Keeping Your Promise

Down for the Count

"Oh, Talia," you whispered to yourself, reaching for the stitching on your chest, fidgeting your sorrow along those three letters just as you had hours earlier.

"Didn't she do a wonderful job at recounting the occurrence?" Hux's voice pierced through your pain-laced reverie. "Truly a professional if I've ever seen one. Her dutiful reporting of the event proved her allegiance to the First Order, allowing her to receive a warning instead of a sentence."

"What is your purpose in showing this to me?"

"You'll eventually get your own copy," he said. "I figured you'd need a refresh of the events that led you here."

"I... will never forget that day, General Hux," you said, peeling away from the tablet.

"Good. You'll need that ability of recall when you go in front of the Board of Physicians to state you case."

Unrelated to the environment, a chill fled over your skin. You wanted to believe that he'd misspoke, but he would never mess up relaying anything so pertinent. The Board of Physicians had called for your presence. It made sense, your actions – a crime in their eyes – had directly involved them, their existence being what funded your position, though you never thought they would think it necessary to summon you for a trial. Yes, ethically you had messed up, but you had thought this would be a quick loss, not one that incited you ever coming face to face with the heads of your profession.

Although you'd worked hard at staving off the endless dread since leaving the assessment room, it now slowly crept into your stomach, tightening your chest in its clutch. In the throes of budding panic, your leg sprang up, bouncing silently, a conscious effort to not let your heel hit the floor. "Why do I need to present my case? They should know what happened by now."

He cleared his throat. "And they do, which is precisely why they called for your audience. Since you were selected for this new endeavor of provider assignments, they are concerned that their investment in the First Order isn't paying off as they had intended, and by your formal appearance they seek to revise the program for the future."

A huff of air flared your nostrils. "They're making an example out of me. How nice of them to choose public humiliation instead of execution."

His brow creased. "I don't think you quite understand," he said. "You have been accused of first-degree larceny. You will lose your license after appearing before them, but the basis for your execution is subject to their judgement."

"What have I done that would justify the end of my life?"

"You stole from the First Order, byway stealing from the Board of Physicians. Contrary to what you may want to believe, your actions do have consequences, miss," he bit your last name off.

"I stole? I saved a man's life by taking blood that would have expired had I not thought of it. How can they not see that?"

"It doesn't matter what you did with the blood, although you will be questioned on the ethics of transfusing a blood product that had not been properly crossmatched. What matters is the principle. The First Order does not take any crime lightly, but with your being a beta-tester for this brand-new program, compliance among providers is a priority that is to be enforced."

Everything the Elite does is unfair. Talia's voice rang loud as you fought back the need to scream, to flip his desk over, to run to the nearest escape pod and shoot off to some far away planet where nobody could find you. It no longer mattered if their actions were unfair, now only caring that they were wholly unjustified, using you as an example, invalidly exploiting you to incite fear amongst your peers, to set a precedent. It was wrong, lawfully and morally, and you'd had your fill.