Blood of Heroes, Part XI
Posted: 2004-09-22 06:24pm
Annika Hansen Skywalker had been admitted to the hospital fourteen weeks ago, but it felt like a lifetime. Her life had fallen into a routine of misery, of pokes and prods and scans and tests, oh the tests. The endless parade of faces with their analyses was her world now, and by now Annika was convinced that if there was anyone within a thousand miles who was a physician, surgeon, microbiologist, or village witch doctor that hadn't seen her, he or she was probably sick themselves. And during the moments when she was finally left in peace, she was exhausted beyond measure. The disease sapped her strength, and the treatments took whatever was left. Tired in body and tired in spirit, waiting for the inevitable, knowing she'd done all she could. Most of all, she was tired of fighting, which given her past tendencies, was amusing to her in its irony.
But there was one thing she clung to even in her desperate hours, when the loneliness and exhaustion were overwhelming. It was a tiny little kick, when Jorri had come to visit. Annika could never have children, and yet, a grandchild was coming, was nearly here. Another addition to their little family, and Annika wanted to be there for her. The Doctor, as always, had been right: the thing she had left to do in her life was live. So, she awoke to a new morning, and with grim determination reminded herself that her job for today was to stay alive. It didn't seem the most ambitious of goals, but it required a constant vigilance. Fail once, and odds are you wouldn't get another chance.
The door opened, and Annika turned towards it with her usual weary dread. It evaporated in an instant when she saw who it was. "Sebastian!"
"Shh!" he said as the door closed behind him. "The Doctor let me in, but I can't attract any attention; it would be bad for the other patients."
"And you," she said. "They're probably watching the hospital."
"Yeah, well, I'll take my chances."
"Such reckless behavior; I thought I raised you better." She embraced him, although it was hard for even that exertion. "Still, I'm glad to see you."
He released her and pulled a chair nearby. "I'm sorry I can't visit often," he said, and she could hear in his voice that was putting it mildly.
"Being a wanted man does that to you," Annika said. "Don't worry about it. Han and Jorri have both been by often enough. How long has it been since you've seen her?"
"A few days, actually," Sebastian said. "We've gotten a few systems worked out to avoid attracting attention."
"She's not still flying, is she?"
"Another month," Sebastian said. He held up his hands as the tirade began. "I don't like it either, but she's bucking for fighter operations command and if she takes too much time off for maternity leave-"
"That's the most idiotic thing-"
"Mom," Sebastian said, "this isn't the Federation. Jorri's facing an uphill battle on this; she can't do anything to make it look like her gender will interfere with her duties."
"Bah," she said with a wave of her hand. "I made the choice of your father over my career."
"Yes, and you hated yourself for it. And don't lie to me because I was there to see it."
Annika made a disappointed grunt. "Damn time travel paradoxes. They get in the way of old people embellishing on the good old days."
"Yes, interfering with causality has always been one of my pet peeves."
"I trust she's at least being smart about this," Annika finally said in defeat.
"Jorri sees the doctor daily and follows a regiment so strict it makes Senatorial procedure look like a cantina brawl. She's not taking any chances."
"Except by flying," Annika pointed out.
"Non-combat missions," Sebastian said. "She's at no more risk than she'd be sitting in an office."
"That's a lie," she said. "If that were true you wouldn't feel nervous about it either."
"I don't feel nervous."
"Then why did you say, 'I don't like it either?'"
Sebastian opened his mouth to answer, but all that came out was "kriff."
"Hah, perfect memory. Don't try slipping one past me again," she said with a nod of self-satisfaction.
"There's nothing dangerous about what's she's doing," Sebastian said.
"But that's not good enough, right?"
Sebastian sighed wearily. "I have a bad feeling. Only problem is, I don't know if it's a premonition or just me worrying needlessly. I don't want to sink her career just because I'm overprotective."
"And the baby?" Annika asked.
"Jorri would never do anything to risk the baby," Sebastian said adamantly. "That's why she's doing everything the doctor tells her. She even makes sure to keep the inertial dampeners at maximum to avoid any G-forces; the baby is going to be fine."
