Codename Fulcrum

Chapter 5: Friends?

Alexsandr Kallus crawled up to the hold of the ship that saved him. As the airlock closed and jettisoned the pod back into space, he looked around in horror. The ship he was standing in was definitely a Lambda-class shuttle, the Empire's much favored vessel to transport troops. As he got over the initial shock and panic that he was just recaptured by the Empire, he noticed that there were no Stormtroopers in the hold. In fact, there wasn't anyone, hostile or otherwise. Odd, he thought cautiously.

After a quick look around, he decided to head up to the cockpit. On the way there, he met no resistance. Not a trooper or a rebel fighter. Opening the door to the cockpit he saw only one person sitting in front of the starlines that indicated that they were currently traveling in hyperspace.

"Hey Agent Kallus, nice of you to join me."

His heart skipped a beat as he realized that Spectre 7 was sitting in front of him. Or, the Jedi he was only mildly in love with. Also known as Rayha Sallaros. Her voice was sarcastic, as it always was, but also soft. She swiveled in the captain's chair to face him. She was pretty, with nearly black hair that hung down a ways past her shoulders and bright green eyes. He noticed that her hair was currently up in a braid, probably in an attempt to keep it out of her way during combat. Her face changed from her usual cocky grin to one of concern as she looked at him up and down.

"You look like hell." She stated, walking up to him and gently pulling his arm to guide him towards the copilot's seat. If he looked half as battered and sore as he felt, Kallus was positive that hell was an understatement.

Bending over him, she started accessing his injuries. She delicately grabbed his face, trying to get a good look of the cuts and bruises that littered it in the light of the cockpit. Just thinking about how nice it was for someone to be touching him gently rather than throwing punches, he realized he had yet to say anything.

"Yeah.... so..... ummm thanks." Kallus barely stammered out, feeling heat rise to his cheeks. Looking away, he added, "Thank you for everything."

"I should be saying the same thing, your warning- not to mention all the information you've sent along the way- has helped us help others." She replied firmly, as if she knew what he was thinking. Well, maybe she did? Considering the whole Jedi thing...

Kallus had spent years chasing Jedi, ever since that fateful day with the Wookies in one of Kessel's spice mines, and he still had no real idea what the Jedi were. He knew that, like Lord Vader and the Inquisitors, they utilized the Force, but what the Force was and how they were able to use it was a mystery. Rumor had it that they could sense emotion and read thoughts, though to what extent he had no idea.

Once again, he realized that he wasn't talking or paying any attention. Unfortunately, small talk wasn't really his thing, and small talk with a woman in a casual manner? Forget it.

Abruptly, Rayha pivoted and walked towards the back of the cockpit. Hitting a few buttons on the terminal, a small door slid open to reveal an emergency medpack. She grabbed it and walked back towards him, opening it on the pilot's chair and rummaging through it.

"Where'd you get it?" he asked, desperate to break the awkward silence. She glanced over her shoulder and raised her eyebrow in question, so he quickly added, "The shuttle, I mean."

"Well," she said, grabbing some bacta patches and disinfecting wipes, "While Thrawn was otherwise occupied I - this might hurt a bit-" she grimaced as she started wiping the blood off his face, and the stinging sensation that followed earned a sharp inhale from the wounded man, "decided that the Imperial fleet could use one less transport. And yes, the transponder and locator beacon have both been disabled, and Chop swept it before we got off the surface."