The Droidekas surrounded me, their blasters whirring as they aimed directly at me. The realization hit me like a cold wave. So, this is how I die?

  “Roan!” Teya’s voice rang out, desperate and filled with fear.

  I turned my head to see her, realizing with a sinking heart that she had turned her back on her opponents in her rush to reach me. Time seemed to slow as I watched the Droidekas pivoting, their blasters zeroing in on her exposed back. A strange calm washed over me, cutting through the haze of pain and panic.

  I had a choice: use the last of my energy to prolong my own life or save hers. My mind reeled, flashing through memories of our time together. For all my resentment toward the Jedi, Teya had always been different. She cared for me when no one else did. Even if the Jedi order had cast me out, I knew they were better for the galaxy than the Emperor’s iron grip.

  From my detached perspective, where the world often felt like a puzzle of moving pieces, I could see it clearly—she had a future, a chance to survive. Me? My time was running out. My fingers tightened around the remaining bearings, and with the last of my strength, I launched one into the barrels of the Droideka's blasters, disrupting their aim.

  A blaster bolt tore through my gut, searing pain ripping through me, but I barely registered it. The rest of the barrage went wide, missing me as I collapsed to the ground, the pain blurring my vision. The cold of the ground seeped into me as I lay there, feeling the life drain from my body.

  Teya turned back to her opponents, realizing too late the mistake she’d made. She re-engaged with the remaining Droidekas, her lightsaber flashing through the air, but the droids surrounding me rolled closer, their weapons charging for a finishing shot. I closed my eyes, bracing myself for the end as the mechanical whirring reached a fever pitch.

  Then, suddenly, I heard a metallic crash—one Droideka slamming into another, disrupting their formation. I forced my eyes open, my vision blurred and caught a glimpse of a cloaked figure moving like a shadow among the droids, wielding a lightsaber with lethal precision. A flash of red illuminated the scene as the figure cut through the Droidekas’ shields and bodies with swift, efficient strikes.

  Why red? I wondered, confusion swirling in my mind as the darkness overtook me.

  Striking down the last of the Droidekas, I deactivated my red lightsaber and turned my attention to the figure lying on the ground. His breathing was ragged, his face pale as blood seeped from the wound in his gut. I knelt beside him, pressing my hand gently against his cheek, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath my metal fingers.

  “Hold on, my love,” I whispered, my voice cracking with emotion. “I will save you.”

  A shout pierced the air. “Get away from him!” The Morelian girl—the same one I’d fought just days before—charged toward me, her lightsaber blazing in her hand.

  I didn’t bother to rise. “If I wanted to hurt him or you, I would have done it already,” I replied, my tone dry, even as I felt the urgency pressing down on me. Time was short, and Roan’s wound wouldn’t wait.

  She hesitated, but only for a moment. Blaster fire rained down around us, and she was forced to turn back to the remaining droids. Seeing her struggle, I leaped into the fray, deflecting a barrage of blaster bolts with swift, precise movements.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  “What are you doing?” she demanded, glancing over at me, suspicion in her eyes.

  “What, are you dense? I’m helping you,” I shot back, my lightsaber weaving through the air.

  “Why?”

  “It’s complicated,” I muttered, unable to give her the answers she wanted.

  “Fine,” she groaned, turning back to the fight.

  I reached into my pouch, pulling out a pair of grenades. With a flick of my wrist, I rolled them under the Droidekas’ shields. The droids failed to react in time, and a moment later, the grenades detonated, sending a shockwave through the battlefield. Shrapnel tore through the droids’ exposed cores, reducing them to smoldering scrap.

  The Morelian girl—Teya, Roan had called her—clumsily fought the remaining two droids. Knowing their blasters were already disabled, I took a moment to study her movements. There was strength and determination in her strikes, but she lacked the refinement that came with experience. Still, she fought with heart, and I couldn’t help but appreciate that.

  I forced myself to focus, lifting two large boulders with the Force and dropping them onto the distracted droids. Their shields buckled under the weight, and the metal bodies crumpled beneath the impact.

  When the dust settled, Teya turned toward me, her expression a mix of wariness and disbelief. We stared at each other for a long, awkward moment.

