To Heal Poignancy ■ TECH - The Bad Batch ■

A Cycle

Hello, everyone! It was my birthday this past week, so as a gift from me to you I wanted to publish this early. Fun fact: snippets from this chapter are what inspired and started this whole story! It's crazy to me that I'm finally publishing it. I hope you enjoy!

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It was finally time to welcome everyone. Adla stood before a mirror so she could watch herself smooth out her dress. It was a long, velvety black dress. She wore a Naboo orange underdress that poked out beneath the black one to create an upside down 'V' from her hips to her feet. Her brunette hair was braided and styled across the top of her head, like how a tiara would. The rest of her waves that were not weaved into the braid were down. There was no way the banquet could go wrong, she thought to herself. It was mingling, dinner, speeches, dancing, and more mingling. She could do that.

Her tongue ran over the top of her teeth.

Today, officially, marked one whole cycle since Padme Amidala's death. She had been gone for an entire year. Adla had not heard her laugh, saw her smile, her eyes, or her voice in a cycle.

Truthfully, Adla was unsure of how to feel. There were days that felt unbearable. She couldn't breathe or eat or sleep. There were days when she felt numb. She longed to see Padme again. She longed to be with Padme again. There were days, although rare and few, where she forgot that Padme was gone.

She nervously smoothed her dress down once more. A knock at the door had her shaking voice call out to the person on the other side to enter.

Tech walked in wearing the Naboo guard uniform, helmet and all. She nervously smiled at him through the mirror. He stood silently in the doorway for a moment as he watched her.

"I have been told to inform you that the guests have entered the atmosphere. Are you prepared?"

Adla silently nodded. Her gaze went back to her image. Her mind had once again supplied her with all possible outcomes that could happen tonight. She also thought about her journey that led her to where she currently stood. On the anniversary of Padme Amidala's death.

"Does something trouble you?"

She took in a deep breath before she let out a heavy sigh. She fiddled with her hair as she fixed nonexistent strays. "I just... I never wanted this life, Tech." Her voice was sad and full of disappointment. "As tone-deaf as this might be to say, but I miss when I worked for the GAR. I would rather be doing that than be in a stuffy senate building."

Tech leaned his staff against the doorframe with his right hand while he fixed his glasses with his left. "As a field nurse, right?" He quizzed.

Adla hummed. "No. I worked in topography as a cartographer. If the GAR knew or thought a battle would potentially happen on an unfamiliar planet, I was sent out to create a map of the terrain for soldiers. I marked civilizations and potential hazards for troops. You guys have probably received my maps before. It was a small department." Adla smoothed out the unwrinkled dress once more. "Some called me a spy for the Republic, but I didn't see it that way. I did sneak around sometimes, besides just creating maps. I was able to blend in with the crowd back then. No one ever really took notice of me. It was really beneficial if I needed to go to Separatist territory."

Tech's face became thoughtful as he studied the Senator's sullen expression.

"Do you miss it? "Blending in"? You are unable to continue that now, with your line of work."

"No," Adla sighed, "I can't." She rubbed her arm. "And I do. Miss it, I mean." She hesitated for a moment. She wasn't sure if she should voice her thoughts. But it was Tech. Tech would listen to her, right? There was only one other person who would listen to her hopes and wishes, but they weren't there. Feeling the need to be heard, she pushed forward. "I never wanted to do this. Be a senator, read proposals, argue about policy, sit behind a desk all day long. I wanted to see the galaxy. I wanted to learn about different beings and their unique way of life, and learn their cultures. I wanted to explore their wilderness, or lack of, I don't know. I just want to see all the galaxy has to offer. There's so much."