Roughly twelve hours later you woke up, by yourself. Not because of the horrible sound your alarm made each morning, no. You weren't exactly sure if you had slept through it or if you had just forget to set it. You had a look at your data pad. There was a message from Kylo: 'Come down to P37 whenever you are ready.'
Oh, well that was nice. You looked at your alarm clock and saw that it had been disabled, not by you either. Of course he would have admin rights over every person's data pad on board. He invaded your head and now he was deleting your alarms?
"Tsk, tsk, tsk." you made and shook your head slightly. It didn't really bother you much. You trusted him enough to not abuse his power. That he got in your head...that was a different subject and you hadn't really decided what your opinion was on it.
You lifted up your shirt to take a look at the bandage Kylo had put on you the day before. It was well done, very similar to your own technique. You tried your best not to think about the fact that he had helped you. He could take a look at your thoughts, delete your alarm clocks but...you did not want any help from him. Not just from him, from anyone for that matter. It hurt your pride more than you would have wanted to admit.
Deep down you knew that you had needed his help yesterday, even if you did not want to accept it.
The doors to the elevator opened and the two stormtroopers standing guard greeted you. Over the past week you had been getting closer with them, getting to know them better. They were twins going by the identification numbers 'PK-2333' and 'PK-2334'. They were nice to have around, joking whenever no superior was present and always at your side when one of the prisoners tried to do anything funny.
From their serious behaviour you knew that Kylo was nearby.
"Good morning, Sir." you said and Kylo turned around quickly, seemingly startled by your sudden appearance.
"You are sneaking up on me again, Doc." he noted and went towards Mr. Stares' cell.
"I didn't mean to, Sir. I thought you'd have...heard me or sensed me or something."
He mustered you. It was mean, he could read your thoughts to know what you were thinking but you couldn't even read his facial expression through his mask.
"I normally do." he added and typed in the code for Mr. Stares' cell.
Mr. Stares did what he always did, first he was unbothered until he saw you. You gave him a small wave from behind Kylo's broad shoulders and grinned in the most obnoxious way possible.
Kylo looked at you and you immediately stopped smiling, standing as straight as possible. Hands behind your back. Military position.
Both of you stepped back so 2333 and 2334 could get him out.
"I thought you were done with the prisoners, Sir." you said while you waited for Mr. Stares to be brought into the interrogation room.
"Some new information came up." he looked down on you, his crossed arms making him even more intimidating, "I'll need you to get close towards him. I'll tell you when."
You nodded, somehow getting nervous about your new 'job'. Why did you have to get closer? Come to think of it, he did mention that it was easier to get inside his mind when you were around.
The interrogation started like it had last time, Kylo did his...thing whatever it was exactly and Stares started screaming, presumably out of pain. By the way his face was distorted it was definitely out of pain. Ouch. Atleast Kylo simply reading your mind did not hurt.
Kylo stepped aside and you forward. Mr. Stares' eyes widened in fear. You weren't exactly sure what you had to do, so you just stood there. Sweat was dripping down his brown hair, down onto his nose and on the floor. You quickly turned your head to look at Kylo. He had his arms crossed again, you didn't know what exactly he wanted from you. What were you supposed to do? Just stand there?
You couldn't even think about it for too long as the door opened and an officer entered.
"You aske-", he started but was cut off by the Supreme Leader.
"NOT NOW." he shouted and the poor dude found himself hanging in the air by his throat.
"Sir!", you said and immediately put your hands on your mouth to keep yourself from talking any further. The short look he gave you before letting the officer down made you take a step back. You felt your whole body tense up. Barely breathing you wished you could conceal yourself from the angry presence of the Supreme Leader.
You couldn't though, he raised his hand towards Mr. Stares' temples. He screamed loudly and fainted perhaps half a minute later. You wished you would have fainted, there was just something about Kylo that constantly made you feel as if the air pressure had increased.
Sometimes it reassured you and made you feel safe, but other times it was at the brink of destroying you.
2333 and 2334 went and got the lifeless body of Mr. Stares. The moment they had left Kylo went over towards you and placed his hands on your shoulders. You were still standing there, stiff as a stick and staring at the black mask in front of you like a deer in the headlights.
"Doc, calm down. You did well.", his grip on your shoulders was tight, but not so much that it hurt you. Calm down? Easier said than done when you felt as if you were ten meter underwater. It was not like you did not want to breathe normally, you COULD not! Your chest was restricted and did not allow you to inhale properly.
