Star Wars: Project Flashknife/Prologue

Prologue
Commander Ekamolos Vekoto awoke. Dull red light filled his vision and he blinked to chear his eyes. He felt himself being lifted up slightly, but had no other sensation to his body at all. Confused, he tried to move his arms, but found himself unable to move; it was as if a great weight were on his chest. Confused, he tried to figure out where he was. He could remember...fragments, images, stray thoughts, but that was all.

What's happening to me? he wondered, becoming concerned. He continued to try to move, but felt as if he were entirely paralyzed. At that moment, however, his senses began to return to him, beginning with the sounds of beeping life support, and a few voices. He could not yet make out any words, but his senses of touch and smell were returning. He felt a soft surface beneath him and there was a strong disinfected odor to the air. Finally, his sight returned. He was laying on his back in a hospital bed, with various tubes around him, and an oxygen mask on his face. He reached up, took off the oxygen mask, and breathed in a mouthful of pleasant air.

Two human doctors, who had been standing nearby, deep in conversation, noticed him and began unhooking him from the life support. Once he was finally free, one of the doctors looked to Ekamolos and said, "Welcome back, sir. I can understand your confusion. I'm glad to see that you woke up. We had our doubts that you ever would."

"What happened to me?" Ekamolos asked, looking around the hospital room. He couldn't remember anything, just waking up in the hospital bed. "Why can't I remember?"

The doctor nodded patiently at Ekamolos. "About a month ago you were assigned to assault a military base that had defected from our government, the Alliance of Sentient Races," he explained. "The mission was going well until reinforcements arrived. You ordered your team to retreat, but as they were doing so, you were shot directly in the spine. You've been in a deep coma for 28 days."

"Why can't I remember anything?" Ekamolos asked.

"It's a common side effect of coming out of a coma. You will regain your memories in time. In fact, you were lucky; most patients are left with permanent brain damage after an injury like that; we were able to repair all of the damage to your spine that might have caused permanent effects."

Before anyone could say anything else, the doors entered and in walked a tall, gray-haired man with a shaggy beard, unusually dull eyes, and a noticable limp to his walk. "Good to see you're awake, Commander," the man said in a strong voice. "I heard you were beginning to come around yesterday, but I was told to wait until today to check on you. I've got news for you."

"Who are you?" Ekamolos asked the man, who immediately looked taken aback. "What do you mean, who am I?" he asked, sounding shocked.

"He's having a temportary loss of memory," the doctor explained to the newcomer. "He'll regain his memory in a few days."

"Oh, okay," the man said. "Well, I'm General Basslen. I'm the commander of two-thirds of the humans in the Alliance of Sentient Races military, with the exception of the other officers. The medics told me you were physically okay, so I'd like you to come with me down to the observation bay so that I can tell you what you need to hear."

"Can it not wait for a couple of days?" one of the doctors asked General Basslen. "He's physically healthy, but he needs time to regain his memories."

General Basslen looked frustrated, and turned from the doctor back to Ekamolos. Finally, he sighed. "Fine. It can wait." He turned and limped out of the medical room, but as he reached the door, he turned around and said to Ekamolos, "But as soon as all of your memories come back, you contact me and we'll meet at the observation deck." The general then finally left the room.