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happy memorial day batchers! 💫 

quick memorial day update for you: the story is completed at 57 chapters (plus a bonus 👀), so only about 18 more left to post! we're coming to the end of our story here 🥹 

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A high ringing sound pulled Saedii from the dark.

Her eyes blinked open. Rain and mud stretched out before her, blurring into a long grey smudge. When she gave a heavy blink, the black sky above seemed to spin around her, too slow to be natural.

Pain slammed into her. A surprised breath sucked into her lungs, sending a stabbing pain through her chest. She coughed, tasting smoke and blood. Her head swam as she tried to pick it off the ground. Too heavy.

Mud squished beneath her hands as she pushed herself up into a sitting position. No, not both hands – just one. Her left – the prosthetic – hung limp. When she tried to get it to move, a feeble spray of sparks erupted from the elbow but nothing else.

Around her, heavy grey smoke lingered above the ground. As she watched, it shimmered and blurred in and out of focus. Sulfur and burnt metal lingered, stinging her nose. Something earthy as well.

One handed, Saedii forced herself onto her hands and knees. Around her, the world swam, spinning. Unsteady. She leaned forward, sucking in breaths that raked down her lungs like hot coals, stabbing into her chest like knives. In her ears, that thin ringing grew louder.

Danger. She was still in danger.

A voice in the back of her mind urged her to go. To seek shelter. Whatever had happened to her could happen again. She needed to move.

Her limbs felt like they weighed a thousand pounds as she pushed unsteadily to her feet. As she stumbled a step, arm swinging to keep her balance. The metal one flopped against her side. Useless.

Before her, a wide desert gorge stretched. Two tall, indomitable rock faces leered at her from either side. Brown mud shimmered under a wall of rain, writhing like it was made of snakes.

It was eerily quiet. The rain made no sound as it crashed into the ground. And when the sky lit up with lightning a moment later, there was no thunder to follow, even as the ground shivered beneath her feet. The only sound was the ringing in her ears.

Saedii took a step forward. White hot agony splintered down the back of her skull. One of her legs buckled, sending a stab of pain into her hip. The world tilted and she felt her body tip with it.

The ground rushed back up to meet her. Darkness descended.

Hands shook at her shoulder, rousing her. She blinked her eyes open, finding her face pressed to the wet, warm mud beneath her. That ringing was still reverberating through her skull, too loud. She let her eyes drift back closed, trying to shut it out.

The hands on her shook again, yanking her shoulders off the ground. This time, when she opened her eyes, the blurry outline of a grey figure knelt before her as he tried to pull her up. Something white was painted on the helmet. A circle, maybe.

A long rifle laid next to them in the mud, beside a massive pack. Something familiar about that rifle made Saedii try to speak, but no words came out.

Armored hands slid her body up. They struggled beneath her dead weight, slipping against her slick skin. Their helmet gave an angry jerk, as if they were shouting, but no sound pierced the bubble of silence around Saedii's head.

Finally, the figure yanked her by the arms, slinging her onto his back. He pulled her up, hooking arms beneath her legs and heaving until she was securely draped across his back. Her head slumped forward, resting against his shoulder. Under her cheek, she could feel the wide chest reverberating with words she couldn't hear.

She closed her eyes. The vacuum of oblivion was too powerful. It pulled her down just as the figure carrying her stumbled up to his feet.

Darkness again. It was peaceful. Quiet.

Cold beckoned her back. Her eyes fluttered open, finding only darkness. A single column of light lit ahead of her, swinging around and lighting up flashes of damp rocks. There was no rain here. The air felt stale and chilly. A cave.

The body beneath hers came to a stop, kneeling as he deposited his pack and rifle. This time, Saedii heard the faint metallic clink beneath the ringing. Other sounds teased too: a gentle dripping, labored breathing, the scuff of boots in the dark.

Carefully, gloved hands pulled her down. Her body hung limp as strong arms pulled her around, cradling her to a cold armored chest. As her head rolled on her shoulders, a hand came up and held it gently in place.

Rifle oil and cedar filled her nose as beneath her ear, a heart beat frantically. One of those arms tightened around her as the other reached out, fiddling with something in the dark. A moment later, a low glow split the dark.

Gently, her body was laid down on a thin blanket. The cavern swam dizzyingly as the hand beneath her head very slowly rested it on something soft and firm. Something that smelled familiar.

