Blinded by grief
Wanda Maximoff, once celebrated as a beloved Avenger and a hero to the people of Earth, stood on the balcony of her new home in Coruscant, gazing out at the bustling streets below. The cool evening breeze made her shiver as she wrapped her arms around herself. As she stood there lost in thought, she felt a pair of hands on her shoulders and knew immediately who it was. It was Vision, her beloved android partner who had sacrificed himself to save the universe. The touch of his hands brought a sense of comfort and familiarity to Wanda, who had been feeling cold and alone in this new place.
Wanda said, "This is a beautiful sight."
"If only you were here to see this," Wanda murmured to Vision. "You could be of great help to us."
He said to her, "It seems to me you have everything you need."
Wanda gazed at Vision with tears streaming down her face, knowing deep down that he wasn't real. He was nothing more than an illusion that Wanda had created to help her cope with the loneliness she felt. Despite sensing the urge from Strange to connect with her, Wanda had blocked every attempt he had made. She had made up false stories about how she was doing fine, how she was living on a remote planet and didn't want to be found. Wanda dreaded the thought of seeing the man who had caused her to lose the man she loved with no purpose. She still struggled with the guilt of having blown a hole through the man she loved, and it felt like it was all for nothing because Thanos had still managed to win. In the end, Vision had died for nothing, not once but twice, and Wanda couldn't bare the thought of losing him all over again.
"You are still gone," Wanda says to Vision. "And I can't bring you back."
"Yes, you can," Vision said as he cupped Wanda's cheeks. "You heard what the Emperor said. Find him the Infinity Stones. You can come home, and I can finally be restored."
"But to do what he is asking..." Wanda began to pace as she broke free from Vision's grasp. "I need to become something more powerful than I have ever imagined. The Scarlet Witch. Do you think that I have what it takes?"
Vision approached Wanda again and placed comforting hands on her shoulders. "Wanda. You can do anything that you set your mind to. You can save everyone. Put everything back in its proper place." He then leaned down and kissed Wanda, and she returned the gesture. "All you have to do is destroy the Rebellion."
"What about the others?" Wanda wondered. "They have sided with the rebellion. I can't kill them; I want to help them."
"You don't have to kill them," Vision assured her. "All you need to do is make them see the light. The Empire is who they should be fighting for. Not the Rebellion. But if they wish to still fight for them...then you must eliminate them."
Wanda was starting to understand what Vision was saying as the illusion began to crack and fade away, leaving Wanda standing alone.
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Jedha, also known as the Pilgrim Moon, the Cold Moon, or the Kyber Heart, was a small desert moon that orbited the planet NaJedha. Located in the Jedha system of the galaxy's Mid Rim, the moon had a cold climate due to its lasting winter. The historical and spiritual significance of Jedha led the moon to become a world of worship for those who believed in the Force, and a holy site for pilgrims who sought spiritual guidance. However, right now it was occupied by the Empire, which was draining its resources. On the surface, a group of militiamen were walking across a desert with a prisoner. The militia pulled a bag off of the head of Bodhi Rook, a defected Imperial pilot. The same one that Talos was warning Fury that they needed to locate with the help of Jyn Erso.
Bodhi looked at one of the soldiers and confused him with Saw. "Is that him? He looks kind of different than I imagined."
"On your feet! It's the pilot, the defector."
"Okay, so you're Jyn Erso?" Bodhi asks her. "Jyn Erso. No? Okay, we're just wasting time that we don't have. I need to speak to Jyn Erso! I kept telling them before, but it's too late now."
"Too late," a gruff voice said, getting Bodhi to look and notice a more muscular man with strange-looking eyes and his hair flowing in braids. It was Heimdall of Asgard. He also carried his huge sword, which he used as a place to lean on as he smiled at the cargo pilot. He then gestured to his men. "Come. We must not make haste. The Empire finds us here; we'll be sitting ducks." He then helped the defected pilot to his feet. "You may tell us all about why you are here, and why Jyn Erso is so important...and why I cannot see exactly what it is that will happen."
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True to his word, Talos managed to get Jyn Erso on a transport for the rebellion to attack. Jyn, in restraints, sits amongst other prisoners in a transport guarded by stormtroopers. As she is being taken towards another Imperial prison, the transport suddenly stops.
"What now?" The trooper asked.
"I don't know, must be another pickup."
"I thought we had every one."
That was when the door to the transport burst open and Rebel Alliance soldiers filed in, killing one of the stormtroopers. That was followed by several soldiers running inside the transport and shooting the troops that remained.
"Hallik! Liana Hallik!" One of the soldiers cried.
