First Reply Ash in the Air

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Somewhere in the Outer Rim

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

Fuck that entirely.

Ace huffed a quiet laugh, the kind that stayed in his chest. "Glad someone gets it."

He didn't move much, just shifted in the co-pilot seat, arms crossed now, watching hyperspace stretch out like pulled wire through the viewport. The quiet between jumps always made him feel like he was stuck in limbo. Not forward, not back. Just floating.

Quill kept talking, not like a recruiter... more like someone throwing out shapes and waiting to see what stuck. Expeditions. Colleagues. Salvagers. Whole other lives built off skills Ace never really had time to learn. Ace didn't answer at first. His jaw worked slightly, like he was chewing on the words before he spit anything out. He glanced away, then leaned forward, elbows to knees, voice low.

"I dunno." He said honestly "Used to fix things. Junkers mostly. Engines, compressors, whatever I could get my hands on. Worked a few odd-jobs doing that."

Ace leaned back again, eyes scanning the nav displays. Maybe a month ago he wouldn't have said enything, but something about being out here in the middle of nowhere, on someone else's ship, after nearly getting cooked alive. It made silence feel heavier than the words.

"I've got stuff I need to take care of right now, but after that?" a small shrug "Who knows?"

Tilon Quill ​

 

[Tilon Quill]

"I've got stuff I need to take care of right now, but after that?" a small shrug "Who knows?"

"For sure," Tilon agreed. "Get some parsecs under your belt and we'll see what we can see."

Lining up on the jump vector, the shuttle's nose tilted down to reveal dusty, beautiful Attahox from orbit.

He touched the controls and lightspeed shoved them back in their seats. The inertial compensators weren't the best.

It was a short jump but took a load off Tilon's mind. They emerged at that shabby Silk Holdings road stop, a small to midsize space station haloed by freighter traffic. Tilon set for a docking course.

"Up to you whether you get off here or I drop you off in High Republic space. Lots of transit options either way for whatever your next step looks like."

 

[Acier Moonbound]

Location: Somewhere in the Outer Rim

Equipment:
Training Jumpsuit | Lightsaber | Modified DL-27

​

Ace leaned forward slightly as Attahox vanished behind them, the blue-white streak of hyperspace blooming across the cockpit. He exhaled quietly, the kind you let out once a planet, a fight, and a near-death encounter were behind you.​

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When they dropped out at the Silk Holdings stop, Ace was already leaning to glance at the viewport. Freighters drifted lazily in the traffic lanes, lights blinking like distant stars. It wasn't glamorous. But it looked like freedom.​

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"Up to you whether you get off here or I drop you off in High Republic space.

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Ace didn't answer right away. Instead, he watched the station come into full view. Then he nodded, more to himself than Quill.​

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"This'll do. Thanks." that 'thanks' was for more than just the ride.​

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He stood up, gave the cockpit one last glance, then turned to Quill with a flicker of something real, a faint smile followed by a nod.​

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"You're alright, Cap. If I don't get spaced in the next few weeks… maybe I'll look you up."​

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Then, without ceremony, he headed toward the exit ramp, boots quiet on the deck plating, vanishing into the glow of the station beyond. One step closer to wherever fate (or trouble) took him next.​

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-END-​

Tilon Quill​