Guardians of Light

Coruscant

Clarke's eyes snapped open and she jolted upright on the bed, not having intended to sleep until the business with the artefact had been dealt with. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed, glancing over to the door as the G3E entered moments later.

'We are about to make our descent onto Coruscant,' he informed her in a disinterested tone, retreating again without waiting for any response. Clarke waited a few seconds for the fogginess of sleep to vacate her mind before standing and readjusting the heavy jacket self-consciously before leaving the med-bay.

The droid was positioned by the engine room, fiddling with dials on a machine as she emerged, glancing around to locate the Jedi who was, for now, no-where to be seen. The repulsorlifts kicked into action below them as the ship descended to the planet surface.

'Clarke, I hope you had a good rest,' Lexa called out a few moments later as she descended the flight of stairs, her footsteps barely making a sound on the grated metal. 'Once my crew is on board we can drop you off wherever you wish, don't hesitate to ask.'

'That's kind of you, but Coruscant will be fine,' the blonde insisted, not knowing how much longer she could keep on with this deception. Jedi were well renowned for their ability to sense the feelings of those around them, it was a miracle she hadn't yet been discovered.

'Master, I apologise for the interruption but I am still not having any good fortune with this monitor, I am unsure which setting will be most appropriate for the required frequency.'

Lexa glanced over at the droid, not noticing the blonde's face fall still as she guessed exactly what the machine was meant to be picking up. The device in her jacket now felt the size of a planet and she had a sudden urge to get as far away from the ship as possible.

'Leave it for the moment, I'm sure Toril will have a better idea of the settings,' she said to Clarke's relief, who somehow managed to keep her expression neutral as the droid complied and moved away from the monitor.

A tremor ran through the ship as it touched down on the planet surface, settling moments later as the rumble of the engines faded away. The second that ramp was down, Clarke had every intention of making this a quick farewell.

'Are you okay?' Lexa asked, sensing a tremor of unease stirring the force. Clarke forced a smile onto her face, willing the ramp to drop so that she could make a quick exit.

'Yeah, fine, just glad to have arrived.'

The Jedi remained unconvinced but said nothing more, relief blooming in the blonde's chest when the ramp began to drop with a hiss and hit the ground with a muted thud. Clarke was about to excuse herself from the Jedi's presence when the clatter of feet sounded up the ramp without pause.

'Finally returned for us then!' a cheerful voice called out, a figure soon rising into view as she ascended the ramp, pushing a storage container ahead of her. 'We thought you'd forgotten about us.'

A petite women stepped aboard the ship, her gaze filling with curiosity when it fell on the blonde stranger, a friendly smile simultaneously lifting her lips. Clarke was struggling not to tense as she realised that the women was standing in her way and did not appear to be moving any time soon. So much for a quick get away.

'Damn it Sharr, why'd you stop like that?' a deep voice growled, its owner still unseen from the bottom of the ramp. The women, presumably Sharr, paid no attention to the grumbling behind her. Black swirls of ink decorated the skin around her light blue eyes and stretched down to her jaw, framed by a short cut of silvery hair.

'Hello there, we weren't expecting visitors,' she said, glancing quizzically at the Jedi who was stood calmly with hands clasped behind her back, a slight furrow in her brow as she in turn focused on Clarke.