Saga - ST Star Wars Episode IX: The First Sky Walker [Contains SPOILERS for The Last Jedi!]

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CairnsTony To subscribe to a thread you can go to the top right corner of the page and click "watch thread" just above the moderators' names. However this means that you'll receive alerts for every single new post in the thread, which some people find annoying. This is why many authors here do tag lists or PM lists, meaning that they @ readers who request it at the beginning of every new post or that they PM them to announce a new post. (Bear in mind that, under the fanfic rules, you should tag or PM only people who requested it, not anyone and everyone who ever read your stories.)

 

Thank you for the info Chyntuck I'm not at all technically proficient but I think I understand what you mean.

 

Darth_Drachonus I've tagged you to let you know of a new posting. Hope that's what you meant!


OK, next bit! Some of the following chapters (after the first one) are happening concurrently for different characters. Thought I'd mention this to hopefully avoid any confusion.

FIFTEEN.​

Breha and Kylo sat facing one another. The room they were in was comfortably appointed, something that stood in stark contrast to most of the fortress. The furnishings were soft and of pastel shades; even the chairs they sat in conformed to their presence by automatically adjusting their shapes so as to maximise comfort and support. The whole effect was set off by the warm lighting that suffused everything.

Breha knew they were real, and not another illusion like the room in which she had been held captive. She also knew that Kylo was trying to soften her up.
Breha was trying to look anywhere but at Kylo’s face and she felt uncomfortable under his gaze. To her, it wasn’t a gaze of intimidation, but that of a monster trying to act like a benevolent presence. Her finger no longer pained her at least… She had reluctantly allowed it to be covered with a bacta dressing by a medical droid.

“You need to eat,” he broke the silence, “You will need your strength,” he added.
Before them lay several trays of food, all of them prepared to the highest specifications.
“I had the catering droids prepare the best dishes in their programmes, including your favourite food,” he said, gesturing idly at the platters laid out on the table between them.
Breha regarded the food… she couldn’t help herself. An intense gnawing hunger had claimed her; the delicious smells tantalised her olfactory sense. Roast nerf medallions… fillets of nekku fowl in a Corellian wine sauce… delicately spiced jomba fish poached in cream and herbs… a cornucopia of vegetables, tubers, savouries, sweet pastries and fruits complemented the feast. There was even a large bowl of juri fruit trifle topped with cream. Her favourite dessert as a child. Pitchers of chilled juices finished off the spread.

Breha inwardly resented the fact that Kylo betrayed no hostility or deception. She wished he had as it would have made her decision not to eat that much easier. She knew the food wasn’t laced with anything that would harm her, but her stubbornness in the face of her brother’s presence made the struggle to resist his culinary gifts that much harder.

Breha had loved her food as a small child and had surprisingly broad tastes for one so young. Her mother always marvelled at how she would happily consume any vegetables placed before her. Leia knew she wasn’t the best of cooks, and so her catering droid would do most of the work. Even Han did a better job then her with preparing many of the dishes.
“I wish I could get your father to like green vegetables as much as you!” her mother once said, “He prefers simple Corellian food, meat and tubers mostly…”
Breha remembered those simple but hearty dishes. Her father was particularly adept at roast meats, especially nerf. Those were some of her favourites.
Ben was fussier than her but would still eat most of what was put in front of him. He was a quiet, introspective teenager she recalled. Her mother put it down to that awkward age… and on the occasions they were able to sit together and eat as a family, he was usually the first to leave the table.
“He’s always doing that…” her father would grumble.
“Don’t be hard on him Han,” her mother once said, “He just prefers his own company to ours,” she added, much to her father’s wry amusement.
Then would come dessert. Breha loved desserts… and would tuck in with indecent haste until one of her parents would chastise her and tell her to eat more slowly.

Breha was drawn to the present by Kylo leaning forward and picking up a savoury. He took a bite and chewed thoughtfully.
“These are delicious,” he said, as he swallowed the first mouthful.
He took another bite, “The nerf is just how you like it,” he said as he chewed, gesturing towards another dish.
“I’m not hungry,” Breha said flatly.
Kylo swallowed, “You’re starving. You haven’t eaten for days. You’re dehydrated as well. Your body needs sustenance Breha…”
Breha knew this. The Force could only provide her strength for so long and even as she drew deeply on it, she was equally reminded that her biological needs right now were not something she could ignore indefinitely.
She had gotten used to living on ration packs on Jakku. Her body had adapted to basic sustenance for years. And then her memories had returned… and she had been reminded all too readily how much she loved food as an infant. All of her adaptations had slowly fallen away as she associated good food with a loving family environment once more.
She couldn’t help herself… she reached forward and took a savoury. Kylo had popped the last of his into his mouth and was clearly trying not to betray interest in what she was doing.
She examined it in her hand as if it were a curio.
She took a bite. The flavour exploded in her mouth… at that moment it seemed like the best thing she had ever eaten. She gave in and started cramming the rest of it into her mouth, distending her cheeks as she chewed ravenously.
She did her best to ignore Kylo as she reached for other dishes and piled them on to a plate in front of her. She no longer cared what he thought… that she had given in, because another thought now occupied her mind: how strong she needed to be to beat him once more. She would eat her fill… it was the logical thing to do.

Breha ate, and then ate some more. She was in no hurry to stop at any point as she knew that Kylo wanted to tell her things. She would listen, but only when she was ready. She took pleasure in his growing impatience, but then he had advised her to eat… he had tried talking, only for her to make a noise of contentment at the food she was cramming into herself. She suspected if she had been anyone else, he would have gone into a violent rage. She knew of those… but he needed her, and was prepared to indulge her, this she knew.

