Face stepped onto the ramp of the Nexu's Nest and almost collapsed.
He wasn't sure if it was the physical toll or the mental one that felled him, but all the same the other Nexu carried him to the medbay, followed swiftly by Vix and a loudly tutting Tarrik.
'I told you to take it easy,' Tarrik grumbled.
'You think I got it bad,' Vix grinned, 'you should see the other ship.'
Tarrik pursed his lips and squinted at Vix, then pulled out a datapad from his back pocket. 'should...see...other ship,' he mumbled under his breath as he wrote. Face chuckled, and settled back onto his bed, letting the doctor tend to, and bicker with, his patient in peace.
He felt the ship take off, and heard yells echo throughout the ship. He learned later that the Nest had slipped into the system during their manufactured communications blackout, and while their exfiltration was somewhat unplanned, they met no resistance as the star destroyers in orbit were still trying to piece together exactly what had happened, and the Nexu had managed to link up with the Jade Arrow and fly out of the system unimpeded. In his mind's eye he pictured the indoctrination bases below. The children who would have looked up into the sky, wondering what had happened, unaware that they had been so close to being rescued. So close, and yet an impossible goal. Face had seen his Nexu perform wonders, but there was no way that they could effect an escape, not now. They were beaten and bloodied and operating with literal thousands of enemies right above their head. There was no way. He kept telling himself this to ease the pain of leaving them all behind, but it didn't help.
'Knock knock,' said a voice at the entrance, and Face looked up to see Luna, a concerned frown warring with his warm smile. 'How are you doing?'
Face smiled tiredly. 'I'm okay. I'm,' he paused. 'I'm going to be okay. Just minor things.'
Luna nodded, as if she were taking his words at face value, though he knew that she knew the pain he was going through, and wanted to not share it. Not yet, anyway.
'So,' she said, elongating the vowel so long it turned into a whistle. 'What's next, boss?'
Next is a nap, Face thought with a fervency that he felt in every aching bone in his body. 'We need to regroup. Replenish, probably, too. What's our situation?'
Luna sighed. 'Low on food, no credits. The Nest needs a few repairs. Lots of repairs, Garan says.'
Face's lip twitched at that last part. 'So you're saying we need to lay low for a bit before getting back to it?'
'For a bit,' Luna agreed, and looked over to Vix, who was undergoing another surgery for his chest wound. It didn't seem to be a serious surgery, for Vix was still awake and talking to Tarrik while he was being operated on. 'A long bit.'
Face nodded. They sat in silence for a time, neither willing to end it, wanting to stay in this moment. Let reality wait a bit longer.
'I've been thinking,' Face said at last. 'Maybe it's time we link up with the Resistance. Since there isn't really a New Republic, we're not really beholden to our original mission. I still believe in it,' he added, 'but things have changed. Perhaps there's something else we can do to help. Besides, having someone have our back would feel good.'
Luna nodded, digesting the idea. 'Might be nice,' she said softly.
'We can at least stop there to recoup, get a better idea of how things stand, at least,' he raised himself to lean on an elbow and reached over to hold her hand. 'It's not saying we lost,' he said quietly, knowing exactly what she was thinking. 'We've done some damned good work. We bloodied their noses. But we've taken a few hits, too, and there's nothing wrong with admitting that. Sometimes the best thing you can do for your team is to take a step back.'
Luna nodded again. 'I'll plot a course to the halfway house, so we can link up with the Resistance,' she said, then stood to leave.
'Wait,' Face said suddenly, unable to stop himself. 'Before you go, I have to ask. What happened at Scipio?'
Luna frowned. 'After you were captured, we left, parted ways with the prisoners. Took Zatt's parents back to Glee Anselm. Mara had stayed behind to keep an eye out for you, but got captured - hence why she was on the ship.'
Face grunted, weighing her words. 'After I was captured,' he started, his tone neutral.
'Yes?'
'Nothing.'
'Okay.'
Face looked at her squarely, trying to gauge her. 'Nothing else?'
'Some, but nothing important that can't wait,' she looked at him, confused.
Face nodded, waved her away and settled back onto his cot. Vix's surgery was another half an hour, after which Tarrik checked over Face's wounds and patched him up. By the end of it, half his body was numb from the pain relief and bacta patches. Tarrik wanted him to stay but Face protested, preferring, he said, to convalesce in his own bunk.
Tarrik sighed. 'All right. But take it easy. Don't go starting any fights with anything tougher than a pillow.'
'Wouldn't dream of it,' Face said evenly, and gave him a reassuring smile as he walked out of the medbay. He took a right, heading to the bow of the ship, but at the next intersection, instead of taking another right to head to his quarters by the salon, he continued ahead and took the steps up to the crew quarters. The hallways outside was empty. From inside several, he could hear voices. Loud, laughing, happy voices.
He stopped at one that had no sound coming from inside.
He knocked on the metal door, and a moment later it slid open.
'Hello Garan,' he said quietly. 'I think it's time we had a little chat.'
