The Vanished Light: A Star Wars Story

II

Thirty Years Later...

She woke up and the cell attracted no light, only from the door. People and aliens were still asleep and she was the only one awake.

She wore a grey face-mask with grey goggles but the lenses were yellow. Her mask made her breathing sound like a softened growl. Her clothing was grey all over. It made her feel like an animal.
She grabbed her canteen from her brown, leather bag which lay beside her battered mattress, pulled her mask down to reveal charred, light pink lips and white flesh, unscrewed the lid and put the cup over her mouth, only realising that there is barely any water in the dusty flask.
She lifted her goggles and placed them onto her forehead and examined inside the bottle to see nothing apart from a few specks of refracting light and darkness.
"Come on, there must be some left." she whispered to herself and patted the base of the canteen impatiently, yet trying not to alert the sleeping creatures.
No drops or specks of water came out.
She placed the lid on the canteen and screwed it back on, restraining it to one of the straps of her backpack and rolled to her side, staring at the stone walls, frowning.
"Oi, girl," a voice whispered sharply behind her.
She grunted weakly. She unwinded her turban to reveal her full face. She had scruffy brown hair, hazel-like eyes with grey dotted in them, her eyebrows looker quite thick but really, they were in good condition compared how other females' eyebrows are like.
She turned around to see an alien awake, bolt upright. She recognised his species. It was the same as the infamous Bounty Hunter, Bossk. He wore the same grey attire, only without the mask and the goggles.
"Respond. Please!" he murmered urgently.
"What?" she snapped silently.
He stared at her. "I'm hungry."
She scowled at the alien.
"Surely you got your own food. Or eaten yesterday." she rolled back her original position before the alien interrupted her tranquility.
"I didn't have any since there wasn't enough to 'round." he responded sorrowfully.
She frowned.
That was true. The night before, there was barely any food to go by and she just got some, only three-quarters less than usual.
She sighed, pulled her bag up to her bed and rummaged through it until she revealed a packet of something green and solid inside.
"Took it from someone yesterday but you have it," she held the packet to the alien.
"Don't wanna cause trouble, but okay." he took it, tore the packet open and ate the green substance like he hadn't eaten in days in the matter of fact, he didn't.
"Thanks," he gulped it down. "I didn't get your name, I feel so rude. I'm Sulluk, what's yours?"
"I don't really have a name," she said as she sat cross-legged. "apart from Stiff which is slang for naive."
Sulluk frowned. "Well, I don't think you are."
She raised an eyebrow at him and chuckled under her breath. "No, I am naive. See, I believed in what you said."
"You are like a Jayden Visa." Sulluk ignored the girl's statement.
"Sorry, what?" she asked. "Can you repeat that?"
"You are like a Jayden Visa?" Sulluk repeated.
"Jayden Visa. Jayden. Yeah, I like it!" She beamed.
"Great to meet you, Sulluk," Jayden said.
"Great to meet you too, Jayden." Sulluk smiled.
His yellow teeth reflected the sacred light as he grinned.
Jayden's smiled faded and transformed into a concentrated look.
"What's wrong- are you-"
"Between you and me, I am trying to break out. I have been thinking this through for a few nights and I think it may work." Jayden spoke sharply, as if she read Sulluk's mind.
"What for? Have you got a family, a boyfriend? A very cute one?" Sulluk asked.
"None of your business, that's why." Jayden grabbed hold of his right shoulder. "I want you to keep this to yourself, okay?"
"Not if I'm coming with you." he said.
Jayden gripped harder onto Sulluk's shoulder, making him wince slightly.
"Who said you are coming?"
"I want to help you, therefore I am." Sulluk explained. "You're my friend. Friends protect each other."
"Friend?" Jayden spat out. "I only met you."
She frowned. "Sorry, I shouldn't of done snapped like that."
Jayden felt guilt flow through her veins, arteries, capillaries, all around her body.
"It's fine, everyone reacts madly here."
She laughed a bit and smiled.
"So are we gonna do it?" Sulluk asked.
Jayden nodded with acceptance. "Yeah, let's do this."