Beyond - Legends The Academy: A Pilot fic. OCs, Wedge (post NJO) Author's comments up 9/9+more

Thanks, hehehe. Now if only the blasting would go according to plan...

Shyndrah's past was a surprise to me, too. It was just one of those things...humdedum, another day. *sproing!* Oh. Oh! *type like crazy* Brosh's mind will be another story altogether, I think. Thanks very much for the nice compliment!

I agree whole heartedly. There are always those who think they can get ahead by taking out their competition. Thanks for reading!

You're always welcome for the PMs, Lars. I appreciate your regular readership, and your extra-nice comments, too.

Yep, there's no doubt Brosh will be messed up. Really messed up. But he was already nuts as an A-wing pilot, so maybe he'll just get a little nutser. Vlad's death was a hard one for me to stomach too. I hate killing off characters I like! I also wanted to keep this story as free of Jedi as I could, but when the perfect bad guys appeared in my little rabbit mind, I couldn't help it. Force Sensitives just popped in there.

Never even crossed my mind to make Shyndrah a bad girl. Guess I'm not truly evil *yet*.

Thank you very much for the wonderful compliments and finding me again! Would you like me to put you on my PM list?

 

I was really worried that Brosh was dead when Red Lightsaber got ahold of him that last time, especially because at that point the story switched over to Shyndrah. You freaked me out there.

Shyndrah got some brutal treatment in that fight. I'm really glad she pulled through, though, and was able to help Aarn in the fight as well. She'll have a challenge getting used to that mechanical arm. Hopefully they can calibrate it before she does some inadvertant damage.

Shyndrah's past was fascinating, and I liked learning more about what makes her tick. Interesting to hear that she chose to stay behind on the station so she wouldn't hinder Brosh.

Sounds like Brosh has his recovery cut out for him too. I hope he pulls through!

On a lighter note, if Aarn fixes Brosh's mind completely, will Brosh still be crazy enough to fly A-wings?

What happened with the attack on the station and the rest of the squadron? Inquiring minds want to know!

Great posts! I'm looking forward to more!

-Thumper

 

Thanks Thumps! Shyndrah has been through the ringer a few times, that's for sure. Unfortunately for her, her life is going to be a wee bit miserable for a while longer.

You'll get to know a little bit more about the rest of Brosh's squadron today. As for enough insanity to fly A-wings... I think that's so deeply bred in his psyche that he'll be back in that cramped cockpit... That is, if he can stand flying again.
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I almost screwed up and gave you the wrong post! Good thing my brain kicked in at last or there'd be a lot of confused people looking at me funny.

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?I?m doing my best, but where do you think you?re going??

?Simulator,? Shyndrah answered. ?I need to blast something.?

The doctors did try to stop her, but after she flung a nurse half way across the med bay, they came to the conclusion that she was well enough to venture out on her own. Just in case, a pair of security personnel followed her throughout the ship. She didn?t care, as long as they stayed out of her way. Shyndrah didn?t even seem to notice that she was clad only in flimsy hospital gown.

Everybody else did, though. As she stalked down the corridors, sentients all turned and stared at her. Externally, all physical wounds seemed healed, aside from the nasty burn marks and heavily sutured shoulder. A few individuals recognized her and tried to offer their condolences, but she was hearing none of it. Even members of her own squadron?s greetings weren?t enough to pull her out of her funk. Every time she felt the pity of others, tears of anger, frustration and loss seeped out. The anger was multiplied when Greigh happened to be along the route to the simms. Kri'ifi stood close behind the Rodian, but seemed to have a better handle on her mental state. The Bothan remained behind as Greigh started making his way towards her.

?I?m sorry about Brosh, Worm Head,? he started, coming far too close to touching her and worse, he was standing in her way.

?Shove off, Greigh. I?m not in any mood to talk to you.?

He pointed a suction cupped finger at her. ?Hey I lost friends too, you know.?

?I said move! She flung a ponderous right cross at him, which he swiftly dodged, fortunately for him. The force from Shyndrah?s blow sent her fist careening into the wall, opening a fist-sized hole, punching several centimeters through the thick metal. She didn?t even seem to notice the damage she had done.

?Whoa!? Greigh hurried around her, reassuring her guards as he passed them. Reluctantly they lowered their weapons and continued to follow her. Behind the guards, a small crowd formed, following the odd procession.

Once she reached the simulator, she didn?t bother with any safety restraints or crash webbing. Shyndrah just heaved herself into the cockpit and closed it behind her. Whines and bleeps erupted around her as she bega

 

She's sobbing on your chest! Get up, you idiot! lol, lol, and lol. Great post. And I wonder what on earth the Jedi would want to talk to Brosh about...

