The Vanished Light: A Star Wars Story

VIII

Draco staggered through the corridor with his face and shoulder slowly healing, but it was leaving a thick scar forming across his face. His breathing ended with gulps, his right arm extended onto the wall and that was the only thing which was supporting him. His walking was mostly limping and nothing was going to help it apart from amputation, but he didn't want that.
He kept limping down the corridor as stormtroopers marched down the corridor, nudging him as they walked by until he gave up and collapsed onto the floor.
One stormtrooper stopped and looked down at him. He didn't know what expression he was pulling behind the blank mask of his.
"Send him over here," Cantor - who was in the room beside Draco - commanded the stormtrooper.
The stormtrooper wrapped an arm around Draco's shoulder and walked into the technological room.
Cantor stared at his abused brother and grabbed his arm from the stormtrooper.
"2199's still out there in the open, heading towards Utah, the planet of absolute green," Cantor snarled. "she is good at sliding away from situations."
Draco gulped.
He remembered seeing Prisoner 2199 as a child with her brown hair and grey robes, growing up into an absolute rebel which he liked about her.
"I have someone waiting on that planet for her as the Fugitive Fourteen has that high advantage of landing at that exact planet."
Draco stared at the hologram which displayed a small map of the galaxy and on there was an orange dot which was near an incredibly bright green circle.
"To get her, I have a plan." and Cantor strided off, leaving Draco with his hand on his face. He removed it to see nothing but dry blood from his earlier encounter.
He scowled at the the hologram, then frowned at the thought that Prisoner 2199 may have to be executed.
When he was young, he had a small soft spot for 2199, but as she grew up, same goes for him, he loved her more, until that one day when she disappeared from her cell.
He sighed and staggered away from the hologram, back into the corridor, in search for one person.

Zen fixed his brown, leather collar as he fixed his sight on the cockpit windows as they were jumping to hyperspace. He was aware that Jayden walked in with her arms wrapped around her body.
"You're a prisoner, aren't ya, kid?" Zen asked.
Jayden bit her lip with anxiety, then releasing it. "Yes."
"Look, please, don't tell anyone about it otherwise the possibility of being taken back will be stupidly high."
Zen looked back at her and half- smiled. He offered her a seat next to him and all he got was an unsettled glare from Jayden.
"Sit down," Zen said to the nervous Jayden.
She sat down on the beige seats and stared into the blue, black, cyan - and a mixture of blue - and white light in utter amazement.
"What was it like as a prisoner but breaking out?" Zen brushed off specks of dust from his leather coat and his black trousers.
"It was difficult," she responded with a sad tone. "a..."
Zen saw her struggling to explain, but he wanted to know what was wrong with her.
"F... Ffff..." then an sigh. "I cannot say. It's too hard."
"Saying it's difficult is enough," Zen told her. "even if there is more you want to say, It was difficult is enough."
Jayden stared down to her feet and sighed. "One of my companions got shot in the arm as we were heading towards a shaft which we presumed was outside, so I had to go alone.Which is all the time. I was raised alone, well... by criminals, but they took no attention to me."
Little without knowing, a tear rolled down her face, her jaw clenched and her body was tense.
"I never want to experience any of it again."
Zen frowned at her, but he didn't have a supporting response. He knew he should do something, not just sit in his chair and stare at the poor girl.
He placed a hand on her back and rubbed it soothingly.
"I know how you feel, but I haven't experienced it," he said in a supportive manner.
Jayden wiped a tear away with her thumb and smiled at Zen. "Thank you, at least someone understands."
Zen nodded.
"Anyway, I need to go back to Aura and Gaiden, before they start panicking," she stood up and walked off. Then stopped. She looked back at Zen, then looked away and carried on walking off.

In the control room, there was an alcove which was used for a bedding area and Shira stared upwards with dust on her clothing, trying to repair two droids, one was a grey protocol droid - which had a distinctive look of K-2SO from... what was that team from a long while ago? Rogue One! That was it! - and a white and brown BB unit.
Shira's arms ached from exhaustion as she rested them.
Until she heard several bleeps.
Shira sat up with Oberon, Jackal, Aura and Gaiden rushing into the bay and what they saw was unremarkable.
"Beebee-Fifty-Two!" Jackal walked up to the now-functioning droid as it bleep with excitement. "I know, I know..." Another set of beeps and whirrs. "Fennec's gone bu- Don't say that!"
Shira moved her dusty blonde hair to the side as she laughed at the conversation of BB-52 and Jackal's. Oberon smiled and folded his arms as he saw Shira gracefully smiling.
"Guys, we are landing." Zen interrupted them and walked off back to the cockpit.