She was laying on her bed, staring up at the ceiling when Mon Mathma herself swept into her room, full of grace and elegence. Thalassa was on her feet, standing at attention before the woman fully entered the room.
"At ease," the regal lady said with almost a tone of amusement. Thalassa nodded and loosened herself up a bit. It wasn't often that she stood in the presence of Mon Mathma, so the circumstances had her slightly fidgety.
"Your brother and Jyn Erso have taken a small crew to Scarif."
"Yes, Ma'am."
"And you knew this?"
"Yes, Ma'am."
"Yet you did not tell anyone about it?"
"That is right, Ma'am."
"Why?"
"Because...," Thalassa sucked in a deep breath. "Because it's not about me, or him, or you. It's about the galaxy and protecting it from the Empire...Ma'am."
"Well said, Miss Andor. How would you like to go out in the field for once?" Mon Mathma asked. The question surprised Thalassa so much that she sat down. The woman in white sat beside her. "I can imagine that being cooped up here for years has taken its toll on you. The same halls, the same rooms, the same people, the same trees. Thalassa, would you like to see the galaxy?"
She froze, her mouth hung agape. How was she to respond? What was she to say? Her brother said that she should stay, but Mon Mathma told her to go.
"Who...who'll help the wounded-"
"Kael Sisk seems completely able. And the 2-1B units aren't half bad."
"Where am I going? Who am I going with? Why me?"
"Do you remember Leia Organa?"
"The Princess of Alderaan? Of course. You've had me meet with her a few times."
"We are planning to back up your brother and the rest of Rogue One. Bail Organa is willing to send his daughter to Tatooine to find an old friend who may be able to help us win this war and we want you to accompany her. You will leave on one of our space craft to the Tantive IV, which will be carrying Princess Leia. You will be there to entrust that she is not harmed. Do you understand?"
"Yes, Ma'am."
"Any questions?"
Thalassa thought for a second, turning her gaze away from the smoldering eyes of the woman before her.
"I can't say no, can I?" She asked slowly, as if simply asking the question would get her in trouble.
"You can."
"My brother told me to stay here." Thalassa looked back up at Mon Mathma. "But he doesn't control my life, I do. Besides, this isn't about me, or him. It's about saving the galaxy." She stood. "I'll do it."
Mon Mathma stood after her and smiled.
"Good. Pack your bag, my girl. You leave as soon as possible."
"How long will you be gone?" Kael asked, helping Thalassa find a few of the things she needed on her voyage.
"I don't know Kael," she responded, shoving those things into a bag. "But it shouldn't be too long. Cassian will probably be back before me." Kael was quiet.
"I don't want you to go. I can't be the Head Healer! I'm...I'm not as good as you. I get nervous and I-"
"Kael, you'll be fine! It'll be a day, tops. I promise I'll come back soon and when I do I'll buy you something pretty, m'kay?"
"Alright. But it'd better be more than 10 credits."
"As you wish, Kael."
Kael engulfed her in a bone crushing hug.
"Be careful, Munchkin."
"Don't start with that again, Giant," Thalassa whined, wiggling her way out of Kael's grip. "Say goodbye to Penelope for me. Make sure she stays in bed until I'm back. Don't let her walk yet. Also, talk to S2, he gets lonely. Feed my fish." She stood on her toes and kisses Kael's cheek.
"I'll do all of that and more. You can count on me."
Thalassa smiled.
"Good. Goodbye, Kael. I'll see you soon." With that, Thalassa almost gleefully slipped from the room and walked down the halls, her boots thudding against the floor like metal to magnets. She arrived at the docking bay and a pilot approached her.
"Ready, Ma'am?"
"Yes, sir. Let's go see the galaxy."
