Of The Force

You

Within the confines of a small sleeping quarter, Cordelia sat on the edge of the small cot, waiting to be retrieved and shown to her new normal. Before they had arrived on the Steadfast, the remainder of the trip through Hyperspace had gone by fairly uneventfully. Valour had left her, enticed by the promise of watching the ship exit hyperspace. He'd glanced at Cordelia for approval and run off when she's nodded. Just because she was chained up, there was no reason for him to stay miserable by her side.

Ap'Lek remained, seated on the steps, his long handled axe resting across his lap. Cordelia spent most of her time trying to ignore him. Keeping her eyes shut while she tried to rest, now that her arms weren't so tightly bound. Ap'Lek had no such qualms. He sat there watching her the entire time, his helm never straying from her direction. When she'd felt them exit hyperspace, her heart began thundering anew. Cordelia rose to her feet, Ap'Lek doing the same, watching for her reaction.

When they'd entered the hangar bay, Ap'Lek had led her from the ship, hand gripping her elbow. She hadn't been able to see Valour. When she'd tried to return to the Night Buzzard in search for him, Ap'Lek had tugged her along.

"If anything happens to him -" she begun to warn when Ap'Lek cut her off.

"I'm sure you'll do unthinkable things to me." He said, voice little more than a rumble.

Cordelia wished she was the type of woman who could think of something glib to say. Instead, she glared as his masked head while he led her from the hangar.

It wasn't until they had made three turns she realized her error. Instead of threatening the Knight, she should have been studying the hangar and analyzing the route they'd taken. Instead, she had been turned around and lost within the heart of the Order.

A knock came to her door moments before the harsh light from the hallway flooded into her quarters. Cordelia jerked up from where she'd evidently fallen asleep on the floor. She blinked to take in her surrounding as the events of the last unknown amount of hours that'd passed came rushing back.

"He told you I would be here last night, didn't he?" The woman's voice drew Cordelia's gaze.

A short, pretty woman stood before her. Rich brown skin, black hair cut short and slicked into place along her skull. Eyes like polished copper, petite, but her black blazer showed off the wide breadth of her shoulders.

"Mhm." Cordelia groaned as she rose from the ground.

"Ap'Lek is an ass."

Cordelia snorted a response, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

"I'm Rizova." She said, offering a hand in greeting. "You will be working under me for the next five days. I oversee maintenance on the TIE Fighter fleet. I've been told you are knowledgeable in ship repair?"

"I am. It's what I did on Bakura. I'd consider my skill more than knowledgeable." Did she sound cocky? Good. Cordelia knew her worth. She didn't care to diminish herself for the sake of humility.

Rizova smiled as though Cordelia answered an unspoken question correctly. Waving a service droid forward, Rizova said.

"Change, and I will give you a tour."

Changed into her Order issued attire, Cordelia trailed after Rizova, who led her across a catwalk above a line of TIE Fighters. They were in a separate hangar than the one the Night Buzzard had docked in the night before. On their walk over, Cordelia learned she had slept almost an entire day away. Rizova, having arrived after her shift had ended, dinner was being served and the hangar was mostly empty from all but the necessary crew.

Cordelia was introduced to those she would see during her shifts, which would be the overnights. The joys of being the newbie. Not that time mattered much on the Steadfast. The never ending void of space didn't yield to the normal circadian rhythm like most planets did. Cordelia would adapt. She had to, if she was going to figure out a way off this ship.