Nira pressed her back against the doors as they slid closed, drawing out a wire from her wrist-mounted computer and plugging it into the door controls. Using the command key given to her by Alfons she managed to jam the door shut. Blaster fire could be heard on the other side of the door. Nira grinned, the hallucinogenic gas she had released would have those Drit’ud goons blowing each other to bits. Now that she had a moment to breathe, she tapped a few keys on her wristcom and a holographic screen popped up. It was a map of the ship with a blip showing her location and a blip showing the location of her partner. It looked like he was still on his way to the engines. She had to buy him more time. She closed the map and pushed away from the doors. Down this hall, a right turn, three doors on the left-hand side before a T-junction. Poe was further down to the left, Drit’ud forces to the right. It would only take them another minute or so to equip their filter masks and purge the toxin from their systems. Nira bolted down the path to the right.

Just as she came to the next corner, something metallic and sharp shot out from her blind spot. She was just quick enough to avoid a lethal blow, but the blade had cut her forehead and she was bleeding badly.

“Traitor.”

Nira recognized the voice. It was Min, a childhood friend turned deadly enemy. As she blinked the blood out of her eyes and wiped at her forehead with her sleeve, she caught sight of her. She was waiting. Min was nothing if not honorable, always had been.

“Gotta say Min, it’s a surprise to see you here. Our intel wasn’t as complete as we thought.” Nira spoke as she drew her own vibroknife and cut a strip of cloth off her jacket, wrapping it around her forehead like a bandanna to stem the flow of blood.

Once Nira was situated, Min held her knife out in front of her. Its edge shone crimson with Nira’s blood. “You die here, today, by my hand.” She said, scowling. Nira chuckled darkly.

“Well, we all have to die some day.” She lashed out, aiming a strike at Min’s collarbone, but the deft combatant easily parried the blow and knocked Nira off balance. “Shit!” Nira swore, quickly using the momentum from the parry to spin out of the way of Min’s counterattack. As she spun, she struck out wildly in a deadly arc that fell just short of Min’s neck. The younger girl stumbled backwards, taken off guard by the ferocity displayed by her opponent.

“You’ve gotten better. Alfons’s handiwork I take it?” The two women circled each other with their knives held at the ready, looking for any opening in the other’s stance.

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“Don’t you dare say his name. After what you did…” Nira took two quick steps forward and delivered a series of slashes and stabs, all of which Min countered effortlessly. Nira hated to admit it, but even after weeks of rigorous training, she couldn’t hold a candle to Min.

“I did what was right!” Min yelled back, stepping into Nira’s stance and slamming her forehead into her nose. Blood gushed from the newly broken nose and Nira jerked back, cutting upwards and grazing Min’s cheek.

Nira, invigorated by the pain, stepped inward, stomping on Min’s front foot and throwing out a flurry of cuts. Two on the arm, one on the left thigh, and finally a stab into her shoulder. Nira had the advantage. She jerked the knife out of Min’s shoulder, switched her grip, and put all her weight behind a death blow, but it didn’t land. Min was too quick. Nira, off balance, was stabbed in the back and knocked to the floor. As the blade was yanked out of Nira’s flesh, Min delivered a savage blow to the ribs before kicking Nira’s blade out of her hand. Nira rolled onto her back and glowered up at her former ally.

Breathing heavily, Min stood above her defeated foe, knife poised to strike the final blow. “This is just the beginning Nira. I’m going to wipe out that entire pathetic band of rebels. I’ll kill each and every one of them. You can all reunite in the afterli-”

BANG

A bullet tore through Min’s throat. She dropped her knife and clasped her hands to her wound, turning to see who had shot her. Poe stood at the end of the hallway, gun smoking. Min gurgled out something akin to a curse before collapsing on the ground next to Nira. Poe rushed forward and helped Nira to her feet. “Sabotage is done, we’ve gotta go!”

Nira and Poe sprinted through the halls as the sound of boots neared. The gas, it seemed, had indeed been filtered. Nira knew the layout of the ship like the back of her hand, she’d spent hours studying every detail, but it seemed Poe was a little less informed. He kept stopping and checking something on his screen, wasting precious seconds they didn’t have. Of course Nira couldn’t, wouldn’t leave him behind, so she dragged him along as best she could. As they arrived in the hangar bay Nira let out a sigh of relief, their getaway ship was still there. She’d half expected to find the hangar empty. “Hurry it up Poe!” she yelled as she began climbing the ladder. She was just about to the top when-

BANG

Pain exploded in her leg and she fell backwards off the ladder, sprawling on her back. What had happened? She grimaced and looked behind her. At Poe. Standing with his gun raised. He was still staring at that damned screen, but as Nira looked closer she saw tears in his eyes. He looked her in the eyes for a moment, then flinched as if the eye contact had caused him physical pain. It all finally connected in her head. Poe had betrayed them. Shot her in the leg. And now, he walked forward, aiming his weapon between her eyes.

“I’m sorry Nira.”

BANG