𝐂𝐑𝐈𝐌𝐒𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 - 𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐤𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐬

𝐓𝐖𝐎 ⸺ 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐞.

0128 local hours. Year 7963 (14 BBY).
Crimson Station, Sullust.

⚡︎ ⁺.  ◍ 。

                 𝓜UCH TO VÆMAS' surprise, the corridors were empty. No stormtrooper rushing towards them, no blaster fire hitting the walls. Even the alarm had stopped blaring in this side of the building. The silence was strangely loud.

"It's too quiet," she whispered to the boy, Cal, while walking as discreetly as possible, shaking her head to get rid of the spots darkening her vision, and looking in all directions. "There should be an entire garrison here."

"Don't worry," he replied on the same tone, his lightsaber in hand, "it's part of the plan. We just have to reach the exit tunnels."

"What pl..."

She was interrupted by the sound of two stormtroopers coming closer.

"I can try to Force trick them to make sure we are not followed," Cal whispered, preparing to move forward.

"You can't!"

Væmas pulled him by the arm around a corner just in time as the guards passed by. This simple gesture made her lean against the wall not to fall, the dizziness fading quickly.

"Why not?" Cal asked between his teeth, his frustration emanating in waves around him.

"See their armor ?" she said in a low tone not to be heard after taking a deep breath. "It's red, meaning they are the Emperor's troops. These armors are modified with an electrical field. The Force mind trick doesn't work on them. Trust me, I tried."

She waited that they were gone before adding : "They're going to the prison sector. It will not take long before they realize I'm not in my cell. We have to hurry."

Cal nodded in agreement and, after checking if the way was safe, invited her to follow him with a movement of his head.

They walked for a few minutes without encountering any opposition. Cal seemed to know exactly where he was going, even though in Væmas' eyes, the corridors were all similar as she had never been in this part of the building before. However, she could still sense a spike of nervousness in him.

"Do you even know where we are going?" she finally asked, unable to hold it any longer.

Cal glanced at her for a second, and Væmas was able to tell if he was amused, even though his look could lead to think that he was already regretting freeing her.

"You have trust issues, you know that?" he finally said with the hint of a smile.

"Can't imagine why," she replied sarcastically.

"Just follow my lead and get ready to run when I tell you to."

Væmas gave up arguing and rolled her eyes.

After a few more minutes, Cal suddenly stopped, making Væmas almost bump into him, and looked at the ceiling, where a vent hatch was visible.

"Here we are."

At the same time, the alarm went off again, followed by a mechanical feminine voice: "Alert to all troopers. This is not a drill. Prisoner 9905 has escaped. Shoot to kill. I repeat. Shoot to kill."

Cal opened the hatch and easily jumped in before holding out his hand for Væmas.

"Come on! We don't have much time."

In other circumstances, Væmas would be the last one to accept help, from anyone, but her headache was growing by the minutes and her knees had started shaking. Moreover, she could already hear the rapid pace of the stormtroopers rushing towards their position. Swallowing her pride, she grabbed Cal's hand, who pulled her effortlessly in the vent. She managed to climb into it and immediately closed the hatch.