Chapter Text

CHAPTER XL : Trials, part II

Silence was loud. Overpowering, even. There were no voices. No echoes. No footsteps. Just widespread silence. It was like a liquid. It filled up every single corridor and room it touched,

Time was meaningless. Inas wasn’t sure if it had been minutes or hours. Maybe it had been days. Maybe Cessie was well into her spiral and was fighting tooth and nail to get her back. The thought made Inas’s stomach lurch.

Sleep has been impossible. Beyond just the miserable conditions, sleeping without Cessie felt just, wrong. Laying next to Cessie was like laying next to a furnace. It was perfect, especially on those stormy nights where the Base never seemed to have enough blankets. By the Force, Inas would give anything to go back to that. To melting into the mattress. To lazy kisses and half-awake conversations. That was paradise. To picture that Cessie, her Cessie , was likely barreling across the galaxy towards this heap…it made Inas’s blood run cold. 

Inas swallowed, her lips suddenly dry. It wasn’t good for the mind to wander. She knew that much. But Kriff if it wasn’t hard, when you were surrounded by three grey walls. And still, those grey walls were preferable to the burning red plasma barrier. Heat radiated off of it and baked Inas's cheeks. Even in her dark corner of the cell, she was bathed in red.

And this was just when her mind didn’t linger on the kid. Hardly a moment passed without thinking about Grier. She had called a few times and barely got any responses. That was, of course, when she didn’t hear the girl lightly sobbing or fidgeting. Just based on the occasional noise, Inas had surmised that Grier had spent her time pacing or lightly tapping on the walls of the cell. When the halls around them were still, Inas would hear the faintest tap tap tap. It was another painful reminder that she wasn’t alone.

“Grier” Inas spoke up, her voice faint enough to be easily mistaken for a trick of the mind.

Silence. Loud, long silence.

Inas cleared her throat. “Grier” she spoke up. She bit her lip. Every potential question felt stupid. How are you feeling? Probably terrible. Are you okay? No, look where you are. Do you want to talk? Probably not. Her mind didn’t have to wander far for an alternative. “What’s the first thing you want to eat when we’re out of here? I really want some jogan fruit after we leave.”

Silence again. Agonizing, crawling silence. Inas’s chest sunk like a deflated balloon. She slammed her eyes shut, pinching back hot tears. By the Force how she wished she could swallow her words and not bother the kid who was already-

“Anything?”

The voice was soft, brief enough to be mistaken for an anomaly of the air or croaking of the metal. But not for the medic. Inas’s head shot up, almost slamming into the wall. “Yeah! Anything.”

“Ice pops,” the kid answered. “Just the blue and green ones. But a ton of them.”

Inas smiled. The feeling was already strange, but still like receiving a warm hug after a eon apart. “Sounds tasty, I’m in. We’ll have a whole feast when we’re out.” She sighed, resting her face back on the wall. The cold walls actually felt nice against her burning cheeks. “You were really brave earlier.”

There was a sniffle. “Thank you” a long moment crawled on. “I’m sorry we didn’t tell you” Grier added, her voice hovering at a whisper.

Inas inhaled sharply. She had had plenty of time to think about that . It hovered in a corner of the cell, just out of Inas’s eyesight. It gnawed at her and sometimes screamed. And as it chewed and hollered, maybe a hundred scenarios hovered in Inas’s mind. Anger, hurt, fear, confusion, anxiety, tenderness, hope.

But very little of it lingered. She didn't have the heart for it. Not now, anyways.

“It’s okay, Gri” Inas nodded. Her mouth curved into a gentle smile, for a brief moment. “It’s okay. We can talk about it later.” She sighed. 

There was another sniffle. “Maybe if I told you the truth, we wouldn’t be here.”

“No no no” Inas shook her head, despite the wall between them. “Do not get stuck on the ‘what ifs’, kid. It will eat you up.” She sighed. “And besides, we’re here. Nothing we can do about it now.”