"You did well, Doc. I got what I needed."
You nodded and closed your eyes for a short while. It was fine. You knew Kylo better by now. He wouldn't do that to you....you opened your eyes and stared at the black mask. That was not the problem, you weren't afraid of Kylo, you trusted him. He'd gotten you away from Eks. His behaviour was not the cause for you not being able to breathe properly right now. You couldn't quite pinpoint what exactly had caused your rather obvious distress.
You nodded again, signaling that you were in fact fine and he let you go. Patting your shoulder before taking a few steps back.
You eyed him suspiciously, trying to figure out what about him was what made you so...afraid? You didn't really know what exactly had happened to you either.
"I'll explain at some point." Kylo replied to your thoughts.
Thanks for reading them? You were still not used to it, but you damn well hoped that he'd explain. You didn't like being left in the dark about things affecting you this specifically.
You wanted to ask him about Mr. Stares and his odd relationship with you. Not just that, there were many more things you wanted to know, most of them related to whatever just happened but also some about the force...you did not ask though. There was no interrogating and questioning the Supreme Leader. No matter how much you wanted to.
"I'll explain." Kylo repeated, obviously listening to your thoughts. You just nodded and both of you started heading out the interrogation room.
"Do you still need me, Sir? Otherwise I'll go down to the ER and check on the officers."
Kylo just shook his head.
"After yesterday?"
You didn't need him to elaborate on what exactly he meant. It was far too clear and far too unpleasant to think of.
"Don't remind me, please." you mumbled. He let out a chuckle. His mask still did not convey it properly and you got scared that he had choked on something before realizing the issue.
You spotted 2333 and 2334 a bit further down the hallway. Right. You almost forgot about that.
"I'll check on your wounds again tomorrow, Sir. Is that alright for you?"
Kylo nodded and headed off into a different hallway while you went over to the twins.
"Do you have time tonight?", 2333 asked you after Kylo was out of earshot.
"Yes, so...eight in the training hall?", they nodded simultaneously. "Lovely. I'll see you then."
The officers in ER had made it through the worst. They were all stable but their situation overall did not look good. There was one, who was now missing a leg. Two with major concussions and countless blaster wounds that had partially disintegrated bones.
For lunch you all went to the cafeteria together. It was nice to have some social interaction with your colleagues outside of the emergency department for once.
Rosie talked and talked about anything that came to her hyperactive mind. First she talked about her family, a topic you quite frankly were not especially interested in. Then she switched to talking about her homeplanet, you weren't interested in it either. It was mostly about how much she missed the sun, the beaches and the oceans. You made the grave mistake of saying you disliked all of it. She almost looked disgusted.
"What do you mean you don't like beaches and oceans?", her usually tied up brown locks were hanging loosely over her shoulder. You hadn't been on the ship for long but you already knew atleast five guys interested in her. It was understandable. She was gorgeous. You could see the effects her homeplanet had had on her. Her skin was a beautiful olive colour and her dark brown eyes were just dreamy.
"I just don't like them. There is not much to say about that." you replied, chewing on the yellow coloured mush that you got served today.
"Nonononono. You can't just say you don't like it!"
"I don't like it. There. I said it." you grinned at your incredibly bad joke, obviously finding it way more funny than anyone else on the table.
She scoffed, "No. Come on, the rays of sunshine dancing on your skin, warming you up..."
"No."
"No? Why don't you like it? Why don't you want to lie on a beach, or go for a swim in the ocean?", her voice got more high pitched with every word she spoke.
You shrugged, "I have never been on a beach or went swimming in the oc-"
"AHA! How can you say you don't like it then!"
"Or went for a swim in the ocean just to relax. I have been on beaches but only because there was a fight.", you continued as if she hadn't interrupted you.
"Oh."
"Also I prefer the cold. I love it when it is cold outside and I can sit in front of a beautiful fire. I also don't like beaches because everything is so...flat."
"Flat?! Your reason for not liking beaches is because they are flat?" she scoffed and crossed her arms in front of her, not flat, chest.
Dr. Fench interrupted your discussion, "I really like swamps be-"
"Oh shut up. Now that is so stupid. You are literally living in mud." Rosie said and Dr. Fench looked a little insulted. You had to agree with her though, swamps were really not great.
The discussion ended abruptly with Dr. Fench getting a message on his data pad.
"We have some more soldiers coming in." he read through the rest of the notification and looked over towards you, "I know you are still...recovering and all...but would you be willing to take the officers? You know their situation best from any of the other doctors present."