After what seemed like an age, Breha swallowed the last of her juice and sat back sighing.
The dishes had been cleared immediately by a waiting droid, which rapidly exited.
Kylo got up suddenly and reached for something that was sitting on a nearby table. She watched him idly as she sucked her teeth with her tongue.
He placed the holographic device on the table between them and activated it. An object grew out of its base and hovered in the air, slowly rotating as it did. The object resembled two pyramids joined end to end at their bases.
Breha feigned boredom. She looked at Kylo, teasing him with the expression of disinterest on her face, all the while wondering what it was he was showing her.
“This is the reason we are here,” he said, “This artefact.”
“Am I supposed to be impressed?” she said, “It looks like a child’s geometric puzzle.”
She was mocking him. She wondered how far she could push him until he snapped. He glared at her and she could feel his anger. He was struggling to reign it in she knew…
He sighed… “I know what you’re trying to do…” he said tensely, “It won’t work.”
She had turned the tables as she had done before. It was now her manipulating him and she was enjoying every second of it.
“We need to work together,” he added, “This doesn’t help.”
Breha raised an eyebrow and was about to speak when Kylo said, “The artefact is powered by the Force.”
She stopped herself and looked back down at the hologram. She was genuinely curious as to what it was and decided to give Kylo his due, if only to get a clear picture of what was so damned important to him about this ‘artefact’.
He looked up as if expecting another rebuke and when one didn’t come the red slowly faded from his face. She remained silent and waited; the two once again staring at each other across the table.
He looked back at the hologram and continued, “The artefact is ancient. It was constructed in the earliest days of the Jedi. It predates the Republic. It lies in the Unknown Regions and appears to have lain dormant for millennia until it was rediscovered by Darth Sidious.”
Breha knew that name… the Sith Lord who became Emperor, Luke had told her. She was being drawn into the story.
“He was drawn to it; to its power…” Kylo emphasised the last word.
Its power… that’s what interests you then? She mused. She bit back on saying this out loud.
“Once the artefact had been located using probe droids, he dispatched his apprentice to discover its true nature.”
Darth Vader… she thought. The obvious choice if it involved more power for himself…
“The artefact tried to kill him,” Kylo said, “He returned to his master badly injured; his once handsome features mutilated…”
Breha frowned… the story she had heard was that Vader had been injured on Mustafar after a fight with his former mentor Obi Wan Kenobi.
He looked at her puzzled expression and read it.
“I’m talking about the Supreme Leader,” he said.
What?! she thought in shock. Now it was time for Kylo to look satisfied at the reaction he was getting.
“I thought Vader…” she began.
“He didn’t know!” Kylo interjected, “Sidious was secretly grooming another apprentice. He thought our grandfather was weak…” he shook his head in disgust.
Our grandfather… she’d never thought of Vader that way, even though she knew the truth. She had always tried to think of him as Anakin Skywalker. But in reality he was just another monster…
“OK… so what does this all have to do with us?” Breha asked, “You said the artefact is powered by the Force.”
It was evident from Kylo’s face that he knew he had her interest.
“The Supreme Leader wants to use the artefact,” he said, “But he cannot without our help. He needs us to access it for him.”
Breha fixed him with a hard look, “So… basically you want me to help Snoke?” she was shaking her head, “I’d sooner die than help your master!”
Breha was incredulous at the very thought.
“Hear me out!” he said raising his voice slightly, “We’re not helping him!”
“What then?” she said, trying not to let anger creep into her voice.
“We’re going to destroy him,” Kylo said.

SIXTEEN.​

Luke sat in a small side room adjacent to the main hangar. The remaining beings at the base were steadily gathering for departure. On the floor in front of him was a single bag containing everything he intended to bring with him as well as Breha’s most valuable things, including her lightsabre…
It had chosen her… and it must be reunited with its owner. He continued to wonder at the bravery of this extraordinary woman… to hand herself over to the enemy in order to save a friend.
Her sacrifice showed that the lightsabre had chosen well. And then she had disappeared in the Force… Their special bond enabled them to sense one another over vast distances. Luke contemplated the possibility that she had died; he didn’t dare share this notion with anyone else, especially Finn. It would crush him. Luke could see how fond he was of her, but he knew there was another explanation. If she was their captive, then chances are they would keep her in a Force dampening field; if they were wise… Breha was far too dangerous now for them not to.
When she came back in the Force, that at least confirmed she was still alive. He wondered why she had been freed.

Luke listened to a conversation taking place just outside the door.
“I don’t see why I should have to travel in the Millennium Falcon!” huffed C3PO, “The general may require my assistance on the Nova. The prin… I mean General Leia always had me by her side at times like this.”
“Does ‘e always talk this much?” That was Zeb Orrelios.
The Lasat had joined the base personnel after the loss of Canto Bight. He’d just returned with the rest of the fleet from the battle over Arco. He’d piloted the Wamp Rat, revealing to the enemy that the old freighter had a surprise or two up its sleeve in the form of hidden weaponry. He had returned the ship to the base without a single scratch when faster, more manoeuvrable ships had been lost or badly damaged.
“I’m not exactly dancing with joy myself, Threepio,” said Lando, “But I was told that you were coming with me, like it or not!”
Luke knew that General Holdo couldn’t abide the fussy protocol droid’s presence. Since she’d taken command, he had been relegated to translation work with communications officers when required. Other times, he tended to wander the base without a purpose, often getting in the way of personnel trying to do their job.
“Chewie’s making final preparations, I need you to get on board now Threepio! I can’t afford any hold ups. Artoo is already in the main hold.” The exasperation in Lando’s voice was all too evident.
“Well if you insist… I’m sure Chewbacca understands my predicament. I’ll go and talk to him now.”
C3PO wandered off to where the Falcon was parked at the far end of the hangar.
“I’m sure he’ll be delighted to see you,” muttered Lando.
“Best I go and get the Wamp Rat ready,” said Zeb and he headed off.
Lando put his head around the doorway, “Well, so long Luke,” he said with a warm smile.
Luke got up and the two embraced.
“It’s been good to catch up,” he said to Luke, before his expression turned serious, “I hope you manage to find Breha…” he added.
“Thank you Lando, I intend to,” he said, “I think I know now where to look.”
Lando nodded, “Good luck,” he said and left.
Luke was alone once more. After a minute, Maz appeared in the doorway with a bag of her own.
“Ready Master Skywalker?” she said.
“Ready,” said Luke and he got up.
Then the alarms went off signalling the arrival of the First Order and all hell broke loose.

 

That's what I wanted CairnsTony, thank you! Another great set of chapters!

 

Thank you! No worries, I'll tag you for each new posting.

 

I like the interaction between Kylo and his sister, her memories of the past re-surfacing.

And Luke is back in action and no meditative monk somewhere on an island. Well, he is NO island any more, but a person reaching out to others and not passive.

 

Thank you! I know from work that even when someone thoroughly mean wants something from you badly enough, it's surprising the restraint they will show in trying to get that thing from you, even to the point of being really nice, when you know just under the surface they want to make balloon animals out of your intestines.

I consciously knew that we needed to see 'action Luke' as it were. He knows there is hope. That Breha saved him is something he is all too aware of; and he knows she's a different kettle of fish from her brother.

I know Luke fans and indeed fans of any character will often paint a relatively flawless picture of their favourite character, but realistically all the characters are flawed to some degree. Rey/Breha is my all time favourite character since 1977 and yet I see her flaws and show them for what they are. The important thing is that the wiser characters learn from the mistakes they make and are seen to be doing so.

 

The daughter-in-law of Luke´s German voice actor is one of my acquaintances and the poor man was not allowed to say anything about his Disney meetings for Episode VII. And when he took his entire family to the movies, he also could not say anything about his "voice role" until the end credits were showing.

Awww!

But thanks for stepping over your own boundaries and "pain" and creating this fanfic here! It helps to play around with the things we all did not like of late. (As a Vader fangirl I could complaint for hours here!)

 

Okay. Kylo is a creep, right? Using Breha's memories of her childhood (and her hunger and pain) to manipulate her... It does make me wonder what he's up to exactly, who he's trying to double-cross... probably everyone

And now, Luke and Maz are going on a mission to free Breha, just the two of them? Woo-hoo! This is going to be so good!

 

Yes he's a creep and a manipulative one: she suffered trauma and he used it against her triggering a meltdown as they fought; he is now using food and drink on someone who is starving and dehydrated. Mind you... his motives have evolved somewhat...

Breha learned from their past encounter and is a tougher cookie now. She is manipulating him in turn because she knows that he needs her help.