“I guess so. We just have to wait.”

“Yeah.”

There was a long moment of silence. Inas felt like she was on pins and needles.

“What if we get bored?” Grier voiced up.

Inas laughed, her eyes lighting up. “I never considered that. What can we do to pass the time in a big empty room?”

“I don’t know. Maybe we can just talk. I just don’t want to cry anymore.”

Words. Words can have taste. Some words went down like honey. ‘I love you'. ‘I’m proud of you'. Sweeter than chocolate. But often, some of the stuff Grier said went down with tartness. Inas thought about it every second it went down. It waited after the fact, staying until something went down gentler. 

The silence hovered for a second too long. Grier spoke up. “Maybe we should jog around like Da…Rhett. Like he does in the morning.”

Inas shook her head, smiling ever so gently. “I think if I tried to jog I would fall on my face.”

There was a giggle. Faint, but there. “Who takes care of the doctor when they get hurt?”

Inas sighed, sitting forward. “Most of the time, other doctors. But I have had to coach other people on how to give me stitches.”

Grier gasped. “That’s so scary! You’re brave.”

Inas smiled. “Well you know what they say, birds of a feather…” she jolted up as another sound cut through her voice. CLANK CLANK CLANK. Goosebumps covered her arms. Her stomach twisted instantly. She swallowed, burying her shaking hands in her pockets. 

The words ‘ keep being brave ’ hung on her lips. It was bitter, but she couldn’t let it go. They hung there as the clanking grew louder and louder.

There were shadows. Not in front of her cell, but in front of Grier's cell. Inas lunged for the cell wall. Her eyes were fixated on the figures close by. The man in the mask loomed over, with the crimson eyes glaring into the cell. His arms were crossed. The harsh hall lights covered his mask. “Get up.”

Silence. Inas’s stomach lurched. Her fists were balled. Her heart was racing. “Please kid…” she pleaded, just below a whisper. Every second she waited was as if she was standing on hot coals. The four stormtroopers around the Trainer stared forward, with their hands fixed on their blasters.

Silence still. Inas’s heart leapt. In her head, her prayers kept playing on repeat.

“You won't achieve much by sitting in a cell. You can either walk out we’ll drag you out” the Trainer moved closer to the cell wall. “Your choice.”

“I’m not going anywhere!” Grier snapped. Inas could taste the poison in the girl’s voice. Her blood ran cold. Her heart plummeted.

FWIP! The cell door blinked open. Inas watched through a red screen as two stormtroopers tugged Grier out. 

Despite only being there for a  few hours, the kid was already scruffy looking. Dark circles were forming under her eyes. Her cheeks were bright red. The kid’s eyes were fixated on the Trainer, scowling as she did so. 

“Let’s go,” the Trainer began. As the group started to walk, Grier looked over her shoulder. Her eyes met Inas’s, and she exhaled softly.

“Bring the other one” the Trainer announced.

The red screen blinked away. A tall stormtrooper nudged Inas forward with his blaster. Inas took a breath and hastily caught up with the pair. Grier’s face changed as Inas stepped closer. Her scowl faded, her eyes widening. Inas offered a soft look, her own lips quivering as she did so.

The group passed through the dark hallways. Grier stared up at the halls, her eyes not nearly as wide as Inas's. Inas tried to face forward, but her pupils would wander down each passing corridor. Not much was gained. Everywhere around them was chrome, bathed in red, and overflowing with stormtroopers.

Troopers moved by, barely giving them a passing glance. Grier looked back to Inas often, her face softening each time. 

“Where’s my lightsaber?” Grier looked up. 

“You will get it back when you prove yourself worthy of it” the Trainer answered. 

Grier looked down, her face halfway between a growl and a sob. Her teeth were clenched. “It’s mine. I need it."

“That garbage? It would figure that the fugitive would make you a lightsaber pieced together by junk” The Trainer scoffed, as a large door opened. “You will get a lightsaber. But first, you must rise to the occasion.” 

