I can’t say for exactly how long I floated in a state of near consciousness. It had to have been for several days because when I finally took in the room around me, I was already familiar with the man tidying the bacta tank.
I had gathered his name was Lontra and, despite his uncle actually owning the ship we flew upon, everyone looked to this man for direction. Though, in this galaxy, the masses typically submitted to someone holding a lightsaber - at least, that’s been my experience. However, like so many others carrying such a weapon, this man failed to notice the life struggling before his eyes.
How did I come to be in this bacta tank? I have no memory of those events. My last conscious thought recalls leading troops into battle as Proconsul of Scholae Palatinae but my head hurts when I linger on such thoughts for too long.
Had Eli read my play for their throne? Or had I merely been collateral damage in a game larger than myself?
These thoughts are merely a few of the dozen spiraling in my head but none of them answer why I now float in a tank on someone else’s ship and cared for by a stranger. What happened to my ship? Where was Radula, my lightsaber?
The jump from confusion to fury was a path I am all too familiar with. My muscles tensed in my shoulders and chest while I shook my head around, freeing myself from the futile breathing mask and tubes. My gills flared as I took the first meaningful breath in months.
Clearly these idiots had no experience with a Nautolan.
My right fist then pounded on the glass wall of the tank while I stared deep into Lontra’s green-blue eyes. His widened expression paired with a jump back in fright before I struck the glass again. While my ears couldn’t hear outside the tank, I sensed the man’s frantic plight.
“Hold on, buddy!” Lontra waved in downward manner. “Calm down and I’ll have you out in a moment.”
The man was quick to jump back to the tank and run up a small set of stairs that led up its side to a platform above the tank. Within moments I felt the liquid in the tank start to drain through the base of the tank while lights appears overhead. I kicked myself towards the lights and felt a firm set of hands pull me onto the deck.
“Easy fella,” I heard Lontra say as I coughed, clearing my lungs to be used again.
“That’s it, get it all out.” The man continued as he threw a towel around me. When I settled, I noticed he had squatted down beside me. He shot me a look of concern before continuing. “How much do you remember today?”
“Eh?” My reaction was not planned.
“How much do you remember, Raiju?” Lontra was firm with the question before offering a hand to me. “Do you know who I am?”
“Yes,” I was hesitant to continue but decided to offer what I knew. “You’re Lontra and this is your uncle’s ship.’
“Good!” Lontra said before leaping into the air. The man was quick to fist pump in the air before shouting back towards the door of the medbay. “Baelor! Get in here, quick.”
Before I could ask any questions of my own, Lontra pulled me to my feet and pushed me towards a proper bed on the other side of the medical bay. There I could see a familiar set of clothing, already set out on top of the bedding, along with the gray hilt of a lightsaber with a leather wrap. My lightsaber, Radula.
“You’ve been expecting me…” My thoughts came out unfiltered and I looked from my possessions back to Lontra.
“Yeah, buddy. This isn’t the first time either.” His tone was flat as if he was now disappointed, but both of us were interrupted before he could explain further.
“Lontra? Whatcha need?” The deep voice of Baelor was felt before the man turned into the medbay and I felt his eyes immediately fall upon me. “Ah, Raiju. How are you feeling today?”
“Dazed and confused.”
“So par for the course, then?” Baelor gave me a look of sympathy before turning to Lontra. “No changes then?”
“He remembered us today.” Lontra said with a smirk. “Actually, he remembered you own the ship.”
“That’s a new one.” Baelor shared the smirk with Lontra before he turned back to me. “Do you know what year it is?”
I did not. My silence shared the answer. Baelor didn’t let that discourage him.
“That’s okay. Maybe tomorrow.” I felt the sympathy in his words and then felt the datapad he slipped into my hands. “This should help explain things. Your buddy left a message on there for you. Spend some time listening to that and then come find us when you are done.”
It was several minutes before I got the courage to turn the screen on. Now alone in the medic bay, I wondered if I made a mistake leaving the tank today. As Baelor said, there was a message on there and I immediately recognized the ‘friend’.
“Raiju,” The monotone voice of Darth Aeternus carried an eeriness to it. “You’re gonna want to save this recording..”