"'The baby,' 'the baby,'" Annika said. "You know, human beings really should have names. Hasn't 'the baby,' had one picked out by now?"
"We've talked about it a little," Sebastian said, seemingly grateful for the slight change in the subject. "Although we're having a little trouble agreeing. Jorri prefers traditional names like Toryn and Brindy, but I kind of prefer Terran names. Samantha, or Mary, something a little closer to my ancestral home."
Annika nodded. In their case, she and Luke didn't have to discuss this possibility; it was one of the advantages of meeting your child before he was conceived. Still, she had always felt that it was the right name, that she would have chosen it regardless. "Bastion," a stronghold, somewhere safe... that was what she always wanted for her child. "Have you considered Dawn?"
Sebastian made a face at the name. "Dawn Skywalker? No offense, mom, but that sounds pretty stupid. Why Dawn?"
Annika hesitated a moment, then explained about what she did, how she lived. The rise of the sun in the morning was a sign to her that she'd made it again, that another day had passed and she'd come that much closer to finally meeting her grandchild. She finished and she saw the look on Sebastian's face. "But you're right; Dawn really doesn't work."
Sebastian nodded a little, seemingly lost in thought. "How about Aurora? That means the same thing, right?"
Annika rolled it off her tongue a few times. "It's your child, but personally I don't care much for it."
"Well, there's got to be some more choices," Sebastian said, tapping his ring on his lightsaber.
"What do you think of Morgan?"
"Morgan?"
"It means 'morning' in the language of our ancestors, at least in that area."
"Morgan Skywalker," Sebastian said as he thought. "I like that. Although convincing Jorri will be another matter."
Before the discussion could continue the Doctor materialized inside the room, which was unusual since he usually came in through the door. His expression showed this wasn't about medicine. "Sorry to intrude, but it looks like some white-clad fellows are interested in interrupting this reunion as well."
Sebastian got to his feet, gave his mother a quick hug and kiss, then pulled out a site-to-site transport. "I'll be back when I can," he promised.
"Be careful," she said, then bit her lip to not got emotional when Sebastian vanished. Except, he didn't vanish, and grief turned to panic.
"Kriff," he said under his breath as he jumped across the room to the window and yanked it open, looking down at the twenty or so story drop. A group of about ten stormtroopers also waited there, and they drew their blasters at the sight of him.
"I sympathize with the situation," the Doctor said quickly, "but I would like to remind you that this is a hospital."
"Then they won't have far to go," Annika said, trying to pull herself out of bed. The Doctor forced her back down, which was disgustingly easy.
"Relax, I can handle this," Sebastian lied, running out into the hallway and sprinting down it. Fighting his way out wasn't an option; like the Doctor was implying, a firefight here would be disastrous for patients and staff. If worse came to worse, he'd let them capture him and hope Gorren could break him out later... maybe. Admittedly, that didn't look very good, but there was one last option. He reached the opposite side of the building and pulled the rappel cable from his belt, affixing it to the floor. Even as he straightened back up the stormtroopers rounded the corner. He reached out, and a blaster rifle flew through the air into his hand even as they brought their weapons to bear. He ran towards an empty room, firing the blaster at the window until the material exploded outward, diving through the opening as the cable snaked out from his belt. It caught a story below with a spine-jarring yank and pulled him into the side of the building, but a quick glance showed there were no stormtroopers here, so he dropped as quickly as he dared, letting the blaster fall while he sped things up. As expected, the troopers cut the cable and he fell the last eight stories. He absorbed the impact, but even for a Jedi it was a hard fall. If he'd hit duracrete he'd probably need... well, he'd probably need to be brought back inside to be put back together, he thought as he rolled over and pushed himself off the dirt. He disconnected the cable and half-ran, half-limped around the building.
