad."

Ashara scoffs silently with a faint smile of frustration. "As if you know more about wellbeing than me."

Eva looks at Roslin. "Roslin, order me to get going. I don't want to be stuck here wasting my time."

Roslin presses her lips, hesitating to answer. "Well, I can't."

"Why not?" Eva asks.

"Because I'm your medic," Ashara snaps, barely above a whisper. "You're a footsoldier. When it's about the health of all of us, including you, I outrank everyone, even Roslin, even Lieutenant Amitash, even Lord Vader. My order is final, and you're staying. I don't want you to pass out on the battlefield and get hurt more," and she puts her hand on Eva's cheek. "You're not indestructible. Your body has limits. Respect them."

Eva sighs as the frustration boils in her chest. She can't help but feel the urge to refuse her orders and join the training. But she knows she can't. Orders are orders. Good soldiers follow them, and with a nod, Eva accepts her medic's orders.

As the battlefield plays out in front of her, Eva leans with her back against a container in the mud. Eating the last piece of bread of her breakfast Ecklund and Peyton prepared for her, Eva stares into dead space.

That tailhead had so much power, she could easily equal six Gundarks. With as little as air, the Twi'lek overpowered her in almost an instant, and she thought she's already a well capable soldier. Within one morning, the assurance in her own skills has vaporised. No longer can she be sure her skills can hold out, at least not against this Twi'lek she should've easily overpowered.

Then, snippets of words start echoing back from the depths. They are the words of Peyton, now starting to scream from the shadows. Yesterday night, she said something about a lasersword, a yellow blaze the tailhead wielded. Peyton uttered something that now feels familiar. That one time she experienced flashing images in the middle of training, she saw something. At the time, Eva shoved it off, but now, it starts clicking. When she ran out of the trench and made a sprint forward, images flashed before her eyes and she saw a yellow blaze of burning light. Yesterday, Peyton described the exact same thing Eva imagined.

Eva realises that she saw the future. She saw something that only entered her life days later. It's strange. It's nerve-wracking, and impossible, or at least it should be. How can Peyton have seen something Eva saw in her imagination days ago? The questions entangle her with dread shivering down her spine and Eva trembles. The sun darkens like an eclipse and she can no longer look at the mud the same way.

But before she goes overboard with it, she has to confirm it first with Peyton. Perhaps she made an error in her wording. It was clear that the Twi'lek's rampage hit her hard as well.

At the end of the training, the squad walks back to the barracks with mud all over their body armour. Eva picks Peyton out of the group.

"Hey, Peyt," says Eva. "Got a sec?"

Peyton glances at her and nods. Her cheeks are red and swollen and her forehead is sweaty. It seems like the squad got it hard with a man less.

Peyton's durasteel helmet wobbles on her head a little as she walks towards her. "Hey, how are you doing?"

"I'm doing alright," Eva responds. "Thanks for prepping my breakfast."

Peyton smiles. "Yeah, no problem. I always got your back."

Eva nods with a smile. "I wanna ask you something. Yesterday night, you told me something about a yellow blaze. What was it exactly?"

Peyton presses her lips as she sits down. Eva looks at her eyes and sees a twinkle of fear that has held Peyton hostage. Eva can almost see the tears reappearing in her eyes.

"Yellow blaze," Peyton repeats, and she takes off her helmet and puts it on the ground next to her. She inhales deeply through her nose. "The tailhead we found in that wreckage-, I stumbled upon her in the Medbay. She had a yellow lasersword or something like that. It sliced through the bodies of guards like it was nothing. I couldn't respond in time. She disarmed me quickly. When she held it at my chin, it felt like a blaze."

"A yellow blaze, a lasersword?" Eva picks out, tilting her head.

Peyton nods.

A lightsaber, she called it.

Eva gazes away and feels dread encircling her like vultures. The confirmation she got from Peyton gives her the shivers. Peyton saw the exact same thing Eva imagined days prior. That yellow blaze she saw in flashing images on the battlefields wasn't an imagination. It was a vision. Something she dreamed of entered the real realm. Eva curls up with igniting nerves.

"Okay," Eva whispers and entangles her arms around herself. "Thanks."

Eva looks at Peyton and she can see the uncertainty in her staring eyes. However, Peyton nods anyway. She gets up and walks away, leaving Eva with space to think.

It seems like the Twi'lek and her nightmares are connected. Eva doesn't know how, but she feels convinced that they are. It must be. There's no other way. If the Twi'lek can lift up objects as if it's all air, then visions about her are more than plausible. She's the center of all of this. The answer may be there, but capturing this Twi'lek won't be easy. Compared to her, Eva holds no power to fight her whatsoever. She might need a full Army battalion to overpower her. They might be even already on her heels if the Army initiated a manhunt. If Eva wants to know how the realm of her dreams is connected with the real world, she'll have to hunt. Again.

