[Star Wars] Ars Moriendi - Imperial Navy Ship

Ars Moriendi - Chapter 5 At home

Chapter 5 : At home

As Alex silently hiked his way home he could feel the presence of his father in his mind, he was somewhat surprised by the sensation, he could always feel someone's presence if he was not in a crowded area, and sometimes he could hear people's thoughts but he always dismissed it as foresight or tack, he always convinced himself that he had the uncanny talent of predicting something in the immediate near future, but this time he was surprised because their house was still a couple of minutes walk and yet he could feel his father's presence as if he was an arm's length away, he always dismissed the idea that he had some special talent of sorts so he forcefully ignored the notion and busied himself with kicking a small rock while he was walking.

He was in deep thought wondering if Fleet headquarters hadn't missed the Ars Moriendi yet, they were already due to report their arrival to the Kuat Drive Yards for a refit of his ship, he wondered how his fleet commander would react to his little detour, he thought he would never get the chance to visit his home planet in a long while and a vague feeling he had at the back of his mind that kept telling him he needed to return home to Jelucan. He shuddered at the thought of losing his command or possibility losing his rank for his little adventure.

Lost in his thoughts and emotions he kicked the rock too far and it fell out of his sight, feeling dismayed he wished he didn't kick it as far and with his amusement, the rock came flying back. He instantly crouched and drew his blaster, He wished that he had his stormtroopers with him, Jelucan may be an Imperial Planet but this is still an Outer rim world and him in his shining uniform was a prime target for kidnapping or for crimelords to settle a score with the empire.

Adrenaline rushed through his body and he found it easy to concentrate whenever he was tense, he could get a feel of his surroundings and sometimes his vision and reflexes were enhanced, he always conceited it as the effect of spending too much time in the Exercise Facility of the Ars Moriendi. He couldn't feel anything around him so he nonchalantly holstered his blaster and resumed kicking the rock.

As he rounded the corner he could see their humble house, the light came flooding out of the kitchen window and he could feel his mother finishing up dinner, He felt that his father acknowledged his presence and suddenly their front door burst open. He was confused about the sensation but the rush of emotions upon seeing his father again drowned the thought.

He half walked and half ran towards his father who was running towards him. This was the first time his emotions overwhelmed him no words came out of his mouth, the little speech he wanted to say was lost.

The reunion of Alex and his father was cut short when his Mother came running out of their door as well. Alex never felt so happy to see his parents before, tightly between his parent's arms he never felt so safe and strong before as if the Emperor himself was powerless to harm him. There in the glow of their porch light, Alex felt that the Galactic Civil War was so insignificant, far away and small.

After a teary reunion, the Antares Family moved into their modest home. Despite the delay at the Ree household, Alex arrived home in time for dinner, a feat he rarely was able to accomplish during his youth. Alex found it surprising that somehow her mother was able to prepare a portion for him too, word does travel fast, he thought. Throughout Dinner, his mother constantly bombarded him with questions, especially about his state of health. She was genuinely concerned about why Alex had lost too much of his weight and his complexion looked too pale, Alex explained that he spent most of the time in an Imperial Star Destroyer Navigation room before his command at the Ars Moriendi and he spent his free time too much in the exercise room. Even with his fueled conversation with his mother, his father was silently picking his dinner, he had a strange feeling that his father was prodding his mind but he dismissed the impossible feeling and continued with his dinner.

As his mother was cleaning up, Alexis and His father moved to his Father's study, He rarely went in there and if he had to, he knew he was in trouble. He noticed that his father was morbidly too forlorn and he wondered what it could have meant.

As they entered his father's study, he could see a room filled with old artifacts and dated holocrons, the room felt musty and dark, the windows heavily covered by curtains. This was the first time he entered the room relaxed and out of trouble so he was able to see details in the room that he didn't notice before despite the dim lighting. At the far corner of the room, he could see an ornate replica of an Acclamator Class Assault ship, and he was sure it was an exact replica of the republic assault ship, they had hours of training to recognize ship classes at a glance, his father was never too public about their past before they migrated to Jelucan, in fact, he was always with his Uncle in the Core Worlds, and it was not until recently that he lived with his father and mother. His father's past was always a mystery to him and their sudden migration to Jelucan was a surprise to him a year after he was set to go to the Imperial Academy.

"Sit" His father gestured to him.

As Alex sat on the dusty chair he was able to see an old Clonetrooper helmet with its visor cracked, he was vaguely aware that there are plenty of Republic Era artifacts in his father's room and before he could investigate any further, His father had already found what he was looking for and sat directly across him from his table.

"Listen Alex." His father said, almost in a whisper. "Your time on this planet is short."

******

Thanks for reading, chapter 6 would be up sometime next week wednesday, 

regards