Star Wars: Heir to the Sith (Part 1) (#Wattys2018 shortlist)

Chapter 31: "You won't feel a thing, Princess."

Neerada resisted the tug of a smile as she watched the pilot jump from the out-of-control speeder and into the sea. A second later and the vehicle hit the trunk, exploding and shattering into a cloud of spinning debris.

She turned the TIE about and thought briefly of flying in lower, to turn the sea into a boiling cauldron as a last salute to her enemy, but pressed for time she decided otherwise. Besides, had she not bested her foe so completely, herding them to the extent that they had been forced to make a dangerous leap to abandon the speeder? She had pursued them, worn down their nerves, made them fearful. She had broken their spirit.

That, she thought, was a far more profound triumph than simply shooting them down.

As she increased power and flew back up toward the landing site, she knew that her master would have scolded her for such an indulgence. Vader had never let his emotions betray him. Such things only made you weak, he had lectured her, and such vulnerabilities could be exploited.

But is that what had happened to him? If his death turned out to be true, had his own emotions betrayed him? She recalled a time, years ago, when he had instructed her in the use of her powers. She had asked him about family, and of what they meant to people like them. For a time, Vader said nothing. So the young Neerada had probed with her newfound abilities.

Her attempt had been clumsy and stupid.

And Vader's wrath at her intrusion had been immediate and painful.

Neerada put her hand to her throat as the pain of the choking returned. It was a lesson she had never forgotten, and could never forget.

Her anger grew. Her heart quickened. The pain from her wound brought her back to the living moment.

She was approaching the cairn. The TIE's sensors informed her that those she sought were nearby, four human males and a single young female who did not move.

That was good. She linked the TIE to her wrist control, slowed, and dived. With her last command from her wrist band, the TIE's exit opened, and the ground below loomed.

***

Princess Tayre lay still. She couldn't move. Her body was entirely numb. Colonel Arnaud crouched at her side, his gloved hand caressing her cheek.

She blinked, and then tried to smile.

Her efforts must have made some impact because the colonel grinned at her under the light of his torch.

"That's good, Princess. You're stunned. You might have a few broken bones but they can all be fixed." He looked up at the night sky nervously. "The TIE's heading backing this way." He looked back at her and Tayre could see the anguish on his face. "If the Empire has managed to break our encryptions, then they will know that your speeder was assigned to Ella. That means there is a chance they will be coming for you. I'm sorry."

There was so much Tayre didn't understand. Why was her adopted sister so important? Who was she?

She made to ask, but an incoherent mumble emerged from her parched mouth.

"Don't speak, Princess. Say nothing. Here."

He took a small device from his belt that Tayre recognised from its use by the camp medical droids. It was used to administer drugs in a painless and targeted manner. Arnaud loaded it with a small pellet and held it to her neck. Her eyes widened in alarm.

"You won't feel a thing, Princess," he said. "In a few minutes, you will sleep for a day or more, but your short term memory might be affected. It will give us time. Time the galaxy will need."