Darth Maul clones? That's not good...

Raptor517

 

Didn't see that coming. That makes me even more curious as to who is behind this.

 

Whoa, glad Brosh made it.

And Darth Maul? Uh oh!

Keep up the great work!

 

Whoa, you weren't kidding when you said Shyndrah would be miserable for a bit longer.

Nice touch with her thoughts regarding the ring exercise. I felt really bad for her during her simulator venting session, and it really showed how deeply she cared for Brosh. It was neat to see Gyles there to help her out.

It takes a lot of devotion to spend so much time at someone's side waiting for them to recover. Good for Shyndrah for doing so.

And speaking of misery, Brosh is doing a pretty good job at guilt-tripping himself. Poor guy. It's understandable given what he saw and how much he cared for those he took the responsibility for, but I was feeling really bad for him too when he didn't want to wake up. I'm happy Shyndrah was able to pull him back to consciousness (with some urging from Aarn, LOL), but it looks like Brosh still has a ways to go to truly recover. It's too bad Vlad isn't there to talk to him. It'll be interesting to see how Aarn does instead.

Great stuff!

-Thumper

 

Not good indeed. You don't know the half of it. Thanks very much for reading!

You'll find out a wee bit more tomorrow!

Thanks! I'll do my best! I'm glad Brosh made it too. Now if we can just convince BROSH that he should be glad he made it, we'll be all set.

Thanks very much, Thumps! Really appreciate it. The mind can be its own worst enemy, there's no doubt of that. Some people walk away from a catastrophe with a new lease on life, and others get stuck with survivor's guilt.

Vlad would have been able to help Brosh quite a bit, you're right. Aarn better do all right, cuz if the burden of cheering Brosh up falls on Gyles, I think he'll be depressed forever.

Tomorrow will see the next post! Thanks for reading, everybody!

 

Finally, she nodded. As she stood to leave, she kissed Brosh?s cheek, caressing it briefly before slowly walked out of the room. The Jedi sat down on his bed in her place.

?I didn?t want her to hear what I was going to say because I?m sure she wouldn?t understand. But I?ve spent the last three weeks inside that twisted mind of yours, trying to straighten your mangled mental state out. It wasn't easy to make you cling to what you?re thinking of as your miserable excuse for a life.? A long finger tapped Brosh?s forehead several times sharply. ?I know you think you?re a letdown of galactic scale, but listen.

?Your flying was brilliant and made a huge impact in the space battle we faced. I was in the disabled shuttle that the A-wings were towing. Without your escort, we would have unquestionably been destroyed. Everybody I?ve spoken to has praised your abilities as a pilot. I couldn?t even sense bitterness when they mentioned you, so don?t think that people are angry with you, or even disappointed. All I?ve felt from your friends is pride. And if you think you have no friends, let me assure you that every sentient in this station would gladly consider you as one, myself included.

?I?ve got a letter for you from Colonel Pascal. Actually it?s more like a novel, but I know the gist of it. As soon as you?re well again, he wants you to join his squadron. You?ll need to graduate first, but as I hear it told, Naval Command has offered to run you a private ceremony whenever you?re ready. I don?t know much about the military but I?m pretty sure they don?t do that for just anybody. Oh, and General Antilles left this.? The man rooted around in his robe for a couple of seconds before pulling out a five pointed star made of heavy gold, connected to a red and blue striped fabric fastener. ?Wedge said this one was his, but said that if anybody deserved to have one, it?s you.?

Antilles had given this to him? Brosh?s heavy arms didn?t move right when he tried to take the medal, but the Jedi placed it neatly in his hand. ?Star of Dedication to Duty?? he asked, his self-recrimination starting to fade somewhat.

The other human nodded. ?He said you deserved many more. Whether you like it or not, kiddo, you?re a hero. That?s not just Wedge talking, either. The only reason your station?s security forces were able to beat back the droid army was because your crashing ship took out well over half their numbers. I know to you that seems like a coincidence, but the Force assures me that it was not.

?I?m going to answer a question you?ve never asked yourself. I was curious when you were suddenly in the right place at the right time, and I?ve seen holofootage of some of your dogfights.? The Jedi noticed his surprised expression. ?What? What else did I have to do over the last three weeks besides watch the tube?? He grinned wryly, shaking his head to himself. ?Anyway, I saw several times where there was no way you could have seen someone sneaking up on you, yet you got out of the way. A danger sense, of sorts, if you know what I mean.?