The training room was somehow, bleaker than Inas could’ve possibly imagined. Red lights lined a dark, empty room. Empty, of course, except for a few scattered crates and training remotes.  For what it was worth, the room was massive. Long walls stretched on and on. There were no screens and no windows. Only long scratches along the walls. The thought of whatever caused that made Inas pause, even as the troops ushered her along.

Inas’s eyes lingered on the walls. What’s beyond here? More hallways? Water? Maybe I should just grab Grier and run. But I would have to subdue them all. And we are vastly outnumbered. Maybe if we-

“You should be proud” the Trainer’s voice echoed. “This room saw the creation of powerful inquisitors. You are joining a line of people who changed the galaxy" The Trainer lifted a hand. In the blink of an eye, a training emote flew to him. It landed squarely in his hand. “In time, you’ll be like them. You will unlock more secrets of the Force and become everything you were meant to be” 

Grier stared forward in silence. She looked down for a moment, her eyes meeting her own reflection on the floor. 

“Keep your anger. Let it grow” The Trainer stepped forward. His cloaked back was to Grier as he stepped further away. “That’s what separates greatness from weakness. Greatness lets anger rise, it uses it.” He paused. “Weakness, like Rhett’s, lets anger drive them away.” Quicker than a blink, he turned.

CRASH!! The sound of metal hitting metal echoed across the room like thunder. The training remote was in pieces, at the wall behind Grier. Smoke poured out from the scrambled pieces. Grier kept her face buried in Inas’s side, though her eyes remained fixed on the Sith. Inas kept a tight arm around the girl, her heart in her throat. 

The Trainer turned. He stopped, staring at the wall. "You could've stopped that easily, with your powers." The figure stepped forward, his shadow stretching further with each step. "You have to make a choice, child ” The Trainer moved closer. “Who will you be? Someone who runs & hides. Or, someone who rises?”

Grier’s heart raced. Inas could feel her trembling. Grier swallowed, the color draining from her face. “H-he isn’t weak.”

The Trainer froze. His gaze was piercing, even through the mask.

“Rhett…he isn’t weak" Grier said, stepping away from Inas.

The Trainer kneeled, just inches from the girl. “Every time you think that, remember who’s here, child.” He grabbed her arm and brought her to the center of the training room. Inas lunged after her. She only froze when she felt a pair of rough hands on her biceps. "That coward left you on some backwoods planet, but I offer you opportunity, power, potential."

"He's not a coward!" Grier snapped. "He's the best and bravest Jedi Master ever."

"Really then? Move one of the crates” the Trainer said squarely. "Show me all that he's taught you."

Grier turned, staring down the array of boxes scattered across the room. After a few slow seconds, she froze. She looked forward and balled her fists. “The Force doesn’t work like that with me.” She looked over her shoulder. She flinched, staring at the mask that was bathed in red light. “I can’t make it do what I want.”

The Trainer chuckled. “Is that one of the lies Rhett has fed you?”

Grier frowned. Her gaze narrowed. “No. The Force doesn’t listen to me. Most of the time.”

“It's time you know the truth. The Force obeys you. It is a tool for you to bend to your will. You command it” The Trainer crossed his large, muscular arms. “Move the crate.”

Grier frowned. Every set of eyes in the room was fixed on her. And she hardly even blinked.

“No. I won’t.”

Inas felt she was on pins and needles with every second that passed. Her legs were begging her to sprint to the kid. Grier kept her eyes on the trainer. Inas’s eyes scanned the kid. Though she was planted in her spot, the girl’s hands were trembling. She was taking quick breaths, in between her answers. 

The Trainer huffed. “You should reserve that tenacity for someone who deserves it. Remember who is here.”

“I do,” she growled. “I’m not moving any dumb crate!”

“You will!” The Trainer jolted forward, his voice thundering across the room. The walls shook. The lights flickered. “You will follow my teachings unless you want to go back to the cold rock you came from!”

