Full Circle

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

He braced himself but it still hurt to be lifted onto the repulsor trolley. The staff then quickly unhooked the bacta dispenser from the arm on the bed and reattached it to the trolley.

Trextan's legs would have let him walk down to the hangar bay, but that wasn't the issue. Kurt had dropped him off on an Alliance medical frigate just minutes before he had keeled over. Kurt had stayed with him until they had stabilised him and found a bed. He had some good stories and promised to teach him to at least find all the right controls on a starfighter.

Some of his time had been a blur, but he had woken alone to the sight of the bright swirls of hyperspace. He had been through his scheduled surgery to deal with a perforated bowel right as the Alliance fleet was dispersed by a Sith assault. The word was that sith agents within the Alliance had betrayed them. Fleets were regrouping towards the rim and at remaining strongholds. Their leaders had done this before.

That was nearly twelve hours ago. Trextan looked down as one attendant pushed him quickly towards a lift. A clear pouch seemed to be stuck to his skin around the wound, forming a bacta bubble. He could barely see the wound now, but he could feel it.

The hangar was buzzing with activity. They were in orbit over Polis Massa and all the patients that could be moved were being ferried down to the surface. The fleet was staying put but the medical frigates were now beyond capacity. Specialist vehicles for the critical patients and GADF med-evac U-Wings for the others. Trextan was left against the wall with another ten patients.

He felt useless. Everything was moving so fast and he was left abandoned on the side of a hangar. Either their systems had been compromised or someone had deliberately locked out the terminal in his arm as he couldn't get a signal. Couldn't even browse the holonet to pass the time.

The ambient noise was too much to find any rest so he just stewed in his own thoughts and tried to ignore the pain. Pilots, crewman and nurses walked past him as if he wasn't there. A shadow of his former self that everyone saw through. Someone said Coruscant had fallen as they passed but didn't stop when Trextan tried to raise his voice to ask about. His voice had barely rises above a croak.

Nearly an hour went by before a soldier roughly yanked his trolley away from the wall. The young woman grumbled about doing busy work as she marched him towards a ship.

The trolley fixed itself into secure clamps on the wall. They didn't even wind down the engines. A perpetual hum continued as the other three patients were brought in. The soldier slapped the inside of the hull.

“Ready to go!” She called out before sliding shut the door.

The pilots exchanged a few words as they prepared to take off. Trextan recognised her voice immediately. His sullen mood was suddenly interrupted by a burst of elation at hearing her voice. Just sitting up a little brought fresh waves of pain. He gritted his teeth and then tried to call out.

“Cho-li…” It was too quiet. Barely a groan above the noise of the ship. He took a deep breath and tried to gather the strength to call out again.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

[SIZE=9pt]With the hum of the engine, Trextan’s cry was swallowed up by the noise. In conjunction with the chaos of what was happening across Galactic Alliance space and also with the ongoing evacuation and charter of injured personnel, it was hard to pick up on that singular, strained groan. Trextan wasn’t the only one who’d been strapped into the cargohold; there were three other injured soldiers and civilian personnel who were slated to be headed off into the Polis Massa Medical Facility. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]The chance that Lieutenant Commander Choli Vyn would once again stumble across Jedi Knight Trextan Voidstalker was the last thing on her mind. Well, that was a lie. The [/SIZE][SIZE=9pt]last[/SIZE][SIZE=9pt] time the young pilot had been here was when she awoke after a month at a First Order POW camp, without a shred of memory of the circumstances that brought her to that medical cot or what had occured. Her mind had been all over the place, and after reading Janes’ letter, Choli had been quick to want to simply get away. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]That resulted in a hijack of a medical shuttle and the broody, brown eyed lanky boy with the shiny new metal arm following behind her. Thinking back on it, it was a curious state of events, but it had brought Trextan and Choli together. Now things were only escalating as the Galactic Alliance seemed to implode on itself. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]“Flight Command This is Amber Besh-Nine-Two-Seven, ready to take off on your command, over.” Choli would say, her olive face contorting into a slight frown. The tiny hairs at the back of her neck stood on end. There was just this nagging sensation; as if she had to go to the bathroom soon but that wasn’t it. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]With her massive helmet and the earphones covering the shell of her ears, it would be hard to get Choli’s attention directly unless Trextan had a headset; but the Force had its ways of communicating that slight flag of attention. [/SIZE]

