Star Wars: A New Rebellion

Amongst the Flowers Part 3

WESTERN RIM- EDENIA

134 ABY

38 ABO

More buildings were up ahead, each durasteel material of the building gleaming in the sunlight.
The sandy streets continued along with the stands and dreamsilk cover. The crowds behind them that had already passed resumed buying their goods and loud chatter. Suddenly, a loud crash came from up the street in a nearby alley where the marketplace continued. Red blaster bullets were seen, flying through the street, and headed towards Zara and her father.

It was if time had stopped. The yelling of the crowd rang in Zara's ears as she ran in front of the
main trooper and whipped her hand out to face the blaster bullet. It happened so fast, Zara's
movements almost invisible to the naked eye, although Zara sensed the surprise of the Emperor
from behind her. The red blaster bullet came towards Zara, slashing through the air, ready to kill
anything or anyone in sight. Zara felt the rush of The Force around her and before she knew it,
the blood red bullet hung in midair.

The yelling and screaming of the crowd stopped, and was replaced with silence. No one cheered
or yelled words of praise, everyone was terrified. People froze, and looked in the direction of
Zara, their mouths agape in shock. Zara's skill, her quick motions, without hesitation was impressive and frightening all at once. The troopers stood their ground, eyes narrowing on the
alley of the bullets location.

The Emperor was shocked, still standing in the middle of the safety of the troopers, not daring to
risk his life for useless people. Yet his daughter moved so quickly, it was too late to stop her. She
demonstrated her power, her force ability. They needed to leave. Now.

The Emperor was making his way to his daughter slowly, not wanting anyone in the crowd to
notice, and just as he was about to reach his hand out to rest on Zara's shoulder, a loud yelp of
surprise came from the same direction as the blaster bullet, along with muffled stormtrooper
voices. Zara tilted her head up in surprise, and he watched his daughter's Force redirect the bullet to were the screams were heard. Her arm already out in front of her as she moved towards the bullet, forcing the bullet away from the crowd and shooting it to the stormtroopers. It flew
through the air and spiraled into the ground, creating a fire filled blast from contact with the
sand. The troopers jumped back in surprise and shifted their bodies to avoid being hit.

Everyone in the crowd maintained their stillness, no one daring to make the first move. Then
Zara heard the sounds of stormtroopers running and yelling coming down the streets. A young
boy, about as old as Zara, ran out of the alley and into the sunlight. His shaggy, dirty blonde hair
was like yellow silk under the sun and his hazel eyes met Zara's hooded figure. He widened his
eyes, shocked at the sight he saw. He opened his mouth to say something to the crowd except he held his tongue when he saw the long, black cape of her father, The Emperor, waiting before him.

Zara watched as the boy stood frozen to the ground, his black boots stuck to the sandy path in
front of the Emperor. On the right side of the boys holster sat a black blaster, pointing towards
the ground. It was easily accessible and the boy could shoot it at any time. Zara gasped and
remained her footing, still standing in front of the crowd and her father. The troopers slowly
made their way towards the boy, blaster ready, and pointing it at the boys back preparing to
shoot.

The crowd remained silent, watching the scene, with slight gasps and whispered comments as the troopers made their way to the teenage boy. Zara flinched slightly when a hand fell on her
shoulder, it pushed down hard, and she looked up to see her father.

"Be ready Lady Gray," the Emperor said coldly, not looking down at his daughter. Instead, he
narrowed his eyes to the boy and troopers, disputing with himself on what actions to take next.
He walked towards the mental battle, wandering who would shoot first. His location separated
Zara and the crowd from the boy.