“It would be better than being here!” Grier snapped. “You’re not my Master!”

The Trainer stood up straight. “Shock the other one.”

Inas couldn't imagine what it felt like to be shocked. But as the stormtroopers turned their shock sticks on, she didn't imagine it could be anything less then tortuous. She closed her eyes.

THUD! A second passed. The shock sticks clanged against the ground, before coming to a standstill. Inas slowly opened her eyes. Her breath was caught in her throat. Her heart was beating out of her chest. Her skin felt as if it was on fire. She blinked, looking up to the ceiling. 

The handful of troopers were dangling in the empty space. They hung in the air, hardly moving. As fast as Inas could blink, the troopers were flung into the opposite wall. The crash of their armor against the metal sent Inas stumbling back. The troopers crumbled to the ground, falling on top of each other in heaps.

They didn’t move after that.

Inas’s mouth hung open. She met Grier’s wide eyes. The kid's hands were outstretched in front of her. But other than that, she was frozen. 

Long, silent seconds passed. Inas was frozen. There was a explosive cocktail of emotions swirling in her chest. One second, all she could feel was panic overtake her. Another second, the sheer relief washed over her. But all she could do was stare, mouth agape. 

Her mind briefly wandered back to a simpler time before there were stormtroopers or Empires. When she was a girl, she heard stories of the Jedi. She knew they could manipulate objects without so much as moving. She knew they were peacekeepers.

Now, years later, she was staring into the face of a child. A trembling child, who held her hands out and looked at Inas with terrified eyes. 

The thick silence faded with a new sound. The Trainer threw his head back. His chest heaved as he laughed. The very sound of it was poisonous.

“Good, good” His head tilted down to Grier. “They weren’t exaggerating about you kid.” He paced around the child. “Power like that, that’s promise. That’s the first step to unlocking your potential. And you will rise to it.”

Grier stepped back. Her face grew paler with each second. Her chest heaved. “I’m not…I didn’t-”

“Power like that…” The Trainer clasped his hands behind his back. “That’s incredible…” He turned his head. “On your feet!’

 The troopers, with their jerky movements, stumbled to their feet. Some of them hobbles with each step.

One trooper, however, did not stand. He moved his arms, trying to crawl to his feet. He barely made it to his knees before plummeting back to the ground again. “M-my Lord, I cannot-”

The Trainer’s heavy boots shook the room. After a few paces, he loomed over the trooper. He raised a foot and pressed it against the trooper’s leg. The trooper’s screams bounced off the walls. Grier shuddered, her hands racing up to cover her ears. Inas stared, covering her mouth.

“When I say on your feet, that’s on your feet, soldier” the Trainer removed his boot. “Troopers, take these two to the medical wing. Alert Doctor Castor. Blood samples, immediately." 

Grier flinched. Her eyes rested on Inas, searching Inas’s face for anything.

The troopers hastily bound the pair. Inas flinched at the freezing binds. It wasn’t aiding her sea of goosebumps. 

“Lastly, get these two a proper meal”  the Trainer nodded. “The little one earned it.” Grier’s head shot up. She frowned, her face falling.  “Take them.”

As soon as they had entered the training room, they were out. Inas wanted to both sigh and sob.

Suddenly, the cell was seemingly much preferable.

Her eyes wandered down to Grier, who kept her head down. A pain throbbed in Inas’s chest. Worse than hunger. Worse than heartbreak. The image of those troopers getting lifted and thrown played again and again in her head. The crash of the armor. The shrieks of the fallen trooper. The look in Grier’s eyes.

Inas had a million questions swirling in her head. But those could wait. 

Incredible . Inas thought. Truly incredible. Each room is somehow worse than the last,

Inas didn’t even recognize the infirmary at first. No cots. No privacy curtains. No scrubs. Just an array of gray beds with their thin sheets. No windows, again. No charts or safety protocols outlines on the walls. Just another dark, grey room. 