Bearing in mind that I established that Snoke's fortress is on an uncharted planet, Luke needs more than the Force to guide him as you'll see...

Thank you and I hope that the story lives up to your expectations!

 

OK next bit! Darth_Drachonus just giving you a heads up.

SEVENTEEN.​

Hux knew that the Resistance had the coordinates of the artefact. It was impossible he told himself that they would not have already formulated a plan for dealing with this new information. He had orchestrated the First Order’s mopping up operations at Arco so as to buy them just enough time to do this. The irony of helping the enemy was not lost on him…
Now we must strike… and hard. He knew no further delay was acceptable otherwise the Supreme Leader would start to question his tactics. The Death Knell’s weapon took time to recharge so he knew that they would not be able to join the attack in time. Wiping out the Resistance base with a single shot, whilst eminently satisfying as a prospect, did not guarantee that the enemy would carry out the next part of his plan. The Supreme Leader had come aboard only a short while ago and ensconced himself in his mobile throne room. Hux always despised the pomp and ceremony of his leadership but accepted it as a necessary part of the rise of the power of the New Order. When the Supreme Leader was this close, it meant that he wished to oversee operations directly. Hux had considered the possibility that Snoke suspected the truth. His arrival was somewhat unexpected after all. Hux would need a contingency…

The plan was risky… but if it worked, it was almost too good to be true: they would deal with the threat from without in the form of the Resistance and their allies, and the threat from within in the form of his own superior. Clearly the time had come to make some changes where necessary.
And then there was Captain Phasma… she had been a loyal footsoldier he had no doubt; she had served the First Order admirably, but her faith had been shaken by this revelation, this he knew. The last time he had spoken to her she had seemed morose; disinterested even… He had a plan to deal with her… and how to move suspicion away from him. He got up from his chair in his ready room and headed to the throne room. It was time to talk with the Supreme Leader.

EIGHTEEN.​

Kylo and Breha walked along a corridor in Snoke’s fortress. Breha found the experience somewhat surreal. This was her brother, but also her enemy. It wasn’t that long ago that she had tried to kill him… and now they appeared to all the world to be out for a stroll. She knew that she would never drop her guard, but at this stage she needed to know exactly what she was dealing with. And so she went along with his plans.

His sincerity was what unsettled her the most. She wondered how good he was at hiding his true intentions, and yet… One of the most unsettling effects of their sibling relationship was that they shared a close Force bond. It certainly served its purpose the first time he had tried to interrogate her on Starkiller base. Despite being untrained in the Force, she still managed to get inside his head. She even pulled the knowledge of how to affect minds straight out of him! It would appear as well that she was better at it than him. But there was a downside to this… she felt his cloying presence as an uncomfortable garment that she kept trying to shrug off. Even with her mental defences so much improved after her time on Ahch-to, it still had a brooding intensity that often had her on the verge of nausea. She had eaten too much which didn’t help… But dining with the enemy had at least meant that her strength was returning, as was her ability to concentrate. That was a pragmatic decision. And now despite her brother’s sickly aura, she brought her mind to focus on the task ahead.

The walls emitted a faint orange glow that gave them an eery quality, including the curious property of deadening most sound. Breha marvelled at the quietude of her footsteps. At least Kylo had ensured that the lights were raised to a comfortable level for humans as they walked.
Kylo stopped in a part of the corridor that looked the same as any other. He pressed his hand against the wall. Breha noticed a seam slowly appear in the stone work. A door? He pushed the stonework gently and it moved inwards. Breha was instantly aware that wherever he was taking her was off limits to everyone except him and Snoke. She knew this because he had used the Force to open it. The door didn’t exist for just anyone to use.
The stonework stopped moving inward and then slid almost noiselessly to one side revealing a single large room. Around the walls of the room were shelves stuffed with objects of every description; hardly becoming of the vanity of the room’s users she thought. How odd… But what immediately caught her attention was the huge holographically projected star map in the middle of the room, and alongside it, a smaller but still substantial-sized projection of the artefact.
Breha walked up to the artefact as it hovered in the air above her. She could see some external detail on it that was not discernible in the small projection she had seen earlier. It appeared as if it were covered in tightly bundled horizontal stripes. Then her eyebrows rose in shock… Those were floors! This was no child’s toy…
“How big is it?” she said, her eyes wide.
“Bigger than the second Death Star,” said Kylo.
“Bigger than Starkiller base?” she asked.
“No… but then it doesn’t need to be,” he said, “It is the right size and shape for the purpose it serves.”
“Which is…?” she prompted.
“To concentrate the Force; to distill its very essence,” he said.
Breha could sense his excitement.
“Once activated, those within can control the actions and destiny of all living things in the galaxy. Their power within the Force would be unimaginable! There would be no need for ships and weaponry. Everything and everyone would do your bidding…”
Breha was studying Kylo’s face. What she saw didn’t give her reason to feel good about what she was doing.
“You said you needed me to help you,” she said, “Why?”
“It takes two people to activate the device,” Kylo said, “The Supreme Leader now knows this to be true. It turned on him when he tried to enter it.”
Breha was puzzled… “Then… why didn’t he enlist your help?”
“Because it requires us,” he said, “two siblings, strong in the Force.”
The sudden realisation caused Breha’s mouth to fall open. Snoke didn’t just need her, she was indispensible!
Kylo studied her look of surprise and smiled, “It’s a strange irony isn’t it?”
“We had the other girl,” he continued, “We just needed her sister who was with the Resistance. But there was no guarantee she was Force sensitive…”
Breha had a sudden realisation that Kylo was referring to the young woman she had seen with Finn when she first arrived. She had sensed the Force in her and couldn’t understand at the time why they were letting her go.
Kylo walked around the far side of the projection as he continued talking, “Snoke wanted you here to do his bidding. I convinced him you could be turned,” he chuckled… “He doesn’t know you as I do.”
“I’ve already told you…” Breha began.
“That you can’t be turned, yes… and I agree!” he said completing his circuit of the projection and walking up to her.

