Star Crossed

Hell breaks loose

Krennic's desolate face, wide blue eyes sad, immediately send my mind in overdrive. What could have possibly happened ? For an eternal second, I wondered if he had had enough of Galen and eventually got rid of him. Then my eyes caught him in the room, his back ramrod straight as he watched the empty night. I swallowed my relief at once.

"Come, Elya, come. I thought our mutual friend might want some support before..."

My attention switched from scientist to Director, trying to assess the bombing that was sure to come. Why was Krennic acting so solicitous? After the Vader fiasco, he constantly snapped at us. But tonight, he seemed crushed. And if I didn't know how skilled a manipulator he was, I might have believed him. But there was that gleam of satisfaction hidden behind the misty irises, a light behind the frozen surface.

"She's here, now. So get on with it." Erso's clipped voice surprised me; he had never addressed anyone in the lab with such contempt. To hear his usually silky voice lash out like a whip was unexpected ... and a little frightening. Silly me, afraid of the only man that cared about me in this room. I'd better watch my back with Krennic... but old habits died hard. For years, my heart had truly believed that Orson would watch over. Deprogramming this rush of trust and affection was a tough struggle. So I schooled my features, and lifted an interrogative eyebrow to my mentor.

Indignation flashed in his eyes, quelled at once to keep up the desolate façade. When he nodded to me, I knew he had caught my drift. Better even, I could feel his satisfaction at being able to communicate with me on such a subtle, wordless level. The fool...

Krennic started speaking of intelligence, of distant planets and crime syndicates I had only heard about, his long introduction grating on my nerves. Galen just turned around, leaning against the transparisteel window as he watched us both. His eye barely drifted to me before they returned to the hologram transmitter his nemesis had fished out.

"I retrieved a document recently, and thought you might want to have a look."

And without further ado, the sequence started to play. At first, I could only spot flashes and explosions as fighting was much too messy. Then, things started to clear out and a group came running from a huge corridor, passing the surveillance camera. There was no doubt they were rebels; the absence of uniforms and their irregular weapons couldn't possibly belong to the imperial army.

Once, I would have been appalled at their haggard look, all dishevelled and disparate. Proud of the uniforms bestowed upon us by the empire; a sign of belonging into the great scheme of things. Fortunately, I had grown out of it, finding those blasted constricting garments too stifling for anyone's good. The firefight intensified as a group of warriors passed in the camera's range.

The image froze, and I realised Krennic had stopped it. His icy eyes, though, were set upon Galen. "Do you see ? That little figure in the middle of the battle ?"

The scientist had paled two notches, his eyes reflecting pure shock as he approached the image that hung in the air. His hand lifted, as if to touch something ... or someone. I squinted, searching for the person they had both noticed, and I had dismissed as a sidekick. There. A girl, no more than ten, ran beside a tall black man who seemed to be in charge.

"Jyn," Galen whispered.

My stomach plummeted, brainwaves spiking in fear. They had found her! Had they captured her already ? Killed her ? Would he dare ? I doubted Krennic would crush his former friend so badly, but he'd ordered Lyra's death after all. My legs started shaking, so I locked my knees, and watched the proceedings.

"Saw Guerrera got his hands on her, now. She's fighting with him against the Crimson Dawn, and there's nothing we can do to retrieve her."

Galen's jaw tensed, but none of the words he wanted to hurl at Krennic passed his lips. My mind reeled; did he know where she was in the first place ? Was it part of the plan ? I had scarce knowledge of those factions, no idea if the man would protect her or use her. "No."

This was pure rejection, a simple word that contained many layers. No, you won't have me tell you. No, I don't want to see her there. No, you can't retrieve her, she's out of your reach. Lost, I forced myself to catch Krennic's gaze. He blinked at me, and I shrugged; I had no information to impart.

"Galen. Is there any way you can contact those people to get Jyn back? She would be protected here, with you." The hair at the back of my neck rose; the danger swimming in Galen's eyes promised violence, on the very short term. I had never seen him like this. Desperate, yes. But ready to throttle someone with his bare hands, never. "You think me such a fool, Orson," he spat.

True; the proposition was laughable, at best. If Saw Guerrera was that rebel terrorist everyone talked about, he wouldn't allow anyone from an imperial base to contact him so easily. "Be reasonable!" Krennic argued, his own hackles rising as he pointed to the little girl with pigtail braids. "She's in the middle of a war ! You can be a family once more."

Galen took a step forward, then another to the point that both men were facing each other, one breath apart. Their familiarity spoke of numerous years spent in naught but their own company, and I suddenly felt very foreign... and very young. I couldn't help but wonder how things were when friendship was still blooming between them. When had Orson been steered away so badly that he'd trapped his own best friend ? It was so sad.

"We stopped being a family when you killed Lyra", Galen ground out.

I caught the very moment Orson Krennic lost his temper. He became a youth once more, the imposing Director of the Galactic Empire left behind. "Eh!", he protested. "Her blaster was aimed at MY chest!" But she had not fired. And as I recalled the scene, the men stared each other down. Needless to say, I now understood Lyra's fierce need to protect her husband from Krennic.

Suddenly, it looked like a lover's spat. Orson's spurned love, discarded for another woman. His reaction that of a child, even, whose parent refused to give exclusivity. Now that I knew where to look, I could see, plain as day, the jealousy in his reddening face. In the rise of his voice, uncontrolled, when he kept so calm in every circumstance. Galen had been his only true friend for a long time, a friend that now judged him, and found him wanting.

"You gave the fucking order, Orson! YOU killed my wife!"

Erso's booming voice echoed so strongly against the walls that a member of Krennic's guard sprang into the room. My heart clenched, and for once, I was glad to be a beginner at this feeling game, because it took me a while to process why it felt so difficult to witness Galen's rage.

Lyra.

He had loved her so much, loved her still. There would always be a special place in his heart for her ... where was mine ? It didn't matter. I didn't even know if I should be angry, or sad. My world had changed reference, from Krennic to Galen, and to see him explode like a Quasar put me off balance. For the first time, I had to brace myself against his wrath.

Galen's hand banged upon the table, sending the holocron crashing to the ground. The scientist didn't spare me a glance when he stormed out of Krennic's office, confident that his former friend wouldn't dare stopping him. Rooted on the spot, I suddenly felt drained of my energy. For once, my mind was blank, unable to function in the wake of such destruction.