The Fall | Star Wars Prequel Trilogy

Chapter Twenty Three

Alina quickly sat up in her bed with a short yell, breathing heavily. Several moments passed before she finally calmed down, forcing herself to slow her breathing. Another night, another nightmare, another restless sleep. She should go back to sleep, she knew it.

She couldn't afford to be exhausted as she was when she was on a mission yet sleep seemed to be the enemy just as much as the bounty hunter they were tracking. Her mother's screams rang in her ears. Every time she closed her eyes, even for a brief moment all she saw was her mother's face. Beaten, bruised and cut.

It felt like the visions were getting worse every day. Becoming clearer. 'Closer to becoming reality' Alina thought grimly. She wanted nothing more than to forsake the mission and go to Tatooine. Obi-Wan and Sylvie were more than capable of handling the bounty hunter by themselves. 'The council will never allow it' she thought bitterly.

She hardly ever did what the council asked. At least not until the day her Master threatened to send her to the service corps. She had no issue believing him, Master Yoran had never wanted her. He acted like she was just a thorn in his side. She had yet to figure out why he even chose her. 'Because he needs to train atleast one Padawan to get on the council'

Sick of getting wrapped up in her thoughts Alina moved one leg off the bed, testing the floor with her toes. Cold. But not that cold, she could handle it. She moved her other leg to hang off the bed, pushing the blanket away which caused a sudden rush of cold to hit her. Even after all these years away from Tatooine she was still sensitive to cold weather. She slipped her boots on before exiting the room. She didn't see reason to take her lightsaber, most of Kamino would be asleep at this time.

She headed down hallways with no real direction in mind, just hoping the cold would be enough to distract her mind from thoughts of her mother. She was going to keep those very far away. To her surprise some of the cloning stations were still running. She found herself on the glass bridge that Lama Su and Taun We had taken them on when they'd arrived. She paused, watching the clone birthing pods.

Her mind flickered back to what Sylvie had said about the clones and their numbers. A lump gathered in her throat. 384. The red welts on her hands made by Watto every time she would fail. Her mother, dark eyes sunken in exhaustion, trying hard to have heart for the sake of her children.

The Hutt's bloated forms and booming voices. A thin whip cracking threateningly. The time Anakin had nearly died after a pod race, blood flowing trickling from his wounds. The small scars littered around her body, each of them a result of the times a toddler had proved her uselessness.

Was this what the Republic was going to be? The Republic that she'd sworn to serve without realizing the true weight of her oath? She didn't realize the tears forming in her eyes until one of them fell. 'Kriff' she wiped it away and rubbed her eyes furiously. Walking around aimlessly was no help. She'd need a real distraction.

She attempted to follow the path she'd taken previously to find her way to the target range and only succeed in getting herself hopelessly lost. She looked around the hallways for signs of things she'd seen before, wishing she had brought the blanket or something else to keep her warm.

She was relieved when she sensed a presence in the next hallway over. "Hello?" She called. She saw a person in blue hunched over as they mopped the floor. Alina saw their face when they looked up at her. It was an elderly man with pale skin. Their face shape was similar to that of the clones but his skin was too pale and his eyes too light. "What are you doing here at this time of night?" He asked, not unkindly. "I'm lost" She admitted "I went for a late night walk and I can't find my way back. I was hoping you could point me in the right direction"