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allzelemonz · 3 years

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Don’t Go: Crosshair X Gender Neutral Reader Part 2

Crosshair decided to go to the mess with you after displaying the most emotional vulnerability you’d ever seen him have. You walked side by side as usual. Normally some of the clones that had been your cadets would wave to you, but not a single one did. Cake, who got his name for a reason totally unrelated to food, normally would have given a high five or something, but he passed without a second glance. It all made you feel uneasy.

When you arrived at the mess you both got your trays and found Wrecker, Echo, and Tech to sit with. They were still talking about the programming within the clones. Wrecker was entirely against the notion, so much that his declarations caught the attention of the others in the mess. Hunter sat down and chimed in, informing everyone of an Imperial’s evaluation. You gave a small chuckle at Tech’s joke about mental evaluations.

“Hello again.” Omega greeted.

You’d seen the young clone around Kamino, but had never talked to her. She tried to get the batch to acknowledge their meeting. You stayed to yourself, only looking at Crosshair on occasion as he did the same.

“Check it out. The defect squad’s got themselves a new recruit.” A passing clone made fun. “Another member added to the Sad Batch.”

Omega was clearly annoyed while the batch took nothing much of the common comment. You took notice once she had thrown a ration at the clone. She demanded an apology. You looked around at the batch, seeing Echo in a look of shock and Wrecker with a cheerful face.

Hunter tried to deescalate the situation. It was almost handled until the clone made a backhanded comment to Omega. Wrecker did not like that. The hulking clone threw a tray full at the jerk of a clone and there began the food fight.

Crosshair and yourself stayed seated, just wanting to eat. However, once Echo was thrown back onto the table the meal was ruined. Crosshair picked up a tray and threw it into a reg, knocking him back. You took a breath, trying to remain professional as the chaos enhanced all around you.

You caught sight of a familiar face watching the fight from above, Tarkin. You thought back to what the Prime Minister said about your job possibly being in jeopardy and the clone evaluations. Showing Tarkin that you could command the troopers would probably help your job more than just sitting there.

You climbed up onto the table and let out as loud of a whistle as you could.

“Troopers!”

The prerequisite of a command made every clone look to you, as a soldier should.

“Report to your barracks, reprimands will come about later!” You shouted. “Move!”

The command itself made every reg in the mess scurry away with great urgency. The Bad Batch moved to help Echo who had somehow been knocked unconscious. You told the batch to take Echo to the med-bay and you made your way to start working on the reprimands. You would, of course, be sure to smudge some details for your friends.

In the midst of writing a report on the incident you were summoned to speak with Tarkin. The meeting was short. He was impressed with your handling of the situation and wanted to reassure that your job would not be in jeopardy. He asked that you accompany him to evaluate Clone Force 99.

The thought of the boys being evaluated, determining their worth, made you sick. You didn’t want to think about what might happen if they failed.

You stood on the observation platform as you had so many times before. But this time you were nervous. You’d never been nervous before, not about a simulation. Something about Tarkin made you worry.

The batch rose up to the training area, ready for battle. Tarkin announced that the value of clones was being challenged and it hurt to hear. You knew the boys would do their brother proud. They moved into cover positions and got ready for enemies to deploy. Your eyes stayed on Crosshair for the most part. You notice the interest in Tarkin’s eyes as your boyfriend hit his targets. You worried for Wrecker for a moment, but reminded yourself everything was only set to stun.

Tarkin took on Wrecker’s challenge and ordered the blasters to be set to live fire only a moment later. His lack of care was very evident. Your gaze moved back to Crosshair, heartbeat rising rapidly as he was put in danger. You had to keep yourself from reacting as Wrecker was shot. You were in Tarkin’s favor, best to keep it that way. Crosshair had drawn the droid’s fire and you couldn’t help but to hold your breath as he left the tower, only exhaling when his feet were on the ground and he had cover.

The tide turned in their favor as they reprogrammed one of the droids with live fire capabilities. Tarkin looked impressed.

The droids took over again and you took a sharp inhale when Tech hit the ground. You could make out Crosshair getting antsy on the ground, unable to get shots off. He stood and took a shot at the air. You saw the knife as the blast hit it. The knife flew back and lodged in the droid’s head. He cracked a smile at the skill he’d demonstrated. Your boy was a badass, no doubt there.

Tarkin seemed half impressed as you followed him out. He dismissed himself to go over the details of his observation and you hurried to the training floor. You met the Batch as they exited. There was an air of silence that you respected, simply falling into step beside Crosshair as usual.

When the batch reached their barracks Wrecker broke the silence.

“Live rounds!” He shouted, throwing his helmet down. “They used live rounds! On us!”

The rest of the batch filed in behind him as he slammed his fists on the table in anger.

“We were there, Wrecker. We know.” Tech said plainly.

“I tried to warn you about Tarkin.” Echo mentioned.

“He didn’t seem all that great when he talked to me either.” You chimed in. “Guy’s really got it out for clones.”

Crosshair gave you a questionable look, not the good kind.

“Who’s that Imperial snake think he is!” Wrecker yelled.

“Stow it, already.” Crosshair snapped. “You got shot. It happens all the time.”

You knew Crosshair would normally say that after a battle, but Wrecker was shot in training. Tech agreed with your thought process, voicing that the difference was clear. You heard the slight sound of footsteps and backed into the wall, hiding as well as you could. Tarkin had opened the door and caught the batch’s attention.

The boys stood at attention for the Admiral and you slipped yourself as well as you could behind the couch. Tarkin spoke to the boys as you just tried to stay hidden. Hanging around the Bad Batch was one thing, they were allowed to make friends. But, being found in their barracks would have negative repercussions for everyone.

Once Tarkin gave out the mission he left. The door closed behind him and you squeezed out of your hiding place. Hunter gave the order to prep for the mission and the batch set to work. Crosshair gave you a kiss on the cheek before going to make sure his blaster was in good condition. You looked around at the clones one more time before going back to your own duties.

There was a sense of normalcy as the boys went on a mission. It was comforting. Maybe things would be as bad as you thought.

Tags: @aisling-beatha

#star wars #star wars clone wars #star wars x reader #star wars clone wars x reader #the bad batch #the bad batch x reader #the bad batch x male reader #bad batch #crosshair #crosshair x reader #crosshair x male reader #crosshair x female reader #crosshair x gender neutral reader #clones x reader

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cl-01-kestis · 3 years

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The Fall of Atollon

Dismay - Grand Admiral Thrawn x Rebel!Reader | Part 1

Summary: a decade and a half flies by and Omani is growing into an adult. It’s your responsibility to protect her from the dark truths of the Empire.

Warnings: very long, violence, angst

(Omani looks like this, using Ar’alani for reference)

“It’s too hot out here” You puffed out, lying on the ground beside Omani who was gulping down her water bottle at a rapid pace, wiping the sweat of her forehead as she hummed in agreement.

“That’s Atollon for you, Tiscen’i, but I agree... I don’t think it’s ever been this hot before” Omani panted as she removed her top, her black sports bra covering her chest as she dumped her T-shirt next to yours. She lay in the other direction from you, her head beside yours as the two of you bathed in the suns light.

As mother and daughter, shockingly, no one would ever guess either of you were related. She was mistaken to be a full blooded Chiss most of the time she met someone new. But when you say you’re her mother, that makes things twice as shocking. One, you’re a human, and two, you look stunning for your age, barely looking a few years older than Omani. Since Omani was now considered a grown up, your attitude started to change with her. Instead of treating her like a little girl, you treated her like your best friend. The two of you shared everything to each other, embarrassing stories, who you thought was attractive, countless inside jokes, but never your past. You’d lost count of how many times your daughter asked you who her father was, she was practically his double and you felt like you were cheating her out of her own heritage, but it was for her own safety.