The troopers guided them through. They went straight for a large, chunky chair. It wasn't until they got up close that Inas recognized it as something reminiscent of her long days at medical school. 

“In the chair” the trooper nudged the kid. Grier looked over her shoulder once, gulping. She struggled to climb into the chair, everything being too big for her. Finally, she sat and rested her arms on the left armrest. She looked at Inas, with wide eyes. 

“Wait for Doctor Castor to arrive” a trooper announced. “D-don’t move.”

Grier stared at Inas. She raised her bound hands and wiped her eyes. “I didn’t mean to-”

“No talking!” the trooper snapped. Grier and Inas flinched.

Long minutes passed. Machines blinked. There were vague echoes from somewhere deep within the facility. Inas shifted her gaze between the troopers and Grier.  

A door slammed somewhere in the labyrinth of the infirmary. “Please” a deep voice echoed from the halls. “Tell me I’ve been brought something more interesting than another mangled tro-” a figure stepped into the light. A relatively young face, framed by a mess of silver hair. The lower half of his visage was engulfed by a poorly cut shadow. His dark eyes were deeply set, with equally dark circles. He wore a standard Imperial uniform that reeked of bleach. The doctor stepped forward, pushing the troopers aside. “So you found the stray? Only took you boys long enough.” He leaned forward, staring at Grier. Grier looked away from him, opting to watch Inas's expression.

“He requested blood samples from the kid,” a trooper responded. 

“Figures” the doctor pulled gloves out of his pocket and slipped them on. “Take the binds off.”

There was a long pause. Glances were exchanged between troopers. “But sir, in the training room, she-”

“You think I’m scared of a child?” the doctor spat. “Do what I say.”

As the trooper carefully unbounded her, Grier’s eyes fell to the doctor’s hands. The doctor rifled through drawers. After a few hurried seconds, he pulled out an array of needles. He rested the needles on a crowded tray that was already marked with scalpels, bandages and vials. Some of the tools were large, some small, but all equally sharp.

Grier’s heart leapt to her throat. She scooted away from the doctor, shaking her head. “No, no, please I hate needles!” 

The tray began to rumble. The needles bounced around as the tray shook. The sound of vibrating metal rang in the adults' ears. 

The troopers began to back up, exchanging glances. “Sir, it’s-” 

“I’m a doctor!” Inas shouted. She raised her bindings, taking quick breaths. “I’m a doctor back home. She knows me. She trusts me. I can take her blood.” She looked over to Doctor Castor. 

Castor saw the white of her eyes, and exchanged glances between the kid and her. “Under my supervision You don't want to know what happens if you step out of line.”

Inas nodded as the trooper removed her bindings. She mulled over the now-still tray. She frowned, exchanging glances between Grier and the sharp objects. Slowly, she grabbed some blue elastic and crouched in front of the girl.  “This makes your veins easier to spot. Will feel tight, but won’t hurt.”

Grier nodded, watching Inas. The medic leaned in and tied the blue strand around Grier’s arm. “See? Just pressure.”

Grier nodded, biting her lip. "You know everything" the girl whispered.

Inas nodded, carefully suppressing a laugh. She scanned the tray of instruments. Her chest sank. For a long time, she just stared at the array of tubes, needles and bandages. These idiots didn't think through the reality of having a child in their midst.

She sanitized a spot on Grier’s arm, and smiled gently to her. “I found a small needle. That one’s great. It’ll be way less painful than most needles.”

The troopers exchanged glances. The doctor leaned in, frowning with a raised eyebrow. “What are you…” he whispered, then shook his head.

Grier hastily nodded. “H’okay.”

Grier could barely stay still as the medic drew blood. The girl’s face went to her arm at one point. She quickly looked away. The color drained from her face as she gagged. 

“If you’re going to vomit” Inas muttered. “Do it on the guys next to me, please.”