[SIZE=9pt]The question was if Trextan would be able to get Choli to look behind her at the open cargo bay while she was in her focused mindset of getting ready to fly.[/SIZE]

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

Every time he tried to take a deeper breath his diaphragm pushed down on his insides. The opening from the surgery was a hot sting when stretched but it was the internal pain that forced its way past the pain meds.

When he felt the repulsors kick in he fell silent. He heard her talking over the comms. Trextan took shallow, slow breaths. He laid as still as he could as the ship lifted off the the deck smoothly. Nervous anticipation built with each breath, each wasted second.

The last few days had been a confusing, drug-addled mess. Being left alone as the events moved on without him only compounded that. No one would give him the full news, but it didn't look good.

As the ship broke through the field that separated the hangar from the vacuum of space the background noise receded. The U-Wing extended its wings and drifted smoothly towards their destination.

Trextan cleared his throat and sucked in as much air as he could.

“Choli?” he tried. Better than a croak. The patient next to him gave him a concerned look as if they were trying to work out if that had been a swear word.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

It was just loud enough to discern this time, a croaky call from the Jedi Knight to the pilot. For a moment, Choli wasn’t sure if she heard correctly; or if it had been her copilot trying to get her attention. Even then, he’d have called her by her rank and name through the headset, not --

Turning her head, the young pilot scanned the area. The cabin was dark, but the pale green glow of the overhanging lights provided enough illumination to discern the four figures and their medics. Yet it was one particular mop of dark hair and angular features that immediately drew her attention.

"Trextan?!" Choli exclaimed, the loud cry startling her co-pilot in his seat, the sound loud enough to not only echo in his headset but also in the cabin.

"What are you doing here?!" as if that wasn't obvious. Immediately her eyes went through a kaleidoscopic swirl of conflicting emotions, from the viridian hues of confusion to the gold flecked of shock and surprise. Alarm settled in a deep, burnished bronze, her eyes twin embers behind that yellow tinted visor.

Instinct was to jerk out of her seat and go to him. Her seat belt kept her in place -- as did the sudden cry of confusion from her co -pilot.

"Sir?" came his query, slightly alarmed. They were, of course, still headed towards one of the many refugee medical centers on Polis Massa.

"Get us to the drop site." Choli instructed, her head swiveling back towards the piloting console and flicking controls over towards her co-pilot.

"But --"

"You can handle flying the few thousand kilometers from here to the station, Second Lieutenant." it was that undeniable firm, clipped tone that emphasized that this wasn't an discussion.

Unstrapping from her seat, Choli seemed to rush, hands moving as quick as they could, visor being flicked back to get a better look at the cabin. Like a force of nature, just like the first time the teenage Jedi Knight had met the Rogue pilot, Choli made a beeline to her objective. Legs swung her chair and she stood to her full height, helmet barely a few inches off the bulkhead. Ducking it low and regardless of the small commotion she was doing, headed straight for the sitting Trextan.

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

The gurney had Trextan’s back at a forty five degree angle to the deck. Propped up, he could watch her stride into the hold and towards him. He didn't speak. Whilst his eyes didn't reveal his emotions through colour, everything was clear on his expression. His eyes were tinged with sadness, but he was overjoyed to see her. For another cruel instant he had started to convince himself that he had been mistaken.

“Hey,” he said softly. “Thought I would...check in again…”

The young Jedi had never intended to be taken out here. He had assumed he would stay on the medical frigate or get a transport to Coruscant. That seemed impossible now. Reaching towards her the young man suddenly looked quite fragile. He hadn't reached the stage of frustration Choli had been in when they had first met, but he was confused, feeling helpless and discarded.