She had sprouted into such a beautiful young woman, she had been promoted to general recently due to how much effort she had contributed to the rebellion. You used to be a general yourself, however you switched to a Senator after Omani was born with the guidance of Bail Organa, your mentor. You only attended the senate a handful of because of your betrayal to the Empire, you couldn’t risk being identified by a once known ally and trialed for treason. You couldn’t do that, not to Omani.

“Any more news about Thrawn?” You asked, biting the inside of your cheek as your daughter scoffed and let out an almost disgusted sigh.

“Unfortunately yes, that bircisb’s close to discovering the base... I’m doing all I can to keep everyone safe here, including you” Omani turned her head to look at you and noticed the frown stuck on your face. She was going to ask but thought it would be best if she kept her mouth shut since all you ever did was ignore her concern whenever she asked.

Thrawn, her father, was a man she wanted nothing more than to shoot. She was aware of his Chiss origins and even saw him once on a holo recording with you beside her, nearly on the verge of fainting. It took you all your strength not to tell her the truth, but thankfully she didn’t suspect anything about her possibly being related to him and digging into it.

“You work too hard visahot, but you remind me of myself when I used to work for the Empire” You joked dryly, earning a soft chuckle from Omani who leaned her head against yours whilst blocking her bright red eyes from the sun.

“Did you ever meet him whilst you were in the academy? Maybe Tarkin or Vader?” Omani asked curiously, shifting her body at an angle so the back of her head was resting on your shoulder.

“You’d never be lucky enough to see Tarkin or Vader... they were far too superior to be in an imperial academy,” You started.

“But Thrawn? He was the meanest and most serious man I’d ever met” Your voice was oddly calm as you spoke to Omani. She was surprised when the words left your mouth, this was the most open you’d ever been with her and of all the things it was about the man causing terror to their rebellion?

“So you did meet him?” Your daughter smirked, rolling onto her stomach so she was looking at you, her face upside down from where you were lying. You smiled at her expression and shrugged.

“Comrades, but I only spoke to him once” You lied through clenched teeth, sitting up and avoiding bashing Omanis head as she leaned back and sat up with you. The two of you looked at one another and for a moment, all you could see was Thrawn. She was so like him, mannerisms and even accent. The only difference was what side they fought on, a father and daughter on opposite sides and neither of them even knew of their connection, only you did.

“You never really open up about your time at the academy, was it really that bad?” Your blue skinned daughter raised a brow, her beautiful red eyes looking straight into yours as if she was searching for the truth.

“It’s an experience I’m not willing to fully share yet, visahot, but one day you’ll know” You reached out to rest a hand on her shoulder, patting it in an assuring manner which seemed to put her curiosity to the side for the time being.

A flock of loud shouting had brought the two of you out of your thoughts and you stood up immediately, throwing on your shirt and waiting for Omani who ushered you forward whilst putting on her own shirt, tugging it over her head clumsily whilst running to the holo table which all of the rebels surrounded. You spotted Hera Syndulla, her face melting into a frustrated frown. You noticed there were multiple star destroyers that popped up on the hologram, a flock of them right above Atollon.

“Oh no...” You mumbled, heart dropping to your feet when you realised what this meant for you and the rebels.

“Thrawn’s planning an orbital strike on Atollon” Hera said, trapping her chin between her index finger and thumb. You looked at her with wide, terrified eyes, wishing this was all some kind of nightmare. Omani reached out and held your hand out of fear, staying close to you as you both looked at the hologram.

Zeb and Rex had installed a protective barrier around the base, but you weren’t sure how long it was going to hold up for. Omani had left to get dressed and get her things packed, her blaster in her hand when she returned and was called to plan out what was going to happen by other rebels. You stayed with Hera, practically on the verge of hyperventilating as you knotted your hair with your fingers, trying to control your breathing.

“Hey, don’t get all scared on me now, you’re the bravest woman I know on this damn planet” Hera walked up to you, taking your hands away from your hand and holding them tight. You sniffed, nodding your head as a few tears left your glassy eyes.

“Death isn’t what I’m worried about” You whimpered, Thrawn’s face coming into mind when you looked back at the star destroyers. You were afraid to look at the sky, too petrified to even think of anything else apart from the fact that Thrawn was here.

“Then what is it?” Hera asked with confusion, wrapping an arm around your shoulder and taking you away from the table since the image wasn’t making you feel any better. You rubbed your eyes, swallowing down the lump in your throat and trying your best to stay strong for the rebels.

“I can’t say, but promise me if anything goes wrong, you’ll get Omani away from here?” You looked up at the Twi’lek, pleading with your eyes as your hands trembled by your side. Hera nodded sternly, pulling you into a brief hug before excusing herself to prepare for the upcoming orbital strike, leaving you alone in a flurry of anxiety.

You rushed to your room, which had once belonged to you and Ahsoka but now her side of the room was taken up by Omani. You grabbed your jacket and pulled it over your arms and back, grabbing two blasters and a locket which you had since your Imperial days, a locker Thrawn gave to you.

When you got back outside, the orbital strike was taking place. Panicking, you screamed out Omanis name over and over again, looking in all directions before you saw her far away watching the strike with her friends by her side. You let out a sigh of relief but you ran to Hera who was staring up at the herd of incoming green lasers slamming against the barrier. You could see the barrier starting to weaken, you trembled beside Hera who looked away just as the shield was about to break, when all of a sudden the firing stopped.

Everything was dead silent for a while, the sound of burning surrounding the outside of the shield and clouds of black smoke rising from the ground.

“It held! It held!” You heard Zeb yell in the distance, a relieved smile making its way onto your face after some time. You turned to Omani, noticing she was laughing with her friends and rubbing her eyes as if she’d been crying.

Looking over to see you, she bolted in your direction and slammed her body against yours in a tight embrace, her arms wrapped tight around your neck as she held back a sob in your shoulder. You stroked her navy coloured hair, pressing a firm kiss on her temple before pulling back and cupping her face with your hands. No words were exchanged as the two of you smiled at one another before hearing the voices of Zeb and Rex requesting your help.

This wasn’t exactly the situation you were planning to be in. You, Zeb and Rex all hid behind a large plant on the outskirts of the rebel base where most of the air strike had hit. The smell of burning and dirt filled your senses but now was not the time to complain, now was the time to hopefully take down the Empire’s ambush.

“I hope this plan of yours works” Zeb said to Rex, the three of you looking ahead at the desolate patch of land ahead and waiting for any sign of movement.

“Yeah...me too” Rex replied in a not so confident tone, causing you to look up at him with a frown but you let it slide for the time being. Rex looked through his binoculars, inspecting what was in the distance as you and Zeb as well as lots more other rebels awaited for the order. The familiar sound of metal creaking caught your attention and made your hearing perk up. You listened in, recognising the sound that belonged to an AT-ST.

“Here they come” Zeb nervously informed you and Rex. You held your breath when Rex pulled out the small detonator in his hand and not wasting a moment as his thumb pressed down eagerly on the red button at the top.

Three explosions erupted ahead of you and half of the AT-ST’s were taken down in seconds. Pressing the button once more, two more ST’s were taken down but one of them managed to get through the barrier. Zeb stood up behind you and Rex, holding a massive rocket launcher with a big grin on his purple face.

