Alternate Start (ARCHIVE)

Chapter Forty Four: Guilt

Three days.

They'd been here for three days.

Kaar was using the Force to stabilize Droidbait, and thankfully, he probably wouldn't die. But, they never moved away from each other. They stayed together, tangled in each other's arms, waiting to either die, or be rescued.

"Kaar?" Droidbait croaked, having shed his armor long ago. He was thankful that Kaar had brought at least some water. But rationing a single canteen between two people was near impossible.

"Mm?" Kaar mumbled, unable to speak from his Force exhaustion. Droidbait wished that his cyare hadn't pushed himself so hard.

"We're fucked aren't we?"

"Very." He mumbled.

"Great."

Kaar's eyes fluttered. Droidbait reached up, arm feeling heavier than it's ever been, brushing Kaar's cheek. "Still trusting in the Force, huh Cyare?"

"'F the... F— Force wills it.... s— so it'll be..."

"'S fuckin' stupid Ka'ika..."

"'F we die here... fuck it... we die here."

They laid there, nothing more to talk about with that proclamation.

They were going to die here.

—
-
—

Rocks started to shift. It was a day or so later.

Kaar was laying on his side, fully asleep. Droidbait was leaning against him, stirred by the sound of the shifting rock.

Light cut through the cracks as the rocks were moved.

"Master! Droidbait!"

"Heyyyyyyyyy Sat'ika..."

Satahl crouched by her master, who stirred from his sleepy state. She looked Droidbait over, waving a hand as a signal for someone else. "Droidbait? Hey, hey focus on me Sarge." She snapped her fingers to get his attention, "Hey, where's Fives?"

Droidbait stared for a moment, then tears welled in his eyes, "I— I don't... Sir he... we got separated. I heard—" he choked, "I heard him scream. K— Kaar couldn't sense him—"

A clone shined a light in Droidbait's eyes. "Sargent Droidbait, how long have you been down here?"

"A— A week maybe? Four days I think? 'M not sure... The— The General, is he alright?"

"'M fine 'Bait..."

Satahl rolled Kaar onto his back and he chuckled a little, "Hey Filha, I'm alright."

Satahl seemed surprised, but smiled a little as she and a different clone helped Kaar to his feet, "Good to hear Pai."

Kaar chuckled weakly. A pair of clones helped Droidbait to his feet. "So I'm "dad" instead of Master now huh?"

"Well when did I become "daughter" instead of Padawan?" Satahl retorted.