Till there are no stars left in the sky

Part 11

Gaige entered her quarter within ten minutes and awkwardly looked about the room as he cleared his throat, clearly uncomfortable. His attire was different from anything she had seen him wear before. Instead of his usual loose workout clothes, the general donned much more formal apparel. A well fitted blazer was draped across his broad shoulders and was decorated with a slew of medals on his chest. He had obviously earned his rank. His sandy hair was slicked back with some sort of gel, and he was clean shaven. His eyes held the same distance she had grown accustomed to when she saw him. Though Aurora had seen him many times, she found him to be substantially more attractive than she had remembered.

Aurora shared in his awkward discomfort, maybe more so with her newly found attraction. Here was the second man in her room today, though she had at least had time to dress herself this time, and he was to remain there until the threat of The Resistance had been extinguished. The two of them had never held a conversation outside the topic of her training with him, and the awkward silence that hung between them brought a hint of red to Aurora's cheeks. His green eyes took relief as they landed on a plush, dark gray chair in the far corner of the room. He nodded his head toward Aurora in acknowledgment of her presence, who sat perched on the sill of the viewing window, then made his way to sit on the piece of furniture.

Aurora scoffed at the mannerism. "Let me guess, you aren't allowed to talk to me. You'll just sit there like a statue until you are summoned to do something else?" She turned back coldly and looked out at the stars, her mind drifting in the vastness of space. Her feelings told her that soon this void would come to life with ships and battle, a thought that stirred sadness in her. Death would see its fortune in blood today, and she could do nothing to sway its fate. She didn't know anything of the Resistance in particular but she knew enough to know they ,like every stormtrooper, general and lieutenant on this ship, had a family somewhere, a family they may never see again. Wetness crept into her eyes but she willed it away. Her concentration broke when her companion for the day cut in.

"If I had reason to speak to you I would do so, as it stands I have none." His tone was harsh but rather straight forward.

Hearing his reaction threw her off, she expected him to say nothing at all. Her thoughts strayed to what the masked figured had warned her of. She gave into that curiosity. "Kylo Ren said he was the only person on this ship who cared what happened to me, that you and everyone else would rather see me dead for fear I could overpower you." The words fell out effortlessly and carried the tone of a casual conversation. She plastered a pleasant smile on her face and turned towards her guardian. "Is it true, if things go awry will you try to kill me?" A bigger smile crossed her face "Are you so terrified of me?"

Gaige considered her for a moment not moving an inch. He tilted his head slightly from side to side as he pondered his response. "You are strong, feared by most here, no doubt, and a wild card. You have no loyalty, but you do as you are told. I couldn't tell you if Kylo Ren is capable of caring for anything other than himself and his personal agenda, but I can tell you I am not so terrified nor have you exhibited any good reason for me to feel the need to kill you." He chuckled then continued "I have seen the darkness he uses to summon such power and destruction, and darling, I see no such thing in you."

"Well maybe I don't enjoy slaughtering the lives of the innocent as much as the rest of you." She responded defensively.

Her guardian's face softened "I know." He conceded "I don't do it for the thrill either, kid. I follow orders. I'm sure many on this ship share my feelings as well." He looked back to her face for a brief moment like he wished to say more, but his attention was taken to the scene unfolding past her.