“Left one for you” Rex smirked, his grin matching Zeb’s as he ignited the rocket launcher which flew right into the middle of the ST, exploding as it touched the surface. You cheered, patting Zeb on the shoulder as you stood up to inspect the damage from a distance. Your coms link went off on your wrist and you brough it up to your face to see that Omani was contacting you.

“Hey Mom! Was the mission a success?” Her voice was eager but also full of concern.

“Yes Princess, Rex and Zeb took down 6 ST’s! Safe to say we’ll be okay” You assured her with a smile, speaking clearly into the mic of the coms.

“That’s a relief” She chuckled.

“I hope you’re safe back at the base? Don’t sneak out and join in the action, as tempting as it is” You warned her, frowning slightly when it went silent briefly.

“You know I don’t sneak around, Tiscen’i, when have I ever denied you?” Omani spoke in an almost sarcastic tone but it still managed to make you laugh. Just as you were about to reply, a loud noise came from the distance and you and Rex snapped your heads towards it.

“I know that sound...” Rex murmured.

“Yeah... and I hate that sound” Zeb snarled.

“I need to go, somethings happening- I love you visahot” you said quickly before cutting off the line, giving no time for Omani to reply and give her more reason to worry for your safety.

“Lousy four leggers” Rex growled, drawing your attention to the four AT-AT’s making their way towards you.

“Hit ‘em with the detonators” Zeb urged with a scowl, still holding the large and now empty rocket launcher. Rex pressed down on the small button in his hand once more, causing more bombs to go off, only this time none of them effected the AT’s and they still continued moving forward and eventually passing through the barrier.

“We need Sabine to create a shield you can’t walk through” Zeb spoke in a frustrated tone, his eyes flashing with anger but also concern.

“Let’s hope we get a chance to tell her” Rex agreed before turning on his heel and making a run for it. Wasting no time, you followed the clone and the Lasat deeper into the Atollon forest and further away from the AT’s. A loud explosion erupted behind the three of you and you realised the AT was targeting you all as well as the other rebels who stayed behind you, Zeb and Rex. You didn’t bother looking back as the sound of X-wings and tie fighters roared through the sky above you, shooting at each other and some eventually zooming down to crash near you.

You got behind one of the massive leafs behind Zeb and Rex and started shooting at the AT closest to you, only for it to angle its head down and start shooting at you once again. You ran forward and the three of you hid behind a lead individually, exchanging glances of reassurance before a loud buzzing noise echoed behind you. You turned and peeked around the leaf, only to witness the magnificent sight of Kanan Jarrus cutting through the AT’s legs, the large machine eventually stumbling to its knees until its head crashed down on a few stormtroopers.

“Kanan, glad you could join us!” Zeb shouted in delight as the Jedi ran up to the three of you with a smile.

“Hera said you’re bringing help?” The lasat asked with a hint of curiosity, turning on his foot and resuming his running with the three of you behind him.

“Maybe, maybe not!” The Jedi responded, earning a frown from you as you kept your pace up so you didn’t trail behind.

The four of you ran right into a small tunnel, following the rest of the rebels as a loud storm rumbled above you. Your pace didn’t falter as you heard the distant whistling of a ship landing and if anything it only made you run faster. Kanan directed you through the tunnel with his lightsaber, coming up to two tunnels.

“This way!” As he pointed which direction you should go to next, a death trooper emerged from the corner and started shooting at the four of you.

“The other way, the other way!” He panicked, running into the other tunnel with you trailing behind him. Your heart was pounding in your ears and you felt like you were going to pass out at any moment, but you held onto that tiny bit of energy you had left and brewed it into the determination to survive and be able to see Omani again.

After escaping the endless nightmare called the tunnels, you made it back to the base and scampered to the holo table hiding in between crates as the noise of the AT’s guns shot up at the shield.

“Kanan! You made it, what happened with your friend?” Hera asked in a stern tone. You, Zeb and Rex put your bodies against the crates and guarded the entrance, making sure no stormtroopers were coming in as Hera negotiated with Kanan.

“Oh don’t worry, I think he’s coming” Kanan replied.

After a few seconds, the team was moving and you had your blaster wrapped tightly in your hand, your finger hovering over the trigger. The generator behind you broke and the shield was taken down, resulting in incoming ties and imperial reinforcements.

A transport left the bay but was unfortunately shot down which made you stop dead in your tracks. Zeb stopped beside you and his ears drooped when he realised what might’ve happened.

“Omani!!” You cried, immediately dialling into your coms but only for a blaster to be pressed against your skull as a death trooper shoved you forward towards the rest of the group. You sobbed, sniffing and trying your hardest not to cry when all you could think about was the fact that your daughter might’ve been on that ship. Zeb held you close as you continued to cry whilst a blaster was pointed dangerously close to your face, the death trooper muttering something you couldn’t quite understand due to the audio of their helmet.

“And now, Captain Syndulla,” A voice spoke from the clouds of smoke, causing you to stop your crying and lean back with wide, shocked eyes. It couldn’t be.

“I will accept your formal surrender,” You stood frozen in your spot as Zeb shielded you protectively from the man who had just made his grand appearance.

“I don’t believe it” You whispered, but the death trooper noticed and bashed the edge of his blaster harshly against your skull.

“Or you will watch your friends perish, one by one, beginning with the Jedi” You backed away, reaching for your blaster as Kanan ignited his lightsaber and everyone else sheathed their weapon of choice. Painfully, you turned around and looked at the trooper standing behind you, pointing your blaster at his helmet and staring at him with a teary scowl.

“You already know my answer” Hera hissed with disgust glaring strongly at the Imperial dressed in white that you absolutely refused to look at no matter how much he threatened your friends. This wasn’t happening, it couldn’t be.

Just as you were about to shoot the trooper, a loud thunder strike boomed in the sky and only then did you remember the storm from earlier. You turned to look up at the storm and so did the death trooper, your blasters lowering slightly as you set eyes on the large black clouds hovering above all of you.

“Do you fear the storm, Master Jedi?” Thrawn smirked, his hands clasped behind his back as he approached Kanan who blindly stared at the sky with a worried face.

“Yeah. And you sgould too” The Jedi replied, right before a dangerously close lightning strike hit the ground and missed Thrawn by at least a meter.

“Hang onto something!” Kanan warned before unsheathing his lightsaber.

“What kind of Jedi devilry is this?” Thrawn glared up at the sky, his forearm shielding his gaze as the wind picked up and the thunder grew louder.

Barely seconds later, a blaring, deep voice exclaimed from the sky. “I am the Bendu”.

Two glowing orange eyes opened in the cloud and you found yourself dumbfounded by it. Never in your life had you set eyes on something as magnificently terrifying as this!

“What is that?” Zeb asked next to you as you took subtle steps away from the Chiss and his men. You looked to Hera as she looked to her partner. “Uh, Kanan?”.

“I told you my friend was coming” He exclaimed in a tone you couldn’t quite identify, it was a mixture of confidence but also fear.

“I bring death!” The thing called Bendu proclaimed.

“He’s nice!” You yelled sarcastically, frowning at Kanan who smiled very awkwardly. You looked over to see that two colossal lightning bolts had hit two of the AT’s, immediately destroying them and causing them to fall to the ground. Unlucky for the group, more lightning bolts started crashing their way towards you and without thinking twice, you bolted in the opposite direction with everyone following you. You skidded behind a crate, peeking behind it to look up at the gigantic monsterous being that was less than happy.

“Leave this place” don’t have to tell me twice, you thought with a frown, looking to your left to see a few death troopers hiding behind their own crates.

