DEFECTED | cal kestis [1]✔️

xii. yeah, it's working

"So, TN, would you mind if I suggested names for you?"

"I already have a name, Cal."

TN trudged through the wrecked venator on Zeffo with the boy beside her, the two in better moods and actually getting along. BD-1 enjoyed that they were not fighting or being snarky toward each other. In fact, the droid trilled and chimed into their conversations rather than stay quiet and uncomfortable.

As they walked through it, the girl could sense the unease from Cal. This place must bring back memories he did not want to remember, so the girl kept her mouth shut about it. If she did not like him prying into her past, she might as well not pry into his.

"No, what I mean is give you an actual name that's not just letters and numbers." He said to her as they climbed to another level. Cal helped her up since her arm was in the process of healing. The ointment which she dumped on it earlier was helping greatly.

TN stopped herself from saying something snarky to him as she thought of a different response.

"And what name would you like to suggest?"

"I have a few, but I think you would like two of them."

The girl nodded, a grin on her face. "Okay, tell me the names."

Cal glanced to BD-1 before replying.

"I have Talon and Nya. If you don't like them, it's fine."

TN smiled a genuine smile and it surprised Cal that she could be so sincere. It was the first time he had seen her smile like this, and it truly was a sight to see.

"Those are cool, but I'll get back to you when I decide which one I like. Don't get me wrong, they sound badass...like me."

He rolled his eyes and lightly shoved her in a playful manner.

"You had to ruin the moment, TN?"

"I made it better, Cal."

He chuckled at her antics and continued into the broken venator. He sensed an echo in the Force when he came into a small room. He bent down and stuck out his hand, letting the Force show him the memories of the discarded, dirty cloak buried in mud. It once belonged to a Padawan before the Purge.

"What is it?" TN asked.

"This cloak. It used to belong to a Jedi Padawan."

The girl's nose scrunched in slight distaste at the mention of a Jedi but she kept whatever comment to herself. Cal stood up, his breathing becoming shaky as memories from five years ago came back to him. The stormtrooper walked ahead and found dead Clone Troopers in the room. She held unexplainable respect to the Clone Troopers. Maybe it was because of them being the ones who came before the Stormtroopers or the fact they were loyal to a fault. The girl never understood why Order 66 happened. But as TN trained to be a Stormtrooper, the more secrets of the Empire she discovered. One secret she found out was that Darth Vader was once a Jedi himself. Anakin Skywalker, was the name she found in the Restricted Archives.

"Do you know anything about Order 66?" Cal muttered to the girl beside her as he eyed the dead clones.

"All I know is that it was made to eliminate the Jedi. A Sith Emperor was the one who ordered it. Some speculate the Sith was Chancellor Palpatine of the Senate. He hid in plain sight of the Jedi and even turned one of them." TN replied, keeping some secrets to herself.

"Chancellor Palpatine?" Cal questioned in disbelief.

"That's what was rumored in the garrison."

The two continued deeper into the wreckage, Cal sensing echoes and reliving memories and TN connecting dots between the Clone Wars and Order 66.

The girl split up from him and walked into a different area. She noticed the mound of dirt and mud and a discarded old cloak. Clone trooper helmets dotted the broken floors and hung on beams which jutted out from the floor.

Cal came in and sensed the echo TN stood next to. She watched him closely, seeing the evident trauma coming back to him. She knelt down beside him and did the most unpredictable gesture which surprised the two: TN hugged him. Cal tensed, not knowing what to do as she held onto him. She did not understand why she had this urge to comfort him, but it felt good to do something right. Or at least she thought she was doing it right...

"What are you doing?" He asked as he hesitantly lifted his arms.

"I'm trying to comfort you. Is it working?" TN asked, a slight laugh in her voice. She moved his hair out of her face since it tickled her nose.

"Yeah," Cal smiled a little and wrapped his arm around her, resting his chin on her shoulder, "it's working."