There was less colour to his skin than usual. Dressings were visible around his neck under the medical gown, as well as the bandages around his waist that still held a bacta pouch to the incisions from the surgery. The scars from the torture ran much deeper than the skin.

She wouldn't be able to stay, he realised. Everything was falling apart, Coruscant under siege. He would be dumped with the others on Polis Massa and left. But he was still able to smile at the idea that he could always steal a ship again. Not that he would get fat without a Choli at the helm.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

Part of Choli wasn’t sure whether she should laugh or simply stare at Trextan. Frankly, he looked like shit. Then again, considering where they were, was it that surprising?

His voice is so weak. She thought to herself, coming to kneel down beside him. Right hand came up to slide the yellow tinted visor away from her face, Kaleidoscopic eyes swirled in a medley of colors, from shocked concern to incredulous amusement at this irony. Although that twitch at the corner of her mouth was more due to the slight panic of the situation than true humor.

“Getting hurt just so I can casavac you to Polis Massa isn’t the best laid out plan,” she managed to joke back, but it was on the tails of her reaching out her hands to cup his face. It was clammy. A brief skim of his injuries made it evident that he had been through some sort of surgery, or at the very least had been injured enough to warrant heavy medical attention. “Either that or you really wanted to go back to Polis Massa.”

“What happened?’ her voice was a hoarse crack, followed by an immediate, “Are you alright?”
It was one of those situations Choli didn’t expect to find herself in. That very real possibility of someone she cared about being harmed. Oh, it was evident that with both of their high-risk professions either would find themselves in a situation that could very well mean a risk of injury - Choli had never really been forthright on just how many times she’d been shot down in enemy territory. Nor had she asked Trextan about the details of his Jedi Operations. But seeing him here, sitting in front of her, in a medical evac shuttle she’d been piloting, made it just all too real.

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

“Had an operation down here,” he said. With his left hand he patted his gut just next to the protrusion of the bacta bubble. Trextan tilted his head to one side as he continued: “because I got stabbed,” he admitted. His voice made it seem as if he had been caught stealing sweets, instead of found after a session of torture at the hands of a sith.

His deliberate expression broke, the mask slipped. He took one of her hands and held it slightly too tight.

“I'm so glad to see you…no one would tell me exactly what was going on…i couldn't contact anyone…”

Trextan regained some control of his demeanour. His relaxed his grip on her hands. Choli seemed to really like him. For some reason. She didn't need to see quite how fragile he was feeling right now. Right as the Alliance most needed able fighters and he had been stuck staring at a patch of ceiling feeling frightened and alone.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

“You were stabbed?!” Eyes went wide and their eye color swirled in turbulent hues. “When? How?” Choli couldn’t help but ask; the words went blurting out of her mouth. When Trextan’s expression broke and his grip grew tight around Choli’s hands, the answers seemed less important and the fact that he was still alive came to the for.

“Never mind, I’m glad you’re ok.” She half asked why he didn’t contact her but the realization of their current situation made that clear. Her lips drew thin.

“The majority of the squadron’s are running black. You’re not the only one out of the loop,” she explained, adding, “ but it has to do with the First order and the Sith Empire. Some kind of joint strike? We haven’t heard much from coruscant, but I’ve heard that several worlds in the Galactic Alliance were hit at the same time.”

Choli bit her lip, eyebrows bunching in concern,” how long have you’ve been on this ship?”

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

"A few days," he replied. Choli had to move slightly closer to hear him above the engines. His shoulders rose and fell as he mentally prepared himself to explain. Even a brief explanation seemed like a daunting task.

"Kurt, this pilot, got me out of trouble." Another pause. "Held by a sith for a few hours. Don't think they'd even started, but stuck me once. I'm post op."

There was more to explain and he had wasted breath repeating himself. How helpless he had felt, bound to that torture device. How Kurt had stayed with him until he was stable and awake, waiting for the operation. Instead he fell silent again. Some of the colour had gone from his face, not because of the exertion but for the memories.

