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<blockquote data-quote="Ankh-Morpork Guard" data-source="post: 4213662" data-attributes="member: 10079"><p><strong>Chapter 583: Inevitability</strong></p><p></p><p>Eventually, everything died.</p><p> </p><p>It was a basic fact of the universe that most living things did their best to put in the back of their minds. But it was always there, unable to be ignored just as life itself could not be ignored. For many beings, what happened after death was vitally important to coping with the inevitability of it, including the Jedi. But sometimes, in the moments when it was so clearly there and unable to be ignored at all, it was impossible to look beyond it to what, if anything, came after. And in that kind of situation, most living beings did everything in their power to avoid it.</p><p> </p><p>It was fear, of course. Fear of the unknown. Fear of death itself or just of pain. Fear of almost everything, but fear. It had driven many Jedi into darkness, that fear. It was the most primal emotion most living beings were capable of, as they were meant to live. But fear could be overcome, but Jedi and by non-Jedi. And in those moments when it was overcome, that was when those terrified beings could actually find a way to put off the inevitable just a little longer.</p><p> </p><p>Once again, the crates over the hatch on the roof of that single building on Rodia’s moon shook violently. The Vong warriors were strong, and it wasn’t going to hold them much longer. Rea, Adria, Loro, and the remaining Rodians watched that corner of the roof carefully, blasters at the ready. New Republic fighters were still flying overhead, dogfighting with the almost countless numbers of Coralskippers in the air. Some managed to strafe the red-grass fields here and there, clearing out the remains of the Chazrach that had been feebly attempting to reach them. Now it was just those dozen Yuuzhan Vong warriors below, ready to break through and slaughter everyone on that roof before the rescue ships above were able to land.</p><p> </p><p>And staring at that makeshift barricade that would probably only hold for a few more short moments, all of them saw death. Between them, they only had enough power in their blasters for a handful of shots. Not enough to kill the Vong warriors thanks to their extremely effective vonduun crab armour. The shots had to be well placed, and there wouldn’t be time. They could kill the first, probably, a simple shot to the head as it got through the door. But after that they would all come through quickly, amphistaves at the ready to slaughter them.</p><p> </p><p>It was a terrifying thing to confront, but all of them knew it. Even the youngest of the Rodians who had convinced himself he was invulnerable suddenly understood the weight of his situation. He would not survive this year. He would not complete the Hunt. He would never be a full member of what was left of his Clan. And it scared him. It terrified all of them. But every single one of them was ready to face it, eyes open and ready for it.</p><p> </p><p>But then one of them moved beyond their fear into something else.</p><p> </p><p>Hope.</p><p> </p><p>“We could jump.”</p><p> </p><p>Rea turned to look at Adria next to her, “Jump?!”</p><p> </p><p>The red-haired human woman nodded at the edge of the roof behind her, “Its what? About ten, twelve meter drop? A little more? We could survive that.”</p><p> </p><p>“Wounded cannot jump...” surprisingly, it was the youngest of the Rodians, the green-skinned one with splotches on his face, that spoke that in his nasally voice.</p><p> </p><p>Hope was starting to catch.</p><p> </p><p>Loro shifted from his kneeling position to move over to where Commodore Nok’s unconscious form was, “We carry them and jump. No way we can leave them here.”</p><p> </p><p>“Have you all gone mad?” Rea looked from Loro to Adria and then to the Rodians, who were getting to their feet and finding ways to help Loro carry the couple other wounded that were left.</p><p> </p><p>Adria spun around and then did something that could have been stupid. She looked over the edge of the roof. Just minutes earlier, that would have meant a razor bug through her face, but not now. The Chazrach were no longer down there. She could see the red grass and bodies...so many bodies. Some slain by blaster fire, others by the starfighter strafing runs, and the rest by the group of Yuuzhan Vong warriors that were now about to get through to the roof.</p><p> </p><p>Looking back to Rea, Adria spoke quickly, “We just need a few more minutes and those shuttles will be here but we don’t have that if we stay up here!”</p><p> </p><p>“But—“ Rea stopped herself, seeing Loro starting to pick up the Commodore. One of her arms shot out, grabbing the Mon Calamari’s wrist firmly, “Don’t move him like that! You can’t! He’s already in bad shape!”</p><p> </p><p>Swiftly but gently, Loro removed her hand and went back to the Commodore anyway, “If we stay here he’ll be dead. We’ll all be dead. Adria is right.”