Chapter One

The guardian of the Kyber Temple, the blind man Chirrut, felt the cables underneath the sand with his wooden staff. While the chaos outside was filled with screams and the sounds of war, fear and turmoil did not exist within Chirrut's heart. All he heard was his soul's words: I am one with the Force.. The Force.. is with me. 

In his ears and mind, Chirrut was focused on just a few things. His main objective of making it to the master switch was one of them. Everyone was focused on that goal. The team depended on it. Jyn especially, who he knew would do her best to get the plans sent. She was probably up in Citadel Tower there now. Chirrut knew if he fell to the shadows of death, he wouldn't be there alongside her in the future. But there'd be someone else to take care of Jyn. Cassian. Chirrut could see how the guarded captain cared for her, letting his walls down just a little, even if he seemed to be feigning ignorance in front of her. "The Force is strong with them too," he thought. "With all of us. We have done all we could, given what we had."

As he finished this thought, Chirrut could hear Baze shout out his name, but soundly ignored it. His foot took him step by step forward -- he was almost there -- A hollow sound rang out as his staff hit metal. Chirrut's hands reached out, fingers touching cold steel as he felt the form of a lever. He could sense the one he touched was the correct one, and as he pushed it up and away from him, a sense of satisfaction filled his heart. 
Chirrut smiled to himself, then turned with a graceful movement, about to head back the way he came. 

Only, barely two steps later, a whistle rang through the air. Time seemed to stop as a laser light zoomed by, barely skimming past Chirrut - Minutes sped up again, the ray exploding a metal column nearby. Heat washed over Chirrut, and the blind man knew he would die. He felt glad the last action he took was for a cause greater than anything he had ever done, glad the Force was with him, and that Baze, his brother, had been there with him all through the end, that he had felt a sense of cameradie with a certain rebel group that cared. He prayed hard in his mind - "May our sacrifice be worth it. Let us be protected from whatever approaches us." The last thing Chirrut heard was Baze's voice calling out to him, as his eyelids closed over, waiting for his spirit to disappear into oblivion. 

Baze had seen Chirrut walk towards the master switch. His heart plummeted as he watched the man make his way there, dreading the moment he'd see his brother fall to the ground, gone. There'd be no other reason for him to live. Baze had no loyalty towards the Alliance. He didn't even know how he even got dragged into this mess. It must have been Chirrut that convinced him. The only other people that he had felt something towards were Jyn and perhaps some of the others. The pilot he didn't particularly care for; the desire to blast the man into pieces using his cannon remained. Cassian, he was on okay terms with. He didn't have any particular feelings towards him either, because he seemed to keep secrets hidden that nobody else could know. He faintly recalled the captain arguing over some man with Jyn - Galen Erso - but Baze hadn't really paid attention. And Jyn, who never knew how large of an effect she had on others. He had called her his "little sister" earlier before the fight, despite the two not being related by blood. Although fierce and fiery, the dedication she possessed fueled her, kept her hanging on, and kept the others hanging on to any last threads of hope.

Baze directed his attention back to the fray, saw the flames of the blast spew out from the cylindrical column behind Chirrut. Panic in his expression, eyes now reflecting the trail of fire before him, his voice erupted out in a roar of pain, as if what Chirrut was feeling Baze was experiencing alongside him. "Come back!! CHIRRUT!!!" 
This is it, he thought.