As Sebastian rounded the corner he discovered that the troopers had done an even more thorough job, having located his swoop and posted a patrol to guard it just in case. He cursed the fact that he hadn't kept the blaster; he could have stunned these two with ease. There was nothing malicious about what they wanted; they were pursuing a wanted man, they would use deadly force if they had to. But Sebastian was too badly hurt to do this gently; if he screwed up they'd easily put him down or take him out. He couldn't do that; he had a wife depending on him. He had a baby coming... Morgan... Morgan Skywalker, who needed him to make it out of this alive. He pulled out the lightsaber as he speed-limped his way across the clearing, blocking three blaster bolts and sending a fourth back to hit one of the troopers. Sebastian closed the distance and stabbed the remaining stormtrooper through the chest, extinguishing it and hooking it to his belt even as the corpse fell.
Sebastian hopped on board the swoop and set off into the jungle, piloting on instinct as he pulled a tricorder out. Transport scrambler, he thought as he closed it up and put it away. He shifted to a higher speed, keeping himself focused as he dodged the thick foliage. They'd be after him now; he'd need to get past the field to use his transporter to get back to the ship, and they'd probably pursue him with it to stop him. That'd make things even more difficult. It wasn't enough to get past them, he'd need to get far enough so he could stop and still use the transporter before he was inside the field again. Sure, he could try doing it without stopping, but these little transporters weren't the most accurate, and odds were he'd wind up arriving on the ship at ninety kph. They'd probably have to bring the transporter pad back to Chandrilla for the trial.
Sebastian took a gamble and cranked up the accelerator. His entire focus was on the approaching trees and the swoop; everything else was just a blur in the background. He was moving solely on instincts, looking for gaps before he'd even flown through the one right in front of him, because there was no time to think. After half a minute, it caught up with him as a stablizer grazed one of the trees, sending him into a wild spin. Sebastian was thrown clear just before the swoop connected with another tree in a fiery explosion. He hit the ground and rolled, bones breaking under the impact as his battered body came to a halt on the jungle floor.
After the shock of the moment wore off -which wasn't too long because the pain was like being dropped into a freezing lake- Sebastian reached down and activated the transporter. Nothing. He laid his head back with a grimace, then took a moment to try and take the edge off so he could think. Finally, agonizingly, as his right arm was broken, he pulled out his tricorder. The display was cracked, but he could clearly see the boundary was nearby. Thirty, perhaps forty meters... he dropped the tricorder and laid back in exhaustion. There was little chance his broken body could make it... ten maybe, but not that far.
But, that wasn't how you got there. His mother had gotten here, even though she shouldn't have. Sebastian had asked the Doctor how much longer she had; he'd said that they were surprised she was still alive, with how far the disease had spread. But she hung on, too stubborn to give in, her mind insisting that she go on because... "I have a daughter," he said quietly, a weak cough escaping his lips. "Morgan Skywalker." He clawed with his good arm and pulled, groaning as he pushed with his broken legs. Day by day, meter by meter, just know that you have to get there.
There was nothing majestic about Sebastian's struggle. Sometimes he would whimper in agony as his tortured body tried in vain to move. Other times he simply laid there, too spent to even brush the fallen leaves from his face. It was a pitiful display, but he wasn't doing this to impress anyone. He fought on because he couldn't stop, even when the pain was too great to move or even breathe. He must have gone about ten meters before he realized he'd left the tricorder where he'd landed, but didn't dare to go back. He stopped every once in a while to try the transporter, each failure like another lead weight attached to his body as he pushed on. He started worrying that it might have broken in the crash, but he couldn't think that way. If it was broken, then it was over, and that meant he'd failed his daughter.
The sight of the inside of their ship was the most beautiful thing Sebastian had ever seen. He lay back with a smile of contentment as Gorren came over and examined him. He couldn't even hear the Klingon over the sound of blood rushing through his head. "Take off," was all he could get out. "Take off." Gorren tried picking Sebastian up, but he pushed the Klingon away. “Take off!” he said firmly. After a moment’s hesitation Gorren rushed to the cockpit and Sebastian felt himself pushed onto the transporter pad with the acceleration. He lay where he was, content despite the pain, despite the protest from his overtaxed limbs.
Gorren eventually came back and picked up the Jedi. Even with a warrior’s strength it proved a challenge, but he laid Sebastian delicately on a bed and started treating his wounds. “What happened to you?” he asked.
“I fell… twice.”
“I will do what I can, but I am no doctor.” He gave Sebastian something for the pain. “I’ve set course for Fereginar.”
