Hey, I have request, I love Samakro and he’s very underrated, in my opinion. Could you write a one shot of samakro working with a navigator who was a Jedi that escaped from the Empire into the unknown region/chaos.
No rush, I love your stories.
Agreed, samakro needs more fics
Also thank you, both for the compliment and your patience. I love to write but rarely have the motivation for it. So I appreciate your understanding immensely
Warnings: ptsd, references to order 66, enemies to lovers sort of, human reader, i play jumprope with canon, Samakro is rude
"We appreciate your willingness to help us," the chiss admiral's clear voice seemed to reverberate all around you - an interesting contrast similarity to past ships you'd worked on.
"Of course," you answered back, meeting the hologram's eyes, "I am honored that you requested me specifically." You spoke in stilted sy bisti, still not quite used to the the way the trade language poked at the inside of your mouth.
Just behind you, the captain of the ship grumbled something under his breath and you couldn't help but pick up the annoyed air rolling off of him in waves. Lifting your chin just a bit higher, you forced yourself not to comment on it and instead focused on the woman before you. "Forgive me, your initial message was rather vague. Am I allowed to know what you need my...specific skills for?"
"To put it plainly," the woman's, Ar'alani's, thin lips quirked up into a small smile - as if amused with a joke only she knew, "the mission before us requires your more broad range of talents - this is a job too big for any pathfinder and too involved for any of our trained navigators. " The polite smile that had made its home on your lips twitched. Even through the language barrier you could read between the lines. Too involved meant too dangerous. You were a replacement - an expendable version of the crewmate that usually did your new job.
"I understand," you replied, forcing yourself to maintain a serene expression, "thank you for indulging my questions. One more, I'm afraid. What are my orders?"
Ar'alani's smile grew, settling into approving and her blue eyes (discolored by the hologram) seemed to twinkle. "I leave the answer to that question with your commander." Nodding to the man behind you, she continued, "Senior Captain Ufsa'mak'ro will fill you in on the rest of the operation. Good day, pathfinder, and good journey." And with that, she clicked off, vanishing from view entirely.
A moment of stillness passed only broken by a few short footsteps taken by the captain to bring him in front of you. "Pathfinder," he addressed in a low voice, hands pressed primly into the small of his own back, "move to your station and prepare to take us into hyperspace - the coordinates are already programmed in. We're just waiting on you." And he stepped away - nearly stalking to the command chair to observe the vast stretch of space before him.
You wasted no time and crossed to the only vacant seat on the whole bridge. Hooked on the controls was a sensory deprivation helmet that looked to be about your size and as you settled into your place you noticed that the seat had already been moved to accommodate your mass. It was still a bit of a tight squeeze regardless but the gesture was not lost on you.
After re-adjusting the distance of the chair from the computer and height of the controls, you set the helmet aside to be used when you got farther into the thicket of the Chaos. Looking over your shoulder, you met the helmsman's eyes to signal you were ready. He nodded and in crisp cheunh projected his voice throughout the bridge. The captain responded in cheunh and the helmsman's gaze met yours once more so he could give you a steady nod - go. He started the jump to hyperspace.
As the bridge lit up, awash in the swirling glow of hyperspace, you let yourself slip into a meditative trance that would guide the ship through what this part of the galaxy called the Chaos. A peculiar name but charming (and fitting) all the same.
................................
Pain and regret. Pain and regret. It rippled throughout the space, choking and stifling and so, so destructive.
Pain and regret, devastation and death. So many. So many. Innocent. Innocent. Innocent. Guilty conscious. Sacrifice. And a single hope. A hope for cooperation. Hope, always hope. Hope to ease the bite of the screams. The bite of the pain, the bite of death.
Cling to hope, cling, grasp, hold, hold, hold, shoulder, hold, shoulder hold. Holding shoulder-
With a jolt, you were unceremoniously yanked out of your dwam and brought back into your body. Your hands jerked around the controls they'd locked around and you couldn't stop your head from swiveling wildly, trying to make sense of your location. Where was the danger? Where were the blaster bolts coming from? Where - lightsaber - get - ?
