Private Beneath a Broken Order

[Xian Xiao]

Xian watched Telvaren crumple to the floor after Xuko released him, the Bothan coughing hard as he tried to steady himself against the polished surface beneath him. For a brief moment, her attention lingered there while she weighed the frightened informant against the growing shape of the disaster unfolding beyond the Crucible's walls.

Then her eyes lifted toward Xuko as he turned sharply and started for the exit, already moving toward the next problem before the current one had fully settled. There was urgency in the way he walked now, not reckless panic but focused momentum, the kind that came from realizing the situation was becoming larger and uglier with every passing second.

Xian glanced back toward Telvaren once more, her thoughts moving quickly as the implications continued slotting into place. The Red Ravens operated through compartmentalization for a reason. If Telvaren had missed a check-in or failed to report back, somebody else might already be moving to verify the shipment independently. Worse still, if the operation had already advanced beyond the verification stage, then every minute they spent inside the Crucible discussing possibilities was another minute the relief district remained exposed.

That decided it.

She pivoted sharply and fell into step behind Xuko, matching his pace as they moved through the research wing toward the exit corridors. Personnel shifted aside instinctively as they passed, the atmosphere around them tightening beneath the weight of unspoken urgency.

As they neared the nearby security station, Xian slowed only briefly and turned her head toward the officers stationed there.

"The Bothan stays here," she said evenly, her voice carrying the calm authority the Crucible responded to without hesitation. "Detain him under Diarchal security authority pending investigation into suspected Red Raven smuggling operations. His name is Telvaren Sorn."

The guards straightened immediately at the tone and authority behind the order. One glanced toward the trembling Bothan, still struggling to recover on the floor, while another gave a sharp nod.

"Yes, ma'am."

Xian did not stop to verify compliance. She already knew they would follow through.

By the time she had fully caught up beside Xuko again, her expression had hardened into focused calm, the earlier analytical distance gone now that the implications had become immediate and dangerously real.

"If your theory is correct," she said as they moved quickly through the Crucible's halls, "then this was never really about the weapons themselves."

Her gaze stayed forward, voice low and controlled despite the urgency building beneath it.

"It was about what happens after the weapons appear. A crowded relief district, people already desperate, supplies running low, security stretched thin, and panic spreading faster than facts ever could. One armed group moving at the right moment could turn the entire situation into a massacre before anyone fully understood what was happening."

Her jaw tightened faintly as the rest of the realization settled into place.

"And if the Red Ravens engineered that intentionally, then they are not trying to steal supplies or even profit from the shipment itself. They are trying to destroy trust in the relief effort, in Bastion's security, and in the idea that anyone here can actually protect these people once things start going wrong."

The thought settled heavily between them as the exit finally came into view ahead, Bastion's cold light spilling through the outer checkpoint beyond the corridor.

Xian's pace quickened slightly as they approached it, her focus already shifting ahead toward the district they had left behind.

"Which means," she said quietly, "that if this operation has already started moving forward, then every second we spend behind these walls is giving them more time to light the match."

Xuko Pagoi

 

[Xuko Pagoi]

On one hand, Xuko was grateful to have Xian's help. He strongly doubted that there were any other resources that could- or would- be mobilized quickly enough to circumvent the plot they'd uncovered. On the other hand, having Xian join him as quickly as she did meant that his prediction was most likely correct; thus far, Xian's instincts had proven extremely sharp.

The Zabrak's face stayed neutral as Xian outlined the reasons and motives for the suspected attack, but his jaw tightened ever so slightly; a sign of the growing anger he felt inside. Anger at himself, for being drawn away; and anger at the Red Ravens for their horrific plan. It was an anger that neighbored with his impatience; frustration at the distance between them and the food giveaway. Walking there- even at a steady clip- was not fast enough for Xuko.

"What options do we have for transportation?" Xuko asked, in agreement with Xian that time was of the essence. A pilot he was not, but he wasn't about to let a little detail like that get in the way.

Xian Xiao

 

[Xian Xiao]

Xian's expression tightened slightly when Xuko asked about transportation, both of them already moving quickly through the Crucible's outer corridors toward the streets of Bastion beyond. He was right to ask; walking was far too slow now, and every second they lost to uncertainty gave the Red Ravens more time to settle into position. For a moment, she didn't answer, her pace slowing just enough that he would notice the hesitation, a rare thing from someone who had met every other question with sharp certainty or immediate analysis. This was different. More awkward. More personal.

Her boot scraped lightly against the polished floor as she rubbed the toe once, visibly debating whether she actually wanted to explain what she was about to suggest. Finally, she looked over at him.

