Star Wars: Dar'Aliit

Chapter Seventeen: One Night Decisions

19 BBY Illandin

Something shoves me out of bed and I stagger, almost falling as I catch the edge of the sheets and manage not to topple onto the floor. "What?" I mumble, my eyes still heavy with sleep.

"Get up," a woman's voice hisses. "Now!"

"Huh?" I blink open my eyes. Where am I? And who're you?"

The Twi'leki woman grabs her shirt and drags it on. She gestures wildly to me again. "Get up and out of sight!"

I twist over and plant my feet on the floor. The hell are my clothes? I find a few of them and slip into them, hurrying toward the refresher. How did I get here?

There's a heavy knock on the door. I recognize the sound, but I was certain I'd dreamed it.

Light cracks under the door and I can see shadows moving as I peek through the slightly cracked refresh door.

"What's up?" The Twi'lek woman—I can't remember her name to save my life—leans toward a shadow in the doorway.

"You vanished last night. Where'd you go?"

"I had an emergency."

There's doubt in the voice. It sounds like another woman, but I can't tell exactly from the low tone's they're whispering in. "Emergency? Lailana, you know you can tell me if you need off, but this is the fourth time you've vanished without a word. I don't want to do this to you."

"I swear, it won't happen again!"

So, I'm definitely not the first. That should hurt more than it does, but I can't even remember this woman's name. There's a comfort in the fact she likely won't remember me either. I'm not here to get attached.

Something buzzes on the floor of the room. I pat my pockets wildly. My commlink.

"Come in," comes a muffled voice.

"Kian, come in."

Both women turn around. The shadow—who appears to be a woman who looks tough as a soldier—shoves past Lailana and into the room. "Lailana, are you in trouble?"

"No!"

She turns. "I told you, you can tell me."

The commlink buzzes again. "Lieutenant Kian, come in!"

I hope they can't hear my name, but the stouter woman whirls around and my stomach sinks. I can't let her find that commlink.

Lailana whirls, lips parted in defense. The woman leans among the blankets and reaches for my commlink.

I shove open the door and stagger out. "Don't touch that!"

Two pairs of eyes snap to me. There's fear in one, and disappointment in the other.

"Another clone," the stout woman sighs.

I put my hands up. She's got a blaster clearly held at her side, but she makes no move for it. Instead, she straightens up and fixes both hands on her hips. "Lailana."

"This isn't her fault," I say.

In two strides, this woman is in my face. Her skin is deeply tanned. She looks like she might've seen more of the universe than even me. She levels her glare at me. "I remember you," she says. "I remember a whole lot of your kind. Stay out of my bar."

"I—" I open my mouth. I close it.

"And you!" She whirls to Laialana. "You're fired."

Lailana's face mottles a deeper purple. She glares past her boss and right at me.