“Of course,” Sebastian said. “The Ferengi are known for medicinal skills across the Empire.”
“Your uncle and his doctor friend are there. I’m sure he could look you over without risking another run-in with your Imperial friends.”
“Yeah, we’ll see ‘bout that,” Sebastian droned. “Now you be quiet ‘cause our medicine make us sleepy.” And with that, the world faded away.
But there was one thing she clung to even in her desperate hours, when the loneliness and exhaustion were overwhelming. It was a tiny little kick, when Jorri had come to visit. Annika could never have children, and yet, a grandchild was coming, was nearly here. Another addition to their little family, and Annika wanted to be there for her. The Doctor, as always, had been right: the thing she had left to do in her life was live. So, she awoke to a new morning, and with grim determination reminded herself that her job for today was to stay alive. It didn't seem the most ambitious of goals, but it required a constant vigilance. Fail once, and odds are you wouldn't get another chance.
The door opened, and Annika turned towards it with her usual weary dread. It evaporated in an instant when she saw who it was. "Sebastian!"
"Shh!" he said as the door closed behind him. "The Doctor let me in, but I can't attract any attention; it would be bad for the other patients."
"And you," she said. "They're probably watching the hospital."
"Yeah, well, I'll take my chances."
"Such reckless behavior; I thought I raised you better." She embraced him, although it was hard for even that exertion. "Still, I'm glad to see you."
He released her and pulled a chair nearby. "I'm sorry I can't visit often," he said, and she could hear in his voice that was putting it mildly.
"Being a wanted man does that to you," Annika said. "Don't worry about it. Han and Jorri have both been by often enough. How long has it been since you've seen her?"
"A few days, actually," Sebastian said. "We've gotten a few systems worked out to avoid attracting attention."
"She's not still flying, is she?"
"Another month," Sebastian said. He held up his hands as the tirade began. "I don't like it either, but she's bucking for fighter operations command and if she takes too much time off for maternity leave-"
"That's the most idiotic thing-"
"Mom," Sebastian said, "this isn't the Federation. Jorri's facing an uphill battle on this; she can't do anything to make it look like her gender will interfere with her duties."
"Bah," she said with a wave of her hand. "I made the choice of your father over my career."
"Yes, and you hated yourself for it. And don't lie to me because I was there to see it."
Annika made a disappointed grunt. "Damn time travel paradoxes. They get in the way of old people embellishing on the good old days."
"Yes, interfering with causality has always been one of my pet peeves."
"I trust she's at least being smart about this," Annika finally said in defeat.
"Jorri sees the doctor daily and follows a regiment so strict it makes Senatorial procedure look like a cantina brawl. She's not taking any chances."
"Except by flying," Annika pointed out.
"Non-combat missions," Sebastian said. "She's at no more risk than she'd be sitting in an office."
"That's a lie," she said. "If that were true you wouldn't feel nervous about it either."
"I don't feel nervous."
"Then why did you say, 'I don't like it either?'"
Sebastian opened his mouth to answer, but all that came out was "kriff."
"Hah, perfect memory. Don't try slipping one past me again," she said with a nod of self-satisfaction.
"There's nothing dangerous about what's she's doing," Sebastian said.
"But that's not good enough, right?"
Sebastian sighed wearily. "I have a bad feeling. Only problem is, I don't know if it's a premonition or just me worrying needlessly. I don't want to sink her career just because I'm overprotective."
"And the baby?" Annika asked.
"Jorri would never do anything to risk the baby," Sebastian said adamantly. "That's why she's doing everything the doctor tells her. She even makes sure to keep the inertial dampeners at maximum to avoid any G-forces; the baby is going to be fine."
"'The baby,' 'the baby,'" Annika said. "You know, human beings really should have names. Hasn't 'the baby,' had one picked out by now?"
"We've talked about it a little," Sebastian said, seemingly grateful for the slight change in the subject. "Although we're having a little trouble agreeing. Jorri prefers traditional names like Toryn and Brindy, but I kind of prefer Terran names. Samantha, or Mary, something a little closer to my ancestral home."
