The Ancient Homeland

28

    You coughed harshly as you laid there on the floor, the world seemingly spinning as you wondering what the hell was happening. Amidst everything, you knew you were heavily disoriented, due to the fact that you had just smacked your head against titanium of all things, and numerous other factors also played into the reality of you scarcely being able to move because of being tied up for God knows how long; because of that, your muscles were quite a bit like jelly right now, and you weren't ready to embrace it in the slightest. Nonetheless, an odd thought sprang into your mind as you tried and failed, to push yourself into a sitting position. If I were jelly, what flavor would I be? You bitterly coughed once more as you tried again in attempting to sit upright. You thankfully succeeded in doing so, taking in your surroundings once more.
As you took in everything from a different angle, you noticed that the shouts and cries had become a distant echo, having moved away from your holding cell. At the notion, your dismay was hard to hide. You weren't going to admit it, but a large portion of you had hoped that it was Cal who had been causing that commotion, but it wasn't. Maybe a rogue inquisitor? Darth Vader throwing a temper tantrum? You weren't entirely sure, but these were just a few of the unconvincing reasons that filled your mind to try and ease the heartache of not being saved. You sighed and rubbed at your eyes sluggishly, knowing you had to get moving if you were to escape with a distraction on the loose.
You brought yourself into an unsteady crouching position and crawled, more like dragged yourself, over to the tightly shut hatch. You leaned against the wall and flopped into a sitting position, looking for any sign of a button to open it. There was a scanner, but it required something like a chip to access it, which you definitely didn't have. You looked around for any other means of escaping but you had no luck. You frustratedly cursed at your unluckiness, pointedly glaring at your hands because there was nothing else to glare at. It was almost like a lightbulb flicked on above your head just then because you then gazed upon the lightsaber in your hands with fondness. A grin crept its way onto your split lips as realization dawned upon you. How could I be so stupid? Resounded throughout your mind, a genuine chuckle escaping your lips at the thought.
You struggled to stand up, failing multiple times before succeeding, and you leaned against the wall for support as you readied your weapon. How long have I been in here? You thought to yourself, still struggling to stay upright. You ignited your lightsaber, the familiar buzz gracing your ears, and forced it through the metal door. You watched in amazement as the metal heated up to a boilingly hot orange-red glow. The mixture then began to slowly descend to the floor in insignificant little heaps of molten titanium.
  You moved your lightsaber out of the now vacant hole in the door and force pushed the lava-like substance outwards and into the Imperial corridors. After taking a moment of resting your burning muscles, you wobbled over the few small puddles of already cooled titanium and looked at the scene before you. There were three directions you could go in total, one straight ahead of you, and one to the left and right of your body. However, that was the least of your concerns though because in each path you looked, a swath of destruction followed. In the hallway in front of you and to the left, piles of dead stormtroopers laid. Yet as all the white bucket heads lay slain on the floor, what truly caught you off guard was the all-too-familiar ebony-colored armor of the vile purge troopers.
  If there is a purge trooper here, then a Jedi should be here too... You thought to yourself, hope beginning to bloom inside your heart no matter how hard you tried to dampen it. You shook your head fiercely, wanting to get back to the task at hand. Now's not the time. You concluded, turning your attention back to the corridor to the right of you. In it, you saw alongside the walls a few long, outstretched and exaggerated burn marks. You brought yourself closer to the scene to the right by clutching onto the grooves in the wall with your hand. As you got closer you saw the burn marks in full detail, and you knew exactly what they were. They were lightsaber burns, caused by somebody slashing into the wall; most likely out of frustration. You looked upwards and saw small burn marks, but it was definitely not the result of a lightsaber. At the new revelation, confusion swirled into your mind like a cloud as you clutched the wall. You trudged on anyway, beginning to examine the marks closer, suddenly comprehending that they were fresh. The embers still glowed within the apertures. As perplexed as you were, you knew you had to pick a direction to go... but which one?
  The pain that had been ever-present in your muscles was scorching your body now as you stood against the wall, debating on which route to take. You refused to sit down though, knowing that it was foolish to do such a thing when time was of the essence. You decided to follow the corridor you were already in, definitely not knowing where you were going at all; and that was the scariest part. You sheathed your lightsaber and forced yourself onward, following the twisting turns and dizzying loops. More than once you'd have to stop and lean your entire body into the walls, take a breather, then continue on.

   The hallways were eerily quiet, the only noises to be heard were your not-so-soft footsteps and ragged breathing. It was so strange how all of the troopers had up and left, leaving the corridors abandoned and unnerving. Right now, you were slumped into the wall for what seemed like the nth time that hour when you heard a stormtrooper shout out.
   "THERE HE IS!" Reverberated throughout the desolate hallways, and you whipped your head this way and that in frantic terror, unsheathing your lightsaber at lightning speed. Yet... The halls were vacant. Wait did he say he? You abruptly thought, a mix of sudden emotions erupting within you. Hope, relief, worry, sorrow, anger, and so much more tore throughout your body like a raging thunderstorm. You sheathed your weapon once more before you began moving at a faster pace towards the direction where you heard the shout, and where sounds of battle were seething. At the speed you were going though, the more strain on your muscles it became. You loudly cried out involuntarily as you fell forward without warning. Your legs had given out beneath you, and there was nothing on the wall to help your fall. With a noisy 'thud', you landed on the floor.

   You groaned as you felt your hips ache at the impact, knowing full well that later you'd be sporting some awful purple-black bruises; that would be if you made it out of here alive. You corrected yourself, managing to lean against the wall for support. You inhaled deeply before trying to get up, but you were interrupted by an unexpectedly handsome voice.
   "Y/N?" A voice called out in utter disbelief. You whipped your head towards the voice so fast you could've sworn you got whiplash. Yet it was worth as you laid your eyes on the heart-wrenching sight. Before you, Cal stood, in all of his magnificent glory. He looked different though, and as you peered closer, your heart dropped into your stomach. His hair was extremely disheveled and he had deep eye bags under his eyes; he looked slightly thinner, but what was the worst was how vulnerable and miserable he looked at that moment.
  "C-Cal?" You squeaked out, not fully believing your eyes, and you didn't even notice how your voice cracked as a lump formed in your throat. Cal rushed forward towards your broken body in a flash, bringing you into the most heartfelt hug you'd ever felt before. Cal burrowed his face into the crook of your neck holding onto you for dear life, which you returned in full fervor. Still, that's when you felt the tears leak onto your neck. "Cal?" You asked, words filling to the brim with concern. He held onto you tightly for a moment before pulling away and looking into your teary eyes. His eyes were red-rimmed just like yours as he gazed into yours, and the utter relief but grief on his face made your stomach twist. You didn't even realize you were crying until Cal started kissing away the tears murmuring 'it's ok' and, 'don't cry please' and more into your skin. He placed a final, delicate kiss on your lips before pulling away.
   A millisecond may have passed before he averted his eyes as you gazed at him with basically heart-eyes, so completely relieved that he was here right now. Nonetheless, that didn't prepare you for what you heard next.
   "I think I love you, " Cal muttered ever so softly, squeezing your hand gently as he placed a kiss on top of your knuckles; probably trying to hide his bright red cheeks from you with the action.