“Snoke has already told me that he will try to turn you when he returns, if I do not succeed,” he said, “We need to leave…”
He called him Snoke… Breha thought. Not Supreme Leader…
“And go where exactly?” she said, “I thought you wanted my help to destroy him?”
“To the artefact,” he stated matter-of-factly.
Breha wondered why this answer seemed so obvious to him.
“So… you want us to activate the most powerful object in the galaxy to destroy one individual. Seems like overkill to me…” there was an edge of derision in her voice.
“Snoke is powerful…” he began, “With the device we are more so,” his face betrayed no emotion despite the words used.
“And now we come to the truth…” she said, with a cold smile on her face, “Power… that’s all you want.”
She turned her back on him and walked slowly around the room making a pretence of studying the various objects piled on the shelves. At this crucial moment in their discourse, she had time to notice that most of the objects looked like so much junk. Kylo remained silent for several seconds before speaking.
“We appear to have an impasse,” he said, his eyes following her around the room,
“Breha… I know I cannot appeal to you with the temptation of power, but there’s more…”
She turned around with the best look of boredom on her face that she could muster.
Despite her look, he plunged on, “Once Sidious knew of the artefact, he sought out ancient texts to discover its purpose. It turned out there were none.”
She had the urge to speak, but kept quiet. She needed to know as much as she could and she would know if he were lying.
“As it transpired, the answers lay not in texts, but in the Force itself,” he continued, “With Sidious’s rise to power, the Force became increasingly out of balance. It was then and only then that he detected the artefact. As the Dark Side rose, so did its presence increase in the Force,” he gestured towards the artefact.
“If this thing is powered by the Dark Side…” Breha began.
“It isn’t,” Kylo interrupted, “The Force was out of balance, and so the artefact reflected this new reality. The Jedi of the Old Republic never knew of its existence. Their ability to read the Force was diminished.”
Breha had to admit that she was learning a lot of new things about the Force. Had she finished her training with Luke, then perhaps in time she would have learned all of this through her Master’s teachings rather than through the filter of her misguided brother. Nonetheless, he clearly spoke the truth. Her face no longer projected boredom, but interest. This artefact was not just some Dark Side weapon. It was more… much more.
Kylo continued, “Sidious didn’t make the journey to the artefact as his apprentice had, he considered it too risky. But he found answers, elsewhere…” he fixed Breha with a look, “On Jakku.”
Her face was a picture. Breha could tell Kylo was content with the reaction he got. Fine… let him has his moment, she thought.
“Jakku… I knew that the planet shielded my presence in the Force,” she said, “It has strange properties.”
This was all making sense she thought…
“Jakku is steeped in the Dark Side,” he said, “I felt its power there myself. We need to go back there, you and I.”
“What’s there?” she said, “Other than lots of sand? And Unkar Plutt..”
“Answers,” he said, “The knowledge Sidious discovered.”

 

CairnsTony Thank you! Excellent chapters!

 

A lot of interesting Force philosophy and an almost likeable Kylo. Thank you! You pulled off this sibling "reunion" off nicely.

 

Darth_Drachonus, just giving you the next heads up!

OK next bit. Here we have a multi-POV chapter as several things happen at once.

NINETEEN.​

Rose had just started chatting to her sister Paige in the main hangar when the alarm sounded. She whirled around wondering what was happening.
“It’s the First Order!” Paige said, “I have to go!”
Rose sent her a pleading look; their time had been far too short…
“Go!” Paige yelled, “Get to your ship!”
She watched her sister’s rapidly retreating back, “I don’t have a ship!” she wailed, but Paige was already sprinting away and clearly didn’t hear her over the blare of the alarm.
Rose turned and ran in the opposite direction; towards the officers mess, the map room, anywhere! She needed to find someone else she knew. She had no idea where she was supposed to go!
This was her fault… her anxiety grew and threatened to overwhelm her…


Holdo was marshalling her staff in the main hangar. Her military personnel knew what to do, but the civilians needed a bit more guidance.
“This way!” she said pointing to two large transport ships parked just outside the hangar entrance. Already several people were running for the access ramps. She still hadn’t seen Connix.
Where is she?… she thought as she scanned the numerous people running about the hangar.
“Make sure these people get on board,” she said to the nearest ship technician, and
set off towards the map room at a run.

Brance was already there coordinating the response.
“Message from Admiral Ackbar,” he said as he watched her running in, “He informs me that the main fleet is ready to jump to the rendezvous. They are still out of range of the First Order fleet. Should they engage?”
“Negative. Tell them to leave as soon as possible, the fighters will protect the transport ships. We won’t be able to stop them without sustaining significant damage and we may need everything we’ve got to deal with whatever’s out there.”
Brance clearly needed no further explanation of the potential threat and relayed the message over his com.
The chief weapons officer swiveled in his chair, “Sir, the main shield is up. The fighters can’t leave unless I lower it. We don’t have ion cannons to protect us from aerial bombardment if we do.”
Holdo cursed the fact that the main ion cannon was non-operational due to a technical fault. One that could prove disastrous.
“Inform all ships to use ion torpedos if necessary. We may need to open a way through their fleet!”
“Yes sir,” he said.
Holdo remarked to herself at his calmness; her own mind was whirling.
“Get ready to lower the shields,” she said, “Just for the fighters. The transport ships aren’t ready,” she continued, “We’re still rounding everybody up.”
One of the tactical support officers was next to speak, “Sir, they’ve landed walkers down in the valley. They’re making their way up here as we speak.”
“Surely they can’t climb the steep walls of the valley to get up here though?” she said.
The tactical officer flicked a switch and a holographic representation of the walkers appeared on the main tactical table-top display.
“They appear to be of a design we haven’t seen before,” he said frowning.
They certainly are… Holdo thought as she watched their loping gait. And they weren’t so much walking as running!
“They’re already within the shield perimeter,” the tactical officer said.
“Ground defence are in position,” Brance said.
“Hit them with everything we’ve got!” Holdo said.


Phasma could see out of the forward viewport of the lead walker. The terrain was rugged, but nothing the First Order’s Heavy Assault Walkers couldn’t handle. She admired their adaptability over the old designs; they were larger and faster than any walkers built by the Empire or indeed the First Order to date.
As the walkers made their way up the valley they came under heavy fire from gun emplacements and ground personnel further up the valley. She noted with satisfaction that the armour on the walkers was dealing with the bombardment effectively, even if the walker did judder violently with the larger impacts.

She had a plan and it filled her with distaste. It required fine timing and she knew that if it didn’t work she would likely be dead.
At least the initial plan appeared to have worked: implanting the coordinates of the artefact in FN-2187. She remembered enjoying the pain she inflicted in him; how he screamed… if she wasn’t allowed to execute him there and then, then she would make the moment last. She knew he had returned to the Resistance base and that they had had time to disseminate the coordinates to the fleet. Safe with that knowledge, she also knew that if she encountered him in the base she would go out of her way to kill him.
Without warning, a large object shot out of the side of the canyon and unfurled itself in front of the walker. As it did so, the walker’s momentum took it straight into its embrace. The ion net wrapped itself around its target and fried its circuits in short order. Everything on board went dead and the walker began to topple forward. Phasma braced for impact.


Poe knew that fate had conspired to ensure that he was last to his fighter; the others having already taken off. It was a wrench to leave Holdo so soon after returning. Love had a habit of doing that to someone… He then stopped to help a civilian officer on his way to the hangar. He found her cowering behind a doorway; her loud sobs had alerted him as he’d nearly run right past her. Fear of what was happening had clearly overwhelmed her. It had taken a full minute to persuade her out of the room. As he exited with the terrified woman, Commander Connix had run up to him, and they helped her to the hangar entrance.
“I’ll take her from here,” said Connix decisively, “You need to get going!” she indicated with her eyes towards the fighter hangar.
“Thank you… and good luck!” he headed off at a sprint.

