Star Crossed

Illusions shattered

We approached Lah'mu not too long after this disturbing conversation. The little window at the back gave me a fantastic view - if not very broad – over the silicate rings of the planet. A former moon crushed a long time ago. I had done my research; Lah'mu was a planet whose crust had split numerous times, causing a great amount of minerals and volcanic content to spread everywhere. Hospitable enough, it held a generous amount of water that formed geysers, oceans and a fair amount of humidity in the air. Iron turned into chlorophylle, coating the planet of dark soil in greenery. It created a weird landscape from up there, far from the bustling Coruscant. This planet hosted nothing but farmers ; a very peculiar place to settle for a bright scientist. Unless he wanted the world to forget him.

We landed upon a wide expense of dark soil, wet enough to host life, yet it didn't squish under our boots. Director Krannic's bodyguards trailed us and I was confused; did he really expect an attack on such a remote and peaceful planet ?

I didn't voice my concerns, my mind was too busy taking in the large homestead of the Erso's family. A domelike structure barely emerged from the ground, its whitish roof worn out by the elements. As we walked, a tall man emerged from the house and came to meet us. My heartrate picked up and I struggled to keep a straight face. There he was ! The man I had worshipped for the past ten years! And as he approached, I couldn't help but be surprised. Gone was the proud scientist that stood tall in his uniform on my holograms. In his stead stood a man with a wary gait, clothes dirtied and worn out, hair in disarray and deep lines around his eyes. His beard, streaked with white – already ! He was not even forty yet – ate away half of his face. What struck me the most, though, was the light in his eyes. Fear. As if he had seen a ghost.

My shoulders tensed, and I tried to summon a smile but he spared me only a glance. To be fair, the six death troopers that surrounded us weren't so forthcoming. A few feet to the front stood Director Krennic, and it was his voice that greeted the great Galen Erso. I, however, couldn't really ignore the sarcasm.

— "You're a hard man to find, Galen. But farming? Really, a man of your talents?"

— "It's a peaceful life."

His voice felt like a caress, smooth and not overly deep. She knew its intonations by heart; the holocrons she worked with gathered a hundred hours of his footages.

— "It's lonely, I imagine", Krennic quipped.

— "Since Lyra died, yes."

His face gave nothing away, and I could only wonder how this man, said to be a pacifist and an idealist, could speak of such a dire event without flinching. My mentor's voice, though, dripped with mock sadness ad he opened his hands.

— "Oh. Oh. My condolences."

I couldn't help but frown; I was missing the point here. Something told me that those two men's history was more shadowed than I initially thought.

— "Search the house!", Krennic suddenly called.

I nearly started at that. What ? His former friend's announced his wife's death, and the director sent his death troopers to investigate him like a criminal ? I took a long exhale to prevent my blood from boiling, forcing myself to remain calm. I kept repeating myself that I didn't have all the cards, that I was missing plenty of information. As the death troopers spread, leaving only two behind with myself, I took the liberty to join Director Krennic. I needed to see his face to assess what was happening; he had never led me astray until then. I needed to trust in his judgment. My movement caused Erso's darkening eyes to settle on me for a moment before his jaw clenched.

This wasn't a reunion of two former friends. It was a confrontation, and I was thrown right in the middle of it.

— "What is it you want?", he eventually asked.