"So glad to see you," he almost choked at the words before rubbing at his eyes with his free hand yet she see anything glisten in the corners. It didn't matter that she didn't know much more about what had happened. At least he wasn't adrift on his own right now. No matter what had come before he also knew that Jacen would come. If he could. Trextan tried not to dwell on possibilities.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

It was a sad fact that Choli was able to process that information quickly. It went through the key points; Held by a Sith, a few days of torture, but post operation now. Her eyes were a flurry of color, switching from one hue to the next. Her lips drew thin, and even in the shadows of the dimly lit cabin, it was easy to see that the news struck a nerve with the pilot. It wasn't just that Trextan had gone through that experience, but one that she could relate to. Well to a degree; Choli still had no idea had happened during her month under First Order detention. I likely will never know.

"But you are alive." some might say that it was spoken rather curtly, a matter of fact perhaps. Choli didn't mean it in a manner that was intended to offend or to offer little sympathy. The fact of the matter was this -- Choli was well used to death. With the many pilots they lost during her time at Rogue Squadron or in Amber. The war with the First Order saw that there was a near endless shed of blood. There were faces and names that she knew would likely result in their death. It was no different than what could be found in the Jundland Waste on Tatooine.

The only difference is that she really, really, didn't want Trextan to die.

Her grip on his arms grew tighter as if to breathe life to her claim, the muscles flexing under her grip to the intensity of it. Any more and it would be painful, and likely would soon if Trextan didn't say anything of it.

In her expression, there lay an emotion that said she was more than glad to see him. "I'm glad you are alive." She breathed out a bit haggardly, her grip twisting to draw him close in an awkward embrace with the Jedi Knight sitting in his chair.

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

The pain in his side, the awkward position he sat in and the helmet she still wore all combined to make it difficult to really embrace one another. It was enough. Feeling lost and confused as his world had apparently started to crumble whilst he was under anaesthetic, it was more than enough just to see her again. She was like an anchor to help him settle and evaluate what was going on.

"Alive is good," he murmured. "I'll feel better soon. Better when I know more." Trextan was saving his words and didn't even expand on what he wanted to know more about. It was both the state of his injuries and expected recovery and the state of the Galaxy, the Alliance. Finding out where his friends and family were. He felt helpless, frustration threatened to become anger if left to fester.

"Will you need to go?" he asked. If this was all he got, he would take it. He was concerned that if she had to leave it could end up being almost impossible to track her down again. Someone had said the main Alliance networks were down. He gave her forearm a brief squeeze, hoping he didn't sound pathetic.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

As if to answer his question, the pilot that had taken over flight duties voice came crackling through Choli's headset. They were arriving at Polis Massa soon. It would be loud enough for Trextan to hear with the closeness of their proximity. The corner of her mouth went twisting up as if to suggest it would be so.

"Things are a mess right now," she explained, pulling back to rest on her haunches in front of him. Her arms went sliding back and her palms came to rest along his forearms. No pinching grip at least.

"I am assigned to assist with refugee casavac." she added, giving a shake of her head from side to side, "I have no idea where we will be assigned to next. We've already lost so much contact with the Core Worlds, much the less what is going on with Sullust and Lothal."

Turning up towards him, "You will likely be stationed here or moved into Outer Rim Territory -- We have already started moving forces there to regroup."

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

"Outer Rim..." he repeated. Trextan wrapped his fingers around her wrist suddenly. "If you have to go, check your personal messages...when you can?"

He had seen the world that Choli had come from. The endless wastes of sand and deadly creatures. To her, he would always want to seem independent and strong. Right now he was confused and a little frightens and there was no way to deny it. Just gloss over the surface.

"Should be up soon, help sort the mess out," he said with an attempt at an amused smile. Back here again, where so much had started.

 

[Choli Vyn]

[member="Trextan Voidstalker"]

"What? Are you planning on trying to steal another shuttle with me?" It was an attempt at a joke. Their time was running short. It was surreal seeing him. All the more so because this was where they first met.

"Do the Jedi know you are here?" she asked, brows furrowing under the tinted visor. "Are they taking you back?" will he have to go back to Sullust? Or Coruscant?