He’d nearly made it…
An explosion went off near the entrance to the hangar used by fighters. The walkers were getting closer. Poe ran towards his ship, BB-8 rolling rapidly alongside. As he got to within less than twenty metres, the ship was hit by a torpedo that had flown into the hangar entrance. His ship exploded in a ball of flames and Poe was hurled backwards. He instinctively shielded his face with his hands as fiery debris rained down. Fortunately his flight suit was fire retardant, but he hadn’t factored on his hair catching fire. BB-8 was there in an instant and doused his head in a foamy chemical.
Poe sputtered, “Thanks pal,” and rubbed foam out of his eyes. At least it didn’t sting, but it was several seconds before he could see clearly.
Poe surveyed the damage as he hauled himself to his feet. The Black One was now just so much wreckage.
No-one else was in the near vicinity Poe was glad to see, so there were no injured to tend to. He ran towards the hangar entrance and looked down the valley. He was dangerously exposed but he felt compelled to see the nature of the threat. As he did so, he saw the lead walker topple forward; at least the ion net had stopped one of them…
The walkers immediately behind rapidly overtook it. One launched another torpedo straight at where Poe was standing. In an instant he was moving as fast as he could away from the entrance. A second later, the gun emplacement on one side of the hangar entrance exploded as Poe once again hurled himself to the ground.
That was stupid… he said to himself. Could’ve been killed! He got to his feet and took off towards the main hangar with BB-8 keeping pace.


Lando had left C3PO bickering with Artoo in the main hold and taken his seat in the cockpit of the Falcon. He was making final preparations for take off when he noticed a large figure running towards the ship across the hangar. It was Zeb and he was frantically waving his arms.
“Lower the ramp Chewie, I’ll find out what’s happening,” he said, and left the cockpit.
“They blew up the Wamp Rat,” explained Zeb as he ran up the ramp behind Lando, “‘’ad to run all the way over from the other side of the base,” he added, “you was the nearest ship!”
“OK, well you get to keep Threepio company in the main hold,” said Lando.
Zeb’s face fell as Lando headed back to the cockpit.
“Or you can join us in the cockpit…”
Zeb didn’t need to be told a second time.


“The first transport is ready for take off!” said Dex, “Other ships also awaiting clearance: the Millennium Falcon, The Mirrorbright…”
“Get ready to lower shields,” Holdo interrupted.
The shields had been lowered once already for mere seconds. In that time, the fighter squadrons had left the base. Only four remained, waiting alongside the transport ships.
Another officer spoke up loudly, “The fighter hangar’s been hit!” he said, “Black Squadron report that Black Leader didn’t make it out of the hangar!”
No… all the colour had drained from Holdo’s face. She stood as if transfixed.
“Sir… Sir!” Dex was trying to get Holdo’s attention.
“Lower the shields…” she said, her voice flat.


Paige had assumed control of Black Squadron in Poe’s absence. Already they had engaged the nearest Star Destroyer as it had come into range. She took some grim pleasure from the fact that it now lay dead in space due to ion torpedos from three of their ships. It was Poe’s idea that the X-Wings be fitted with them as he became increasingly concerned with the persistently malfunctioning ion cannon at the base. His decision had proven its value already. The next Star Destroyer was rapidly coming into range. Her com sudden came to life.
Dex said, “Black Two, you have ships coming up from the base; they need a path out of here.”
She rolled to starboard and pointed the nose of her ship towards the ground. She could clearly see several ships racing up from the Base and then saw the shimmer of the shield closing behind them once again. The large transport ship already had a fighter escort so she turned her attention to the others.
“Understood Base,” she said and opened her com for a broad transmission, “All ships, this is Black Squadron leader, stay tight and we’ll form a perimeter.”
“Black Squadron with me,” she said and took her X-Wing down towards the approaching ships.
“We appreciate the offer, but we’ll be fine. The others might need your help though. Falcon out,” said Lando.
“Same here, Black Leader. Take care of the others. Good luck. Mirrorbright out,” Luke said.
As she watched, The Falcon and the Mirrorbright peeled off and shot past them, comfortably outpacing the other ships.
Black Squadron fell into formation around the four remaining ships. Ahead of them, Red and Blue Squadrons were now furiously engaging the nearest Star Destroyer. She watched as a proton torpedo from Red Six entered the main launch bay. Fire erupted from it as the torpedo detonated in the ship’s main hangar.
Well at least we won’t be facing any of their ties… she thought grimly. We have a chance…
Despite everything that was happening, she still found time to spare a thought for her squadron leader Poe….

TWENTY.​

“We must waste no more time,” Kylo said and he walked towards a shelf in the middle of the room. There he picked up a small, transluscent object from the plinth it was sitting on. It looked to Breha like a tiny pyramid. He turned and held it up for Breha to see.
“This holocron is essential to our plans,” he said.
Holocron… Master Luke had mentioned those. She knew they were repositories for Force knowledge. She’d never seen one before…
As he came closer, she could see that the surface was covered in intricate patterns, and that the internal workings of the holocron were faintly visible through its surface.
“I’ll take your word for it,” she said, though she was interested to learn more.
Kylo ignored the faint sarcasm in her voice and headed towards the exit. He suddenly froze as his eye was caught by a slight movement to his right on a shelf beside the door. Breha had seen it too. They both looked at the thing that had moved. To Breha’s eyes it looked like a large winged insect. It flicked its wings slightly and again lay still, as an insect would sometimes do with its last strength before dying.
Kylo reached out and held it up for a closer look. Something was clearly wrong, Breha could see…
His face reddened. He squeezed it tightly in his palm, crushing it.
“Somebody knows…” he said quietly… “Somebody knows!” he said, this time with anger in his voice.
“Take a look,” he said, holding it out to Breha.
Breha could see this was no insect. The internal mechanism of what was clearly a tiny machine had spilled out onto Kylo’s palm as he crushed it.
“It’s an eavesdropping device,” he said.
Breha could see that it had a minute camera mounted in the head and presumed that it also had other surveillance equipment packed into its tiny body.
He opened the door by once again touching the wall where they had entered. As soon as the door was open he hurried out. Breha caught up with him and fell into pace beside him as the doorway once again disappeared.
“We need to know who the traitor is,” he said, “Come with me.”
He turned down a corridor to their right and hastened along it, before turning down another to the left and climbing a short flight of steps.
Breha was trying to put the pieces together… the room and the artefact were clearly off limits to non-Force users. Someone had somehow gotten a surveillance device in there and in all likelihood, whoever it was now knew about the artefact. Breha wondered in hope if it was the Resistance!

At the end of the next corridor was a doorway that opened at their approach. It was full of equipment. Kylo strode over to a machine that looked to Breha like a giant egg that had been split in half in the middle. He placed the remains of the device on a plate between the two halves. As soon as he did so the machine lit up, illuminating the plate upon which the device sat. Kylo flicked a switch and a screen flipped out of the top half of the egg. Breha could see that the screen displayed the device in hugely magnified detail. Data started scrolling in a column down the left side of the screen.
It suddenly occurred to Breha that if someone in the Resistance had been spying on the fortress, then Kylo was about to discover this. She looked at the device.
I need to stop him… she said to herself and reached out with the Force.
“Don’t bother…” Kylo said suddenly, “It isn’t one of your friends.”
She stopped herself… what had he discovered?
He looked down and was clearly trying to steady his breathing.
“The device is unique,” he said, “and belongs to one person only. Even their DNA is on it,” he said.
Breha was surprised to hear that his voice was shaking.
“It belongs to General Hux.”
Now it was Breha’s turn to be surprised.
“The Supreme Leader will need to be notified about this,” he said, “It cannot go unpunished!”
Breha wasn’t going to object if it meant the demise of Hux. One less First Order thug to deal with… she thought.