Besides, that tailhead is a threat to the Empire and Vaulent 6, no matter who she is or of what importance she is.

Eva buzzes the door of the Doctor's office room within the base's main building, and she enters. Behind a desk in front of her sits Dr Kirbley, clacking on the keyboard of his computer. The hologram vanishes from his desk and he looks up at her as Eva approaches, salutes, and stands firmly with her arms behind her back.

"Sir," she greets.

Kirbley nods at her. "Good day, Eva. What do you want to speak about?"

She inhales deeply through her nose. She can feel her heart pounding a little. "Sir, you are a psychologist, right?"

"Yes. Just call me Doctor," he snaps before she can ask further. "I find that more comfortable."

Eva shakes her head, being thrown off by this trivial comment. "But-, you're my superior, you're a quadrillion ranks higher than me. I should still call you sir," she stammers. Doesn't make any sense.

"Yes, but I don't really see myself as a military superior," Kirbley responds. "I am a psychologist, a scientist. I can't forget where I come from."

Eva nods, resisting the urge to roll her eyes. Whatever. "Right, Doctor. So… are you specialized in dreams and sleep?"

"No," Kirbley responds, shaking his head. "I know a few things but that's a whole other category of psychology. I'm only specialised in the general, everyday working of the brains of teenagers, as in their growth, their sections, and their subsequent functions."

"Right," Eva stammers and she takes a gasp of cold air with unease slowly brewing within her. "Maybe you have an answer for this, but-, I experienced something two days ago that I can't explain. When I was training, I had these-, vivid, flashing images out of nowhere. I saw yellow flashes and blurry images I couldn't understand. They just-, happened. I don't know why. I thought it was just exhaustion. I haven't been able to sleep well in the past week."

"Flashing images?" Kirbley asks. The intrigue shimmers in his eyes and he starts sitting up right on his chair. "In broad daylight? That's highly concerning and unusual. That's definitely not a symptom of exhaustion, neither acute nor chronic. It's a common symptom of post-traumatic stress disorder."

Eva's lungs stutter. Just hearing PTSD alone gives her shivers. It's a horrible, infamous disorder, but it's not why she's here. Eva feels it's something stranger than PTSD. She feels convinced she is dealing with something more. It can't be PTSD.

"I know," Eva responds. "Yesterday, we brought this Twi'lek out of a wreckage. When my squadmate, my slicer, encountered her, she described a weapon that I saw in my flashes a day before."

Kirbley inhales deeply through his nose. He pushes his chair back and stands up. He walks around his tidy desk as his eyes drift away, thinking about what she just said, and he stops, standing next to her.

Once more, he inhales deeply. "Eva, you are suggesting that your dreams are connected with real-life, future occurrences?

"Yes sir-, Doctor," Eva responds with a nod.

Kirbley frowns. "Are you sure, Eva? Visions of the future are nearly impossible to occur. It's not how time generally works. The future doesn't exist. It isn't written. We can assume what the future can be. We do it all the time by analysing and calculating a lot. We calculate what the odds are of something to happen. That's how we predict weather. But it doesn't make the future an existing thing we can grasp. The future is an idea that becomes present spontaneously without instruction. We can't tell what the future is until it unfolds as the present. And to come back, visions should not happen, at least according to how I understand time and space."

"Is it possible that time and space don't work the way you think they do?" Eva asks.

Kirbley shrugs. "That is always possible. The way we think time and space work is based on theories and models that try to come as close to reality as possible. Nature doesn't tell us exactly what the formula of force is. We just have a model that tries to represent it. Sometimes it's faulty because its original creator didn't include a factor."

Eva's eyes drift away, bedazzled. The complicated story of models, time and space reminds her of Peyton's gonk language when she gets carried away by her nerd things from time to time.

"Is it possible here?" she blurts out.

"Yes, though the odds are nearly negligible. The odds are bigger to be hit by lightning twice inside your home and then be taken in the ass by the Emperor. I wouldn't bet my Creds on it."

Taken in the… what? Eva nearly bursts into laughter and barely keeps it in.

"Right. Then the odds may be too big for my vision to be a coincidence," Eva squeezes out. "I'm sure it wasn't. It just can't be a coincidence. All I know is that this tailhead is connected and I'm convinced that she has the answers. She's the center of this. I saw her holding a weapon that I saw in my kriffin' dreams. It's just impossible to be a coincidence."

