An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Mace, Ponds, and Lightning Squadron crash land on Jakku.
It’s a lot less disastrous than the landing at Point Rain. Unfortunately, that’s really not saying much.
They land on Jakku in the dead of night.
It’s Mace, Ponds, and what remains of Lightning Squadron that touch down on the desert planet, all of them exhausted, bleeding, and freezing. It’s not the ideal way to crash land on Jakku— but, as Stak points out, there really isn’t an ideal way to crash land on Jakku— and at least he was able to keep their ship mostly intact. They’ve got that going for them.
That’s just about the only thing they do have going for them, though.
Jakku is a cold desert, and it’s one where layers are important for any humanoids that plan to go outside and don’t want the sand to eat away at their skin. Mace is lucky, in that his robes are suited to the climate, but he also knows that many of the men had their armor compromised in the firefight. Although the troopers’ blacks are resistant, the kind of damage they took earlier certainly left tears, which would compromise the protection the bodysuits provide against extreme weather conditions.
He can feel the chill Razor, Ponds, and Kall feel, as their discomfort radiates in the Force. Stak appears to be fine, but he’ll have to check on Tangey in person, as the pain he’s feeling from the shrapnel in his leg overpowers any other sensations he might be feeling in the Force. Blades— ni su’cuyi, gar kyr’adyc, ni partayli, gar darasuum, Blades, Prifitt, Challi, Knot— had given Tangey pain medication right before they’d entered the Jakku system, but their rough landing meant Mace had needed to divert his attention from healing to keeping the ship from falling apart. The pain flare-up he’s feeling is to be expected, even with Mace dulling the pain again, but if Tangey’s bodysuit is compromised, it could be exacerbating the worst of it.
“General,” Ponds says, stepping up behind him. “Any luck with the comms?”
“None,” Mace replies, returning his attention to what used to be their long-range communicator. With the casing on it, the comm had appeared to be salvageable. Without it…
Ponds visibly winces when he catches sight of the managled wires. “I guess we aren’t calling General Rancisis for pick up, then.”
“No,” Mace agrees, “it doesn’t look like we’ll be doing that, Commander.” He pauses, then starts to walk in the direction of the medbay. Ponds follows, immediately falling in step with him. “How is Tangey doing?”
“Stable. Complaining to whoever is within earshot.”
“Which means we’ll be next?”
“Which means we’ll be next.” There’s a swirl of orange-red amusement in the Force as Ponds speaks, but it’s interrupted by a flash of concern. “You are recovered enough in the Force to heal him without risking yourself, correct?”
Mace doesn’t stumble, but it’s a close call. There are topics he’s very rarely questioned on, and his limits regarding the Force is one of those topics. The time he was asked if he was sure he was powerful enough to do something, Nim Pianna had been alive, and Rael Averross was teasing him in an effort to see how high-pitched Nim’s horrified shriek of “Master!” could get.
There’s a reason that it’s been nearly three decades since anyone asked that question, and that’s because it’s pretty widely accepted that anyone elected to be the Master of The Order knows their own limits in the Force. Since Depa prefers to poke fun at him in less subtle ways, and Plo usually gave himself more plausible deniability in his teasing, he hadn’t heard that question even asked jokingly since Nim joined the Force.
“I am,” Mace says, and it’s because he’s thinking of Nim and Rael that he makes the connection, realises oh, that’s where this is coming from. That’s why he’s worried.
There had been no ring of falsehood when Ponds said Tangey was stable, and although he’s now almost completely sure of what prompted this, it’s best to confirm that he’s not missing anything. “Ponds, is this solely about Padawan Offee’s stunt at the Hedrett Medical Center, or is there something else I should know about Tangey’s condition before I go in?”
There’s a moment of silence except for the sound of their footsteps, then Ponds lets out a rueful almost-chuckle. “Yes, I suppose it’s about what happened at Hedrett. I apologize if I overstepped.”
“Not at all,” Mace replies to him, because he’ll never be one to discourage asking questions, even if those questions blindside him. “And there’s no need to apologize. If I was in your position, I would have the same concerns.”
Barriss Offee is one of the brightest Padawans Mace has ever met, her intelligence and drive making her an excellent match for Luminara. She is also currently on extended medical leave, due to the fact that when the 41st and 91st were recovering from their last deployment at the Hedrett Medical Center on Cularin, she overextended herself badly enough helping wounded troopers that she collapsed in the middle of the medcenter’s PCU. Considering her level of Force exhaustion, the fact that she didn’t suffer a subarachnoid haemorrhage is nothing short of a miracle.