</p><p> </p><p>They had all gone mad. All of them were bruised, bleeding, and hurt and they were going to jump from the roof to the hard ground below, a couple of them carrying unconscious wounded over their shoulders in the process. Rea watched one of the crates over the roof access fall move from another powerful push against the door. She then looked to both of her sides to see all of the others on their feet and looking over the edge...except for Adria.</p><p> </p><p>The human woman reached a hand down to help Rea to her feet, “We’ve made it this far, Rea. You and me. We’ve survived and we’ve kept the Commodore alive. But we can’t stay up here and keep that up. This is the only option we have.”</p><p> </p><p>“Unless you want to die,” one of the Rodian’s quipped, unhelpfully.</p><p> </p><p>And then the Rodians jumped. Rea heard thuds and groans as they landed, but they were amazingly silent for what had to be a very painful fall. Loro gave the two females one quick look before taking in a deep breath and jumping, too.</p><p> </p><p>“I’m not going until you do,” Adria’s hand was right there in front of Rea’s face. She was serious. This normally arrogant woman would stand there and die if Rea didn’t go. It didn’t really make sense, but then again, humans rarely did.</p><p> </p><p>Rea grabbed her fellow pilot’s arm and was pulled to her feet in one swift tug. She stood there a moment, then said flatly, “You’re mad.”</p><p> </p><p>And suddenly Adria grinned. But it was only there for a moment, because she turned and jumped. Rea watched the human woman drop and roll, though it was very ungraceful and it looked from the sound of it Adria broke a bone or two...but she did live, and even started to get to her feet, beginning to hobble away just like the others were somehow managing.</p><p> </p><p>Without a look back, Rea threw reason away and jumped. Freefall like that was something she should have seen as normal, being a pilot. But there was no protection, no control...just a fall. A fall that ended very abruptly and very roughly. She hadn’t thought to roll until it was forced on her, landing on one leg which immediately was wracked with pain before buckling under her and causing Rea’s side to slam into the ground next. She rolled beneath the meter high grass for a confusing few moments before stopping face down in the dirt.</p><p> </p><p>Her mind was registering a pain, but somehow it was dulled and distant. Adrenaline was flowing and she could hear Adria cursing not far away. She had to get up. She had to move. The Vong would know soon and they’d come after them. Everything still a blur, Rea pushed herself to her feet. Or at least, she tried to. Her right leg couldn’t support any weight, and a quick glance it showed that it was bent at a very unhealthy angle. Her tunic was frayed, too, with a slightly numb feeling extending across most of her right side.</p><p> </p><p>Suddenly a hand grabbed her left side, long fingers and thin but strong enough to yank her up and then help her to move. It was one of the Rodians, getting an arm around her to help, “Come on, Twi’lek!”</p><p> </p><p>They ran as best they could. But it wasn’t running, as much as feeble hobbling through tall grass to...no where in particular. And then, barely a twenty odd meters from the building, they all heard it. It was an angry cry of rage that didn’t need to be in Basic to be understood. Rea looked over her shoulder to see the Yuuzhan Vong looked back at them from the roof. One of them pointed, and then they, too, jumped. She didn’t seem them land, but something told her that they wouldn’t have the problems that Rea and the others had. That would have lined up just right with the rest of the day...and the war, even.</p><p> </p><p>From ahead of them, but out of sight due to the tall grass, Loro called back in his gravely voice, though it sounded strained at the same time, “I think they see us! Keep it up! Come on!”</p><p> </p><p>And then Rea heard the distinct voice of one of the Rodians yelling, “Shuttle’s down ahead! Move!”</p><p> </p><p>But behind, the Vong could be heard. They didn’t speak, but Rea could hear them moving. Heavy footsteps hitting the ground and the grass behind them rustling as the Vong warriors got closer and closer.</p><p> </p><p>“Faster!” the Rodian helping her tried to speed up, but Rea couldn’t keep up. In an attempt to do so, she let her injured leg try to take some of her weight and actually run rather than hopping along. But under her weight, Rea’s leg gave out and this time she found herself unable to ignore the pain. She slipped, yelped in pain, and then fell. The Rodian reacted by letting go of her. In that terrible moment when Rea hit the ground, she was able to see the Rodian look down at her, but he didn’t stop...he kept running.</p><p> </p><p>They all kept running except for one Twi’lek.</p><p> </p><p>For a short few moments after jumping from that roof, Rea had stopped being afraid and felt that same hope that they’d survive. There was even a ship now, on the ground somewhere ahead of her that she hadn’t seen land...but it was there. There ready to take them off the terrible moon. All of them except her. But she wasn’t afraid anymore. The Vong were right there. There was nothing she could do anymore.