Annika nodded. In their case, she and Luke didn't have to discuss this possibility; it was one of the advantages of meeting your child before he was conceived. Still, she had always felt that it was the right name, that she would have chosen it regardless. "Bastion," a stronghold, somewhere safe... that was what she always wanted for her child. "Have you considered Dawn?"
Sebastian made a face at the name. "Dawn Skywalker? No offense, mom, but that sounds pretty stupid. Why Dawn?"
Annika hesitated a moment, then explained about what she did, how she lived. The rise of the sun in the morning was a sign to her that she'd made it again, that another day had passed and she'd come that much closer to finally meeting her grandchild. She finished and she saw the look on Sebastian's face. "But you're right; Dawn really doesn't work."
Sebastian nodded a little, seemingly lost in thought. "How about Aurora? That means the same thing, right?"
Annika rolled it off her tongue a few times. "It's your child, but personally I don't care much for it."
"Well, there's got to be some more choices," Sebastian said, tapping his ring on his lightsaber.
"What do you think of Morgan?"
"Morgan?"
"It means 'morning' in the language of our ancestors, at least in that area."
"Morgan Skywalker," Sebastian said as he thought. "I like that. Although convincing Jorri will be another matter."
Before the discussion could continue the Doctor materialized inside the room, which was unusual since he usually came in through the door. His expression showed this wasn't about medicine. "Sorry to intrude, but it looks like some white-clad fellows are interested in interrupting this reunion as well."
Sebastian got to his feet, gave his mother a quick hug and kiss, then pulled out a site-to-site transport. "I'll be back when I can," he promised.
"Be careful," she said, then bit her lip to not got emotional when Sebastian vanished. Except, he didn't vanish, and grief turned to panic.
"Kriff," he said under his breath as he jumped across the room to the window and yanked it open, looking down at the twenty or so story drop. A group of about ten stormtroopers also waited there, and they drew their blasters at the sight of him.
"I sympathize with the situation," the Doctor said quickly, "but I would like to remind you that this is a hospital."
"Then they won't have far to go," Annika said, trying to pull herself out of bed. The Doctor forced her back down, which was disgustingly easy.
"Relax, I can handle this," Sebastian lied, running out into the hallway and sprinting down it. Fighting his way out wasn't an option; like the Doctor was implying, a firefight here would be disastrous for patients and staff. If worse came to worse, he'd let them capture him and hope Gorren could break him out later... maybe. Admittedly, that didn't look very good, but there was one last option. He reached the opposite side of the building and pulled the rappel cable from his belt, affixing it to the floor. Even as he straightened back up the stormtroopers rounded the corner. He reached out, and a blaster rifle flew through the air into his hand even as they brought their weapons to bear. He ran towards an empty room, firing the blaster at the window until the material exploded outward, diving through the opening as the cable snaked out from his belt. It caught a story below with a spine-jarring yank and pulled him into the side of the building, but a quick glance showed there were no stormtroopers here, so he dropped as quickly as he dared, letting the blaster fall while he sped things up. As expected, the troopers cut the cable and he fell the last eight stories. He absorbed the impact, but even for a Jedi it was a hard fall. If he'd hit duracrete he'd probably need... well, he'd probably need to be brought back inside to be put back together, he thought as he rolled over and pushed himself off the dirt. He disconnected the cable and half-ran, half-limped around the building.
As Sebastian rounded the corner he discovered that the troopers had done an even more thorough job, having located his swoop and posted a patrol to guard it just in case. He cursed the fact that he hadn't kept the blaster; he could have stunned these two with ease. There was nothing malicious about what they wanted; they were pursuing a wanted man, they would use deadly force if they had to. But Sebastian was too badly hurt to do this gently; if he screwed up they'd easily put him down or take him out. He couldn't do that; he had a wife depending on him. He had a baby coming... Morgan... Morgan Skywalker, who needed him to make it out of this alive. He pulled out the lightsaber as he speed-limped his way across the clearing, blocking three blaster bolts and sending a fourth back to hit one of the troopers. Sebastian closed the distance and stabbed the remaining stormtrooper through the chest, extinguishing it and hooking it to his belt even as the corpse fell.
