Every time Amir lay there and gazed down at the planet below, he was captivated by its charm.
Coruscant was a city-planet, entirely covered by towering skyscrapers that pierced the atmosphere. The lower levels were a tangled mess of decay and corruption.
The skyscrapers sucked nutrients from the ground, making them appear lush and vibrant.
Amir was from the lower classes, but his exceptional talent earned him a spot at the Imperial Military Academy. This allowed him to lie in this space station and gaze at the neon-lit ocean below. However, his mind was always elsewhere.
"Amir, you're slacking off again. Curfew is almost here. Hurry back!" A tall man in a black flight uniform that hugged his body approached the rooftop, making him appear even more imposing. It was Amir's classmate, the outstanding pilot Kain Davidson.
"Finished your extra training, top student?" Amir teased.
"The latest titanium fighter jet is amazing. If I miss this opportunity, I don't know when I'll get another chance. I'd love to sleep in there tonight," Kain said with a silly smile. Amir knew he was serious.
"Just wait another year, and you'll be able to intern with the fleet. You won't be stuck on this space station anymore. You'll definitely get a pilot's spot, and then you'll be able to fly to your heart's content," Amir laughed.
Amir stood up. He was also wearing a black uniform, though it looked a bit thin compared to Kaiyin's muscular build. However, he stood just as tall. His golden hair and blue eyes complemented his lazy mannerisms and speech, giving him a unique charm.
Kaiyin ran his fingers through his short black hair and smiled sheepishly.
"Let's go back to the dormitory," Amir said, walking toward the space station. Kaiyin followed behind him as usual.
He kept rubbing his pants with both hands as if hesitating about something, making the tall young man look clumsy.
"I know what you're going to say. Training every day is too tiring. I'd rather go back to Coruscant, open a repair shop, and hire two T'leek beauties," Amir said, stretching lazily and unconcerned. "If you retire, you can work as my assistant manager."
Kaiyin sighed helplessly and stopped trying to persuade Amir.
They returned to the dormitory, exchanging a few words along the way. Amir climbed into his bed, a small space just big enough for him to lie down in. Beds that couldn't be rolled around on didn't meet Amir's expectations. Every time he lay down on it, he complained about the Empire's extreme pragmatism. Everything was designed for efficiency. Comfort? The Empire's soldiers didn't need that.
Lying on the narrow bed, Amir couldn't fall asleep for a long time.
A long-buried memory became clearer and clearer. He was a normal person from a blue planet who had traveled to this world by accident and grown up normally. Over time, he gradually regained his memories from his previous life.
These unlocking memories made him feel disconnected from reality, unable to figure out who he really was. He closed his eyes, and the scene froze on a hospital bed. That was from his previous life, before he turned twenty and passed away from liver cancer.
After much contemplation, Amir finally gained a clear understanding of himself. He was both the person from his previous life and a native of this planet, and all his experiences had shaped him.
In his memories of his previous life, he discovered where he was: the world of Star Wars.
Having only seen a few movies and spin-off shows, he knew far less about this world through his previous life's memories than he had learned in the past sixteen years as a native. At most, he knew only the basic plot and direction of the main story.
It is now ten years before the Battle of Yavin, and the Clone Wars ended roughly a decade ago. Under the leadership of Emperor Palpatine, the Empire had defeated the Confederacy of Independent Systems and transformed the Galactic Republic into the Galactic Empire. The Empire now ruled the entire galaxy.
The next decade would be turbulent. Based on his sixteen years of memories, the Empire's power was deeply ingrained in people's minds, thanks to its massive fleet of warships and countless supporters. Amir could not have imagined that, in just over a decade, the Empire would be overthrown by the Rebel Alliance, which was still relatively unknown at the time.
Amir recalled the scenes from the movies: the Empire's indiscriminate slaughter of innocent species; the destruction of peaceful planets that had already laid down their weapons; the enslavement of innocent people; the corrupt system during the later years of its rule; and the rampant space pirates between the stars. All of this filled Amir with hatred for the Empire.
The two years he spent at the Imperial Military Academy only deepened his understanding of the Empire's darkness. Thus, despite having originally joined the academy with a specific purpose, he lost all enthusiasm for becoming an Imperial soldier.
He had decided to withdraw from the academy and become a kindhearted citizen of Coruscant, helping the Mers family, who had raised him, with their work.
The next morning, a troop transport ship departed from the space station and headed toward the Imperial Military Academy on Coruscant. Amir officially submitted his withdrawal application that day.
Three days later, his mediocre academic record led to little effort to retain him, and he left the academy like countless other rejected soldiers, carrying his bag into the vibrant city.
Only Kaiyin stood at the entrance, watching that figure for a long time.
Coruscant's surface was lit up by flickering neon signs, and countless restaurants, bars, and shops were intertwined. Invisible organizations were also hidden deep within Coruscant, forming this massive entity like pieces of a puzzle.
Countless creatures darted through the streets and aerial pathways. Humans made up the majority of these creatures, along with other species, such as Duros with their huge, blood-red eyes; Isons with their mouths on the sides of their necks; and small, cloaked Jawas. A cacophony of languages filled the air, bombarding Amir's ears without pause.