"Her." One of them recognized the target.
The soldier approached Jyn. "You want to get out of here?"
Jyn nods as she is freed from her restraints.
"Hey, what about me?" the other prisoner asked, gaining his attention.
Jyn kicked the Rebel, grabbed a shovel, and hit the other soldiers out of the way before jumping out of the transport. However, at the exit, she was grabbed and chokedlammed to the ground by a tall Imperial droid, K-2SO.
K-2SO looked down at her. "Congratulations. You are being rescued. Please do not resist."
Jyn had given up as she wasn't in the mood to find out what would happen if she tried to resist this droid. She was then taken by the other soldiers who had gotten up and the few Imperial prisoners on board managed to get away. They brought Jyn to their ship, which took her to the rebel outpost in the middle of nowhere. With no designated base, they brought Jyn to Home One.
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Home One, a massive warship, was originally designed and built as a civilian deep space explorer, but later it was retrofitted to serve as a military vessel. The ship was equipped with heavy hull plating and triple-strength shields to withstand heavy battles. It had an impressive size of 1,300 meters, which made it slightly bigger than the standard length of an MC80 Star Cruiser. The vessel boasted twenty hangars, which were capable of bearing other warships and starfighter squadrons. The initial armament of the ship included turbo laser cannons, ion cannons, and several tractor-beam projectors, giving it a significant advantage in combat.
Jyn found herself in the ship's briefing room, which had originally been a holographic amphitheater. She was surrounded by the top brass of the Rebellion, including Mon Mothma, the leader of the Alliance to Restore the Republic, and Nick Fury, the once high-ranking S.H.I.E.L.D. director, along with other members like Davits Draven, a military strategist, and a few others such as Cassian Andor, a skilled intelligence officer, Kate Bishop, a talented archer, and Yelena Belenova, a former Red Room operative. The room was filled with an air of anticipation and tension as they prepared for their next mission.
Davits asks, "You're currently calling yourself Elen Seafire. Is that correct?" Jyn nods. "Possession of unsanctioned weapons, forgery of Imperial documents, aggravated assault, escape from custody, resisting arrest. Imagine if the Imperial authorities had found out who you really were. Jyn Erso? That's your given name, is it not? Jyn Erso? Daughter of Galen Erso. A known Imperial collaborator in weapons development."
Jyn was a little confused when she eyed everyone in the room. "What is all of this?"
"It's a chance for you to make a fresh start," Monthra says to her.
Cassian Andor emerges from around a corner and approaches the group. "When was the last time you had contact with your father?"
"Ten years ago," Jyn replied.
Cassian asked her, "Any idea where he's been all this time?"
Jyn shrugged; she hadn't given her father much thought. "I like to think he's dead; it makes things easier."
"Easier than what?" Cassian asks him. "That he's being a tool of the Imperial war machine?"
Yelena scoffed as she pushed him aside a little. "Cassian, we've got to work on your people skills."
"Ha, you're one to talk," Kate scoffed at that statement.
Yelena let go of that statement and looked towards Jyn. "When was your last contact with Saw Gerrera?"
Jyn shrugged. "It's been a while."
Kate asked, "But you know how to get close to him? At least close to his people?"
"We're up against the clock here, Ms. Erso," Fury tells her. "We were told that this message was for you only."
Jyn was shocked to hear this and began piecing together what it meant. "My father sent a message?"
"Yes." Davits confirmed.
"Not directly. Seems he couldn't find a way to get it directly to us." Fury tells her. "We are aware of Saw's attacks on the Empire, and we need someone from the inside of his group to get us inside without getting killed to get your father's message."
Jyn says, "You're all rebels, aren't you?"
Mothma sighed. "Yes, but Saw Gerrera and his men are extremists. He's been fighting on his own since he broke with the Rebellion a few years ago. His militancy has caused the Alliance a great many problems. We have no choice now but to try to mend that broken trust."
Cassian tells her, "There's an Imperial defector in Jedha. A pilot. He's being held by Saw Gerrera's men." Cassian explains, "He's claiming the Empire has created a weapon with the power to destroy entire planets. The pilot says he was sent by your father."
Fury fixes his trench coat and says, "We need all the information on this weapon if it is indeed a reality." He looks at Jyn. "And right now, Ms. Erso, you are our best hope of getting it."
Davits said, "It appears your father is critical to the development of this superweapon." He paused, then continued, "Given the gravity of the situation and your history with Saw's group, we're hoping that you can help us locate your father and return him to the Senate for testimony."
"If the Empire lets him get that far," Fury said. He knew that the idea would be harder than it sounded. "As of now, we need confirmation on the weapon itself."