You took a deep breath and put the fork down, "Sure. You do know that I theoretically could be called away any time though? I mean, not now, given that I am still wounded but this is not a permanent solution."
"Yes, I am well aware.", he adjusted his glasses, "Thank you. I appreciate it."
Taking care of the officers was a rather new experience to you, given your job description. Leading a non-combat team was not something you had ever done before and it took you a few days to adjust. It also took your nurses a few days to adjust to the way you talked to them and ordered them around. It wasn't that difficult, given that they were used to working on a military ship.
In the evening you went to the training rooms and spent some time with the twins. You couldn't work on your hand to hand combat techniques or anything that required much physical activity but you could use the time to work on your shooting skills. You struggled with shooting at multiple moving targets from a close distance, you preferred to take your time or just stay so far away they didn't even know you were there.
Because you only had to check on Kylo's wounds every three days, you moved back down to your own quarters. It was far closer to ER and allowed you to jump in in case of emergencies. The meetings with the Supreme leader were brief, given how much he had to do lately. And before you knew it two weeks had passed.
Sitting at the small table in your apartment you were reading through some medical papers. They were mind-bogglingly boring though and you frequently found yourself drifting off. It still had to be done, so your brains unwillingness to focus pissed you off quite a bit.
"3.2.1. Focus.", you repeated like you had done so many times before already and read through the same passage again.
The doorbell rang and you jumped up from your chair, almost knocking it over. Who the fuck wanted to visit you? Did you forget anything in the locker room and Rosie wanted to take it to you? It was probably the wrong apartment.
You pressed a button and the doors slid open with a familiar mechanical hiss. From the height and the fact that the person standing behind it was wearing all black you figured that it was not in fact Rosie.
"Sir! Good evening." you said and grabbed your data pad, searching when you would have the next meeting with him, "Did I forget to come visit you tonight, Sir? I am so sorry, I did no-"
"No. You didn't.", he stepped in, only now you noticed that he was carrying something. He turned to take a look at your apartment. It was tiny, perhaps five by three meters plus the bathroom to the side. Barely enough for one person, let alone two, especially if one of them was as tall and broad as the Supreme Leader was.
He placed what he had been carrying on the bed. Whatever it was, it was wrapped in white cloth. He nodded towards it and you stepped closer to open it.
It was your armour. New armour. Not the destroyed one from before.
"Thank you, Sir. I completely forgot about that."
"No need to thank me. Put it on."
"Now, Sir?", you asked, dumbfounded.
"Yes.", he turned around, facing the door and you quickly got yourself the stuff you usually wore under your armour.
"We'll be leaving as soon as you are done. You remember those officers?"
Of course you remembered them, given that you had been their primary caretaker for the past two weeks.
"Yes, Sir....Sorry, could you step aside?", he turned around and took a step back so you could grab your armour. He mustered you, now standing there in only your skin tight bodysuit.
"Those officers, Sir?" you asked, reminding him of the sentence he had started.
"Right. You know the Resistance holds more captive. We want to get them back, I need you as our medic." he said it as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
You raised your eyebrows. "Me, Sir?"
"Yes."
Alright then. If he saw you fit then you would not complain. On the contrary you felt quite honored to be chosen by him.
"Thank you, Sir.", you finished putting on your armour and grabbed your helmet from the bed. "Done."
You followed Kylo to the hangar. His steps were huge, and you quietly thanked your parents for giving you long legs, otherwise you would have had to run behind him.
Wearing your armour again made you feel great. It gave you that sense of purpose and unity back. Working with the nurses and other doctors was great as well but it didn't give you the same kick you got out of wearing stormtrooper armour and joining the battles.
An Upsilon-class command shuttle was already waiting for you. It was the first time you were allowed to fly in one as they were usually reserved for high-ranking military members. You grinned like an idiot under your helmet. Never would you have thought that one day you'd be flying in one of them. At the side of the Supreme Leader himself. Actually accompanying him into battle, because he had WANTED you there.
You tried to hide your excitement as much as possible, you could grin but you stopped yourself from jumping or inspecting every single detail about the ship. Even if you didn't know anything about them, other than their names.
Two knights of Ren, three officers, Hux and two pilots were already on board. You were the only stormtrooper present. You'd seen one of the knights before. He'd been with you on the ship as you left Eks. It was the one carrying an axe while the other had his arm more or less weaponized. You wondered whether or not it was actually a prosthetic or if he just had his arm within the monster sized canon-blaster-whatever mix. A few grenades were strapped to his chest and on the side of his belt was a blaster. A great combination. And probably an even greater companion to have on your side in battle.