"Easy now." The voice came from your left and your head snapped in that direction to meet not the blank stare of an unfeeling helmet but the brilliant red of two gemstone-like eyes. The captain. The Chiss captain. Not a clone. There were no clones in the Unknown regions.
You could feel your nerves start to settle and the sudden spike of adrenaline start to where off, bringing your awareness to the heavy, large hand holding onto your shoulder. Closing your eyes to take a deep breath, you opened them on the exhale to meet the gaze of the captain once more. "My apologies, Captain Ufsa'mak'ro, is something the matter?"
His lips twisted down into a scowl as he rose to his full height. "Please, just use my core name 'Samakro'- hearing your pronunciation is painful." He crossed his arms over his chest assuredly.
While your own fought not to mimic at the uncalled for rudeness. "My apologies, Captain Samakro. Is something the matter?"
The scowl didn't budge. But he raised an eyebrow. "No. But your shift's up."
"Oh." You looked away to focus on where your hands were still locked around the controls in front of you. A slight tremor threatened to shake your arms, revealing just how shook up you were to the captain.
"Is something the matter with you?" Samakro's voice was cutting despite its low rumble.
"No," you cleared your throat, "no, sir. Just, got a bit startled coming up is all."
Samakro huffed, a scathing 'uh-huh' that clashed with the timbre of his natural voice. But he didn't press, and instead turned to the helmsman once more to bark out an order in cheunh once more.
The reply from the helmsman was also in cheunh, and thus lost on you but it distinctly sounded like he was counting. And after five unknown syllables projected across the bridge had passed, the ship suddenly dropped out of hyperspace revealing a sprawling starscape all around.
You let out a sigh of relief. Good, they were stopping. Which meant you would have a long enough break to slip away and hopefully meditate. And quiet the dark memories for the time being.
Samakro and the helmsman exchanged a few more words that resulted in the latter counting once more before the ship took off once more, only at lightspeed this time. As the less vibrant starstreaks zipped by, you found yourself focusing on the movements and forcing your hands to still. You were safe. No one on the ship was going to betray you, no one was going to hunt you, the empire didn't know you were out here. The chiss had no reason to hand you over.
A weight settled on your shoulder once again and you found your gaze pulled to it. A blue hand gripped onto you, a stark contrast to the dark grey, nondescript material of your shirt. And you knew without looking whose hand it was. "Why don't I escort you to your room?"
Escort. You nearly snorted. You weren't a stuffy dignitary. Or a prisoner. But you also didn't command this ship. "Thank you, sir."
Muttering a quiet, 'sure', he stepped back to give you room to get up from your seat. But you hesitated, all too aware that the tremor in your arms wasn't quite under control yet and would become all the more apparent once your hands were empty. But just sitting in your seat wasn't an option either - it would just become stranger the longer you stayed put. So, reluctantly, you peeled your hands off of the controls only to hide them away in the confines of your outer-rap robe as you rose to your feet. Samakro raised an eyebrow at the movement but was courteous enough not to comment on it. He waited patiently enough for you to reach his side before settling a steady hand on the middle of your back to lead you away from the bridge. It was strange - his presence and the solid weight of his hand was almost comforting after reliving such an unfortunate memory. But the aura around him was tense, as if he himself was waiting for a sudden strike against him. But you didn't comment on it either, wanting to repay the favor he'd extended to you mere moments ago.
The captain led you through a series of long hallways, all identical to each other down to the sealant on the doors. But finally he came to a stop before an unassuming trapezoidal door that slid into the wall upon inputting a code. Automatic lights sprung to life at the movement of the door, revealing a quaint little room with a couch, a table, a small kithenette, and a single bed shoved into the farthest corner. It was nicer than some of your previous accommodations and you found yourself grateful for the offered privacy.
You stepped inside, expecting the captain to bid you goodbye until your next shift. But, instead, he followed you in and let the door slide shut behind him. Dangerous. Your mind warned and you found yourself tensing up again for a whole new reason. "Is there something you needed, Senior Captain?" You asked carefully, taking a cautious step backward.