“I am the light, I am the dark” You found yourself watching Bendu with fascination but you were still fearing for your life, looking to Hera and Kanan who were looking just as surprised as you were.

“I am the Bendu!” The cloud bellowed before sending more lightning down to strike the death troopers who had been obliviously out in the open.

“You heard him! Make for the ship!” Kanan turned to all of you, his lips in a thin like as he gripped his lightsaber tightly. You all nodded, but just as you were about to run, you stopped as everyone else left for the ship. The thunder was so loud but you looked around despite the fact you might be killed right here and then. You watched the remaining death troopers yell to one another as they tried shooting at the cloud.

You stood in the middle of the platform, looking at the man dressed in white who was looking at the cloud as if he had no fear. You couldn’t tear your eyes away and eventually ended up being spotted by one of the death troopers. Aiming your blaster, You shot him down but drew the attention of Thrawn whilst you were at it.

You heard the voices of Kanan and Hera call out to you as they watched in horror when Thrawn turned around and finally spotted you. Your hands trembled violently as they gripped onto the blaster that was aimed right at Thrawn, your face a mask of fright as Thrawn’s eyes widened and his face morphed into a frown, a very angry frown.

The lightning didn’t distract either of you as your blaster kept its aim, level with your face but it was low enough for Thrawn to see all of it from a distance. He knew who you were, he didn’t see you in the group because you were hidden and his attention was mostly on Kanan but now, now he had a whole new mission, a whole new ambition for upcoming missions.

“(Y/N), hurry up we gotta go!” Zeb screamed your name but you didn’t move, you were frozen as Thrawn drew out his blaster and pointed it right at you. There was a fire in his eyes, a fire you had never seen when you used to know him. It alarmed you greatly.

“Leave without me! Omani’s gone, I’ve got nothing left to live for!” You yelled back through tears, looking back to the crew who were all staring at you with wide, agonising stares.

“No, I won’t leave you!” Kanan exclaimed, jumping off the ramp and running up to you whilst igniting his lightsaber, ready to deflect Thrawn’s blaster as he grabbed your arm and started dragging you to the ship. You started shooting aimlessly at Thrawn, screaming and crying as you pictured Omani in your mind. Thrawn didn’t shoot back and he didn’t move either, all your shots missed him and you chucked your blaster on the ground after giving up.

You ran with Kanan to the ship in tears, the ramp closing behind you as you collapsed onto the floor on your hands and knees. Your arms bent and you leaned your head onto your hands, your cries echoing around the ship as it flew into hyperspace.

Hera wrapped an arm around you and pulled you back, sitting with you on the ground and resting your head on her chest as you continued to let out your tears of pain and anger. The crew watched with sadness, wishing they could comfort you but they were ushered into their rooms by Kanan who stayed with you and Hera once everyone was away.

#star wars #x reader #grand admiral thrawn #thrawn #thrawn x reader #star wars rebels

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erinsusername · 3 years

Text

Turn

Chaper 3 ~ Answers

Synopsis ~ Kallus tries to be clever and use his ISB skills on Roan and boy does it backfire.

Word Count ~ 4080

Rating ~ PG 13

AO3 link ~ https://archiveofourown.org/works/30074598/chapters/76504808

Roan spent the remainder of the trip back to Lothal pacing in the room she used to get ready in beforehand. She had tried breathing techniques to slow down the panic in her chest to little avail and finding various objects of specific colors only preoccupied her for a short while. Her mind was spinning at light speed and showed no signs of slowing down.

She eventually gave up and slid down to the floor pulling her knees to her chest as she sat. She closed her eyes and her brain immediately went into hyperdrive flashing vivid pictures in front of her memory’s eye in a rapid bombardment of hellish agony. They instantly shot open and she grabbed at her chest as she gasped loudly. The small room was slowly becoming smaller with each passing second.

She shook her head hard and threaded her fingers tightly into her hair. This wasn’t entirely his fault, but it was enough so that she wanted to hurt the Agent. To make him suffer like she was. It wasn’t fair, but then again it never was.

You should’ve broken another finger, she thought bitterly as she rubbed her scalp with her fingertips.

Roan leaned her head back against the hard wall behind her and let out a long broken sigh. You can’t think like that, girl, she thought as she hugged her knees to her chest again and set to recounting the tiles on the ceiling once more.

A little over an hour later, she felt the ship enter Lothal’s atmosphere followed shortly by the soft thump of landing gears meeting with the hard ground below them. A soft knock came at the door and her heart froze.

“We’re back,” Kallus said quietly.

Roan waited until she finally heard the sound of his footsteps carry him away from the door before she slowly got up and peered out into the ship. She cautiously looked around and, once she had decided that he was gone, made her way to the opened boarding door. She had every intention of running to her bunk if she had to, but she was only about two meters off of the ramp when she heard him speak from behind her.

“Roan,” he said gently, smartly maintaining his distance.

She closed her eyes and took in a sharp breath before she turned to face him. His expression dropped heavily as soon as their eyes met.

He started to say something but hesitated before his shoulders fell and he looked down, “it happens to me too sometimes.”

She remained stoic for a few moments before she eventually lifted her chin at him, “good,” she said as coldly as she could muster before she turned and walked away.

Roan was still wide-awake when her alarm went off the next morning. She reached over and swatted at it until it stopped before she rolled onto her back and stared despondently up at the ceiling with dry, irritated eyes. Every muscle was sore and her head was pounding. She felt like she had been hit by a speeder going at full throttle.

I wonder how long it would take them to find me if I went AWOL, she thought before she begrudgingly pulled herself up and walked over to the small sink in the corner of her room.

Hollow eyes stared back blankly at her. She looked older than she was and tired. Very tired. A lifetime of stress had that effect on people. Her shoulders dropped hard as she sighed loudly and splashed her face with cold water in a feeble attempt to snap herself out of her trance. It was going to be another long day.

She dressed quickly and made her way out and onto the lift at the end of the hallway. The elevator had only dropped a few levels before it stopped and the doors opened to Agent Kallus standing right in front of her.

Every muscle in her body instantly tensed. I can’t, she thought wearily as she went to step around him.

He reached his arm out sideways and put his hand against the inside wall stopping her before she could exit, “no.”

“Do not assume that you may tell me what to do,” she hissed as she looked out into the hallway that would offer her no means of escape.

He stepped on without moving his arm to let her pass, “take the next one,” he said to the group of people still waiting to get on behind him as he reached over and pushed the button to close the doors with the back of his other hand. His demeanor was outwardly authoritative, as always, but there was a subtle sense of stress in his voice. He hadn’t slept either.

Roan stood perfectly still and stared straight ahead. She could feel his gaze beating down on her like the heat from a thousand suns as he shuffled the cup he had been holding in his left hand. The smell of caf suddenly and blessedly overpowered the fragrance of his freshly washed skin that had filled the cabin when he forced his way on with her.

“You didn’t sleep,” he said with a quiet sigh.

What do you care?

“Roan,” he started gently but stopped when she looked up at him.

She could feel the corners of her mouth pull down and back as her gaze darted back and forth across his face. Her eyes began to lightly glass over and she yanked her face back to the door in front of her before she let him see too much.

The air in the lift suddenly became too heavy and was pressing down all around her and no matter how hard she tried to breathe in she felt like her chest couldn’t fill with air. Kallus was an arm’s length away from her but she felt like she was somehow fully enveloped in his unwanted presence. She wanted to scream and cry and hit him and explode all at once.

“I’m sorry-“

“It’s fine,” she snapped as she reached over to restart the lift but he stepped in front of her hand before she could.

