Crimson Light [Star Wars: The Force Awakens Fanfiction]

Only Survivors

With my back to my burning village, there was only one direction to move: forward. As I forced one foot in front of the other, dawn broke over the desert sand. The surrounding area flooded with light, the grains of sand sparkling in the sun. Using the new rays, I now discovered that I wasn't just following a path.

I was following tracks.

They seemed to have been made by something small and without individual feet. It was more of an indentation in the sand then tracks, but they were still clear and distinct in the golden sand.

A moment later, the second sun rose and I squinted against the glare. There was a slight movement on the horizon, and I paused.

Using my hand as a visor, I stared closely at the movement. It seemed like some sort of droid. And following the path that was in front of me with my eyes, it led right to it.

"Hey!" I called. It didn't respond, the distance making it unlikely that it heard me.

I ran forward down the tracks, trying to gain as much ground as possible to catch up with it.

A few minutes later, I crested a hill and the droid was in front of me. Hearing me behind it, it turned and gazed at me.

It was small, and had a round head that sat on a circular body. I recognized the orange and white design as a droid from my village. It swiveled its head around, and I saw its eye zoom and focus on my face.

"Hello," I said, pushing a stray hair off my face. "Are you alright?"

It beeped at me in response.

"I came from the village, too. Who's your owner?"

It dropped its head slightly and responded.

"Oh, I see. That poor man taken by Kylo Ren was yours."

Glancing up, it asked me a question.

"My name is Lora. And yours?"

More beeps.

"Okay, BB-8. Where are you headed?"

BB-8 gave its response, and motioned its head onward.

"I'm not sure either, but that seems like as good a direction as any. If you don't mind, I'd like to come with you. Seeming as we're the only --" she paused, and the word floated unspoken in the air.

The only survivors.

Realizing what I had meant, BB-8 gave a despondent whistle, and continued its trek. After a moment, I followed in its wake.

As we walked, my mind mulled over everything that had happened so far. As of yesterday, last night even, everything was normal. I was living the perfect life. It wasn't easy, by a long shot, but I enjoyed it. I had a loving mother and father, and a village that cared about me.

And the First Order had taken it all away from me.

Kylo Ren had killed them all with a single command

I stamped into the sand, trying to gain traction on the sand as we traveled up an incline.

I was the only one left from our village, aside from one astromech droid. It was my responsibility to get my people's story out, to let other people know the horror of the First Order.

Determination roared inside me, and my head cleared as I set my eyes on my goal.

After a few hours of walking, I saw a figure rise out of the haze of heat. It was a scavenger, riding on a luggabeast.

"Hey!" I called. "Can you help us?" It turned, and started walking toward us. The beast of burden's harness was covered in supplies, and the creature on top of it had all sorts of gadgets on its person as well.

It stopped in front of me and said something.

I inwardly cringed. I was trained in five different language, but not the one it spoke. From its harsh tongue and appearance, I believed it was a Teedo, known for scavenging desolate places. 

"Can you help us?" I tried Huttese, a language common among humans and many humanoids.

It repeated something in its same tongue, and started fiddling with something on its saddle.

"Oh, good," I turned to BB-8. "I think he's going to help us." BB-8 beeped happily. I turned back to the Teedo just in time to see it drop a net over BB-8.

BB-8 squealed and struggled in the harsh cords.

"What are you doing?" I cried. I pulled at the lengths of rope holding BB-8 hostage, but it was useless. The Teedo was yelling something at me, and I yelled back in every tongue I could think of.

Suddenly, there was a shout behind me. Keeping my hands on BB-8, I shifted my focus onto where the voice had come from.

It was a woman. She seemed around the age of 20, and wore the light-skinned clothing of the native people of Jakku. She had her brown hair pulled back and carried a long stick. The woman walked near us, and yelled again at the Teedo, who yelled back.

I stepped back, ready to start talking to her too, but she knelt down beside BB-8 and started untying him. She continued speaking to the humanoid until he grunted and turned away on his luggabeast, muttering something underneath its breath.

The woman sighed, and finished untying BB-8.

"There you go," she said as she dropped the cords. BB-8 beeped contentedly and rolled beside me.

"Thank you!" I exclaimed. "I wasn't sure what to do."

"That was just a scavenger. We get them a lot around here," the woman explained, wiping sweat from her brow. "What are you doing way out here?"

I started to reply, but BB-8 shot in, and started talking to the woman.

"The First Order?" she shook her head, biting her lip. "That scum had no business here. I'm so sorry for both your losses."

BB-8 whistled again, and she gave a double-take. "Wait -- you want to stay with me?"

"That would be very kind of you," I explained. "As you heard, we do not have anywhere else to go."

The woman gave a pause for thought, and BB-8 beeped again. She sighed, and motioned with her hand. "Alright, then. But just for tonight."

"Thank you," my shoulders sagged in relief, and I moved to walk beside her as we headed back where she had come from. "I'm Lora, by the way."

"Rey," the woman said. "My name is Rey."

Hey, everyone! Hope you are liking the book so far. If you are enjoying Crimson Light, don't forget to vote and add this book to your reading list!

Although Crimson Light is sticking to the plot of Force Awakens pretty well so far, it's going to take some pretty drastic turns soon!

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Updated December 22, 2015