Chapter Twenty: Distraction

Disclaimer: I own nothing here, but it may be difficult to secure your release...

Warning: Again, this chapter involves minor references to alcohol and its supposed effects and also touches on other bodily references that shouldn't really bother anyone, but if it does, I apologize in advance. If anyone is particularly offended, please let me know and I'll do what I can to alter my warning accordingly.

Speeders zoomed by overhead and pedestrians wandered the streets as the bar doors closed behind Rey and Ben. They both paused for the briefest second to determine their quarry's route before launching into a fierce pursuit.

Civilians of various species scampered out of their way with yelps and screeching, while some were shifted out of the path by an invisible shove, a product of Ben's annoyance no doubt. He was locked on and focused on his target and Rey was certain he would let very little get in his way now.

It was proving to be a struggle to keep up with his long, powerful strides on such a straightforward sprint. Rey was confident she could outmaneuver him easily if there were more turns and obstacles, but the circumstances in this chase was not her only problem at the moment.

With a cringe, she suddenly regretting downing that blue drink so quickly earlier. Her head was starting to buzz and her stomach was cramping painfully. What was that mix, anyway?

Scowling in determination against the pain and lightheadedness, Rey asked the Force for clarity and adrenaline. It responded immediately, giving her the sure sighted focus and renewed strength that she needed to stay in step with her counterpart.

"Keep on him!" Ben shouted and he seemed oblivious to her momentary weakness as their fugitive ducked into an alley between two huge buildings. "I'll cut him off." He leaped onto a nearby overhang and used the momentum and the Force to swing himself onto the roof of an adjoined line of small buildings.

The feat itself shouldn't have made Rey blink twice at him, but she found herself idly wondering at the ease of his acrobatics despite his size. All two hundred pounds of him (she guessed) most of which was toned and rippling muscle (she knew) under all that leather as he vaulted from roof to roof- Rey berated herself for the foolish daydream, though it had only lapsed a few seconds as she ran and hung a tight turn into the alley. She lost sight of Ben, which was probably for the best, and caught a glimpse of Torrk as he ducked down another junction. She was gaining on him.

Her prey was a pale, blue veined Mawan with black hair. His attire and equipment weren't anything especially notable, though he did have a large, odd looking apparatus attached to his right arm, which Rey guessed was the detonator for his bombs. It puzzled her as to why he hadn't simply stopped and threatened to detonate them, unless of course they were too close to one of them...

Rey poured more power into her steps at the thought. She didn't want any innocent people getting blown to pieces and that meant taking this terrorist out .

Before Torrk could slide into yet another junction, Rey reached out and snagged one of his legs with a Force grip and yanked him backward. He yelped and staggered but managed to keep his feet. As Rey bore down on him, he did something she didn't expect. He charged right at her and she was so caught off guard by the turnabout that she didn't think to ready her weapon or maneuver around his assault.

He tumbled right into her, a full force tackle that knocked them both to the ground. The fugitive didn't appear to have a single weapon on him, his apparent intent simply to knock his assailant off kilter enough to buy him time to escape.

It wouldn't work. By the time he was off and running again, Rey was on his heels, shocksaber unhinged and poised to deliver a hefty blow should he try that tactic again.

He tried to lose her by leaping off a ledge leading down into a wide canal where a shallow stream of water trickled by but Rey lunged after him without hesitation. She swung her weapon, stinger first, and nicked his left arm, successfully numbing it and knocking him a few feet away.

Torrk's right hand, however, went to his utility belt and before Rey could deflect it, he had lobbed a grenade in her direction. Luckily it had only been a smoke bomb, though she lost sight of him because of it. , Rey thought in frustration towards her own performance. She was making a mess of this capture and she was starting to feel lightheaded again, probably due to the smoke. She wondered where Ben was, hoping he would make his move soon and just put an end to it already.

Closing her stinging eyes, Rey honed in on Torrk's fear through the Force and strode through the smoke towards him. After clearing the smog, she could see that he was darting out of the canal and headed for another alley between buildings. She kept after him through sheer determination as her muscles began screaming atrocities, her head swimming.

He was so intent on getting away from her that he didn't notice the dark warrior looming over the edge of a building's catwalk until it was too late. Ben dropped down onto the fugitive like a Gundark on an unsuspecting Mynock, his crackling red lightsaber carving a killing path down the Mawan's back. Torrk barely had the chance to yelp out in fear, much less cry out in pain before he writhed on the ground and died.

"Oh Ben," Rey admonished with a weary sigh and staggered over to him to regard Torrk's body sadly. "You didn't have to him did you?" The thought sent a pang through her heart. After all, the fugitive was just doing what he felt was right, fighting the First Order in the only way he knew how, just like the Resistance... Though in the end, she supposed it didn't matter much, since he would have eventually been executed anyway.

Rey wasn't sure when it happened, but something in Ben's state of mind had shifted. His imprint through the Force was blazing and jagged, yet he bent down with precise, dangerously calm movement to retrieve a small device from Torrk's limp right hand.

He turned his fiery brown gaze on her and stepped towards her, his Force radiating so much raw anger... or was that fear? Rey could hardly differentiate the two, since he seemed to be suffering from both equally. But she couldn't understand why he was afraid, he just looked furious as he marched over to her, his jaw set.

Maybe it was just her own fear she sensed and had mistook it for his. Either way, she was preparing herself for the worst when he finally halted in front of her. She couldn't help but cringe under his wild scrutiny. She was still under the belief that he would never truly hurt her, but a smart smack across the face wouldn't be out of the question if she had done something especially stupid. She would admit to botching the mission, her first mistake being that damned drink, her second mistake was not telling him about it before they split up.

She could practically feel his anger boiling the space between them, and although she was expecting some type of physical reproof, it never came. She still flinched when his free hand shot out and snatched something off her shoulder. He held it in front of her face for an instant and she blinked at it, bewildered. It looked like a sticky grenade! on

Rey didn't have time to produce the question before Ben tossed the grenade straight up into the air and gave it an extra thrust with the Force, sending it much farther into the sky. In his other hand was the device he snatched off the fugitive. He pressed the trigger button, never taking his eyes of her as the grenade detonated high above the buildings, sending a shock wave in every direction along with sparks raining down around them.