“No, it’s not,” he said sternly looking deep into her eyes.

“You’re not the first person to use me and you won’t be the last. I should’ve known better. That’s on me, not you.”

She watched him physically deflate at her words. She hadn’t meant to reveal so much and instantly berated herself in her mind as she turned back to face forward. She thoughtlessly bit at a loose piece of skin on her lip as he leaned back against a wall of the elevator in dismay.

She didn’t so much as breathe while he looked down at her for much longer than she wanted him to before he finally reached over and pushed the button to her level. The two rode in complete silence until a beep let them know they had reached her destination.

“Take this. It’s for you,” he begged more than he asked as he held out the cup and a small bowl of meiloorun pieces.

Roan looked at it and shook her head, “I don’t need anything from you.”

“Hate me. I deserve it, but you need to take care of yourself,” he said with feigned authority as he held them out in front of her, his eyes pleading for her to take them.

She shook her head in annoyance and snatched them away from him as the doors opened. It took every fiber of her being to not run away from him as she instead shakily walked away, carefully listening for the doors to close behind her before she could finally throw his unwanted offerings against the wall.

Time wasn’t moving.

Luckily, she had plenty to keep her busy, but still, time wasn’t moving regardless of how much work she managed to finish. But, being steadily occupied at least kept her mind off of things and R3 had an innate ability to keep her grounded, so it could have been worse. It also could’ve been much better.

“Droids,” her comlink suddenly chirped.

Roan rolled her eyes hard and sighed before she responded, “this is Lieutenant Kalivoda.”

“You are needed for maintenance in Command Four. A droid is stuck in the wall,” a man’s voice snapped back before she finished speaking.

R3 let out a series of beeps and Roan had to shush him before she could respond. “I’m sorry, what exactly do you mean stuck in a wall,” she asked as she rubbed her right temple with her free hand.

The man on the other end huffed loudly, “just get up here and pull it out.”

The transmission went dead and Roan debated walking down to a hangar and leaving the planet before she pulled herself up from the disassembled droid she had been working on. She stretched hard and rubbed her tired eyes, the lack of sleep was starting to manifest itself physically and quickly.

“Ya wanna come with, buddy?” she asked her astromech as she put anything she thought she would need to free an unknown type of robot from an unknown type of wall into a toolbox.

R3 just spun his dome in a quick circle and rolled off into the back of the workshop.

“I’m gonna put a restraining bolt on you when I get back,” she yelled over her shoulder as she walked out.

There was a series of loud beeps and she couldn’t help but giggle to herself as she made her way up to C4.

Two Stormtroopers were standing outside of the door when Roan approached, which meant a priority level meeting was taking place.

“I’m here to pull a droid out of a wall,” she said as confidently as she could.

The two just looked at each other before one asked, “You’re what exactly?”

Roan shrugged. “We do what we’re told,” she joked as the other spoke quietly into her comlink.

“Okay,” she said slowly as she stepped aside and pressed a button on the wall to open the door.

Roan stepped into the room and immediately hesitated. On the far side of the center logistics table sat Grand Moff Tarkin flanked by two officers that she was unfamiliar with and another that stood across from him but with his back to her. She took a step forward and a subtle but familiar scent suddenly played at her nose.

Before the thought had fully registered in her mind, Agent Kallus turned to face her, standing as tall as he could with his hands clasped firmly behind his back, as always.

“I believe that Lieutenant Lyste has something he would like to say to you,” he said sternly over his shoulder without taking his eyes off of Roan.

She waited a second before she looked from Kallus over to his side where a much smaller man stood behind him shifting his weight back and forth.

“I’d like to apologize for my curtness earlier. It was uncalled for.”

“It’s alright,” she lied as she looked down and saw what they had called about. A messenger droid’s data spike had somehow become lodged into the computer terminal of the logistics table and it was now stuck there.

“Hey, there,” she said calmly as she stepped around the distressed droid and sat down beside it. “What have you gotten yourself into here?”

She opened up the tool kit and began to rummage around, “how long have you been stuck here, little friend?”

“Not long,” it beeped in binary.

“Good, good. Did anything happen when you got stuck,” she asked quietly as the officers restarted their discussion above her. She reached over and hit a small green button on its dome before she began to analyze the situation further.

“What do you mean,” the droid asked as it looked from side to side.

“Like, any sort of power surge,” she began before she heard a voice above snap “is this going to take long?”

She looked up and opened her mouth to say something but Kallus tapped his finger hard against the side of the table three times and she stopped.

“I’m sure it won’t,” he intervened successfully on her behalf.

Roan shook her head slightly as she pulled out a small screwdriver, “I’m gonna remove your arm before I start to tear down the porthole. Just in case,” she whispered to the droid as the discussion above her began again.

A few seconds later the unit was freed and quickly rolled away from her and the table and took a place by the door facing the rest of the room. She smiled and winked at it as she set to removing the spike as quietly as she could.

The conversation between the Agent, Moff, and officers was regarding the rebel cell, known as the Spectres. She wasn’t intentionally eavesdropping, but she did pick up enough pieces to figure out that the four were working out the logistics of setting up an ambush near Geonosis.

Good luck, she thought as she pulled the front plate off of the terminal and took out a small light to look inside.

Roan quickly lost interest in the meeting, and of time itself, as she set to work removing the droid’s spike. Before she knew it, the men began filing out of the room, all of them but one that was.

She mentally and physically braced herself as the door closed and Kallus turned to look down at her.

“You didn’t eat,” he said flatly after an unreasonably long silence.

Roan felt her grip instinctively tighten around the wrench in her hand, “and how exactly did you know that? Are you spying on me now?”

“I could hear your stomach growling earlier,” he replied sarcastically as he turned and walked out of the room.

“The nerve on that one,” she said to the armless droid once she knew he was far enough away.

“He got really angry with the one that was rude to you before you came in,” the droid told her as it rolled up to inspect her progress.

“Well, that’s nice but it’s not what’s important now," she sighed as she sat back on her feet.

A few minutes later Roan heard heavy footsteps and turned around just in time to watch Kallus enter the room.

She refused to acknowledge him and instead turned back to the spike that she almost had freed from the porthole.

He looked around somewhat confused for a second before he finally turned his attention squarely on her, “are you alone in here?”

She narrowed her eyes at him before she responded carefully, “yes. Why?”

“I thought I hea-, never mind, it’s not important,” Kallus said as he grabbed a chair from a corner and placed it in front of the door.

Roan’s fight or flight response immediately went into overdrive. “What are you doing,” she asked cautiously as she stood up.

“I’m not leaving until you eat this,” he said sternly as he held out a protein bar to her.

She looked at it and then up at him, “are you fucking kidding me right now?”

“I’ve got time,” he said simply, intending to leave no room for argument.

“Not from what I heard earlier, you don’t,” she retorted as she crossed her arms in front of her chest in defiance.

He simply looked down his nose at her as he held the bar out further.

Without taking her eyes away from his, she reached out and quickly slapped the inside of his wrist and the backside of his hand at the same time causing the bar to go flying across the room. Neither of them broke their gaze as it flew into a wall and fell to the floor.

She clasped her hands behind her back as she looked up and ever so slightly raised one corner of her mouth subtly indicating her pride in her actions, “you lost your intimidation factor when you took me on a date.”

“It wasn’t a date,” he said quickly, his voice pitched just slightly higher than normal.

“Would you rather I call it your failed mission? So many options,” she asked slightly tilting her head up at him and smiling as sweetly as she could muster.

“Why are you being like this?”

“Why are you here,” she countered hostilely.