In the dim light, the figure beside her yanked off his helmet. Colors swirled and collided, but Saedii was sure she caught a glimpse of white hair. Of dark ink on brown skin.

Crosshair.

One of his hands slid under her jaw, fingers pressing lightly against the artery in her neck. His skin was warm against hers. She shivered.

Saedii's lips moved as she tried to speak. A low hum echoed in her throat, but no sounds came out.

His hand disappeared a moment before a sharp zip echoed through the dark cavern. A dry cloth wiped at her face. Dabbing softly along her hair line and beneath her nose. When he pulled it away, the cloth was streaked with something dark and purple.

Blood. Her blood.

She tried to speak again. To ask him what was going on. Where the others were. A low murmur escaped her lips – the only sound she could muster.

"Don't try to speak." Crosshair's voice was low. Soothing. But there was something else there – an edge that Saedii had never heard before.

Panic.

"Cross." Her voice was a croak in her throat. A whisper.

"You're alright." One of his hands ran over her head. A comforting touch – something he'd never done before.

The touch and the consoling sound of his voice scared her. Only hours ago, he'd been furious with her. Had hurled insults and cruel words. If he was suddenly being kind, that meant something was very wrong.

"You need to lie still so I can put on some bacta patches," he said quietly.

Another thrill of panic went through her. If he was using bacta patches, then she was badly injured.

Where was Tech? He had the medkit. Painkillers and bandages. A holopad that could do x-rays and fully body scans.

She sucked in a sharp breath – then winced. White hot pain exploded in her chest. The coppery taste of blood coated her tongue.

Crosshair's hand ran along her head again. "Easy. You're going to be fine. I won't let anything happen to you."

She trusted him. Despite all the shit he'd given her the past few days, the mean things he'd said – she trusted him wholeheartedly. He wouldn't let her die if he could help it.

"Sleep," he coaxed.

It was easy to do as he said. The dizziness pressing on her shoulders, the pressure in her head – it made her body feel so heavy. Exhausted. Slipping back into the dark was as easy as letting her eyes drift back closed.

The last thing she felt before she went under was Crosshair's hand running a soothing arc along the side of her face.

There were no dreams in this sleep. Only darkness. It was terrible and absolute – a black hole with no beginning and no end. Here, she existed with no sense of self. No thoughts. It was like her body was too broken to put together any semblance of a dream.

When she emerged back from the darkness, a cup was being held to her lips.

"Drink," someone said softly.

She opened her mouth, letting cool, crisp water wash down her throat. It felt good against the dry expanse of her tongue. Washed away the sharp taste of blood that still lingered.

The hand holding her head up laid it back down. Something soft and firm supported her. A distant memory recognized the feel of it. It was a pack. His pack.

Saedii blinked. Around her, slowly coming in and out of focus, the faint outline of what appeared to be a cave was just visible in the glow of a lantern. As she watched it, the cave tilted, giving a low spin. She closed her eyes, taking in a calming breath to try and beat back the low split of pain and dizziness that weighed on her head.

When she opened her eyes, Crosshair's outline came into view. He sat close to her, jaw tensed as he stared at the lantern beside him. In his lap, his water canteen waited.

"Cross?" Saedi''s voice was nothing more than a whisper. She swallowed and tried again. "Crosshair?"

He looked up. His face was cast in shadow. In the dark, his eyes were nearly black. They settled along her face in a way that made Saedii think something very bad had happened.

"Are you awake?" he asked quietly. Skeptical, as if he didn't actually think she was.

She nodded, then winced as a searing pain split her skull. That dizziness pressed in, followed closely by nausea. A low sound caught in her chest.

"Try not to move. You're injured," he said.

"How..." She took in a shuddering breath. "How bad?"

He was quiet a moment. Then, "Bad."

Fear fluttered through her gut. She didn't want to die in a cave running a job for Cid. Not when she'd just gotten her family back together. What would Wolffe do without her? And what about Hunter and Omega and the rest?

"I don't have Tech's holopad, so I'm not sure the extent of your injuries," he continued. "But you seem to have some kind of head trauma. You keep coming in and out. Your prosthetic is damaged, as well."

That would explain the dizziness. And the terrible, aching pain. It felt like her brain was on fire. Like it was ready to explode at any moment.

"My...my chest," Saedii started.

"You might have broken some ribs."

It felt worse than that. She'd broken ribs before. It had hurt, but the pain swelling in her chest now was excruciating. She almost couldn't breathe around it.