Grier looked up to her face, with wide eyes. Slowly, she smiled. A giggle escaped, as Inas’s face relaxed. “Why aren’t you vomiting?" Grier whispered, doing everything in her power not to look at her arm.

Inas smiled. “I think I lost the ability a while ago. It would have to be something really, really gross to make me sick.” Grier relaxed, her shoulders falling.

Until, she moved slightly. Grier grinded her teeth, closing her eyes. “This is the less painful one?”

“I promise” Inas winced, watching as the vial filled up. Her eyes wandered up. “Why do you want her blood anyways?”

“Midichlorians,” Castor nodded. 

Inas nodded. She remembered midichlorians, vaguely, from her studies. Even then, it was hard to wrap her head around them. Her entire education had been blaster burns and cauterizing wounds. She had earned her keep in blood and sweat. Space wizards and their blood was not at the forefront of her mind for a long time.

“Ah, yes, midichlorians,” Inas frowned. Carefully, she removed the needle and wrapped a gauze around Grier’s arm. “Keep that on, kiddo. You did a great job.” She smiled softly. Grier nodded, a hint of doubt creeping across her face.

Inas handed the blood vials to Castor. “Do with that what you will” she rested the needle on the tray, biting her lip. 

The doctor turned the vials in his hand. “Good clean work, Doctor. You may prove yourself useful yet.”

Inas scoffed. “Always figured the day would come." She helped Grier down. The kid’s feet had barely touched the ground before the bindings were back on. 

“Ow" Inas winced as the bindings hugged her skin. "Is this necessary? For a five minute walk?” Inas frowned.

“It’s not for you” the trooper muttered.

The entire walk to their cell, Inas held her breath. She reminded herself to breathe through her nose. Her eyes shifted all over the hall. She watched each blinking light and each panel. As the group rounded a corner, Inas’s eyes stayed. She paused on the corner, holding her breath. 

“Keep moving” a trooper huffed, shoving her along.

Inas nodded. She bit her lip, picking up her pace. The medic kept her head down, staring at her distorted reflection on the chrome floors. 

The buzzing cell screen greeted them eagerly. Binds off, the duo were pushed into their respective cells. The same icy floors and scarlet lights welcomed them in. 

Except each room now had a steaming meal on a tray, placed neatly next to a gray cot. 

Inas huffed. Maybe even monsters could make good on their promises. 

Inas sat against the wall, her arms folded against her chest. She sighed, as the echo of boots grew smaller and smaller. Her shoulders fell. She closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. A long moment hung in the air, as the cold licked Inas’s face. Slowly, the medic opened her eyes and looked down her right sleeve.

The scalpel was still there. It was tucked neatly into her sleeve, barely out of sight. She had had maybe a half second to place it, but it was still there. 

It wasn’t much, but it was better than nothing. Hopefully they'll be so busy they won't miss it.

She sighed, her head falling back against the wall. She could’ve smiled. She felt the muscles in her face, begging for a smile. But it never manifested. She closed her eyes, wincing. 

Maybe it would be a tool. Then it would be easy. But to use it against a trooper? The thought made her shutter.

She could feel all her medical oaths eating away at her. She had spent years aiding people at their worst and trying to make them comfortable. She would never do harm, that was her pledge. She knew a body, that was for sure. She knew where people were vulnerable. But to use that knowledge to intentionally hurt? It went against every teaching she had ever known. 

She sighed, firmly keeping her eyes shut. 

No one had ever taught her what to do when your hands were bound.

Tap tap tap. 

She sat forward hastily. Her eyes shot open. No one else in the halls. She was still alone. Well, not really.

She exhaled, leaning back against the wall. “Grier?”

“Uh-huh?” The voice was soft.

“There’s cameras everywhere. On every corner. I thought you should know.” Inas’s eyes wandered to the halls outside. Every corner was marked with dark bulbs, each with mangled reflections across them.

“H’okay. Thank you.”