  “Hi, I’m Retra,” I said, feeling a bit foolish for introducing myself like we weren’t just fighting for our lives.

  Teya continued to stare, suspicion clouding her features. “...”

  “Okay, now you’re starting to freak me out. I introduced myself. What’s your name?”

  “Teya...” she mumbled as if the words were being dragged out of her.

  “Teya, huh? What a pretty name,” I blurted, then immediately regretted it. Way to make things awkward, Retra.

  “What?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.

  “Nothing! Look, we need to get Roan immediate treatment. His wound is stable for now, but D1k can keep him alive long enough to get him to Dathomir. My Night Mother can save him,” I explained quickly, shifting the conversation to the urgent matter at hand.

  “What?! No way am I letting a dark-side witch infect him!” Teya snapped, jabbing a finger into my chest.

  “Ow! Not all Dathomir are dark-side! My Night Mother is Force-neutral, like Roan. I can tell he’s neither light nor dark. Yes, I use the dark side, but I do it reluctantly,” I shot back, frustration mounting.

  “How? Why?” Teya demanded, her expression hardening.

  I ran a hand through my hair, feeling a headache coming on. “It’s complicated!”

  “How can I trust you?” Her voice cracked, a hint of desperation breaking through her defiance.

  I met her gaze, the weight of the truth pressing down on me. “I... I don’t know,” I admitted. For all my resolve, I couldn’t find the words that would convince her.

  From behind her, Roan’s voice rasped, weak but clear. “Teya... if you trust me... believe in her.”

  Teya rushed to his side, kneeling beside him and cradling his head in her hands. “Are you sure?” she asked, tears gathering in her eyes.

  “Yes... a Bith I spoke with in my dreams said she’d be a good ally. I think... I think we can trust her,” Roan managed, his voice breaking into a coughing fit.

  My breath caught in my throat. A Bith, guiding him through visions? It sounded like the kind of ancient wisdom I’d only read about in dusty parchment and myths. Whatever Roan had seen, it was beyond anything I’d expected.

  Teya stared at me, her expression softening, though the wariness never left her eyes. “Fine, Roan. I’ll have faith in your guidance.”

  I nodded and moved to help her, my heart pounding as we lifted Roan between us. We carried him toward the ship, where D1k awaited with an automated stretcher. We propped him up on a nearby boulder while I went inside, activating the droid’s medical functions.

  After setting Roan on the stretcher, I turned to the cockpit and yanked out the device that had been disabling the ship, ripping it free with my metal hands. As the ship’s systems hummed back to life, I glanced back at Teya, who watched me with a mixture of fear and hope.

  With Roan now stabilized under D1k’s care, I set a course for Dathomir, the weight of uncertainty hanging over us all.

  So this is how I die?

  Teya shouts, "Roan!"

  Desperate to rescue me Teya turns her back on her opponents. It's feels like time slowing down realizing she's about to be shot in the back. A calm feeling passes over me, I could use the last of my energy and prolong my life for another moment or save her. I loathe the Jedi but I've always cared for Teya and although the Jedi order has scorned me, I recognize that they are better for the universe than the emperor. My Force precision makes me look at the world from an almost outside perspective. This can make me ignorant of how others feel or even my feelings right now though I know that I want nothing more than for her to live and strive for her dream. I have hid to survive for so long that I didn't even realize I had no significant aspirations of my own. Teya can escape and live while I can't and with my mind made up I launch a bearing into both barrels of the attacking Droideka's blasters.

  My energy used up I feel a blaster bolt burn its way through my gut. The rest of the barrage somehow misses. Likely because I am lying prone on the ground making me a harder target that way. I am still a sitting duck awaiting slaughter.

  Teya engages again with her battle realizing her mistake. The Droideka's surrounding me drew closer now standing over me. I close my eyes hearing the sound of their minigun blasters charging to fire again.

  Suddenly one of the Droideka slams into another taking out both android's shields. A cloaked figure swift and shadowy cuts through them with a lightsaber. My eyes go blurry and I struggle to keep them open glimpsing a flash of red in the direction of my Saviors lightsaber. Why red? I ask myself passing out.

  She's got some nice curves...