Oyuba’din - Chapter 15: Control
Summary: The Batch learns a little more about Jaine as they wait for her
Warnings: mentions of death
Author's Note: just to let you all know, I’m going to go on a short hiatus after this week; work has been running me ragged and I need to catch up! Love you all so much!
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Jaine, Obi Wan bellowed, fighting to step closer to her. She hovered a few inches from the ground in the center of a tornado of red energy, crimson eyes burning with tears. You must overcome this; you must regain your control.
Control? she lamented, her voice hollow. What control have I ever had? What control has ever been granted to me?
I’ve seen you, Jainera, he shouted over the wind. I’ve seen the powerful young woman you have become. You’ve far surpassed the frightened teenager I met all those years ago. You’ve grown, and you’ve grown past those who have controlled you in the past.
Jaine’s hands shook at her sides, balled into tight fists, the sanguine electricity sparking around them.
You can be in control of this. You are in control. Finally reaching her, he took her hand in his, despite the way his hand burned as it made contact with the power radiating from her hand.
I- I’m sorry, she whispered. The winds began to die down, her feet hit the ground, and she practically collapsed into Obi Wan’s arms.
It’s going to be alright, Jainera.
-
“Cody,” Echo said, alerting the Commander to the general beginning to stir.
Obi Wan’s eyes fluttered open as he sat up, removing his hand from Jaine’s forehead. His head was pounding and he was sure the crick in his neck would be bothering him for the next few days.
“General,” Cody spoke softly, his voice flooded with relief. “Are you alright?”
“Don’t be silly, dear,” Obi Wan tsked, waving off Cody’s concern. “Of course I am.”
Echo looked between the men. “General, is Jaine-”
“She needs rest, but she will recover,” Obi Wan replied, looking up at the other members of the crew.
“Wrecker, isn’t it?” he asked, looking at the largest, who nodded. “Please take Jaine to her quarters. The rest of your squad will accompany you.”
He then turned to Tech. “Keep an eye on her vitals. You must monitor them manually; the scanners will not read accurately while her powers are still uncontrolled. Just be careful not to touch the energy. Neither Sinya nor I know what it can do.”
Tech scowled but nodded, turning to join his brothers. Wrecker had scooped Jaine up from the floor, one arm around her back and one under her legs, cradling her gently to his chest.
As the squad left the room, they encountered Sinya, who was sitting on the floor, leaning against the wall, and Hunter, who was pacing nervously, clearly lost in thought.
“Hunter,” Echo said, stopping the sergeant in his tracks.
“I-is she okay?” Hunter worried, his eyes focused on the red smoke still trailing from her hands.
“General Kenobi said she’ll be alright once she gets some rest. We’re taking her back to the barracks.”
“What the hell happened? Is she hurt?” Hunter’s hand began to fidget against his side, a rare nervous tick Echo had noticed.
“She’s okay,” Sinya answered. “I’ll fill you all in as much as I can when we get to your barracks.”
-
Whenever Jaine would stir a little or the pattern of her breathing would shift, Hunter’s eyes would snap towards her, watching her carefully.
“How could she know if she’s forgotten things?” Wrecker asked, again.
Sinya sighed a little. “She doesn’t, not really. That’s what Obi Wan and I are for. When he was looking for her after we left the Agricorps, he found me instead. We talked a little and found out she had gaps in her memory. She didn’t know how she’d gotten off of that makerforsaken moon of a homeplanet, let alone who Obi Wan even was.”
“So, Jaine is not from Naboo,” Tech concluded.
“Is that what she told you?” Sinya asked, her eyes darting over towards Jaine’s unconscious form.
“That is what she told the GAR,” Tech clarified. “I asked her for the truth, but she did not tell me.”
“She told me,” Crosshair mumbled from his spot at Jaine’s side; the spot that he hadn’t left for hours.
The rest of the Batch looked at him, similar expressions across all of their faces. He knew they were waiting for him to continue, but Crosshair ignored them, turning his attention back to Jaine.
She looked so peaceful like this, nothing like the empty, almost droid-like attitude she’d sported just a few hours ago. Crosshair longed to take her hand in his, to let her know that he was here - tiny wisps of red smoke be damned - the ache so strong that his hand almost itched.
“She doesn’t want to think about her homeplanet,” Sinya filled in. “It all reminds her about this. She just wants to put it all behind her.”
Crosshair remembered how quiet she’d been when she told her about Qoljak. The information was minimal; just that the moon was decimated by meteors and she’d escaped. He expected that the blame she’d placed on herself was misplaced, maybe survivor’s guilt.
“Is…this going to happen often?” Echo asked, unsure what label he could put on the situation.
“I don’t know,” Sinya frowned. She began mumbling to herself as though going through a difficult calculation in her head, but Hunter heard her.
“Repeat that,” he said, moving towards Sinya, the expression on his face indecipherable, even to his brothers, who knew him best.
“Repeat what?” Sinya asked, mouth forming a tight line.
“‘How many times she’s’ what?”
Sinya swallowed and shook her head vigorously. “I said too much, I can’t-”
“Tell us…now,” Hunter growled, coming face to face with the twi'lek.
Her breathing was shallow, her heart beating faster now, and Hunter could practically smell her fear. He shouldn’t be intimidating her like this- and he’d hate to think how Jaine would feel about it - but he needed to know he didn’t imagine what she’d said.
“How many times she’s died.”
-
Jaine had a strong headache. In her half-asleep state, she felt like she was floating.
Jaine? Someone was calling her.
She suddenly came crashing down into reality, jolting upright. It was nearly pitch black wherever she was, and she could hear a voice making quiet shushing sounds at her.
“Hey, it’s alright,” the voice soothed, soft and familiar.
“Cross?” she asked, her voice shaky and hoarse.
“Yeah, cyare, I’m here,” he said, his hand finding hers in the darkness.
Jaine felt a spark when he touched her hand, and she almost pulled away, worried that she still had some residual energy, but this was unfamiliar.
“I’ve got you,” Crosshair whispered, pulling her hand up, planting a soft kiss across her knuckles. “I’ve got you.”
Thanks for reading! - Dang
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