You felt out of place. The pilots were probably one of the most skilled of the First Order. The officers weren't just any either. One was a major, the other two were captains. You didn't even want to talk about Hux. Then, of course, there were the Knight of Ren. Avid users of the Dark side of the Force and other than that incredibly skilled fighters. The Supreme Leader himself was there, of course, and then...then there were you. A combat medic that had joined the First Order a little over a year ago.
You were the only one present in stormtrooper armour and theoretically not even allowed to speak to the officers. You were the black sheep of the Upsilon-class shuttle, and ironically the only one dressed in white.
Apart from any of that...you felt cornered. As if the three force users took up all the space around you. You started counting backwards in sevens in your head. It kept you occupied, breathing normally, stopped you from worrying about the upcoming mission and most importantly...if any of them decided to read your mind they wouldn't find anything weird.
You made your way to your destination, temporarily landing on a Maxima-A class heavy cruiser for transport to a different planetary system. Kylo went out of the shuttle, leaving you alone with the rest.
Not really knowing anything about the mission you suspected that you were the only one who hadn't been briefed on it. Why was that? Theoretically not telling you increased your chance of mission success in case they had force users. You just hoped it was that and not a lack of trust from Kylo's side.
How long exactly it took to get to the designated planet you couldn't tell. A few hours for sure, but whether it was two, three or four? No idea.
The shuttle door opened and everyone apart from the pilots left. Two more ships of the same type had landed. They were each transporting stormtroopers, another high ranking officer and prisoners, whos' heads had been covered by hoods.
Atleast you weren't the only stormtrooper around anymore. You instantly felt a bit less lost.
You still couldn't see Kylo, nor did you recognize any of the other stormtroopers. Great. The only other people you had actually seen before were a Knight of Ren, that made you uncomfortable to just be around and General Hux. Whom you made uncomfortable when you were around. And the prisoners. By now you had seen them often enough to know who they were even if their heads were covered.
Mr. Stares wasn't present though. Odd.
The city you entered was probably on neutral ground. Neither the Resistance nor the First Order would have agreed to meet anywhere else.
The locals didn't really mind almost two dozen stormtroopers and the rest of your group making it through the city. They stopped and looked at you, but they didn't seem scared or anyhow concerned.
You entered a building, most of the stormtroopers stayed outside and you wanted to as well, if it wouldn't have been for the Axe-Knight you had already met. His hand signaling told you enough.
The Resistance representatives were already present and waiting. They had brought prisoners as well, you didn't need to get much closer to tell that they were in quite a bad shape.
"General.", a tall pink haired woman said to Hux.
"Vice Admiral.", he replied, "Let's skip the pleasantries and get down to business."
"There is nothing pleasant about this visit anyway." she replied, "I hope you brought all the prisoners?"
"Not yet. One of them is in bad shape, we are keeping him on life support. We will give him to you once we get all of ours." General Hux answered. Was it Mr. Stares? If it was him then either something had happened since this morning or the dear General was lying.
The pink haired lady nodded, suspicious about Hux's behaviour. Their hair colours were a horrible combination. A true eyesore. If you were honest, any Resistance fighter was an eyesore to you. Their logo alone pissed you off. Their behaviour was a totally different question. You didn't even want to think about it.
"Doctor.", Hux eventually said after some more discussion about prisoners and exchanging insults with the Vice Admiral.
You stepped forward and towards the officers. Checking them briefly and scanning them.
"They are in a bad shape, General, but they'll make the transport." you went back again and one of the officers handed you a data pad so you could tell the doctors upon the Maxima-A class about their status. You transmitted the scanner's data and added in a few additional details that you thought were needed.
The Resistance sent their own doctor, you eyeing him suspiciously. You had been taking very good care of your prisoners. If he'd say anything other than that you'd give him a taste of your not so good care.
He just nodded and went back to the Vice Admiral, quietly telling her about them.
They discussed how they'd deliver Mr. Stares for far too long in your opinion. Atleast you were occupied with informing the other doctors. Each of the sides eventually transported all their prisoners away, while the two heads were still talking and talking. That was the reason you did not want to get into politics. Ever. Too much talk about nothing and everything at the same time and not enough actually DOING anything.
Then without a forewarning there was a single shot from outside. Then more and within the blink of an eye there was only chaos.