Thalassa's space craft intercepted the Tantive IV a few hours later. She stepped out of the ship a little sick, but still excited. The Princess met her with a hug and a kind greeting. They had a met a few times in the past, Bail and Mon Mothma believing that their friendship would do them good, and it now seems as though they were right. While they traveled to Scarif, the two walked the Tantive and the ship it was docked on. They talked about how they had been since their last meeting. Everthing was generally the same for both of them, as it seemed.
When one of the pilots confirmed that they were almost on Scarif, Thalassa's mouth went dry.
"Are you alright?" The Princess asked.
"Fine, Princess."
Thalassa was a talented liar, similar to her brother, but Leia Organa was a diplomat. She knew a lie when she saw one.
"You're worried about your brother, aren't you? Cassian."
"I'm always worried about my brother," Thalassa agreed. They stood at a window as they came out of hyperdrive and the planet appeared before them. They stood before the blue planet, arms linked and stared almost in horror. Thalassa's stomach dropped and her heart squeezed in her chest. She unknowingly clung tighter to the girl beside her.
"He'll be okay," Leia whispered to Thalassa, almost as if she was trying to convince herself of that fact
The fighting had begun. Fighters were zipping around firing shot after shot at the star destroyers and the force field around the planet. Small explosions littered the ground below them.
With a cry of relief, Thalassa and Leia watched two of the Star Destroyers smash through Scarif's shield. The plans could come through and Cassian could escape. They clung to each other in glee, smiling.
"Your Highness, Miss Andor." A rebel soldier stood behind them, ready at attention when the ladies turned.
"Yes?"
"The captain suggests that you make your way back to the Tantive in case we are bordered."
"Borded?"
"Yes. M'lady Andor. It is possible. Please, follow me."
The two did as they were told and followed the soldier back to the Tantive.
From there, they watched in horror as something roze over the horizon of the planet Scarif. At first, Thalassa believed it to be a moon, but she was terribly incorrect. It was made of metal, and deadly.
"The Death Star." The name of the space craft passed her lips before she could even register what it was called.
Before she could even process what it meant, a green light started to emerge and a deadly beam hit the planet.
"No!" Thalassa shrieked before she could stop herself. Leia turned her head away and tried to pull Thalassa away from the window, but she wouldn't budge. Her eyes gathered tears as the massive tsunami of fire barreled towards the land mass of the planet. She placed her hand on the window as the sand mass was blown away and she knew, everyone that was still down there was dead.
"Cassian." Her heart shattered and dropped in her chest. Her knees went weak and she fell to the ground, hand still on the window. She breathed raggedly.
"He may have gotten away before it blew." Leia's voice was soft, comforting. "Come, my friend, our journey has just started."
Thalassa stood, but her mind was far away on the planet below, where she imagined her brother on a beach, Jyn in his arms, promising to be by her side, and that was enough. That was enough to keep Thalassa moving.
"Of...of course, Your Highness." The two made their way hurridely to the desk of the ship, listening to the blaring sound of the alarms. Thalassa swallowed, her throat dry, as the men readied to undock the Tantive and jump into hyperspace.
Leia held her hand, squeezing it to remind Thalassa that she was there. She could never be more grateful for the Princess' presence then at that moment.
Just as they jumped into hyperspace out towards Tatooine, one of the soldiers opened the door behind them.
"The transmission we recieved, ma'am." Leia turned and took the disc form him. "What is it they've sent us?"
A small smile emerged on the Princess' lips.
"Hope."
"We should be there in a few hours, Ma'am," one of the soldiers told Leia who nodded.
"Thank you." She took Thalassa's hands in her own. "You should rest, Thalassa."
"I'm sorry, Your Highness, but my job is to accompany you and not let you out of my sight. I'm fine."
Leia gave her a soft, pitiful smile.
"Alright. Come with me then."
Leia led them back to her chambers, where a droid, that Thalassa recognized as R2-D2, stood, ready for Leia's request. Leia simply offered a hello.
"Come, sit." Thalassa sat beside Leia on her bed. "I want to tell you a story."
"Alright."
"I want you to listen."
"Yes, M'lady."