Several minutes later and both of them had entered the main hangar. Standing by the entrance was an all black ship not too dissimilar to the one that Kylo had lost on Naboo.
Got to hand it to him… she thought, he’s a creature of habit…

 

Lando had left C3PO bickering with Artoo in the main hold and taken his seat in the cockpit of the Falcon.

I am glad that some things do not change in a thousand years time.

He was making final preparations for take off when he noticed a large figure running towards the ship across the hangar. It was Zeb and he was frantically waving his arms.

Yeah, the Zeb man again!

In so far I am pretty much enjoying myself: action, tragedy and fun in the right balance.

 

Thank you! I had an arc here with these two that, as I progressed through it, suddenly took a very different turn, which I hadn't initially intended. I'll clarify what I mean by that when I get to that chapter.

There's a long way to go on what I reveal in this story on the Force.

I think when all the heroes are long dead some time in their future, these two will still be bickering!

Zeb isn't in this story quite so much, but there is some payoff for when Rose saved his life in an earlier chapter.

 

I know, I noticed Zeb in that earlier chapter, too. But since I watched the trailer for the new "Rebels" season with my husband DarthUncle last night I am "Feuer und Flamme" (meaning: on fire with enthusiasm). I simply love Zeb, the survivor.

 

Sorry, I missed an update – I was travelling home on Thursday and now I'm playing catch-up with my normal life.

It looks like the FO backstabbing is about to reach new levels here – Hux ready to betray Phasma, Phasma's plan not quite working out after that ion net caught her (or was that part of the plan all along?), and Kylo finding Hux's eavesdropping device... It's also interesting to see Kylo alternate between "Snoke" and "the Supreme Leader". I wonder if he really knows himself what he's doing, maybe he's just very confused and that's why Breha perceives him as sincere.

Meanwhile Poe is apparently still in the Resistance base, and so is Rose... Will we see them team up? What about Finn? I didn't see him in those evacuation scenes either, did he stay behind?

 

What I mean is, that I'm foreshadowing something that happens later.

No worries and welcome back!

Phasma didn't expect the ion net and things are about to get a whole lot worse for her...

Kylo finding the eavesdropping device conveniently located in full view...

Kylo switched to Snoke due to the changing dynamic between the two characters.He reverts back to Supreme Leader when angry or other such dark moments.

His relationship with Breha is in constant flux. The two of them are playing a very big card game with high stakes. However he is being sincere... this is what unnerves Breha as much as anything.

There are more multi-POV chapters coming up as the invasion continues including much more Rose and Poe; you'l find out soon where Finn is and what he's up to.

 

Excellent update! Thank you for continuing to notify me!

 

Thank you! Here's the next bit!

Coming up: events at the Resistance Base finally come to a head....

TWENTY ONE.​

Phasma threw the door of the walker open using the manual release. The electronic release was dead.
She’d had to push an unconscious trooper off her as bodies had flown through the cabin upon impact. As he collided with her left arm, she had felt it break. Even her armour hadn’t prevented that as he impacted her elbow like a missile with his own head. Fortunately most of her squadron had had the presence of mind to hold on tightly to the crash harnesses above their heads.
She jumped out of the opening and dropped two metres to the ground, landing on her feet. As she looked up, she could see that the other walkers were all climbing up the steep sides of the valley just below the base using their front claws. They were making rapid progress as well and soon troopers would be able to enter the base. She scanned the slope above her but could see no discernible path or steps going up. She turned to see her squadron emerge through the doorway behind her, some of them clearly injured.
Ignoring their discomfort she said, “Bring out the climbing equipment.”
“Yes sir,” said the nearest stormtrooper.
Her breathing was shallow as she did her best to ignore the intense stabbing pain from her arm. One of her stormtroopers handed her a metal rod with a double handle at one end. The same metal rods were being thrown down from the doorway to the rest of the squadron. She hoisted her rifle over her shoulder and pointed the rod up the steep slope above her with her right arm towards an outcrop directly above their heads. A hook flew out of the tip and caught on the outcrop. Phasma checked it could bear her weight and pressed a stud on the handle as it hauled her up. It was more difficult for her to hold on one handed but she relied on her upper body strength as she was pulled up to the outcrop in a matter of seconds. As she threw the rod to one side, she unslung her rifle and held it one-handed in front of her as she heard other troopers coming up behind her. A few seconds later they came under fire and Phasma had to duck to her left and press herself against a large tree. She heard one of her squadron scream as he took a direct hit and toppled off the the outcrop.
Phasma got a shot away and then another. With the second, she managed to hit her target in the head and a Resistance soldier fell out onto the path in front of her from behind the rock where he had been crouching. Another further up the path was shot by one of her squadron.
“Join up with the others!” she yelled, “Move!”
She watched as the other walkers disgorged stormtroopers. With all immediate resistance now dealt with she and her squadron hurried up the path towards the base.
One of the walkers was positioning itself to point its weapons at a large structure jutting out of the other side of the valley. The base’s main reactor. From where the walkers now sat, they were level with it and could get a clear shot.
As Phasma reached the entrance to the base, she heard the thud of the walker’s main cannons followed by an enormous explosion which she didn’t see but certainly felt and heard. She was already busy running in though the entrance and didn’t have time to stop and admire the resultant fireworks.


Holdo was standing beside the chief tactical officer when the shield went down. She could feel the ground shake under her feet from the huge explosion.
“We’ve done all we can!” she yelled to her remaining staff, “Get to the transport!”
As everyone hurried past her, she silently prayed that she would find Poe on the transport. As she ran out into the main corridor she feared the worst…


Poe was yelling at a deck officer beside the last transport, “What do you mean that General Holdo isn’t on board?”
The deck officer raised his hands in exasperation, “She must still be in the base somewhere, I don’t know!”
He didn’t have the opportunity to say any more as Poe raced away from him back in through the hangar entrance. BB-8 kept pace. He tootled an enquiry as Poe ran.
“Dunno where she is pal…” Poe said breathlessly as he ran, “I’m not leaving without her!”
Poe’s mind was whirling. Where is she?…
After a few minutes he came to her ready room and looked inside. No-one here… just as he was about to leave, he felt the ground shake and he steadied himself in the doorway. It took him only seconds to realise that the main reactor must have been destroyed. He was all too aware that anybody who didn’t make it out in the next few minutes likely never would. He knew that he might have to fight his way back out.
He took off at a sprint down the main corridor before ducking right into a side corridor that led to the armoury. He had left his blaster in his X-Wing and was unarmed. There were only a few weapons still remaining. He grabbed the nearest blaster and ran back out of the room. He could hear people running up the main corridor as he headed towards it. He fervently hoped that one of them was Amilyn. Then he heard blaster fire. He knew what that meant.
They’re in the base… he thought.