“Because you aren’t taking care of yourself. You had a serious traumatic episode last night and you’ve obviously tried to compartmentalize it instead of dealing with it in a healthy way,” he said as he took a step toward her. She noticed that he very slightly reached out as he did but instantly pulled back upon realization.

“I was unaware that the Royal Imperial Academy offered electives in psychiatry,” Roan popped off as sarcastically as she could. His concern was becoming a nuisance.

His left brow raised ever so slightly at her remark, “Roan-,”

“Why do you even care?” she said far more harshly than she intended as she crossed her arms in front of her.

“Because I feel guilty,” he yelled.

“Good! You should,” she yelled back before she realized it. She stood frozen for a few seconds and she knew that he picked up on her hesitation.

Kallus sighed slightly as he walked over and picked up the protein bar. He stood facing away from her for a second before he turned back and walked to the door. He tossed the bar into her tool kit and then moved the chair back to the corner.

“Was that the first time you ever killed someone,” he asked quietly.

“I am not talking to you about this,” she hissed as she turned and sat back down at the terminal.

“You don’t belong here,” he said in a low voice as he sat in the chair.

Roan’s blood ran cold, what the hell?

He leaned forward and put his elbows on his knees and interlaced his fingers, “there were almost two hundred people on that yacht last night and you were the only person that reacted negatively to the decraniated slaves. You had a full-blown panic attack after you killed a man in self-defense. These are things that the academies arduously work out of people and they do it for a reason.”

“Well, I guess now you know why I work with droids then,” she said around the flashlight that she held placed in her teeth as she worked to remove a screw from deep inside the terminal socket. She had decided that perhaps ignoring him would make him leave, but it was beginning to look like that wasn’t going to be the case after all. Nuisance.

He sat quietly for a few seconds, “the Empire has a way of stripping people of their humanity. It makes the job easier,” he finally said almost despondently.

“Yeah, is that how you sleep at night then,” she asked without looking at him.

“I don’t sleep actually.”

“Have you tried not doing things like razing refugee camps? I feel like that’s a good start,” she asked sarcastically as she looked over at him.

She wasn’t expecting the look of remorse that sat heavily in his eyes.

He’s good, she thought.

He sighed heavily, “I was under direct order from Lord Vader himself.”

A chill shot down Roan’s spine and she could only stare at him.

“What would you have done in that situation? Told him no,” the Agent asked her quietly.

“I don’t do hypotheticals,” she said shortly as she turned back and pulled a small screw out of the terminal and placed it on a magnetic strip at her feet.

“Humor me. You’re obviously still a decent person. What would you have done,” he asked curiously.

“Left the room when it was obvious that I wasn’t wanted there,” she said while examining the porthole as she twisted at the droid’s spike gently.

“Dammit, Roan,” he yelled as he got up and stormed over to where she was sitting. He reached down, grabbed the spike, and turned it a full three hundred and sixty degrees before he yanked it out and threw it to the ground at her feet.

He was absolutely irate with her at this point.

“You can talk to me about it or I can have you placed on an involuntary hold,” he threatened darkly. “I’ve seen what things like this do to people and I don’t want to see it happen to you too. Especially if I’m to blame.”

Roan looked at the spike and then slowly stood up and stepped over to face him. His brow was furrowed ever so slightly and she would bet her life that he didn’t realize that the leather of his gloves made as much sound as it did when he stretched and retracted his fingers, which she now determined had to be a subconscious nervous tick. His breathing was slow but shallow and when he blinked his light hazel eyes the movement was slower than normal reflex.

His fear is genuine.

She stared deep into his eyes for a few long seconds before she finally conceded, “fine.”

His body language relaxed immediately and he let out a long breath, “good, where would you like to begin?”

Roan shrugged as she walked over and sat in the chair, “I don’t know. I would assume you call medical and let them know you have a concern.” She kicked her right leg over her left and placed her hands on her knee. “I don’t know how you’re going to explain away that you took a date on a mission and almost got her killed twice and you now think she might be having some problems dealing with it.”

“I’m not fucking playing, Roan,” Kallus yelled.

He began to step toward her but she jumped up and came at him first. He instinctively took a step backward from the surprise of how fast she moved. In the blink of an eye, she was in his face.

“No, Agent, I am not playing,” she growled up at him.

Kallus grabbed her left arm and quickly pulled her into him. Roan went to swing with her right but he caught her wrist and pulled it into his shoulder. He leaned down into her ear, his facial hair grazing softly against her skin as he did, and whispered, “no one saw you leave, Irys.”

Her stomach instantly sank. He was right, the hangar was empty when they left and returned, and he admitted that Boom had cut the security recordings on the yacht when they were in Cep’s private residence.

She sighed heavily and Kallus slightly loosened his grip on her arms. He looked down at her anxiously and she could somehow sense that it was sincere. He hadn’t put her in danger on purpose and judging by his actions he was desperate to rectify the situation for both her and himself, he was just really bad at differentiating when to be an Agent and when to be a man.

“I don’t want to do that to you. I just want to make sure that you’ll be alright,” he whispered without letting her go.

She looked up at him and his eyes softened as soon as they met hers. The tension in his shoulders released and his face, still mere centimeters from hers relaxed. They stood together, close enough that she knew he could feel her heart pounding in her chest. After a long few seconds, she felt his thumb run slowly and deliberately across the back of her left hand. In what she could only assume was a moment of sheer bravery or utter stupidity, his hand slid from grasping her upper arm to holding her upper back. His touch was soft and warm and inviting. Her eyes instinctively fluttered closed at the motion and her breath caught deep inside of her.

She leaned into his ear close enough that her chest pushed slightly into his escalating the interaction into the stratosphere, ‘tell me about Lasan.”

He instantly let go of her and took a step back. His eyes went dark and his body rigid. The betrayal read on his face like an open book that the simplest of minds could easily interpret.

It felt like someone had sucked the air out of the room and replaced it with a raging radioactive inferno, as was her intention.

“Maybe you do belong here,” he said quietly as he turned and left the room.

#agent kallus #hot kallus #kallus fanfiction #alexsandr kallus #we need more kallus #ISB #rebel kallus #star wars rebels #star wars rebels fanfiction

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lajulie24 · 6 years

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I’ll know you

A follow-up to Calling her bet; Leia and Han go on the mission to the casino on Akahista. I think this might be turning into an actual fic with more story in it, but for now…here you go.

“Y’know, Sweetheart, if you keep staring at me like that, people are going to get ideas about us.”

Leia rolled her eyes. “Well, I should hope so, since Nateva and Vash are supposed to be…together.” She drew herself up taller in the seat beside him, turning her gaze to the view of the spaceport where they were waiting for clearance. “Besides, I wasn’t staring.”

“Uh-huh,” said Han, with a slight smile.

“I was trying to decide,” she said, turning back to him, “how I feel about the beard.” To mask the telltale scar on his chin and give him a new look for their mission, Han had grown a full (albeit well-groomed) beard, and both his hair and beard had been darkened to a deep brown.

He stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Didn’t grow it for you, Your Worship. But I’ll bet Nateva loves it.”

Leia’s gaze turned to a full-on glare. It was still a bit startling to be confronted with her doe eyes in a bright blue instead of brown, and with about twice the amount of makeup she normally wore. He had to admit, the hair was throwing him off a bit, too. Leia’s neat dark brown braids were nowhere to be seen at the moment, covered with a shoulder-length red-haired wig.

Sitting next to her felt like a throwback to his old life, before he’d started doing jobs for the Rebellion. But then she’d give him that exasperated look or speak to him in her familiar alto voice and he’d realize where he was. Who she was.