"I can get us there faster than any vehicle nearby," she admitted.

The silence that followed stretched just long enough for the statement to sound increasingly suspicious, and Xian could feel it hanging between them like a weight. Unfortunately, noticing it only made this harder.

"Look," she said quickly, already sounding mildly defensive before he had even opened his mouth, "I know we just met, and I realize this is probably going to sound insane." She paused, bracing herself. "But trust me." That last part came quieter, stripped of the usual edge, and far more honest.

Then she stopped walking entirely and turned fully toward him, urgency slipping through the calm she'd been holding onto.

"Hug me."

The words left her mouth with enough seriousness to make them infinitely worse. Xian closed her eyes for half a second, as if already regretting how ridiculous that sounded. "It is not as weird as it sounds," she added immediately. A beat passed. "…Okay, maybe a little weird."

There was no time left to explain properly. The danger hanging over the relief lines had already become too immediate for embarrassment to matter. When Xuko finally stepped close enough, Xian's hands settled against him with surprising steadiness, one arm securing around his side while the other lifted outward, her focus sharpening so quickly the awkwardness burned away in an instant.

The air around them shifted.

Not dramatically at first, just pressure, wind curling unnaturally through the corridor despite the enclosed structure. Loose fabric stirred. Dust lifted from the floor. The atmosphere itself tightened around her in invisible currents responding to instinct and will.

Then the ground vanished beneath them.

Compressed air launched them upward so abruptly that nearby security personnel barely had time to react before the two of them shot skyward through the open transit lanes beyond the Crucible's outer platforms. Bastion exploded outward beneath them in streaks of silver towers, suspended walkways, and rivers of traffic lights cutting through the cityscape.

Xian did not fly like someone using machinery. There was no smooth engine stability, no artificial balance. This felt alive, violent wind tearing around them while invisible currents carried and redirected their momentum with impossible speed. Every adjustment came from pressure shifts and controlled bursts of air flowing beneath and around them rather than any sense of weightlessness.

Her grip tightened slightly as she focused ahead, red hair whipping violently through the rushing air while her attention locked onto the distant relief district somewhere beyond the next sector.

"Try not to panic," she called over the roar of wind, sounding far calmer than anyone should while effectively throwing herself and a near stranger across Bastion through sheer Force manipulation.

Then, after a brief pause, perfectly deadpan: "And definitely do not let go."

Xuko Pagoi

 

[Xuko Pagoi]

Xuko did notice Xian's change in pace, and did his best to quell the rising sense of frustration he felt at it. Now more than ever, time was of the essence; and for someone who always seemed to be two steps ahead, it was decidedly out-of-character for Xian. It was that realization that forced him to slow his pace to match hers rather than simply grabbing her arm and yanking her along while she thought; as he briefly considered doing.

When she finally did stop walking, her command was the last thing Xuko had expected to come out of her mouth. Xuko stared at her in disbelief. "Now is not an appropriate time for that" he said, incredulously. But as precious seconds dragged by and Xian further committed to whatever her idea was that involved an embrace, Xuko decided to relent. If it meant keeping a much-needed ally on his side for the coming battle, a hug was a small price to pay. Xuko, not one to do anything halfway, gave Xian a tight embrace; using the opportunity to look over her shoulder to where the speeder he was about to steal was parked.

Perfect.

It was in that moment that Xuko's stomach was left behind as they rocketed into the air. She flies, now?

It was not pretty- Xuko holding on for dear life with Xian's red hair getting whipped by the wind into his face- but it was effective. The two of them soared on their way back towards where they had first met, with the ground almost a blur beneath them. He had no clue how fast they were going, and doubted that Xian knew, either. Fast was all he cared about.

It was similarly difficult to talk, as most of Xuko's focus was on not plummeting to his death. Unlike Xian, he could not fly, but he could certainly fall. "I had not considered it" he said, equally serious in response to her deadpan humor.

"Set us down a block away so they do not see us coming" he said, hoping that Xian understood his words over the wind. He did not want to draw unnecessary attention to themselves, and something told him that literally flying in would ruin their element of surprise. Presuming the Red Ravens weren't wise that their plan had been discovered, the two of them would need every advantage possible to head off the attack.

Xuko tightened his grip where it had loosened slightly and tired not to dwell on the enormity of the task ahead of them. Once the assault happened, and Xian would have to discern- with no room for error- the panicked refugees from the disguised Red Ravens.

And see them for more than what they were in the moment.

Xian Xiao