Rose found herself in what appeared to be an officers’ mess and there was no way further to go. She had been running frantically through what seemed like a maze of corridors and now she had come to a dead end. She leaned against the wall by the door trying to catch her breath. She closed her eyes…
Rose had always been an anxious person. She was already struggling not to panic with her current predicament. Being in the hands of the First Order had knocked the wind out her sails, and then she had lead them here. To her new friends; to her sister…
She knew that it would be so easy just to curl up in a corner and cry. No… never again is that my response to anything, she told herself. She had learned something else too…
I have the Force within me… she said to herself. I could do with some help right now.
She tried to concentrate; seeking guidance… anything!
For several seconds she felt nothing, and then a sensation formed in her mind as if something was pointing the way to safety. She knew where to go.
She opened her eyes and ran back down the corridor, retracing her steps. She turned left into another corridor without breaking stride and then into another. Within a minute she found herself running towards the junction with the main corridor. She knew she needed to go left. Then she felt the ground shake.
What the hell was that? She thought…
She turned left into the main corridor. She could see a few people running in the distance going the same way as her with their backs to her. She thought one of them looked like Holdo but from this distance she wasn’t sure. Then she heard blaster fire coming from behind her. She looked around as she ran, and collided with Poe coming out of a side corridor.
“Whoah!” he said, “Easy…”
“Poe! Oh thank goodness…” Rose knew that had she not followed the Force, she would likely still be running around in back corridors.
“They’re in the base! We need to get moving!” Poe said frantically.
They heard more blaster fire. Now it was coming from both directions and it was getting closer.
“They’re in the main hangar!” said Poe, “This way,” he said and lead her back down the side corridor towards the armoury.
“Are we trapped?!” Rose said, her anxiety rising.
“I don’t know,” Poe said, his jaw tense.

TWENTY TWO.​

Holdo and her three remaining officers had nearly made it to the entrance of the hangar when blaster fire opened up to their left from the direction of the fighter hangar. An officer went down with a hole in his side.
Holdo dived behind the nearest cover, a large storage container, just as another officer was hit. She and Dex took up positions with their blaster rifles and returned fire.
As she watched, stormtroopers were making their way across the hangar. She managed to bring down one and he collapsed as the others made their way from cover to cover towards their position. She saw in the distance that some of them were heading off towards the main corridor. She knew that if anyone was still down there they would be trapped.
“Go!” she yelled to Dex over the noise of blaster fire, “I’ll cover you!”
Holdo opened up a volley of shots as Dex ran for the entrance. Two more stormtroopers fell. Closing her eyes momentarily, she took a deep breath and ran. A shot missed her head by centimetres. She crossed the distance from the entrance to the boarding ramp of the transport ship in a matter of seconds as blaster fire whizzed past her from both directions. Dex and someone whose name she couldn’t recall were returning fire from the top of the ramp. She knew she had never run so fast in her life! No sooner did her feet make contact with the boarding ramp then she yelled, “Take off!”


Phasma motioned for her squadron to head through to the main hangar. Intense stabbing pain and a wave of nausea hit her and her knees buckled. She was angry with herself for being in this predicament. She pulled out her subcut spray from her belt and jabbed it into her elbow. The pain subsided. She then leaned forward and threw off her helmet as she vomited copiousy on the ground. It was then that she realised that she wasn’t alone. As she looked up panting, she could see her second in command standing there looking at her.
“I dont need your help…” she said, “Get to the hangar, I’ll be there shortly!”
He didn’t move. She frowned and was about to speak again when he raised his rifle and pointed it straight at her.
In one smooth motion, Phasma launched her helmet at his rifle just at it fired. The deflected shot grazed her side but didn’t penetrate her armour. In the second she had bought herself she grabbed her rifle off the ground and fired. She was only able to raise it slightly before she knew he would shoot again. The shot hit him in the knee and he went down. Another shot in the chest and he lay dead.

In that moment Phasma knew who was behind this. Only Hux could have ordered her execution and tried to make it look like an accident. He couldn’t implicate himself of course and had he succeeded in his plan then she would have been just another casualty on the battlefield. It was just as well that she had never planned to join the rest of her squadron, even if they could all be trusted, which she now rather doubted. Her injury had fatefully given her the perfect excuse to lag behind. She looked around and couldn’t see anyone. As her strength returned she got up and ran back the way they had come. Now survival was all that mattered to her. She took some grim satisfaction however in the thought that the tables were about to be turned on the General…

TWENTY THREE.​

Rose wondered how they were going to get out of this and where Poe was leading them. She, Poe and BB-8 made their way down a back corridor all the time checking around corners to see if the coast was clear.
They came to another junction in the corridor. Poe was about to stick his head around the corner.
“Wait…” Rose said quietly. She lowered her voice to a whisper, “Someone’s there.” She could feel it!
Poe looked around at her and instinctively obeyed. He knew now that Rose had senses beyond the usual.
Rose screwed her eyes in concentration. There was something familiar…
She decided to peek around the corner; she couldn’t sense danger but instead…
“Finn!” she called.
Finn was crouched down in a doorway with a blaster rifle in his hand looking down the corridor. He had clearly come via the armoury as well.
He turned his head at hearing his name and his eyes widened. He silently motioned for them to join him.
“Why are you still here?” he said in a low voice.
“We could ask you the same question pal,” said Poe.
Rose squeezed Finn’s arm as she smiled. She was overjoyed to see him.
“I’ve been helping defend the main entrance,” he said, “Had to retreat back here.”
“We need to get across that intersecting corridor to the other side,” Poe said, “There’s an emergency landing platform at the end only accessible from that corridor.”
“If it’s for emergencies, don’t you think someone would have already gone that way?” said Finn, “This is an emergency after all.”
“There won’t be any ship just waiting for us,” Poe said, “But there’s usually a few speeder bikes stored there. At least we’d be able to put some distance between us and the base.”
Rose knew it was their only chance, but equally she wasn’t too enthused about being stuck on this moon, even if they did manage to get away from the base without getting killed.
They pulled back into the doorway as the sound of someone running up the intersecting corridor came to their ears.
“Sounds like they’re back…” Finn whispered.
They all listened as a single set of footsteps approached, and then turned into the corridor heading towards the landing platform.
They all leaned back out the doorway and as one tensed at the sight of a retreating back. A back that sported a black and red cloak over chrome armour.
They glanced at each other. It was clear that their only escape route had just been cut off…. by Captain Phasma of all people!
“We can take her,” whispered Finn.
He was furious; Rose didn’t need the Force to see it. Clearly the injuries he had sustained at her hands had left an impression on him.
“It’s three against one!” he said.
BB-8 bleeped an insult at him.
“Sorry… four…” he looked apologetically at the droid.
“OK…” Poe said, “Besides, we have no choice.”
They moved into and down the corridor as quietly as possible. At the intersection, Poe found himself looking at Rose. She nodded at him as she watched Finn’s puzzled face and Poe silently motioned to Finn to cross the corridor. Rose could see realisation dawning on Finn’s face at what she had just done.
The access corridor curved around to the right. They edged along it until the landing platform came into view. They were all pressed against the inside wall of the corridor. From where Rose was standing she couldn’t see what Finn could see as the front person in the group. He slowly turned his head and motioned to Poe that they would move on three. Finn raised one finger, then two, and then Finn and Poe charged down the corridor with their weapons raised. Rose was just in time to see Phasma spin around only for two weapons to be pointed at her from close range.
“Drop your weapon!” yelled Finn as they moved slowly towards her.
Phasma hesitated as she stared at Finn with undisguised loathing… then threw her rifle down.
“You should have just shot me,” she said.
“I don’t shoot people in the back,” Finn said, “Not even you…”
“Raise your hands,” Poe said.
Phasma raised her right hand, “My left is broken,” she said.
Rose could see that she was telling the truth. Her arm bent unnaturally just below the elbow joint.
Phasma looked at Finn and smiled, “You always were a coward FN…”
“The name’s Finn!” Finn yelled, “Don’t ever forget that!”
“FN…” Phasma began.
“Say it again! Just say it again!” Finn screamed.
Rose could sense his fury. All of the frustration and anger he would have felt as her captive. It was all coming out.
Poe glanced across at Finn with a look of concern on his face.
“Finn… she’s unarmed,” he said.