It was weird.

He shook himself out of his thoughts as Leia’s expression changed, a smug smile now blossoming on her face. “Now who’s staring?” she asked.

He was about to protest when they were hailed by ground control. “Starship Yuxa, you are cleared for landing. Proceed to docking bay 16.”

“Acknowledged,” Han said into the comm, gladly turning his attention to the landing cycle.

When they were docked, Leia was still smiling at him, her fake blue eyes twinkling. “I just hope your sabacc face is better at the tournament,” she said.

As expected, the Daystar casino on Akahista was something of a madhouse, with gamblers and their sponsors from dozens of worlds on-planet for the tournament. While the Imperial presence wasn’t as obvious as it was on other occupied worlds—an overabundance of stormtroopers would only scare away the wealthy leisure class, after all—Leia noticed at least a dozen Imperial agents from the time they left the spaceport to the time they reached the casino lobby.

Han must have noticed them, too; she felt him tighten his hold on her arm, which was linked with his. “Lot of…old friends in town,” he said quietly.

If they focused on the Imperials, they’d never get what they came for here. “Don’t worry,” Leia said, smiling up at him and batting her lashes in a way she would never have done back at base. “I only have eyes for you.”

He smiled back, and she felt him relax a bit. Another day, another mission, another planet infested with Imperials. We’ve got this. She felt herself relax as well.

Even Leia was a bit surprised by the opulence of the room they were given, though she managed not to react when the manager opened the door. The parquet floors were polished to a shine and covered with plush throw rugs; there was a sitting area furnished with a tiny bar and white velvet loveseats; the spa ‘fresher was approximately the size of Leia’s current quarters back on base; and the floor-to-ceiling windows in the main room had a spectacular view of the city.

“Yes, this should do, thank you,” she said to the manager in the lofty tone she had started thinking of as her Nateva voice. Han had made a similar adjustment to his Corellian drawl, she’d noticed, dropping his contractions and clipping his words. There was something familiar about his tone, but she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was. Maybe she’d ask him about it later.

The manager left. Han and Leia exchanged a look, nodded at each other, and immediately began to search for bugs. It’s so nice, Leia observed, not to have to say anything to each other. No code words, no signals, just a look and they both knew immediately what to do. It was a big part of why she had wanted Han on this mission with her in the first place. She didn’t have to babysit him; he didn’t try to babysit her. Despite their frequent—and loud—disagreements on strategy and protocol, in the field she could trust him with her life.

The fact that he was a crack sabacc player, more than capable of holding his own in a high-stakes tournament like this one, was just icing on the cake.

“Nateva!” Han called from the other room, obviously taking care to use their mission names until they were confident any bugs had been found and disabled. “C’mere! You’ve got to see the size of this bed!”

Leia—no, Nateva—was delicately sipping her martini, watching Han’s—Vash’s—game from one of the spectator tables. He was playing his part perfectly, one part dashing scoundrel, one part refined nobleman. At the next break, she’d go to the bank to collect the cash from her father’s secret account for the Alliance, then “Vash” would return to the tournament long enough to keep from raising any red flags. Later, they’d slip out quietly for their trip back to base.

“Your boyfriend is cleaning up,” said a voice beside her. She looked up to see a tall, red-haired woman holding a drink identical to hers.

“Fiancé,” Leia corrected, affecting the aloof languor of an Elder House noblewoman. She stirred her drink gently.

“May I join you?” the woman asked.

Leia gave a small smile. “Of course,” she said, gesturing to the seat beside her. The woman sat down, and the two watched the game in silence for a few more minutes.

“If you don’t mind my saying,” the woman continued, eyes still on the game, “he is an attractive man.”

Leia smiled indulgently over her glass. “I have good taste.”

The woman mirrored her smile. “That you do—Leia.”

Something inside Leia froze, but she maintained her calm, laughing softly as if this woman had made the silliest of mistakes. “I’m sorry. I’m afraid you have me confused with someone else.”

The woman was now looking directly at her, with a piercing stare that seemed oddly familiar. “Oh, no, my dear,” she said, cupping Leia’s chin in her palm. “I’d recognize this charming face anywhere.”

Leia suddenly realized that she was no longer in her Nateva disguise, but in her white senatorial dress, her hair styled in the traditional Alderaanian side-buns she’d worn when—

“You chose the system, and now you’ve chosen the man,” a voice mocked, and Leia blinked to see the sneering visage of Wilhuff Tarkin, clucking as he held her chin. “You may fire when ready,” he directed, and Leia screamed as an Imperial agent aimed directly at Han Solo’s head.

Han and Leia had shared beds before on missions, but normally that decision had involved a fair amount of discussion and negotiation beforehand, and occasionally a line of pillows down the middle that was not to be crossed.

There was no need for a pillow line on this bed. “Wow,” Leia had said when she’d responded to Han’s call to check it out. “We could both sleep here and practically be in different systems.”

They’d gone to bed relatively early, given the long flight earlier in the day and the need for both of them to be on their game the next day. Han had done one last check for bugs or security breaches before heading to bed, only to find Leia already asleep on her side. Good, he’d thought. She sometimes had trouble sleeping on missions.

He’d been in the middle of dreaming Gods knew what himself when he heard Leia crying out, “No!” and woke up. She was thrashing around, obviously in the throes of one hell of a nightmare.

The bed felt even more enormous as Han hurried over to Leia’s side. He shook her gently, wanting to help her wake up but not wanting to scare her even more. “Leia,” he said softly. “Leia, it’s okay. It’s just a dream. Leia.”

She opened her eyes—brown again, now that the contact lenses were out—and touched him as if she couldn’t believe he was real. “Han?” she said.

He grinned at her, relieved. “’M right here. Not goin’ anywhere.”

She threw her arms around him, hugging him so tight he could barely breathe. He hesitated, then put his arms around her as well.

#scoundressaturdays #han x leia #hanleia #star wars #myfic #han solo #leia organa #mission to akahista

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esonetwork · 6 years

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Star Wars legends: ESO Network chats with author Timothy Zahn

New Post has been published on https://esopodcast.com/star-wars-legends-eso-network-chats-with-author-timothy-zahn/

Star Wars legends: ESO Network chats with author Timothy Zahn

He may not be the “Chosen One,” use Force powers, or wield a lightsaber, but Timothy Zahn is most definitely still a Star Wars legend.

Back in the early ’90s, the author played a key role in the establishment of the Star Wars series of novels called the “Expanded Universe” — now known as “Star Wars Legends” — and created such well-loved characters as ex-Imperial agent Mara Jade and Grand Admiral Thrawn. Zahn recently started writing for the new Star Wars canon with the book “Thrawn” and its sequel, “Thrawn: Alliances.” “Alliances” was released in July 2018 and features two separate timelines: one set in the Clone Wars era with Thrawn/Anakin teaming up on a mission, and one set in the original trilogy era with the Emperor deploying Thrawn/Vader to the unknown regions of the galaxy.

At Dragon Con 2018, ESO Network reporters Mary Ogle and Ashley Pauls had a chance to sit down with Zahn and chat about Star Wars, the art of writing, and just who might make a good Thrawn if the character ever appears in one of the live action films. Read an excerpt from our interview below, and listen to the full interview on Earth Station One Podcast Episode 437: https://esopodcast.com/the-earth-station-one-podcast-437-the-big-lebowski-live-from-dragon-con/

ESO: What has been your experience getting to work for the new canon? You kind of have an interesting perspective — you wrote for the old Expanded Universe and now you’re writing for the new. What’s that transition been like and what have you enjoyed about that?