Through his hazy memory, he knew what the Jedi was talking about. Brosh nodded.

?Well, you?re not Force sensitive. I did blood tests as well as?less tangible examinations that disproved my theories entirely. I?m told that some pilots just have a knack for that sort of thing. So that?s one worry I put on your mind that you don?t really have to worry about.?

Brosh was stunned to complete silence. Never in his wildest dreams did he imagine might be able to control the Force like some Jedi. He was exasperated at being told that, only to have the Jedi say ?never mind! Just kidding.? Brosh?s facial expression conveyed that frustration perfectly, and the Jedi understood the glare?s meaning.

?Yes, well?anyway.? He glanced around the room, not really looking at anything in particular. ?Back to what matters, hmm?? His face lost all sense of false-cheeriness as he continued on with what seemed to be a well-rehearsed speech.

?You sav

 

Wow. I was expecting one cloned sith...but dozens of them? Bad Anakins and Dookus and who knows what else running around through the galaxy? You put things on a large scale, my friend...and I like those kinds of stories.

Send me PMs!

Raptor517

 

Whoaaaa crazy! I did not see the multiple Sith Lords coming at all!!

Also, I loved this line:

Great space! This Jedi rambles on incessantly.

 

Great ending! While he may not have had the most perfect bedside manner (I'm thinking of the Force sensitivity part here ), Aarn knew what Brosh needed and got him to listen. I'm sure that's not an easy thing to do in a situation like that.

The roving cloned Sith Lords brings up a whole new slew of questions. I don't blame the Jedi for being worried about it.


?How do you feel?? Brosh asked her after taking a particularly painful deep breath.
?Better,? she told him evasively. ?How about you??
?Like I?m going to live,? he replied, giving her as convincing of a smile as he could.

I really liked this part. Brosh and Shyndrah both still have some problems to deal with, but things are a lot more hopeful for them now than they were when Brosh first woke up.

The proposal was very sweet. It was a great note to end the story on--they both know they need to heal, but in spite of all that it was positive and optimistic.

Thanks for sharing this story!

-Thumper

 

I only found this story a couple of days ago and I have been reading avidly! It's a wonderful story! Thank you!

 

Nooooooooooooooooooo

Please!

At least they're together at the end, even though you did raise more questions than you provided answers

 

Aaawww. Just ... aaawwwww.

 

REALLY sorry about the delay on getting back to these comments. They're all extremely appreciated! I just haven't had much time to do much other than taking care of the aftermath of my brother-in-law and his girlfriend's visit. Let's just say I have a bit more of an understanding what it feels like in the gulf coast right now, cleaning up the aftermath of all those durn hurricanes!

PMs you shall have! Thanks very much for reading. I've never tried to tackle such a big scale, I hope I'm up to the task! I wanted to build a desperate situation with lots of tension. But I've thrown a couple of warm fuzzy surprises, too.

Thank ya! That was sort of a late addition.

 

Just to let you know, the beginning of a concurrent story can be found in Odd Discoveries.

 

I've been reading and reading and reading...trying to finally get ALL caught up! Well I just finished the last bit of the last post and WOW! It was great to be able to sit down and read so much at one time. You're wonderfully talented.

 

Whoa!

Late, again, but a worthwile read to be sure.

First - congrats on an excellent and deeply addictive story, my Master .I had angst, drama, adventure, thrills and awesome combat sequences for an old flight sim stick jockey like myself.

Which brings me to---

Second - those dogfigts leads me to believe that you might be interested in flightsims . If so,

[plug] you really should check out wwiionline a.k.a. Battleground Europe, the biggest, meanest, best PvP war sim there is out there, filled with potential for Star Wars-quoting ("there's too many of them", "I can't shake him", "stay on target" etc) and chances to engage in quite entertaining dogfights. If interested, do PM or look me up there, I have the same handle. . Just FYI [/plug]

So, looking forward to more!

Now, where did I put my stick...

 

Wow. Just wow. Clearly, I'm very late in reading this, but I just spend last night and this afternoon reading the whole thing, because it was extremely engaging. Some of my favorite Star Wars books are the X-wing series, and this definitely reminded me of them. Pilot culture, getting inside the struggling minds of your characters, thrusting them into circumstances way above their heads. Very good, and very good characterization. I especially loved (this seems to be a consensus) Pascal, and I was sad to see Vlad go. And loved Wedge's inclusion.

Like I said, this is way late, but I figure the story deserves the boost so others are more likely to stumble across it.

 

sweet... aweseome... epic... man, this list could go on forever total masterpiece, great job