The tension was broken by the sound of a ship’s engines getting rapidly louder. Rose looked down the valley and could see a sleek silver-coloured ship flying towards them at high speed. It took her a few seconds to realise that it was heading straight for them.
Phasma turned her head to watch as the ship got closer. She appeared to be ignoring the others completely.
Rose had no idea who this was that was approaching but it certainly didn’t look like any First Order design. It was evident that Finn and Poe thought the same.
“Friends of yours?” said Poe to Phasma.
“No…” Phasma said through gritted teeth, “But they were going to give me a lift until you came along…”
Rose thought this was an odd answer… what was Phasma up to?
“Who’s on board?” Poe said, “Tell us now… or I’ll be the one that shoots you,” he said to Finn’s obvious surprise.
She turned back to look at him, “You’re about to find out.”
Poe didn’t make good on his threat but kept his blaster trained on Phasma.
Rose focussed her mind on the ship as best she could… “I think there’s only one person on board,” she said.
Finn looked at her and Rose could see the edge of a smile on his face. Some of the tension was going out of him.
Poe motioned to Phasma to move, “Over there,” he said. Everyone moved to the edge of the platform. Finn now had his weapon trained on the ship.
The ship rapidly slowed and hovered in mid-air as if in hesitation.
Rose instinctively closed her eyes once more and reached into the head of the pilot. She told him to land. Immediately the ship started moving again and came into a smooth landing. The engines continued to run as a ramp lowered on the side that faced them. Before either Finn or Poe could react, Rose ran past them and up the ramp.
Poe swore to himself, “What is she doing?!”
“Come on!” Finn said.
With his blaster still trained on Phasma, Poe followed Finn to the ramp.
Rose reappeared at the top of the ramp followed by a man dressed all in black sporting a blaster that was currently pointed at her head.
“I’m sorry!” said Rose, “I thought I had the situation under control!”
Poe glared at the man now staring back down at them.
“Locke…” he said, with obvious disgust.
Suddenly Finn yelled, “Look out!”
In the few seconds distraction provided by the appearance of Locke, Phasma had grabbed her rifle and was raising it to fire. Finn was quicker. He shot her in the shoulder and she keeled backwards.
“No!” yelled Locke, “She owes me money!”
Locke was distracted and Rose reached out….
“Lower your weapon…” she said in a measured voice.
Locke dutifully obeyed and she grabbed it out of his hand. His eyes snapped back into focus and he looked at the blaster now trained on him.
Finn and Poe ran up the ship’s ramp as Locke backed into the ship with three weapons now trained on him.
“We can’t leave without her!” Locke said.
“Why the hell not?” Finn said, “She just tried to kill us! You don’t know her!”
Rose could see that Finn’s anger was returning.
Poe returned from examining the cockpit of the ship.
“We’re locked out,” he said, “We could be here hours just trying to crack the ship’s codes.”
“Locke by name. Lock by nature,” said Locke, evidently satisifed at his own joke, “You need me to fly this ship and you’ve got about ten seconds to decide what you are going to do otherwise we are not going to make it off this moon!” he said.
“Rose?” said Poe.
“I’ll try…” she said.
Locke was ready for her. She fought furiously to get past his mental defences but he kept pushing her out.
“She… comes… with… us…” said Locke, barely able to speak.
Rose released him, breathing heavily and fell back into a chair sweating.
“Damnit!” said Poe and he ran back down the ramp. He grabbed Phasma under the armpits and dragged her to the ship then up the ramp. She groaned in evident pain before lapsing into unconsciousness.
“Keep that blaster on him,” Finn said to Rose and he went to help Poe drag Phasma up the ramp. Her armour made the job that much harder.
“Happy now?!” Poe yelled to Locke as they dropped her on the floor just inside the doorway.
“Not exactly. If she dies…” Locke said, looking at her prone body.
He headed to the cockpit and resumed his position in the pilot’s seat, punched in a series of codes and then used a retinal scanner.
The ship lifted off as Poe sat in the co-pilot’s seat with his blaster trained on Locke.
“Get us out of here,” he said, “This ship had better be fast, otherwise we’ll never get past that fleet!”
“She’s fast enough for you…” Locke muttered as he continued to look ahead.
Poe couldn’t argue with that. The ship accelerated faster than any ship he had been on before and he was pressed back into his seat despite the inertial dampeners.
As they headed into orbit, Poe could see First Order ships ahead. Several ties were rapidly converging on their position. Locke swung the ship around in a tight arc and headed in the opposite direction.
“Better strap in,” he said and pulled the lever as the ship made the jump to hyperspace.

 

Hehehe. The FO backstabbing has definitely reached the point when it all begins to unravel Judging from your reply to my previous post I'm also going to assume that Phasma was behind Hux's eavesdropping device (don't tell me if I'm wrong, I want to find out in the story!) so things will be coming to a head very, very soon.

Very exciting action in the Resistance base scenes! And now this shifty Locke character is back and Force knows what he's up to (together with Phasma, no less). I'm really enjoying how you write your baddies in this story – not that I don't like how you write the heroes, but I'm the sort of person who gets all excited about well-written villains. Keep it up!

 

I agree with Chyntuck here. You have some bad ass villains here, which are fun to read.

The action scenes always make me sweat...

And for some reason the following lines triggered an ancient "Flash Gordon" dialogue in my crazy head that is linked to a certain Queen song:

"Poe was yelling at a deck officer beside the last transport, “What do you mean that General Holdo isn’t on board?”

 

Yep, i'll tie this little plotline up fairly soon; stay tuned!

Thank you! I remember when writing it I had to write down where everyone was at any given moment as otherwise I just got confused!

I wasn't initialy planning to bring Locke back, but then I heard about his cool ship and with the Phasma arc saw an opportunity so...

I'm glad you like the portrayal of the baddies. I work with some pretty bad sorts so I can readily see what amoral types are like. It isn't really that hard to envisage.

Thank you! And now we have Locke, Phasma, Finn, Rose, Poe and BB-8 stuck on a ship together. What could possibly go wrong?

Oh cool! I find them difficult to write, but then if I'm trying to write a fanfic version of an actual film, then they need to be in there. And they can create some interesting scenarios...

Hahaha! OMG...