Crosshair's attention flicked towards her face. "I put some bacta patches on your head. They're not as fast as soaking in it, but they should keep you alive until we can get you medical attention."

"Where..." It hurt to speak. She stopped.

But he understood. "The others made it to the mine right as the lightning struck. The explosion caused a cave in. They're trapped in there."

Trapped. Tech, with all of his medical training and supplies, was trapped. Away from them.

"I saw you running for the ipsium." Crosshair's voice grew sharper. Not quite yelling but not nearly as gentle as he'd been. "I tried to stop you, but the lightning struck before I could reach you. You're lucky it didn't kill you."

She knew that. Ipsium was extremely combustible. Tech had warned them about it dozens of times before they'd reached the mine. And yet, she'd still made a grab for it in the midst of a lightning storm.

Anger ghosted over Crosshair's features. "You wanted the money, didn't you? So that we'd be free to stay on Teth. So you'd be free to see Wolffe."

There was no point in lying. He'd already figured it out. "Yes."

"Stupid," he hissed. "You nearly got yourself blown up just so you could spend time with them."

"They're family," Saedii gasped. Her voice sounded funny. Heavy and wet. "Like you."

"Your mind wasn't on the mission. You let Wolffe distract you," he snapped.

Saedii winced. She wished Hunter was there, or Echo. They wouldn't be yelling at her if she was injured.

"You can't have both," he continued, expression cold and angry. "You can't be thinking of him when you're here with us. It puts every single person on this squad in danger, including you."

"I'm sorry."

"You're going to need to choose."

She looked at him in alarm. It was eerily similar to what Wolffe had implied. That she couldn't be part of both teams. "No –"

"Maybe not now, but one day you'll have to decide if you're a part of our squad or theirs. You can't be both," Crosshair insisted. His tone was scathing.

Saedii didn't want to choose. Wolffe was as much apart of her family as Crosshair was. She didn't want to live without either of them.

Tears lined her eyes before she could help it. "I don't want to argue."

Crosshair's cold expression didn't change. "You can't keep putting yourself at risk. Eventually, you'll have to --"

"Cross, please." She shivered at the pain in her chest. In her head. "Don't argue. I can't."

His expression gentled. His hand went back to her head. "How bad does it hurt?"

"Not bad."

"Don't lie."

A tear leaked out before she could help it. "I've been better."

Immediately, he began to rifle through the pack under her head. Checking again for pain meds.

Quick, shallow breaths were scraping up her throat, burning in her chest. That excruciating pain flared bright, making her teeth chatter. Fire burning in her lungs. It hurt so bad.

"Talk to me," Crosshair said, still searching through his bag. "You can even call me an ass again. I'll give you a free pass this time."

"Hurts to talk," she wheezed.

"Just try."

Saedii gritted her teeth, trying to think about something else. But the burning in her head made thinking difficult. Her thoughts felt sharp and barbed. Bouncing around the confines of her brain.

"Come on, Saedii." It was a plea.

But she didn't answer. Instead, blades pricked at the back of her throat. She coughed, feeling something hot and slimy catch in the back of her mouth, and bolted upright.

Crosshair lurched forward to support her as she coughed up whatever was in her throat. It splattered across the dusty ground, across the palm of her hand as she tried to cover her mouth.

When she pulled her hand away, it was coated in blood.

The cave started to spin. "Cross?"

Deep concern etched into his face. He bade her to lay back down before reaching into his pack and pulling out a small chip that he slid into his ear.

He leaned his head close to her, eyes closed as he listened. Every breath stabbed at Saedii's chest. She shivered, swallowing against the blood that coated the back of her tongue. Her breathing was shallow and labored.

When Crosshair's eyes met hers, the hopelessness had returned. "I think one of your lungs collapsed."

A collapsed lung. She had enough medical knowledge to know that was fatal if left untreated. And it's not like they had many treatment options out here in the middle of the Ipsidon.

More tears slid down her face.

"I'll put some bacta patches around your chest," he said at once as he reached for his bag.

"Is that enough?"

He hesitated before admitting, "No. A collapsed lung needs a surg pod to fix."

How the hell would she get to a surg pod before she died? The Marauder had been taken. Their long distance comms weren't working. And there sure as hell weren't any surg pods on this desert wasteland.

She knew what he was really saying.

If she didn't get help soon, she'd be dead.