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🪽Angel by the Wings - Sia

*****

I woke up in a comfortable warmth. My eyes fluttered open, and I quickly realized that my head was laid on Qimir's bare chest. My arm was draped over his torso, while his arms had me tightly wrapped in an embrace by the waist and shoulder. Our legs were tangled with each other.

I would've freaked out at how intimate our position was, but instead, I found myself smiling. The way his scent enveloped my entire being wrapped me in a sense of serenity. It was probably the safest and most comfortable I have ever felt, as if all the problems in the world did not exist at that moment.

I glanced up to watch Qimir's sleeping face, his steady breath blowing over my cheeks. My heart felt warm at the sight of him, and I was quick to understand that I enjoyed watching him sleep. I reached up to gently trace his jaw with the tip of my fingers, fascinated by how vivid he felt.

If only my dreams were always like this, I wouldn't mind not waking up at all.

"Hm," he let out a soft sigh as he was woken up by my touch. His eyes slowly pried open, and a small smile immediately etched on his lips as his gaze landed on me. "Good morning."

His deep, hoarse voice sent tingles down my body. His voice felt like honey to my ears.

"Good morning," I whispered back, partly still in a daze. His brows slightly lifted in amusement at how intensely I was staring at him.

"You okay?"

"Mhm...never better..." I hummed in contentment as I nuzzled my head into the crook of his neck. "This feels nice."

A soft chuckle reverberated through his chest. He lifted my hand that was laid on his chest and kissed my palm. Then, he slightly leaned down to whisper right into my ear.

"Are you sober now, Eli?"

The way his voice dropped into a sultry, seductive tone made all the memories from last night flood into my head.

Shit.

I abruptly sat up and bore my face into my hands, already feeling the furious blush tainting my cheeks and ears.

"I'm not dreaming, aren't I?" I asked, more to myself.

"Do you always dream about us like this?" He asked as he shifted to sit down at the edge of the bed, his voice laced with amusement.

I turned to glare at him for his teasing, but instead froze at the sight of a large jagged scar across his back. It was large enough that it started from his right shoulder blade, down to his left lower back.

It was the first time I'd seen it.

"What... what happened to you?" I whispered, my hand automatically reaching out to touch it. As soon as Qimir realized that I was pertaining to his scar, the mood shifted to a more somber tone.

"My master did it to me," he casually said as he reached out to pick up his sleeves that was on the floor. "When I was thrown away."

"Your Jedi master?" I whispered in disbelief. I felt frustration and anger bubble up in my chest at that thought. How could someone that dedicates their life for "peace" do something as horrible as this? "Why did they have to do this to you?"

As he dressed up, he slightly glanced over his shoulder to give me a sad smile. "You'll find out soon enough."

He stood up and grabbed the holocron that was trapped inside the cortosis cube.

"Come on, we need to destroy this thing as soon as possible.

***

We walked into a large open field very far from the inn where we had stayed. The ship was just sitting at the edge of the clearance, a good fifty feet or so away from us.

"Once we destroy this, it will send a ripple throughout the force and both the Jedi and the Sith will feel it." Qimir explained as he led the way. "Once that happens, this place will serve as a beacon, specially to the people looking for this holocron. So we need to leave immediately."

I nodded in understanding. As soon as we stopped in the middle of the field, he grabbed the cube from his bag and stepped close to me.

"To destroy this, we need to trust each other." His eyes searched earnestly into mine, as if making sure that I understood his every word. "It will try to corrupt us and turn us against each other."

I nodded in understanding. His tone felt reassuring, but the worry on his face let me know that he was scared of this just the same as I was.

"Whatever happens, I want you to remember that my loyalty is yours." He grabbed my hand to kiss it. Although my heart fluttered at his words and actions, I hated how it felt like he was saying goodbye.

"And my trust is yours," I whispered back.

He smiled in satisfaction before stepping back to give enough space between us. Using the force, he disassembled the cortosis cube, causing the metal pieces to drop on the ground. The red light emitted by the sith holocron immediately shone powerfully on us, along with a strong ominous feeling that seemed to wrap the entire place.

My heart thumped loudly in my chest at not knowing what could happen, but I anchored my thoughts at the fact that Qimir was right here with me, his hands on top of mine as we held on tightly to the holocron.

We closed our eyes at the same time and focused on the force, trying our best to counter the force that was being emitted by the holocron. A strong wind started to blow around us, as if the conflicting forces alone were stirring up nature itself.

"Are you sure you're making the right decision?"

A taunting, serpent-like voice hissed right into my ear, catching me off guard. Nevertheless, I recognized it as an attempted distraction so I refused to open my eyes.

"You trust him, yet you don't know who he truly is."

Despite my eyes closed, a vision suddenly filled my eyes. All of a sudden I was no longer at the field with Qimir, and I was transported in the middle of a dark forest. I saw a dark figure in a metal helmet as he fought intensely with a group of Jedi, and I recognized by their clothes that some were masters, knights, and padawans. Despite the helmet, I knew it was Qimir just from his aura alone. The various colors of lightsabers illuminated the dark place, sparks flying almost blindingly, but Qimir's red lightsaber stood out amongst all. He eventually killed all of them, their lifeless bodies strewn on the ground, including the young padawan.

