Child of War

Strangers

I pushed aside the leaves to see flashes of light and laser blasts exploding several yards away. I flipped down the specs on my helmet and zoomed in on the scene. A battalion of droids marched forward, firing wildly into the trees. On the other side I saw three men in identical white armor shooting at the droids. Among them was a short alien with big ears and green wrinkly skin. I'd never seen anything like this strange little creature. It held some sort of sword. I gasped when I realized that it was a lightsaber. I'd only ever heard stories about these weapons, and the Jedi who wielded them.

What was a Jedi doing here? Why was he on a Republic ship? And who were these droids? My mind raced with a million questions, but a shoved them to the back of my mind. Whatever the reason for the Jedi's unexpected arrival, he needed my help. Resetting my goggles on top of my head, I leapt to the next tree.
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The droids were pressing in on the four survivors as I reached the final tree. I gave myself a second to analyze the situation before lunging from the trees, landing in the thick of the droids. I smacked a droid solidly just below the head, breaking its neck. Stabbing another, I pressed a button on my staff and lightening erupted from the tip, frying the machinery. I worked my way towards the survivors, bashing  as many droids as I could  along the way. I grabbed a grenade from my belt and pressed the trigger.

"Run!!" My voice  barely carried over the noise of the battle.

Breaking through the edge of the skirmish, I saw two of the armored men and the Jedi flee into the tree line. The third one stood motionless in surprise. There was no time.
I chucked the explosive into the heart of the mechanical horde. " Get down!!!"

The bomb went off, blasting through the droids like paper. The shockwave sent me flying forward. I rolled across the ground, skidding to a stop on one knee. I managed to keep a hold of my staff.

As the dust settled, I could see the damage caused by the explosive. It had flattened several trees, creating a barricade. I stood and turned to find the survivor staring at me from behind a fallen log.

I walked over and offered him my hand. "Come on. They'll get through soon."

He took my hand and let me pull him to his feet. "Who are you? What are you doing here? Lah'mu is supposed to be uninhabited."

I heard a crash from the other side of the trees. I tried to pull him into the trees, but he didn't budge. I sighed. "My name is Lianna. I'm not here by choice. Now come on!" I dragged him into the trees, leading him away from the battlefield.