Gentle Armor

Prologue

It wasn't fair - not fair at all. Things had already been hard in the galaxy ever since the Galactic Republic set out to keep the peace after several solar systems declared their intentions to leave the Republic. But now, things have gotten all the worse with the Empire having taken over planets across the galaxy.

Alissa sat atop of the roof of an abandoned building with her arms around her knees, stifling a cry as she stared at the rugged remains of her home planet - Atuli. She hadn't experienced such a feeling of loneliness in her entire life, her heart weighing like a rock in her chest with the grief of losing the last person she loved. Her mother. How could the galaxy be so cruel to subject her to this in the middle of the war? She had already lost her father who died in service during the early days of the Clone Wars as a rebel pilot for a military group that strived to restore order - the Rebel Alliance Starfighter Corps. Not many people knew about them since they prefered to be under the radar.

Something Alissa was gonna have to do now that her parents were dead and she had no home to go back to. The Empire had destroyed everything when they overtook Atuli, ransacking homes and killing anyone who revolted against them. Their ruthlessness was unbelievable, and still is now after two years.

I have to get away, Alissa thought to herself. She feared that if she stayed on Atuli, her life would be nothing but a pawn for the Empire to toy with. Or worse, she'd lose it. The only problem was that she didn't know where she'd go, given she even found a way to get off world. Ships hardly ever docked, and when they did it was usually to just give reports on the war or - in the rare occasion - to take prisoners. The only thing she could do was to either get herself arrested and fight her way out of being taken to an Imperial prison or take one of their ships and find a place that wasn't enslaved to them.

Neither opposition was particularly safe, but one did almost guarantee she could avoid becoming wanted. Sighing heavily, Alissa climbed down from the roof of the badly damaged building that served as her shelter and squeezed through a hole in its  wall to reach her makeshift living area. She wasted no time packing what little belongings she had into a drawstring bag, not wanting to leave anything behind.

Maker knows the next time she'll have enough credits to afford more supplies. But at least she doesn't have to worry about one thing - defending herself.

Her father had taught her the basics of fighting and given her his old but still very effective blaster. With her weapon stored in the holster strapped to her thighs, she left the ruined building behind and headed for the heart of town. She avoided the Imperial troopers patrolling the area and crouched behind a pile of rubble near a house that once belonged to the planet's senator - Lonmar Ricwil. His house had become the Empire's base of command since it was the best way to insure they had completed control over the planet. It was also rumored that they likely killed senator Ricwil since no one has heard word from him for the past two years.

Alissa surveyed the area, her heart beating wildly as she waited for a clear path to enter the senator's house. The chances of being caught shock her to the core, but her desire to be free overpowered her fear, urging her to venture on. She drew closer inch by inch, desperately holding onto the straps of her bag to avoid making any noise until she was safely inside.

She hadn't even been in there for five seconds before a cluster of heavy footsteps were headed her way. Panicking, Alissa jumped behind a support beam to get out of sight, only just making it before a group of stormtroopers showed up. 

"Do you think the fleet has taken off yet?" One of them asked, his question grabbing Alissa's attention immediately.

"I don't think so, the general hasn't come back from patrol yet," another trooper explained. He continued speaking, but his voice was drowned out by Alissa's racing thoughts.

A fleet was here! She could escape!

When it was safe to come out, Alissa followed behind the troopers down the hall, hoping they would lead her to the hangar. Thankfully, luck was on her side and they led her to an underground room filled with ships. She spotted a Tie fighter in the back of the room, then carefully but hurriedly headed towards it and climbed up the top to drop down into the cockpit. With shaky hands, she fired up the ship's engine, drawing the attention of some of the troopers, and flew straight for the tunnel leading up to the surface before they could stop her.

Alissa's adrenaline continued to race until she was beyond Atuli's atmosphere and submerged in the sea of stars. After flying for an hour, her eyes started to feel heavy and she slumped back in her seat, teetering on the edge of sleep.

A sudden thud jolted her awake.

She tried to fly away, but something seemed to be attached to the ship, keeping it from moving. Alissa shot her head up when the hatch above her opened, revealing a man in a long sleeved, dark blue shirt and brown vest.

"Wait, please, don't hurt me. I'm not with the Empire," Alissa said hurriedly, holding an arm in front of her face.

"Who are you, then. And why are you on this ship," the man asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

"My name is Alissa Matrone. I stole this ship so I won't spend the rest of my life enslaved to the Empire."

"Wait, Matrone, as in Damion Matrone?" The man asked, surprised.

"How do you know my fathers name?" Alissa started to get nervous until she saw the red insignia on his right shoulder plate. She had seen that symbol before, on her fathers pilot uniform.

"I know because he served with us," the man sighed. He lowered his hand down to Alissa. "Come on, kid, I'll get you out of here. It's the least I can do for the daughter of one of our own men."

Alissa looked at him hesitantly for a second before taking his hand and letting him pull her out of the ship. Although she did know where she going from here, she wasn't afraid of being in the mitts of the people who fought beside her father.

After a long flight through space, Alissa found herself in one of the many secret bases of the Rebel Starfighter Corps. She stood amongst the crew members as they descended down the loading ramp. Before she could leaves as well, a hand went around her shoulder, making her look up at the man who found her -  Commander Paltro.

"You alright kid?" He asked concernedly, referring to her nervous expression.

"Yeah, I just. I haven't been with such a large group of people for a long time. Since my father died, my mother and I had kept to ourselves so the Empire couldn't hurt us. It wasn't too bad since we had each other, but now that she's gone too I...I-" Alissa's voice started to shack and she immediately lowered her head as she tried not to shed any tears. She felt embarrassed at causing a sense when was sixteen years old.

"You haven't mourned have you?" Commander Paltro questioned gently. A broken cry was his answer and he pulled Alissa into his chest to comfort her. "It's okay, Alissa. Your not alone, I'm going to take care of you."

"Thank you," Alissa mumbled hoarsely. After another minute, she pulled away from the commander then followed him off the into the base that was her new home.