Star Crossed

Afraid

"Bodhi !", I yelled, worried. The pilot didn't answer, still muttering. "Bodhi !", I yelled, diving for cover when a blaster shot landed right beside my knee. "Dank !", he exclaimed, diving to the side to close the hold door. I whirled around, intent on joining Elya to protect her while the heavy ramp lifted. She had flattened behind a tower of crates, shielding herself from the blasts.

"Take cover !", she hissed at me when a few lasers found their mark above my head. Sparkles sprang to life, burning the tip of my ear before the familiar noise of a lock echoed in the little room. I sighed; this temporary safety was welcome. Above me, the sizzling of ripped off lamps called my attention. Fortunately, the damage was minimal.

"Brace !", Bodhi yelled right before the ship took off at breakneck speed. Elya yelped as she lurched forward, and I barely escaped splitting my skull on a ladder before I grasped the rung tightly. Eadu's bay disappeared from view faster than it took to say Bantha poo.

Escaping the base proved less difficult than I expected, the storm providing some form of cover from the canon which tried a few pass at us. Fortunately, Bodhi was a skilled pilot, even with this heavy, clumsy ship. He avoided the blasts with flourish, jolting us about while the rain hammered the front visors. The weather was so dangerous that they didn't bother sending fighters after us. Better, even, they might not know yet who, exactly, had boarded the unauthorized ship.

Still, the rough winds kept us glued to our anchors. My knuckles were white from grasping the ladder so tight, and I watched Elya's silhouette warily as she balanced her weight between to the secured crates and the wall, braced like a buttress. I wish I had thought of sitting her in the copilot's seat to secure her position. A fall could have dire consequences at this stage.

Her face was white, her jaw so tight her teeth probably hurt. Something was wrong. I couldn't wait anymore and yelled at Bodhi.

"Are we safe ?"

"Not yet, but I'll take us to the other side of the moon before heading for hyperspace. There's no standard destroyer there."

"Good", I responded, wondering what the hell we would do if the empire had stationed extra security in orbit. Would we have time to slip through the cracks before they intercepted us ? Or destroyed us altogether ? Vador's pilot skills were legendary; if his tie fighter appeared on the horizon... Better we die than return to Krennic's grasp. Who knew what would happen to Bodhi if he ever got caught ?

And Elya ? My eyes returned to her ; she was swaying again, her arms rigid against the wall. The moment the ship stopped whirling about like a leaf in the wind, I left my anchor behind to join her. The young woman stumbled against me, grasping my forearms with such force that I winced. Bodhi was still adjusting the trajectory, but I couldn't concentrate on probabilities when her eyes reflected such terror.

"Galen".

Her voice was but a whisper, her face as pale a sheets.

"What is it ?", I asked, urgently.

Eyes wide, Elya pushed her hand in front of my face. Her delicate fingers were covered with blood, probably from those punches she had distributed so skillfully.

"I'm bleeding."

I frowned; so was I. My lip was busted, and my cheekbone split. She, one the other hand, had not suffered any visible injury. My eyes roamed her face, her neck, her chest, her belly, where our child safely grew... there. The blood stain sat like a herald of doom, slowly tickling down her left leg.

"The baby."

My blood ran cold, freezing in my veins as I picked her up. The floor was rocking with Bodhi's mad dash out of the planet, but I couldn't even bring myself to care if we were about to explode. I settled Elya on a bunk against the wall, pulling her on her left side to maximise the baby's oxygen intake.