"This is who he truly is. He kills without remorse."

The scene changed to Collossus, and I saw Qimir now without his mask, killing the mob of mercenaries and bounty hunters in cold blood, his face stoic and emotionless. His lightsaber sliced through each and every one with practiced ease, almost making them look like a mere nuisance rather than a challenge. Everywhere I looked, there was death and the scent of blood.

"Is this the kind of person you trust
with your life?"

"Shut the fuck up." I hissed back, putting up a brave front to the unknown creature. The voice just laughed maniacally in response, and it felt so evil that it sent shivers down my spine.

"You don't even know his real name, do you?"

"I don't, but I know this is not all he is." I argued, and I tried to ground myself with the image of Qimir softly smiling at me, his eyes gentle and loving. I convinced myself that the cold-blooded murderer image of him was just a facade, and there was a deeper reason why he had to be like this.

"You're lying to yourself. He's not going to protect you forever. He will end up hurting you as well."

It growled. I closed my eyed and tried to sense where the voice was coming from. As soon as I felt it behind me, and I raised my hand into a claw and force choked it. Despite its lack of physical form, I still was somehow able to grip it as a choking sound echoed in the wind.

"You will never understand the concept of trust," I growled back. "You can't corrupt me, fucker."

"You're a fool!"

It screeched before my hand closed to a fist, completely crushing it. The entity dissipated together with the illusion, and my eyes snapped wide open as I got transported back to the field where I originally was. I saw small cracks at corners of the holocron, assuring me that I was able to overcome its first illusion.

As I looked up at Qimir, however, my relief was short-lived as I saw his eyes wide open, his gaze distant as a faint red light filled his eyes. He was under an illusion too.

Panicking, I closed my eyes once again in an attempt to intrude his mind to help him break free from the shadow.

I was transported to the edge of a plateau overlooking the ocean. It was night, and near the edge was Qimir cradling the lifeless body of another woman. Another woman that looked exactly like me.

Elysia.

Qimir had a fresh, jagged wound across his back, like a gruesome whip scar. A Jedi stood ominously a few feet from them, but instead of a lightsaber, it was a light whip that they wielded. My mind put two and two together and realized that the Jedi had both killed Elysia and fatally wounded Qimir.

"She will kill her too, just like she killed Elysia..."

A shadow swirled around the grieving Qimir, rubbing salt to his already painful heartbreak. I felt a heavy weight on my heart as I realized that I was witnessing his deepest, unresolved pain. When a Jedi killed the love of his life, Elysia. And the shadow was taking full advantage of it.

As I looked closer, I realized that Elysia's lifeless figure glitched into my own, the only distinction between us were our hair and clothes. She was wearing white robes. I was wearing black. Nevertheless, we had the same injury.

Fatally stabbed in the heart.

"I can give you the power that you need. So powerful that no Jedi will be able to take her away from you again."

The shadow's voice echoed with the wind, ominous and enticing.

"No one could ever hurt her again, and all the Jedi will succumb to your feet."

"Qimir, don't listen to it!" I screamed at the top of my lungs, hoping that he would be able to hear my voice too. However as I stepped forward, I realized that there was an invisible barrier separating me, almost as if I was watching them from the other side of a glass wall.

"I can't lose her again..." Qimir whimpered, tears falling down his eyes as he cradled my face. A red aura started to envelope his hands like flame, and it slowly spread into his arms and up his shoulder.

"No...." I shook my head, my blood turning cold at the realization. The shadow was succeeding. He was corrupting Qimir. I called out to him at the top of my lungs and tried to break the barrier with the force, but to no avail. My voice was drowned out by the evil cackle of the shadow.

Having no other choice, I pulled myself out of Qimir's mind and returned back to the field.

"Qimir, snap out of it!" I screamed over the loud howling of the wind as soon as I felt that his grip on the holocron was weakening. I quickly placed my hands on top of his to keep him from letting go.

I had no other choice. I had to destroy this holocron before it completely consumes him.

I tightly closed my eyes and summonned all the force I had within me, directing it towards the holocron to crush it. It desperately fought back in powerful waves, but I persisted despite the growing pressure in my head. My energy felt like it was being sucked out of my body. I felt blood starting to trickle down my nose, but I didn't mind it.

I had to do it. For Qimir.

For us.

With a piercing scream, I let a shockwave of energy release from me, but I reabsorbed the energy back into myself and into the holocron. Finally, I felt it crack and crumble to pieces, and it emmitted a powerful shockwave of its own, sending both Qimir and I flying thirty feet away.

Though, I felt weightless. I knew it should've hurt when my body landed on the ground, but I didn't feel anything. I felt like a mere ragdoll as if my soul had left me.

As I laid face down on the grass, unable to move, I felt the howling wind die down and the grey clouds in the sky dissipate. A sense of peace finally enveloped the entire place.

As my breath grew weaker and weaker, the overwhelming urge to sleep felt even more enticing, especially knowing that the holocron had been successfully destroyed. I'm sure Qimir wouldn't mind me sleeping for a moment. I was exhausted.

Sighing, I let out my last breath and closed my eyes.

*****