Guarded (#2 Post-Order 66 Series)

Guarded - Part 33

Crosshair felt his knees go out from under him as smoke poured out of the room Iden had just entered seconds before, flame licking at the door frame. He felt Hunter push off from him, leaning heavily against the wall. He turned and met his brother's eyes.

"GO!" Hunter yelled at him, and without any further thought, Crosshair turned and ran, leaving Hunter slumped against the wall.

The smoke burned his lungs and the heat from the fire made his eyes water as he tore around the corner. The bedroom was in shambles, the windows blown out, the bed flung up against one wall in a smoldering heap. He could see the scorch mark where the blast had torn through the wall and slammed into the floor. He frantically turned, searching for any evidence of Iden, the blood pounding in his ears.

"Iden?" he rasped as he slowly became more frantic.

He felt a presence behind him and turned to find Senna sprinting into the room. Her right arm was clutched to her chest, bleeding heavily, but her eyes met his through the smoke. Crosshair looked at her helplessly. "I...she...she came..."

"Be quiet for a second," Senna said calmly. He watched as she closed her eyes, her brows furrowing. She cocked her head before turning it to face the refresher. Crosshair followed her line of sight, slowly stepping over the debris until his feet bumped against another set of boots.

"She's here!" he choked, and Senna scrambled towards him. The door and main wall had collapsed, pinning Iden underneath. Crosshair fell to his knees, his hands feeling until he found her leg in the haze.

"Iden! Can you hear me?" he shouted, and she gently kicked him with her boot. He saw the glint of the Firepuncher next to her and yanked it out of the way. "Can you move?" he called, and he had to strain his ears to hear her response.

"Door's...on me...got my...shoulder...under it. Can't...move."

His eyes met Senna's again, the fear returning. This building is turning to ash. We have to get her out. Now. Senna wet her lips, digging her teeth into her lower lip as she looked at the wreckage, thinking. Finally, she turned her hip towards him, her lightsaber hilt glittering in the fire.

"Take it. Activation switch is on the side. I can't help you enough physically to lift this off her with only one good arm. You're going to have to cut it off chunk by chunk."

Crosshair hesitated, but she nudged him with her foot. "Do it! We've got to get out of here."

Echo came running into the room as Crosshair unhooked the saber from Senna's belt. The former ARC trooper surveyed the scene before him. "What can I do?"

Senna stepped back. "Help him. Iden's trapped underneath. Be careful, she's pinned. I can't do much and I'm not strong enough to Force lift that up with one hand. I might just bring the whole thing down on her."

Crosshair ignited the ice blue saber and quickly began cutting away at the debris as carefully as he could, moving around to allow Echo to yank it off. Finally, they were down to just the door, and together, the two of them were able to shift it off of her. Iden lay sprawled underneath, and Crosshair scrambled forward on his hands and knees, scooping her into his arms. Her head rolled against his shoulder as her eyes opened slightly, meeting his.

"The Firepuncher-"

"I don't give a damn about the rifle right now." He pushed some hair out of her face, sediment and blood smearing as his glove grazed her skin. A huge gash ran through her hairline, and blood leaked down the side of her head, soaking into his blacks and smearing his armor. His hands were still shaking from the adrenaline and the thought of losing her. Carefully, he stood, holding her in his arms as he made his way back out of the room. Echo scooped up the lightsaber, handing it back to Senna before he grabbed the Firepuncher and followed Crosshair out with Senna close behind.