"You feeling okay, Gri?"

"I guess." Tap tap tap. 

Inas nodded. Her eyebrows furrowed. “Is that you – tapping on the wall?”

“Uh-huh!”

She smiled weakly, looking forward. “Now why are you doing that? Surely there must be something better to pass the time - like sleeping.”

“No way! I can't sleep anyways. At least the wall makes different sounds.”

Inas sat forward. She squinted at nothing in particular. “Come again?”

“The wall makes different sounds. Like echoes, sometimes.”

Inas leapt to her feet and felt the wall. Her hands ran along the frigid metal panels. Each was flat, with no divots or bumps. Inas bit her lip and gently tapped.

Nothing. No echoes. No unusual ringing. Just cold steel.

“I don’t hear anything.”

“You gotta move around. That’s the part that makes it not-boring.”

Inas shook her head, but walked along the cell wall. She kept tapping her hand against the wall, the cold now numb to her. 

What am I doing? I should be planning. Finding a way to disable the cameras and sneak back to the hanger and…

Tap tap tap. 

There it was. An echo. 

Inas snapped her head around, meeting with a dull gray square. But there was an echo. 

Something. Something was back there. It wasn't a solid wall. But a big empty space. Maybe wires. Maybe an air ventilation shaft. Her sleeve grew heavier. I can use the scalpel to lift a panel or use the blunt end to unscrew something. Maybe.

It wasn’t a plan. It was a start.

Inas placed her forehead against the wall, letting out a chuckle. “You got a good ear, Gri.”

“Really?” Grier’s voice perked up. “Everyone back at my old home said I wasn’t a good listener.”

“Well they lied,” Inas answered, with a smile that radiated like sunlight.

There was silence, but Inas didn’t mind. Her mind raced and raced, imagining a billion scenarios. Overpower the guards when they bring a meal? Sneak through a ventilation shaft? According to Joah, the kid has done it before. Maybe a large-scale technical malfunction. But none of this would matter if they couldn’t-

“Am I a bad person?”

Inas blinked, freezing in her spot. “What?”

“Because I hurt those bucketheads. Rhett was hurt here by the guy in the mask, and that guy is bad. Does that make me bad?”

“Absolutely not,” Inas paced. It’s not like she could do anything. She couldn’t hug the poor kid, or kneel to her level and calm her. The most she could do was just walk in circles and hope. “You saved me! Don’t ever feel bad about that.”

“But I still hurt someone!”

“And you think they would’ve hesitated before hurting one of us? They weren’t going to blink once before shocking me” Inas nodded. “You were protecting us. You saved me. You’re the furthest thing from evil.”

In another cell, Grier hesitated. She hugged her knees to her chest as she stared forward. Her eyes wandered to the firm cot and the hot food. It all felt nauseating - as much as her stomach rumbled. She whipped her head away. “Da-...Rhett showed me how to protect myself with a lightsaber. But, this is very different” she rested her forehead against her knees, closing her eyes. “I’m not ready for this.”

There was a pause. The pacing that echoed from the other cell stopped. Grier sighed. 

“That’s life kiddo,” Inas sighed. “None of us really feel ready ever. We just try our best. You just keep trying your best and keep being brave." Inas nodded. 

Grier sighed, running a hand through her hair. “Being brave is difficult.”

“I know,” Inas nodded. “But you’re doing a good job.”

“So are you!” Grier piped up.

It earned a moment of silence between the two. “Try to get some sleep, kiddo. It’s been a long day.”

“H'okay,” Grier nodded. She crumbled against the wall, curling up in a corner of the room. She rested her chin on her arms, staring at the cell door. “Goodnight...I think, Inas.”

Inas chuckled. “Goodnight Grier.”

Grier blinked slowly, watching the outside hallway. As seconds crawled on, her mind buzzed. Minutes crawled by. Silence and still air filled the room, but one thought played on a loop: Rhett, Berry, hurry up please.