3 B.B.Y. – Bestine IV
***
Lyonel waited outside the doors of sleek, ivory medical center as he waited for Kroe to finally be discharged. After the incident on Vassek, they had retreated to the nearby Bestine system to recuperate. Fortunately, Lyonel’s enhanced physiology allowed him to make a full recovery within a matter of days. Kroe, on the other hand, had been admitted for a little over a week now.
That left Lyonel to wander the streets of the small island city, which was unfortunately surrounded by yet another planetary ocean. Bestine was definitely more industrial than Glee Anslem had been, but it was an aquatic world nonetheless. And Lyonel could not wait to leave.
Their departure would be surprisingly sooner than they had expected, as the Empire had suddenly arrived, shutting down all of the local businesses, including the clinic, and asking people to move offworld. Citizens were scurrying everywhere, collecting their things, and Imperial Storm Troopers had slowly filled the city during the night, directing people towards the outbound flights.
Kroe finally walked out through the door, immediately unwrapping the bandage from around his head and throwing it on the ground. “The service here was so nice… I hated it. I was so kriffing bored stuck in the room with that old Yarkora. All he could kriffing talk about were his kriffing children.”
“Calm down, my friend,” Lyonel laughed as the two began to walk down the street, loosely following the designated paths prepared for them by the Empire.
“So, did you get rid of it?” Kroe asked in a huff.
Lyonel nodded and patted his bag in affirmation, “it really was worth near to nothing in it’s state, but I was able to pawn it off to an old Crolute merchant. I just did not feel comfortable keeping it. It did belong to our now deceased business partner, after all.”
Kroe looked at his friend in disdain, “I still thought we should’ve held onto it, but whatever floats your skimmer. You are the brains I guess.” Kroe tried to change the subject, “by the way, how’s your family doing?”
“Very well,” Lyonel said with somber enthusiasm. “I have been in contact with my sister the last few days. She said that father has gone back out into the wilderness again, and that her transition into power was very smooth. Mother’s burial ceremony was held shortly after her death, so I wouldn’t have been able to make it back in time regardless of the outcome of little expedition. They seem to be managing quite fine without me.”
Kroe slowed his pace just a little as he glanced down at his feet, “I got to think a lot while I was stuck in there. And I think I actually want to see my family again… maybe someday I will have proved myself enough to earn that honor back, but I don’t think I’ve done quite enough yet.”
Lyonel knew that there was only one way his Drabatan friend was ever going to have his honor restored in his clan, and while he was happy Kroe was finally starting to open up, he didn’t know what else to say.
They reached an intersection and Lyonel looked down at the Drabatan, seeing that his bare head was still bruised. “So what now? I really don’t have a plan this time? The Imperial occupation was unexpected, to say the least.”
Kroe glanced around at the Aurebesh street signs and pointed Lyonel towards one in front of them. “Actually, one of the other annoying patients was telling me about this planet called Mooga, and said the guild there has been slacking some. I thought maybe we could swing by and see if anyone was hiring, possibly hop aboard someone’s crew for a while and explore the galaxy at a bit of a slower pace? Commercial pilots, and even smugglers apparently come in and out of Mooga all the time. Plus, I heard they have some killer tea.”
Lyonel simpered, “I do enjoy tea.”
A Storm Trooper approached them and motioned for them to keep walking.
Kroe rolled his eyes at the trooper as they began to head towards the dock containing the one way shuttle to Mooga. “Sometimes I think I understand why so many of my people thought it was justified to leave and join the rebellion.”
This reminded Lyonel of his revelation a week ago, when he understood how “justice” meant vastly different things to different people. And he still wished things had been different. That Muroi was still with them as they headed off on another mission. And that he had taken extra time to get to know the Shistavanen on a more personal level in the first place. But that was the past now, and he could only let his prior mistakes shape his future choices.
In fact, their future was going to be much different from now on. The incident on Vassek had taught him many valuable lessons that he would carry with him from here on out. He needed to acknowledge that everyone was more than just what they had to offer. He had also accepted that anyone could be family if you put enough work into your relationship with them. And that he wasn’t quite as smart, or strong, or even wise as he had always believed himself to be.
He could still be outsmarted and beaten. But with these revelations fresh on his mind, and with Kroe covering his back, he knew that whatever happened next, in the end he would be okay. They would be okay.
And what more could he really ask for?
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