Mace didn’t witness the incident personally. He and Luminara had been on Coruscant when it occurred, restocking before they went to rejoin their troops. Nevertheless, he doesn’t think he’s capable of forgetting the sound of Luminara’s scream.
For most of the troopers recovering there, that had been their first real experience with Force exhaustion. Ponds had been one of the troopers recovering there.
“I am nowhere near that level of Force exhaustion, and I’ll stop immediately if I find myself getting too close to it.” Mace is aware that Ponds and him likely have two different definitions of too close to it, but he also knows that Ponds won’t fight him on it while they’re stranded on Jakku.
Once they get off Jakku, it’ll be a different story, but there’s no use in getting wrapped up in the future.
“Thank you, sir,” Ponds says, right as they reach the medical bay. The doors slide open. “After you.”
Considering the circumstances, Tangey is doing well— his bodysuit has not been compromised, and although he’s complaining, he’s still in relatively good spirits. Unsurprisingly, once Mace has done all he can, Tangey immediately starts fidgeting, his fingers drumming on the side of the cot as he shifts to try and find a more comfortable position. He’s isn’t in the clear yet, but Mace isn’t worried about him flatlining anytime soon, which is enough for now. Without Blades, their hands are tied until they either get off this planet, or run into a healer of some kind.
He lets Ponds explain to the scout exactly what their current situation is, and sits down on the floor to settle into meditation. They’ll need assistance of some kind to get off this planet, and while it would be nice if they got assistance from civilians, the chance of that happening is null.
The Republic has no hold on Jakku. They won’t encounter any civilians that support their cause enough to help them. While they might encounter kindness regardless, it’s much more likely that they’ll encounter blasters.
The only silver lining here is the fact that the Separatists also lack a hold on Jakku.
Mace is not one for silver linings.
It takes him a moment to locate her, to find his way through the shadows in the Force, but despite the physical distance their bond is steady as ever, and Depa’s presence shines brightly at the end of it. They’re too far away, and the Force is too clouded for them to communicate with words, but he can still pull on the bond to get her attention.
Depa pulls back seconds later, and the relief washes over him like a tidal wave. He’ll have to meditate about that worry later, especially as there is no reason for him to worry, since she’s just on a diplomatic mission to Alderann, but at the rate they’re losing Jedi—
Later, he reminds himself, and refocuses. Jakku is a simple word to translate, but it’s also one that’s easy to mess up when transmitting, due to the similarities between its third, fourth and fifth letter when translated to Galactic Basic Morse Code. The preciseness needed to send a message like this is taxing, making it a technique that’s rarely used unless there aren’t any other options.
Currently, they don’t have any other options.
For a moment after he sends the message, there’s nothing. Then Depa starts tugging on the bond again— J - A - K - K - U
Confirmation. Of course— Y - E - S
Mace allots himself three more seconds by the bond, by the light of his former padawan. With the amount of death he saw today, it’s an indulgence he feels little guilt about granting himself. Depa’s presence is centering. It always has been.
He comes back out of mediation right as Ponds finishes his recount of events.
“I guess death decided to quite literally give us our just deserts for escaping her grasp yet again,” Tangey jokes, despite the yellow shards of worry and deep blue stones of grief Mace senses around him. Razor groans in response to the pun, and Tangey grins, leaning back against the wall. Mace carefully releases his subsequent amusement into the Force, but nevertheless makes a mental note of the pun itself. It’s clever, and one to keep in mind if he ever lands on a desert planet with Skywalker.
“If you keep moving, you’ll get your just deserts when you fall off that cot,” Ponds warns, instantly freezing Tangey in place. “If you make the General have to heal you again, you’re on cleaning duty the moment you can walk again.”
“Oh, I’ll stay still,” Tangey quickly agrees. His fingers don’t stop their drumming on the cot, but other than that he’s perfectly still, a state that’s unheard of for Tangey. Mace is impressed. “So, General, what’s the plan?”
“Well,” Mace begins, and he lets his thoughts on anything besides the mission fade away. Survive, and get off Jakku. Find the weakest points, and fit them. “To start, we need to deal with our loss of temperature control…”