</p><p> </p><p>And so in that half-second of clarity, Rea’tin Lor knew that it was over. But despite that, she also knew that the Commodore and the others would make it. And that...that made it all worthwhile.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Ankh-Morpork Guard, post: 4213662, member: 10079"] [b]Chapter 583: Inevitability[/b] Eventually, everything died. It was a basic fact of the universe that most living things did their best to put in the back of their minds. But it was always there, unable to be ignored just as life itself could not be ignored. For many beings, what happened after death was vitally important to coping with the inevitability of it, including the Jedi. But sometimes, in the moments when it was so clearly there and unable to be ignored at all, it was impossible to look beyond it to what, if anything, came after. And in that kind of situation, most living beings did everything in their power to avoid it. It was fear, of course. Fear of the unknown. Fear of death itself or just of pain. Fear of almost everything, but fear. It had driven many Jedi into darkness, that fear. It was the most primal emotion most living beings were capable of, as they were meant to live. But fear could be overcome, but Jedi and by non-Jedi. And in those moments when it was overcome, that was when those terrified beings could actually find a way to put off the inevitable just a little longer. Once again, the crates over the hatch on the roof of that single building on Rodia’s moon shook violently. The Vong warriors were strong, and it wasn’t going to hold them much longer. Rea, Adria, Loro, and the remaining Rodians watched that corner of the roof carefully, blasters at the ready. New Republic fighters were still flying overhead, dogfighting with the almost countless numbers of Coralskippers in the air. Some managed to strafe the red-grass fields here and there, clearing out the remains of the Chazrach that had been feebly attempting to reach them. Now it was just those dozen Yuuzhan Vong warriors below, ready to break through and slaughter everyone on that roof before the rescue ships above were able to land. And staring at that makeshift barricade that would probably only hold for a few more short moments, all of them saw death. Between them, they only had enough power in their blasters for a handful of shots. Not enough to kill the Vong warriors thanks to their extremely effective vonduun crab armour. The shots had to be well placed, and there wouldn’t be time. They could kill the first, probably, a simple shot to the head as it got through the door. But after that they would all come through quickly, amphistaves at the ready to slaughter them. It was a terrifying thing to confront, but all of them knew it. Even the youngest of the Rodians who had convinced himself he was invulnerable suddenly understood the weight of his situation. He would not survive this year. He would not complete the Hunt. He would never be a full member of what was left of his Clan. And it scared him. It terrified all of them. But every single one of them was ready to face it, eyes open and ready for it. But then one of them moved beyond their fear into something else. Hope. “We could jump.” Rea turned to look at Adria next to her, “Jump?!” The red-haired human woman nodded at the edge of the roof behind her, “Its what? About ten, twelve meter drop? A little more? We could survive that.” “Wounded cannot jump...” surprisingly, it was the youngest of the Rodians, the green-skinned one with splotches on his face, that spoke that in his nasally voice. Hope was starting to catch. Loro shifted from his kneeling position to move over to where Commodore Nok’s unconscious form was, “We carry them and jump. No way we can leave them here.” “Have you all gone mad?” Rea looked from Loro to Adria and then to the Rodians, who were getting to their feet and finding ways to help Loro carry the couple other wounded that were left. Adria spun around and then did something that could have been stupid. She looked over the edge of the roof. Just minutes earlier, that would have meant a razor bug through her face, but not now. The Chazrach were no longer down there. She could see the red grass and bodies...so many bodies. Some slain by blaster fire, others by the starfighter strafing runs, and the rest by the group of Yuuzhan Vong warriors that were now about to get through to the roof. Looking back to Rea, Adria spoke quickly, “We just need a few more minutes and those shuttles will be here but we don’t have that if we stay up here!” “But—“ Rea stopped herself, seeing Loro starting to pick up the Commodore. One of her arms shot out, grabbing the Mon Calamari’s wrist firmly, “Don’t move him like that! You can’t! He’s already in bad shape!” Swiftly but gently, Loro removed her hand and went back to the Commodore anyway, “If we stay here he’ll be dead. We’ll all be dead. Adria is right.” They had all gone mad. All of them were bruised, bleeding, and hurt and they were going to jump from the roof to the hard ground below, a couple of them carrying