The Last Jedi: The Spark of Rebellion

Her Brother's Keeper

REY (Canto Bight)

I stop to catch my breath, but Poe pulls me forward.

"We have to keep going," he says, his expression serious.

The street is crowded with tourists and we move around them, getting looks of surprise and annoyance as we push our way past. The smell of various perfumes waft by and the sun beats down from above. This section of Canto Bight looks like it could have come straight out of a children's fairy tale. The store fronts are painted in bright colors, blues, yellows and pinks which reflect the sun, stinging my eyes.

I look around for guards patrolling the street, but there aren't any. Tall trees grow out from between the buildings, their large leaves offering some shade down below, but we can't stop long enough to rest under them. We've managed to lose two different groups of guards but they'll catch up to us soon enough. Poe is as quick and stealthy as I am. We duck through the streets and between buildings, like two common thieves.

A hovering tour bus, playing lively music, stops across the street and lowers down to let tourists on. I stop and Poe does too.

"The bus," I say. He nods and we run for it.

The friendly faced bus driver smiles at us as we climb in after two blue skinned tourists with large back packs. He doesn't ask for a transportation fee and when I pass him I notice he has no lower half and is an android.

There is only one seat left unoccupied by the time everyone is on and the bus starts moving again. I want to sit down, but my fighting staff on my back would make it impossible to fit between the two tourists who are staring at me and sitting on either side of the available seat. Poe remains standing beside me and doesn't take the seat either. I turn my back to the curious tourists, looking out the windows on the other side of the bus instead. The temperature inside is regulated and the shade and cool air welcomed luxuries after all the running we just did in the heat of the Canto Bight sun.

"I don't think any guards saw us get onto the bus," I say to Poe, moving in close so he can hear me over the music. "But they know what we look like, so we'll have people looking for us everywhere."

"They think we killed that man in the warehouse," Poe says.

"How close do you think we are to the Quarren Restaurant?"

"Hopefully this bus is headed in that general direction."

The colorful buildings are replaced by more plants and trees on either side of the road as the bus leaves the commercial area. The large leaves of the trees create a canopy above, which the bus drives under. I smile. It's hard to stay stressed in the happy atmosphere of the tour bus, wherever it's going.

Poe makes his way to the front. "Excuse me," he says to the animatronic bus driver.

"Please stay behind the yellow line,' it replies.

Poe steps back. "We're looking to go to the Quarren Restaurant."

"The Quarren restaurant is not a tourist destination."

"Where does this bus go to?"

"The destination of this bus is the Canto Bight Zoo."

Poe looks back at me and I shrug. He returns to my side and I keep my voice low when I ask him, "what's a zoo?"

He gives me a questioning look, and seems to hold back a smile. "It's a place they keep animals caged up for tourists to look at," he says.

I frown, unsure of what he means. Why would tourists want to see caged animals? Are they for sale? Do they perform for them somehow?