Amir smiled. This was the charm of the place—an orderly yet chaotic society composed of countless races, thriving commerce and manufacturing, and one of the core regions of the Empire's political and economic power. Beneath the glamorous surface, however, lay endless helplessness and chaos.
"It's starting to feel a bit like cyberpunk," Amir remarked.
Continuing to turn left and right, he descended into the lower levels. He had traversed this district countless times since childhood, so the complex terrain was exceptionally clear in his mind.
Soon, on the third underground level, he finally reached a narrow doorway. He pressed the button, and, after a mechanical sliding sound, the alloy door opened completely. Amir walked in, carrying his bag.
"Amir!?" A surprised voice came from inside. A woman came to the door and took his bag. "Why are you back? School was dismissed early."
"Pierre Sister, I was expelled. My wounded heart desperately needs comfort," he said, deliberately adopting a sorrowful expression and spreading his arms wide.
But Pierre, who knew Amir well, ignored him completely. She put her bag on the table and threw a wrench at him, saying, "Since you're not going to school, come help me."
"Where are Sain and Jax?" Amir picked up the wrench and walked toward the flying motorcycle in front of him. Without waiting for an answer, he muttered to himself, "Did this motorcycle take a swim in strong acid? It's so ugly..."
"Sain went to buy parts, and Jax doesn't know where he went to play," Pierre said with a smile.
Amir hummed in response and began repairing the motorcycle, skillfully retrieving and assembling parts with ease. Years of exposure to machinery, his training at the Imperial Military Academy, and perhaps a touch of innate talent made him exceptional at mechanical work.
Pierre decided not to interfere and watched Amir work silently. From the day Amir escaped the Coruscant orphanage at age six, to watching him assemble robots in the shop, to taking him in as an apprentice alongside Sain, to sending him to military academy, Pierre was more like Amir's mother than his sister. He felt the same affection for Amir as he did for Miles.
"I really want to give this bike a new paint job. From now on, let Sain fix this ugly thing. Just looking at it gives me goosebumps," Amir said painfully after finishing the repairs and starting the motorcycle to confirm it was working.
At that moment, a blue-skinned T'lek entered the shop, pushing a gravity-defying box. He had long tentacles and muscular arms and wore dark work clothes. He laughed heartily, walked up to Amir, hugged him tightly, and slapped him on the back twice. "I heard you were back on the road. Couldn't stand the military discipline? Looking for freedom?"
"You really understand me, Sain. Once I become the boss here, I'll definitely look out for you." Amir joked.
"Don't mention that. Come with me quickly. I'll show you something amazing!" Sain looked excited, put down the box, and pulled Amir toward the warehouse in the back.
Amir and Pierre exchanged a knowing smile, then followed Sain toward the warehouse.
They opened the door and saw piles of parts stacked everywhere. Among them stood a red-painted flying motorcycle. Its sleek exterior and vibrant paint job made it stand out from the others. If it weren't for the fact that it didn't make a sound when started, Amir would have called himself a "ghost fire kid."
He had assembled it a few years ago using a scrapped motorcycle and parts salvaged from a pile of junk. Besides its decent performance, the most eye-catching feature was its sleek appearance, which had made Miles envious for a long time.
"My 'Coke' wasn't destroyed by Miles while I was away. It seems he's been behaving himself lately," Amir said. "Coke" was the name he had given the motorcycle.
"After you chased me down the street for scratching the paint last time, I haven't ridden it much." Sain continued walking forward, urging Amir, who was trying to rekindle his old affection for Coke: "Come on, come on. This time it's definitely something good."
Amir rolled his eyes. Sain frequently brought home junk from the store and treated it like treasure. Both he and Pierre had grown accustomed to it.
Sain walked to the corner of the warehouse, where a gray cloth covered an object shaped like a spaceship.
"It's not a fighter jet, is it?" Amir's eyes lit up. "Can I take it out for a spin once you fix it?"
"Heh, guess again." Sain couldn't stop smiling. Suddenly, he pulled back the gray cloth as if unveiling a famous statue in a museum.
"Ha ha, I didn't expect that!" A Starfighter from the Jedi! I found it in the wreckage of a ship in Braca!" Sain boasted loudly, unaware of Amir's eye roll.
"This is an outdated piece of junk. It's outdated. What use is it to you? Even if you fix it, it probably won't go as fast as a cloud ship." Amir laughed loudly and said, "And you're treating it like a treasure? Hahaha!"
"It's all about nostalgia! I grew up listening to stories about Jedi knights. During the war, the young, powerful Skywalker and the wise Obi-Wan Kenobi were my idols. Even though the war was lost..." Sain looked at the fighter jet before him. Its paint was peeling, covered in rust stains. Its parts were aged, and its protective glass was shattered.
"Who doesn't have a childhood dream?" Amir comforted Sain and was somehow moved by him. With renewed passion, he said, "Even though it's a wreck, it might not be beyond repair!"
At that moment, Sain and Amir's gazes intertwined, revealing a determination that only men could understand.
An hour later, the two of them stood in silence, staring at the pile of scrap metal before them.