Zahn: Just as a side note, it’s canon and Legends. They’re trying to train us to [use], not “new canon,” not EU — canon, Legends.

It’s tricky to get used to that.

It is very much, and I’m told [Lucasfilm’s] Story Group occasionally goofs up on that as well. (laughter) They’re trying to get us to talk that way. The big difference with writing in canon is that there’s so much less established at the moment. There were over 200 books in Legends that you had to work around and make sure you weren’t double-booking characters, having them be two places at the same time. Because we’ve just started up the last few years with canon, there aren’t nearly as many diggings in the field, as it were, finding/mining the ore and all that. So it’s easier to find a place and a time where you can put your story. Story Group also is much more efficient than the old days, when we were all trying to keep track of things ourselves, because they have a finger on the pulse of everything that’s being done at Lucasfilm.

I don’t have to worry about continuity or stepping on somebody else’s toes, especially somebody I don’t even know what they’re working on. Story Group will pick up on all of that. So there’s a freedom to, okay, I will put TIE fighters in this era; if there’s something wrong with that, Story Group will pick up on that and will get it changed so I don’t have to worry nearly as much about what I’m doing in continuity.

Aside from that it’s pretty much the same as it’s always been. We’ve got the extra layer of Disney on top, but I never see that.

So do you find that freeing or constraining?

Oh, pretty much freeing, because again I don’t have to worry about things. With my first canon book, “Thrawn,” somebody asked me after it was published if Tarkin was a Grand Moff at the time I’ve got him in that story, and I can unequivocally say yes because Story Group didn’t bat an eye on that. If that was the wrong rank for him at that time, they would have caught it. The fact they didn’t change it means yes, that is correct.

In “Thrawn: Alliances,” Anakin and later Darth Vader team up with Thrawn. Was that an idea that you came up with, or was that something Lucasfilm approached you to say, we’d like this book with these two characters together?

Well, I left the hook in the “Thrawn” novel of Anakin and Thrawn having met, and so when it came time to pitch another book that’s what I suggested, “I’d like to do the Thrawn and Anakin [story].” They wanted a Thrawn/Vader. So we compromised and did both.

Is it usually you approaching them or do they approach you?

Typically, I mean almost always in the past, it has been them approaching me. I think with “Thrawn: Alliances,” it was more or less a general yes, we’re going to do a second book because the first one has done so well. Clearly the audience is out there for Thrawn; what else can we do?

One of the things that was interesting in reading “Thrawn: Alliances” is that Vader/Anakin and Thrawn have such different perspectives and means of responding to situations. What was it like digging into both those two characters and then contrasting the way they approach the world?

One of the fun things about adding new characters to the Star Wars universe is seeing how other established characters interact with them. And you’ve got the contrast with Vader, who’s been sent out on a mission with Thrawn, and Anakin, who has more or less been thrown into the situation with Thrawn, not exactly of his own choosing or of his own volition. In that one, Anakin and Thrawn are largely reacting to other things rather than being proactive; they’re having to react to what the enemy throws at them.

You also have to be careful that Vader is not stupid; Vader is very smart, Anakin is smart, they’re both tactically knowledgeable, you know good pilots, etc. So you have to balance, it’s not just a “Thrawn is the smart one, Vader is the powerful one.” You do have to change off back and forth. And you also have to be aware that Vader, if he is displeased with somebody, may just choke him. To balance that is [the idea] that the Emperor still has use of Thrawn, and Vader’s knowledge that he’s seen this guy in action before and he knows he can deliver. So when Thrawn says, trust me, a lesser person might find themselves kind of floating off the floor; Vader will be a little more patient with Thrawn because “I’ve seen he can deliver, so let’s watch and see what happens.” I did get a couple of concerns from some of the people at Lucasfilm about that. So I added in bits of okay, Vader is not only being constrained by the Emperor’s will but he’s also curious. I can see Vader and Anakin having a certain amount of curiosity: “All right, let’s see how this plays out…I can always choke him later.”

It’s been really cool to see Thrawn come into the “Rebels” TV show; would you ever like to see a live action Thrawn? And if so, if you could cast anybody, who would you like to see in that role?

People ask me that one all the time; the problem is that I see characters in terms of attitude and personality, not necessarily face or voice. I have heard several suggestions that I think I could easily go with. One is Benedict Cumberbatch. Second would be Jason Isaacs from Harry Potter and so many other things. Lars Mikkelsen who does the voice on “Rebels” is an accomplished actor in his own right; he could certainly play the character. And I think I lean a little towards Jeremy Irons. He could pull it off. But again, any actor who could capture the presence, the global awareness of the character, the calm demeanor. The makeup and the contact lenses are easy. It’s the pulling off the attitude.

Would I like to see him in a live action? If they did him right. I do not want to see him messed up by somebody who didn’t understand the character. The “Rebels” team understood him very well, and they knew how to write for him.

Do you have a favorite fan encounter that stands out to you? Or maybe it’s difficult to pick one.

I think what mostly jumps out at me with fan encounters is, I’m always grateful people like the books, of course. I mean, that’s my job to entertain, and to give them their money’s and time’s worth. But there’s an extra bonus when someone says “this book helped me through a really bad time in my life.” Or, you know, “this book taught me reading could be fun. I never read a book for fun until this one. Now, I read all the time.” Or “this book helped me through my deployment in Iraq,” or something like that. I’m writing to entertain, but I’m affecting people’s lives, some people’s lives much deeper than I ever anticipated. And that’s just a bonus.

I had one woman last convention who told me she was autistic and had a problem with not filtering out the truth from what people wanted to hear and got in trouble. And she really understood and felt Thrawn was like her, that he doesn’t understand why people don’t want to hear the truth. And she said, this is the first fictional character she’d read who she can identify with. Not at all anything I would have ever anticipated. But she grabbed onto him as somebody that “I understand him. He’s like me in many ways, and that makes me feel better.” So just things like that. No way to anticipate that — I’m just an old country entertainer, but it’s affecting some people in very good ways.

Is writing something you always wanted to do?

Oh no, I was on track getting a doctorate in physics, and saw bad TV shows [and thought], “I can write better than that.” Wrote a story that wasn’t very good, but I enjoyed it, started as a hobby for a couple of years. My adviser died of a heart attack, left me with a project that was never going to work; it was fundamentally flawed. So decided, after a semester of working with a new professor and a new project, you know, I’m having more fun writing, I’ve sold two stories — let’s give this a shot.

I really appreciated what you said in the Star Wars authors panel at Dragon Con. I liked how you commented on the Legends stories — they may not be canon technically, but they’re still out there. They’re still enjoyable. So it’s still very much a part of the fandom and the overall fabric of the Star Wars universe.

You’re sitting around the campfire, Coruscant’s a long way away, the HoloNet breaks down a lot. You don’t get much news out here. And while you’re working on your s’mores, somebody says “hey, have you guys ever heard the story of Luke Skywalker and Grand Admiral Thrawn?” And by the time you’re in your sleeping bag, you don’t know if that was true or not, but it was fun. You enjoyed it. And that’s what a legend is, and maybe based somewhat in truth, it may not be. There probably was somebody that Robin Hood was based on; probably nothing like what we’ve come up with in stories from the 1600s or maybe earlier, but he’s an intriguing character. And you’ve got all these legends: Robin Hood, King Arthur, William Tell. Every culture has got their own legends and they’re still fun to read.

#canon #Darth Vader #Dragon Con #interview #novel #Star Wars #Thrawn #Timothy Zahn

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