"And if I do it?" Jyn asks.
"We'll make sure you go free," Mothra promises.
Eyeing the entire room, Jyn began to consider her options. She could help these people find her father, learn about some sort of superweapon, and be freed of her crimes and free to roam the galaxy again. Making her decision, Jyn and Cassian approached a vessel stationed on a landing pad. General Draven called out to Cassian from a distance.
"Captain Andor!" Davits called him over.
Fury was also having a word with Yelena herself. "A word."
Cassian approached him, leaving Jyn behind. She climbed into a U-Wing sitting on the landing pad and saw a droid doing diagnostics. When she made it inside, she found the droid that had choked her during the rescue, K-2S0. There was also Kate Bishop, who came and was carrying a ton of arrows with her. The arrows were either trick arrows or normal arrows, which she had been using to find the weak points in the armor of Stormtroopers over the last few months since she had been in this distant galaxy.
"I'm K-2SO. I'm a reprogrammed Imperial droid," K2 said as he introduced himself to Jyn.
"Yes. I remember you." Jyn stated.
K2 said, "I see the Council is sending you with us to Jedha."
"Apparently so," Jyn said as she climbed inside, pushing aside some of the arrows Kate had packed.
"That's a bad idea," K2 said as he looked at Kate. "I think so, and so does Cassian." He paused for a moment before continuing. "Bishop here seems to think it would be fun. But what do I know? My specialty is just strategic analysis."
Jyn looked over at Kate. "Fun?"
"Oh, don't tell me that is some Earth term," Kate scoffed as she picked up some of her arrows, checking them out. "I am just glad to have gotten off of Tatooine and onto another mission. The humidity on that planet was driving me crazy."
"Galen Erso is vital to the Empire's weapon program. Forget what you heard in there; there will be no extraction. You find him, you kill him. Then and there." Davits tells Cassian.
While Fury was giving her that order, he gave Yelena a different order. "Davis thinks that Galen isn't important," he said. "But if this weapon is as powerful as he claims it is, we need him to tell us of any structural weaknesses we can exploit. If you find out where he is, keep Cassian from killing him and bring him in as planned."
Yelena promised, "You can trust me. I am done leading assassinations of innocent people."
Fury nodded and smiled at her. "Maybe you're more like your sister than you think."
Yelena was a little confused when she heard him say that; she had never discussed her past with anyone. Yet again, if anyone was going to see through that and learn that her sister was Natasha, it was definitely going to be Fury. As she walked on over, she found Goose sitting on top of one of the containers.
"Keep an eye on him, Goose." Yelena pets the cat as she strolled towards the ship.
Cassian climbed inside the U-Wan and looked at its passengers. "You met K2?"
Jyn said sarcastically, "Charming."
"Don't mind him," Kate said as she checked her bow. "He tends to say whatever comes to his circuits. It's a side effect of the reprogramming we did to him." She then playfully smiled. "Not to mention the taser arrow I hit him with."
"That was not pleasant, Bishop," K2 replied. Jyn loads a blaster and spins it in her hands. K2 looks at her, alarmed. "Why does she get a blaster, and I don't?"
Cassian turned around sharply. "What?"
Jyn said, "I know how to use it."
"That's what I'm afraid of," Cassian said as he walked over and extended his hand for her to hand the blaster over. "Give it to me."
Jyn said, "We're going to Jedha. That's a war zone."
Cassian said, "That's not the point." He asked, "Where did you get it?"
"I found it." Jyn shrugged.
K-2SO said. "I find that answer vague and unconvincing."
Jyn eyed him with a sigh. "Trust goes both ways."
Cassian looked over to hope for some support from the crew, but it seemed they didn't seem to mind if he had a blaster. He then just sighed and hopped into the pilot seat.
K-2SO was however the only one alarmed by this knowledge. "You're letting her keep it? Would you like to know the probability of her using it against you?"
Cassian ignored him as he prepared the ship for takeoff.
"It's high," K-2S0 warned him.
"K, just focus on us getting to Jedah." Kate was having enough of him.
"Very high," K-2S0 muttered.
Fury stood on the sidelines, his eyes fixed on the ship that was slowly lifting off from the hangar bay. He watched as the engines roared to life and the ship ascended higher into the air with each passing second. Goose, the ship's feline mascot, meowed loudly as it leapt into Fury's arms. Fury held the cat gently, stroking its back to soothe it. He remembered the last time he had angered the creature, and he didn't want a repeat of that incident. The memory was still fresh in his mind, and he made sure to keep Goose calm and content as they watched the ship disappear into the distance.
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