"What about your father?"

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

He smiled. His chest heaved once as if he was going to break unto a chuckle but pain flashed across his expression briefly and he stopped.

Trextan tried to keep a brave face as her string of questions built up, but it was clear he was slightly distressed.

"I don't know. Anything." He pointed at his arm. "This has been disconnected, not got a data pad and can't get an answer out of the nurses." he rattled off. "Not their fault," he clarified. Everyone was busy trying to move a large number of patients quickly.

 

[Choli Vyn]

“Do you want me to try and contact him or anyone in the Jedi Order?” As soon as she said that, Choli knew that considering the mess of things with the Sith Order and the First Order descending on Sullust and Coruscant, it would likely be difficult to get in contact with anyone from the Jedi Order, let alone Trextan’s father.

Her face would scrunch up and she bit her lip. “No...He’d likely be out there as well.” They all would. Locking her attention back on Trextan, she gave a sigh of frustration. Only for it to switch to one of deep consideration.

“Unless…” There wasn’t a Jedi Order Temple near them. Lothal and Sullust would be the closest but those would be under heavy action. But she did know someone who might be able to help.

“Chloe. Chloe might be able to get in contact with someone.” glancing down. “As for your arm, I might be able to help with that. Was it done by the doctors or did it break down?”

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

Trextan tapped at the screen. "It's on," he explained. "But I can't access any networks." He didn't know how to fix it. Either something was broken or its access to Alliance networks had been revoked. Could they have taken the step because they were afraid he had been compromised by the Sith?

"If you could... I would be..." his voice trailed off and he took some breaths to steady himself. If Coruscant was falling, would Jacen hold there to the last?

 

[Choli Vyn]

‘I can see what I can do.” but I can’t make any promises, went unsaid. Especially since it could be due to any number of things. Not to mention that once this drop off was complete, she would have to go back to pilot in the next batch of medical casvacs.

Choli’s ears would pick up on the catch on Trextan’s voice. There was a tremer there, as if he was barely holding himself together.

“Hey, look at me.” the young woman’s voice was a quiet command. “Need to know a couple of things first.” Choli wasn’t going to tell him it was going to be alright; she couldn’t promise him that. Nor could she offer comfort by telling him that he would be okay. That was out of her hands either. She couldn’t even tell him that she wasn’t going to leave him, because she still had the responsibility of piloting others who were just in the same need to get into the Polis Massa medical facility.

However, she could get him to focus away from the panic and think in the present and now. That was what mattered. It’s how she survived the desert and managed to take everything day by day in the Alliance. What served her in the past helped her in the now.

“When did your access stop?” her right hand went to his prosthetic, already sweeping up the sleeve of his medical gown with the same no nonsense nature of hers.

“What do you have the ability to do?”

 

[Trextan Voidstalker]

[member="Choli Vyn"]

"After my operation," he said softly. It gave him something to focus on. A little problem that could be solved. A drop in the ocean of kark going on right now but it was a step in the right direction.

But then again, he was the stupid boy that would walk into the storm head on. Breaking a problem down into small manageable chunks wasn't always in his nature.

As soon as he said it, he arrived at a very simple conclusion. "Maybe they turned it off. For the theater." He was using clipped sentences. Trying to keep his breathing slow and shallow. Trextan knew he needed his strength back. Not much was going to get achieved in this state.

 

[Choli Vyn]

"For the what?" Choli's face contorted to one of confusion. The reply that Trextan had given didn't make sense. At least, she didn't have the context to make up or down of it. If it was shut off after the operation, then it could be that the reason why was due to the medical care the Jedi Knight would require. If he hadn't had any contact with the Jedi Order, then it would make sense that the Jedi wouldn't be at the root of shutting him off.

"Theater?" bringing his prosthetic arm up, her fingers ran up the phrik arm to turn it over, revealing the inside of his forearm. His comm unit and the display would be tucked away here.

"What, were you playing holofilms out of it?" a terrible joke but humor was never one of Choli's greater attributes.