The sound of the sub-light engines thundered in the darkness like the beating heart of a vast sea beast. Leyla tried to calm herself, controlling her breathing and keeping the panic of being enclosed at bay. The maintenance passage was tight even for the lightly built Pantoran and had probably been intended for droids rather than organics and though she wasn’t exactly claustrophobic, she didn't relish the tight quaters. A distant light blinked at a steady increment, casting brief illumination along the dark tunnel. It was a pure white that made her bluish skin appear purple and her white hair shine like silver. She squeezed her large eyes shut against it, fighting against the tide of memories that assailed her.

The night sky flashed by as the dropship fell into the atmosphere. The distant horizon was lit with the steady flash of distant fire of heavy guns coming from the Separatist positions. Padawan Leylanda Edals, sat in one of the jumpseats trying to project a calm face to the world as white armored Clone’s chatted and joked about getting to grips with the Clankers.

“Ease your mind young one,” Tsuillin said, the Jedi Knight not deceived by something as transparent as facial expression. Tsullin was a tall Quarren, an aquatic native of Mon Cala with a squid like face of pinkish grey. As he spoke a pair of horizontal nictitating membranes closed over his large dark eyes.  He wore the armor of a Jedi General that had replaced robes in this warlike time. Leylanda had heard that the war had turned against the Separatists, but it had been a fixture of her life as long as she could remember and, mentally, she found it hard to imagine a time after it was over. Tsuillin had been her teacher for nearly two years and he was a patient and insightful teacher despite the reputation of his people as being hot tempered. 

“We will not pass close to the fighting, I wouldn’t have bought you if I thought…” Tsullin trailed off and cocked his head as though listening to something. All around them clones straightened, the buzz of cheerful conversation cutting off as though someone had cut the volume to a holo unit. Something suddenly felt very wrong, like an inky pus bursting forth from a blister that had nearly healed. Leylanda opened her mouth to exclaim but before she could form words Tsullin whipped his lightsaber from his belt and powered it on, the blue blade hissing to life a heartbeat before he swept it through the barrel of a blaster rifle being lifted to point at his body. The clones surged to their feet grabbing for weapons. Leylanda had no idea what was happening but she leaped up as she had been trained and pulled her own lightsaber free, igniting its greenish blade with a tap on the control stud. Almost instantly it moved as though of its own volition parrying a blaster bolt that ricocheted around the inside of the drop ship widely before striking a clone in the back and pitching him across his brethren.  Tsullin’s saber sliced a clone in two from hip to shoulder and then decapitated a second before snapping with impossible speed to parry the storm of blaster bolts that the surviving members of the dropships ten troopers unleashed. Leylanda’s saber moved by instinct, just like in training keeping scarlet bolts of energy away from her body. With a shout and a grind of metal Tsullin reached out with the force and ripped the door of the dropship open. Fridgid air tore at the occupants like icy knives and one of the troopers, a friendly sergeant named Blackie or Blockie stumbled and was sucked out into the screaming air. With a second shout Tsullin thrust with the force shoving the remaining troopers off their feet and sending them tumbling after their sergeant to face the two thousand foot fall to the ground below.

“Master what do we…” Leylanda began but even as the Quarren turned she saw the flash of a missile launch from one of the escorting fighters. Without thinking she dived onto Tsullin smashing him flat a heartbeat before a colossal boom seemed to swallow the world. Leylanda felt herself hit the ceiling of the dropship as it staggered under the blow and the scream of metal and tearing air was so loud that there was no more room for sound in all the world. Her body was smashed against something hard and she had only a confused impression of motion and movement and her nostrils burned with the stink of burning metal and melted electronics. The sound of screeching air grew louder and she had a momentary glimpse of the ground below rushing up to meet them she could….

Leyla opened her eyes, brushing sweat from her brow with some difficulty in the tight quarters of the maintenance shaft. That had been a long time ago. A lifetime ago. She was Leyla Slade and she was stowing away aboard this rust bucket because an Imperial Moff hadn’t taken it well when she had sold the secret recordings of his love life to a tabloid holocast. Her hand strayed down to touch the pouch that contained the two thousand credits she had been paid for the job. Instead of a lightsaber she found the butts of her twin pistols, that change more than any other drawing her out of her reverie. She was Leyla Slade, and she was going to be all right. 
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