Kirbley tilts his head, seemingly sensing something. "I can tell you're aiming for something. Out with it: what are you proposing?"

"I'm proposing a hunt to capture this Twi'lek alive," Eva responds. "Those dreams have kept me awake for too long and this vision is just too coincidental to shove aside as something trivial. I can't go on as if nothing happened. I have to find out."

Kirbley lets out a sigh and shifts from foot to foot. Then, the room starts shaking as an A9 Juggernaut tank drives past the window. The glassware on the desk rattle and the room darkens like an eclipse until the Juggernaut passes. Even when it has passed, the glassware continues to rattle and annoyed, Kirbley puts his fingertips on them to stop the sound. As it becomes quiet, he inhales deeply. "The Army is already hunting this Twi'lek down in the woods. I don't think it's safe for you to join them, considering your mental condition."

Eva shakes her head. "No, I'm fine. I get that it's dangerous, but it's not like it's new to me. I've done this before. I've hunted down a previous monster when you didn't look. Even the ISB was after me and I still didn't break. Not even the Rebels themselves could break me when they had me captured."

"Even then I considered your mental condition as unstable," Kirbley responds. "The outcome may have been positive, but your journey towards that was, in my opinion, quite destructive and disruptive. You caused quite a lot of uproar while you were gone. Even the Imperial Center got wind of your activity."

"I know. I did things I'm not happy with," Eva responds. At times, she still remembers everything she's done crystal clear, from merely surviving the Capital Police bombing to the one time she held the child of a Rebel at gunpoint. Some of the actions she thought were crucial to her mission still fill her with regret, even if they gave her the outcome she wanted. With discomfort, she exhales deeply. "Yeah, I still regret some things, but what matters is that we did it with success. Me and my squad have experience. We know how to handle something like this. Besides, what's more valuable than wartime experience? Is that not what's best for me, a cadet of the Empire?"

"What's best for you is good wellbeing. That's what matters the most to me," snaps Kirbley, and inhales deeply with unease. "Yes, I see the value in wartime experience, but it's not without its risks that are worth considering. I can send you out, but right after you're back, report at my office immediately. I'll be fully diagnosing your mental condition. Safety goes first, especially in the case of you."

Eva smiles and her cheeks start burning a little, blushing at the comment.

"You're a dangerous kid," Kirbley responds, starting to smile as well. "I can-, value that to a certain extent, but you're like a hyperactive child, always running to the next big firefight like it is the ice cream speeder."

Eva smirks. I'm not that hyperactive, noodle.

"So, I'm going?" she asks.

Kirbley chuckles. "Not so fast. First, I'll have to discuss it with Lieutenant Amitash, then with the battalion commander in charge of the hunt, and finally your own commander. But as far as I'm concerned, you're going, on my terms."

Then, before Eva can acknowledge it with a nod, the door is buzzed. She looks over her shoulder, curious about who it could be, but all she sees is the glimpse of an officer entering the room behind her.

"Sir. Star Fleet Command wishes to speak with you," a male voice speaks.

Sir? Doctor. It's Doctor. Anyway, Star Fleet Command? Sounds important.

As Eva stares straight ahead and squeezes her arms behind her back, continuing to stand firmly, Kirbley nods at the officer.

"Thank you, officer," he responds, and the door behind her slams shut.

"Doctor," she whispers and glances at Kirbley. "It's Doctor."

He smirks. "You're right. It's Doctor indeed. Well, that sucks for him, I think it's a good idea to have him cleaning the refreshers as a punishment, right?"

Eva and Kirbley chuckle.

"Anyway, yes, you'll be part of that hunting party, as far as I'm concerned. If the other officers agree, you're going. Don't forget to report to me after returning. Clear?"

Eva nods. "Crystal."

"Good. Return to your barracks. Your commander is going to notify you in case the mission goes through, okay?"

"Yes, Doctor," Eva responds. "Thank you."

With that, Eva turns around and leaves his office room with an assured heart. She knows that once that Twi'lek is in confinement, she can ask her every question she has. From how she can lift up objects like nothing and how her weapon flickered in her visions. She'll have to put her life on the line to find out, but she's convinced she can do it. Walking back to her barracks, Eva feels her heart pounding with nervousness, anxious about her hunt and the answers she'll find. They may not put her to rest as much as she thinks, though.

Meanwhile, a Rebel group living in the shadows of Vaulent 6, intercepts the messages sent back and forth. Imperial hunting parties, combing out Malstrom Forest with tooth and nail, supposedly for a lavender-purple-skinned Twi'lek with a lasersword of unimaginable sharpness. A lasersword of unimaginable sharpness. That can mean only one thing…