Sebastian hopped on board the swoop and set off into the jungle, piloting on instinct as he pulled a tricorder out. Transport scrambler, he thought as he closed it up and put it away. He shifted to a higher speed, keeping himself focused as he dodged the thick foliage. They'd be after him now; he'd need to get past the field to use his transporter to get back to the ship, and they'd probably pursue him with it to stop him. That'd make things even more difficult. It wasn't enough to get past them, he'd need to get far enough so he could stop and still use the transporter before he was inside the field again. Sure, he could try doing it without stopping, but these little transporters weren't the most accurate, and odds were he'd wind up arriving on the ship at ninety kph. They'd probably have to bring the transporter pad back to Chandrilla for the trial.
Sebastian took a gamble and cranked up the accelerator. His entire focus was on the approaching trees and the swoop; everything else was just a blur in the background. He was moving solely on instincts, looking for gaps before he'd even flown through the one right in front of him, because there was no time to think. After half a minute, it caught up with him as a stablizer grazed one of the trees, sending him into a wild spin. Sebastian was thrown clear just before the swoop connected with another tree in a fiery explosion. He hit the ground and rolled, bones breaking under the impact as his battered body came to a halt on the jungle floor.
After the shock of the moment wore off -which wasn't too long because the pain was like being dropped into a freezing lake- Sebastian reached down and activated the transporter. Nothing. He laid his head back with a grimace, then took a moment to try and take the edge off so he could think. Finally, agonizingly, as his right arm was broken, he pulled out his tricorder. The display was cracked, but he could clearly see the boundary was nearby. Thirty, perhaps forty meters... he dropped the tricorder and laid back in exhaustion. There was little chance his broken body could make it... ten maybe, but not that far.
But, that wasn't how you got there. His mother had gotten here, even though she shouldn't have. Sebastian had asked the Doctor how much longer she had; he'd said that they were surprised she was still alive, with how far the disease had spread. But she hung on, too stubborn to give in, her mind insisting that she go on because... "I have a daughter," he said quietly, a weak cough escaping his lips. "Morgan Skywalker." He clawed with his good arm and pulled, groaning as he pushed with his broken legs. Day by day, meter by meter, just know that you have to get there.
There was nothing majestic about Sebastian's struggle. Sometimes he would whimper in agony as his tortured body tried in vain to move. Other times he simply laid there, too spent to even brush the fallen leaves from his face. It was a pitiful display, but he wasn't doing this to impress anyone. He fought on because he couldn't stop, even when the pain was too great to move or even breathe. He must have gone about ten meters before he realized he'd left the tricorder where he'd landed, but didn't dare to go back. He stopped every once in a while to try the transporter, each failure like another lead weight attached to his body as he pushed on. He started worrying that it might have broken in the crash, but he couldn't think that way. If it was broken, then it was over, and that meant he'd failed his daughter.
The sight of the inside of their ship was the most beautiful thing Sebastian had ever seen. He lay back with a smile of contentment as Gorren came over and examined him. He couldn't even hear the Klingon over the sound of blood rushing through his head. "Take off," was all he could get out. "Take off." Gorren tried picking Sebastian up, but he pushed the Klingon away. “Take off!” he said firmly. After a moment’s hesitation Gorren rushed to the cockpit and Sebastian felt himself pushed onto the transporter pad with the acceleration. He lay where he was, content despite the pain, despite the protest from his overtaxed limbs.
Gorren eventually came back and picked up the Jedi. Even with a warrior’s strength it proved a challenge, but he laid Sebastian delicately on a bed and started treating his wounds. “What happened to you?” he asked.
“I fell… twice.”
“I will do what I can, but I am no doctor.” He gave Sebastian something for the pain. “I’ve set course for Fereginar.”
“Of course,” Sebastian said. “The Ferengi are known for medicinal skills across the Empire.”
“Your uncle and his doctor friend are there. I’m sure he could look you over without risking another run-in with your Imperial friends.”
“Yeah, we’ll see ‘bout that,” Sebastian droned. “Now you be quiet ‘cause our medicine make us sleepy.” And with that, the world faded away.