"And I want you to start calling me Leia."
"Of course."
"Are you ready for the story?"
"I am."
Leia proceeded to tell Thalassa one of the stories that her father would tell her of a diplomat woman and her lover, a jedi knight.
"They were madly in love," she said. "But it was forbiddean for either of them to have relationships, which made their love rather difficult. It didn't stop them, though, because they were stubborn and hard headed."
"Like you?"
"Yes, like me. Anyway, they met when they were ten years younger. He was 9 and she was 14, or so my father says. He admitted that he didn't actually know how old they were, but that's not the point. Anyway, they hadn't seen each other in 10 years, but he had been in love with her ever since they parted and she had hardly thought of him." And so the story continued, about a fateless love that ended in tragedy and heartbreak and the death of an entire race.
"So, they both died?"
"Yes."
"Killed by the same person?"
"Yes."
"But that's terrible!"
"It is, Thalassa, my friend." Thalassa sighed and lay backwards on Leia's bed.
"It wasn't a real story, was it?"
"I don't know. My father never said either way."
"Well, who killed them?"
"My father said it was-"
The alarm resounded once again.
"They've caught up to us," Leia breathed. "Come with me. R2, follow us."
Both Thalassa and R2 did as they were told. They followed Leia, past running soldiers and hurrying men. Leia stopped at the armory and grabbed a blaster.
"Can you shoot?" She asked Thalassa.
"Yes, of course I can."
"Good." She tossed another blaster to her. Thalassa was confused on how the Princess could be so calm, but then again, she guessed the girl had been training for this her whole life. They continued onwards until they came to the place where Leia wanted to hide. They sat there for a while and heard the obvious sounds of dying men. That was a sound Thalassa was generally used to, but she still flinched every time there was a strangled cry. Leia placed the disc she had gotten earlier into R2's system.
"R2, I need you to record this," Leia said. R2 beeped an affirmative response. Thalassa stood to the side as Leia began to talk.
"General Kenobi, years ago you served my father in the Clone Wars. Now he begs you to help him in his struggle against the Empire. I regret that I am unable to present my father's request to you in person, but my ship has fallen under attack and I'm afraid my mission to bring you to Alderaan has failed. I have placed information vital to the survival of the Rebellion into the memory systems of this R2 unit. My father will know how to retrieve it. You must see this droid safely delivered to him on Alderaan. This is our most desperate hour. Help me, Obi-Wan Kenobi. You're my only hope."
Glancing back and forth to make sure no one had seen her and ended the recording.
"Go," she told the R2 unti, and the droid fled. Not long after, the door to the room they had hidden in slid open. Thalassa stood frozen at the sight of the Stormtroopers. She hadn't seen one since she was young, since her parents had died, and here they were, standing before her, five or six of them.
"Look, there's two," one of them said, pointing at Leia and Thalassa. Both woman shot their guns, hitting two different targets. They turned to run, but were hit with the Troopers' stun guns. Thalassa fell to the ground beside Princess Leia, limp, cold, and utterly broken.
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Hello again my friends. I'm glad you've made it this far! (I'm surprised I've made it this far). Writing these short chapters are much, much easier than the usual 35-40 page ones I attempted. I enjoy it much more, much easier. Anyway, I'm glad you have all read thus far.
I would much appreciate any help in editing since I am completely incapable of doing it myself (I'm not even sure incapable is a word? Is is uncapable?? Encapable?? I don't know man). So it would very much like that kind of help, but remember, not all authors do, so don't just go around correcting people's mistakes. I used to do that and now I don't, so you shouldn't cause people get mad.
Anyway, I'm really sad because I loved every one in Rogue One and now they're all dead so that really sucks and my life is over and I really wanted to know what happened to Cassian when he was a baby so now I have to make it up??? and i'm just a big ball of emotions. all of my babies are dead.
But seriously though, my heart.
I love all of you guys though, you're my life. You mean so much to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Kindness.
bucky