"There is actually." Samakro's voice dropped to a near growl as his face shifted into an angry grimace. "Care to tell me what this is?" He reached for his hip where a holster was secured to his belt and pulled from it not any form of blaster but a very specific weapon. One that you knew was supposed to be hidden away in the bottom of your travel bag.
My lightsaber.
Slowly, you raised your hands up in surrender and tried to make yourself seem as non-threatening as possible. "Captain, I promise you that I am not a threat."
"A bit hard to believe that when I'm holding your weapon." Samakro didn't back down. So, you took a careful step forward, and slowly moved your hand to ask him to hand it back.
"I can explain why I have it if you'll let-"
"Back up." He bit out, falling into a position not dissimilar to your own opening stance. You did as he demanded, once again bringing your hands up and over your head to show you were complying. "Now," he lowered the still inactive saber, "what is this?"
"It's a lightsaber." You answered quickly, keeping your eyes trained on the weapon in his grasp.
"And why do you have it?"
"Because I built it."
"Why did you bring it aboard my ship?"
You looked away from the saber to meet his eyes. "Because I won't survive without it."
Samakro's expression faltered. "What?"
"It's a lot to explain." You spoke in a hushed tone. "But I swear on my life that I mean no harm to you or anyone on your ship. I've carried my lightsaber with me since I was a child. It's saved my life more times than I can count. I can't part with it."
He didn't say anything for a long time. And you didn't dare move in fear of angering him further in case he did something to force your hand. But eventually he spoke. "What are you?"
"I was a Jedi." You answered, lowering your arms and monitoring his face for any recognition of the word. Something flashed behind his eyes and you detected the faintest recognition of the word. Which only made your own wariness grow.
"And this," he hefted the hilt between his hands, now looking a bit more intrigued, "is the weapon you'd use."
"How do you know about the Jedi? I was under the impression that you didn't have any force sensitives out here."
You saw Samakro's mouth form the word 'force' as if to question you but he didn't voice it. Instead, after a small shake of his head, he said, "My former commander had an experience with one of your ilk a while back." He finally lowered the weapon completely, letting the deactivated saber tap against his thigh.
An unwitting spark of interest flared to life in your gut. "He did? How-How long ago?"
"Years." Samakro answered simply. And the small hope that had dared to spark was smothered out. "Weren't you fighting a war?" The captain asked, now crossing his arms over his chest.
"Yes." The word was bitter on your tongue. "We lost." you muttered quietly.
"How?" Samakro's voice had shifted again, taking on a more conversational tone and comforting volume.
Bracing yourself, you focused your gaze on the floor before you. "Our troops turned on us. I'm still not sure how it happened. All I know is that we were on the cusp of victory, the leader of the CIA was defeated, Master Kenobi was pursuing General Grievous. And then suddenly the clones just started shooting." Tears pricked at your eyes, your throat was starting to close, but you pressed on. "They gunned us down - hunted us on our own ships, in our own bases."
You had to stop and let yourself breathe. It'd been almost two years since that fateful day. Two years of silence. Two years of hiding. Two years of running.
"But you escaped." Samakro pointed out, stepping closer.
With a scoff, you met his gaze. "I fled like a force-forsaken coward! I was stationed on a covert medical base with two other Jedi, a Master and her Padawan. We tried to buy the padawan time to escape but they were both gunned down. Right in front of me. And what did I do?" Your voice had started to raise, "I ran away, got in a lifepod and jettisoned off into the unknown just to get picked up by some transport." A pause as you wrangled your voice back to a manageable volume. "They brought me to the pathfinders' guild and put me to work."
"Which is how you ended up here." Samakro finished dryly - a look of annoyed relief on his face. Suddenly, "Here," he tossed the saber at you, "it doesn't leave this room." You caught it with ease and crossed to set it on the quaint desk.
"Understood, Captain." Your reply came swiftly as you settled your hands in front of you.
"Good." Samakro nodded and turned sharply to key the door to your room open. "Your next shift is in 10 hours. We'll be traveling jump by jump in the mean time."
"Understood, Captain." You repeated.
Samakro paused, glancing over his shoulder at you. "I'm sorry about what happened to you." He offered quietly. "And...for mistrusting you."
He didn't wait for a reply before making his departure from your room.