unconscious wounded over their shoulders in the process. Rea watched one of the crates over the roof access fall move from another powerful push against the door. She then looked to both of her sides to see all of the others on their feet and looking over the edge...except for Adria. The human woman reached a hand down to help Rea to her feet, “We’ve made it this far, Rea. You and me. We’ve survived and we’ve kept the Commodore alive. But we can’t stay up here and keep that up. This is the only option we have.” “Unless you want to die,” one of the Rodian’s quipped, unhelpfully. And then the Rodians jumped. Rea heard thuds and groans as they landed, but they were amazingly silent for what had to be a very painful fall. Loro gave the two females one quick look before taking in a deep breath and jumping, too. “I’m not going until you do,” Adria’s hand was right there in front of Rea’s face. She was serious. This normally arrogant woman would stand there and die if Rea didn’t go. It didn’t really make sense, but then again, humans rarely did. Rea grabbed her fellow pilot’s arm and was pulled to her feet in one swift tug. She stood there a moment, then said flatly, “You’re mad.” And suddenly Adria grinned. But it was only there for a moment, because she turned and jumped. Rea watched the human woman drop and roll, though it was very ungraceful and it looked from the sound of it Adria broke a bone or two...but she did live, and even started to get to her feet, beginning to hobble away just like the others were somehow managing. Without a look back, Rea threw reason away and jumped. Freefall like that was something she should have seen as normal, being a pilot. But there was no protection, no control...just a fall. A fall that ended very abruptly and very roughly. She hadn’t thought to roll until it was forced on her, landing on one leg which immediately was wracked with pain before buckling under her and causing Rea’s side to slam into the ground next. She rolled beneath the meter high grass for a confusing few moments before stopping face down in the dirt. Her mind was registering a pain, but somehow it was dulled and distant. Adrenaline was flowing and she could hear Adria cursing not far away. She had to get up. She had to move. The Vong would know soon and they’d come after them. Everything still a blur, Rea pushed herself to her feet. Or at least, she tried to. Her right leg couldn’t support any weight, and a quick glance it showed that it was bent at a very unhealthy angle. Her tunic was frayed, too, with a slightly numb feeling extending across most of her right side. Suddenly a hand grabbed her left side, long fingers and thin but strong enough to yank her up and then help her to move. It was one of the Rodians, getting an arm around her to help, “Come on, Twi’lek!” They ran as best they could. But it wasn’t running, as much as feeble hobbling through tall grass to...no where in particular. And then, barely a twenty odd meters from the building, they all heard it. It was an angry cry of rage that didn’t need to be in Basic to be understood. Rea looked over her shoulder to see the Yuuzhan Vong looked back at them from the roof. One of them pointed, and then they, too, jumped. She didn’t seem them land, but something told her that they wouldn’t have the problems that Rea and the others had. That would have lined up just right with the rest of the day...and the war, even. From ahead of them, but out of sight due to the tall grass, Loro called back in his gravely voice, though it sounded strained at the same time, “I think they see us! Keep it up! Come on!” And then Rea heard the distinct voice of one of the Rodians yelling, “Shuttle’s down ahead! Move!” But behind, the Vong could be heard. They didn’t speak, but Rea could hear them moving. Heavy footsteps hitting the ground and the grass behind them rustling as the Vong warriors got closer and closer. “Faster!” the Rodian helping her tried to speed up, but Rea couldn’t keep up. In an attempt to do so, she let her injured leg try to take some of her weight and actually run rather than hopping along. But under her weight, Rea’s leg gave out and this time she found herself unable to ignore the pain. She slipped, yelped in pain, and then fell. The Rodian reacted by letting go of her. In that terrible moment when Rea hit the ground, she was able to see the Rodian look down at her, but he didn’t stop...he kept running. They all kept running except for one Twi’lek. For a short few moments after jumping from that roof, Rea had stopped being afraid and felt that same hope that they’d survive. There was even a ship now, on the ground somewhere ahead of her that she hadn’t seen land...but it was there. There ready to take them off the terrible moon. All of them except her. But she wasn’t afraid anymore. The Vong were right there. There was nothing she could do anymore. And so in that half-second of clarity, Rea’tin Lor knew that it was over. But despite that, she also knew that the Commodore and the others would make it. And that...that made it all worthwhile. [/QUOTE]
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