A Beacon for Drifters

Chapter 3

The pneumatic hiss when the ramp releases makes me wince, but no one comes to stop me. As soon as I'm outside, I twirl around once, relishing in the short freedom I have. Then I close the ramp (it will open with my fingerprint) and set off into the dusk.

While I get that Mom and Dad are just trying to protect us, sometimes- most of the time, I want to go back and punch the First Order officer who scared my parents in their stupid smug faces.

After a few hours of wandering around, stopping to look at interesting rocks and such, I'm looking at a particularly interesting little plant when a flash of bright white makes me stop in my tracks. Stormtrooper. Coming straight towards me. I know that being alone after dark is more than enough reason for the First Order to arrest you for no reason apart from they're paranoid and evil. Also, stormtroopers are creepy as all get go.

I turn randomly down the closet alley, trying to get away from the lone stormtrooper. Almost immediately, I see my mistake- this is a dead end.

"Where are you going, Resistance Scum?" the voice, coming from behind me, is unnatural, monotone, like a droid. Stormtrooper.

I whirl around, my breath catching in my chest. the stormtrooper is standing the entrance to the alley, the light from the moons glinting off the flawless white armour.

"I'm not-" I trip on a basket and fall backward, hitting the side of my head on the hard ground. Everything goes kind of fuzzy and black around the edges.

"Trooper! Trooper!" A woman is running down the alley. she's wearing on of the wraps that seem popular here, it covers her head and makes her face impossible to make out, "There's a fight outside Oga's Cantina!"

"Thank you, citizen, the First Order will deal with it," he turns to me, "It's your lucky day, scum," then the stormtrooper turs and hurries back the way the woman came from.

As he disappears into the night, the woman pulls the wrap's hood off. She has dark skin and her equally dark hair looks like it has coloured tips. The way she stands, the set of her face, I've seen them before; in seasoned smugglers and pilots, the people have seen too much and done thing they wish they could change.

Shaking her head, she mutters- at least and octave lower than the voice she used with he trooper, "Idiot bucket. If there was a fight, the last thing I'd do d'be tell the First Order," she leans over, offering a hand, "You okay, Kid?"

"Yeah, thanks," I take the hand offered and stumble to my feet. I can feel my heart beating like it's trying to escape from my chest, but apart from a split lip and a few grazes from my head's sudden introduction to the ground, I'm fine.

"First time seeing a stormtrooper?" she asks we half-run towards the street.

"Unfortunately not. First time having one corner me in an alley, though."

She smiles, "Surprisingly that hasn't happened to me yet. But I've had my share for being shoved into the dirt by stormtroopers."

When we reach the road, she pulls her hood back over her head and checks both sides of the road, "I'm Vi, by the way."

"Holly. Why did you help me? You didn't have to; you could've just kept walking," I really don't wan tot think about what might've happened if Vi hadn't helped me.

"Would you've kept walking? Honestly?"

"No, I'd be just as bad as them if I did."

"Exactly. Where's you're ship?"

I don't bother asking Vi how she knows I'm an off-worlder; I'm not at all dressed the way I've seen the locals, "The spaceport. Force, I'm such a reckless idiot!"

"You are, but at least you can recognize that. The first step to not being a reckless, idiotic teenager is to recognize when you're being a reckless idiot. Not much you can do about the teenaged bit."

"That seems about right. Could you tell me the way back to the spaceport? Being terrified and hitting my head has shockingly caused me to loose my bearings and I'd rather not run into Mr. Sunshine-" I gesture in the direction the trooper went, "-again."

"How 'bout I just take you there, Holly?"

"That'd also work, thanks."

"Judging by..." Vi gestures vaguely, making a circle around me, "You're an off-worlder kid who snuck off your parents ship when it was docked for the night. Care to tell me why?"

"I was bored and sick of being stuck on the ship, and I could get out, so I did, stupidly, without thinking about the many ways something could go wrong."

Vi starts off down the road and I follow her cautiously. After a few minutes of sneaking around in silence she says, "You know, for a reckless, idiotic teenager, you're pretty self-aware."

"Thanks? I think?" I look up and I'm pleasantly surprised to see the spaceport entrance. Based on how quickly we got here, Vi knows Black Spire really well. It probably would've taken me a half-hour, several dead ends and a dozen or so wrong turns to get back, but she had us here in five minutes.

"You actually remind me a bit of myself when I was your age; sharp as a knife and completely unable to keep your head down," Vi tugs her hood off, grinning.

"Is that a compliment?" My own grin feels like it could light up the entire galaxy.

"Mostly," she admits with a small shrug.

I look up at the FireHawk looming over us, "Guess this is goodbye."

"If you wanted to you could come with me, join the fight."

Vi's offer is so tempting, a chance to do what I've wanted to for years; Make a difference; Fight back. But... "I can't, not yet."

"When you're ready, come find us," she presses a small data card into my hand with an understanding smile.

"I will," a soft smile tugs at the corners of my mouth, "Thank you, again, Vi."

She pulls her hood back up, stepping back to the spaceport entrance, "May the Force be with you, Holly."

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