Hope
Twenty minutes later with R2 by my side I come to the hangar, wondering just who else Poe's chosen for this squadron since I'd neglected to ask. I'm anxious until I see Snap and L'ulo there, and find myself pleasantly surprised to see two women there as well who look to be in their late and early twenties respectively.
"Look at you guys, looking good, looking tough," Poe says, voice filled with pride and excitement, a dash of nervous energy there. Snap tilts his head towards me and brings me to Poe's attention and he grins when he sees me there in my flight suit, my helmet tucked under my arm. "Alright guys, we've got one more member of Black Squadron who some of you already know, meet Hope Solo."
"Hi," I greet, and Snap and L'ulo nod towards me whilst the blonde woman I'd seen talking to Poe in the mess not long ago raises her eyebrows at him in question and he shrugs, although I can't quite understand the context it isn't malicious, rather surprised, almost teasing.
"Solo, you already know Snap and L'ulo," Poe says bringing me over, thankfully not leaving me to make the introductions myself. "Alright next is Karé Kun, Jessika Pava and our technician Oddy Muva."
"Hello," I say again, shaking each of their hands and realise I hadn't quite adequately prepared myself for meeting new people.
"Good to see you on the team Solo," Snap tells me, at least him and L'ulo are familiar presences.
"It's been a while since I've flown with one in the field," L'ulo says and Snap echoes the sentiment.
"Can't say I've missed it."
I can't help but laugh with him, having heard those stories.
"Well, I can't blame you there," I say, although they both know I fly just like him. "It's good to see you L'ulo."
I turn to the younger of the two women, a girl with olive skin and black hair, remembering Snap having pointed her out to me in the mess. "Jessika?"
"Call me Jess," she says and I can sense some nervousness from her too. "Don't mind me but since we'll be flying together is it true that you're a Jedi like Luke Skywalker?"
"Oh yep," Poe says after I'd slammed the door in Threepio's face. "Although maybe a different sort of Jedi."
Poe isn't quite wrong there and I can't help the warmth that comes to my face as I meet his eye, feeling my lightsaber on my utility belt as I look back at the girls.
"Jess here's a big fan of those stories," Karé explains. "Although I'd be hard pressed to find anyone in our generation who isn't, they say Luke Skywalker's the best starpilot in the galaxy."
"I have him beat there don't worry," I assure her, knowing damn well I'm not going to be second to Luke when it comes to flying and look at R2 who rightfully backs me up. "Haven't blown up a death star yet, but we'll see what the First Order's cooking up."
"Surely they can't be stupid enough to build a third one," Snap scoffs.
"Oh you'd be surprised," I say, knowing at least part of their leadership personally to affirm that yes, they would be, and ask the girls. "Did you come from the Navy?"
"Karé was part of my squadron," Poe explains to me, she'd be just a little younger than Poe, the same age as Ben, whilst Jess only looks slightly older than I am. Both are striking in their own ways, although Karé's slightly more intimidating being that bit older. "She and another pilot came over when we defected, she's had my back against the First Order in the field that's for sure."
"Oh yep, been itching to get back out there," Karé says and looks at Poe as she says "Meanwhile Poe's told us all about what he's seen you do in the field."
There's a teasing tone to her voice that causes a curious panic to flash across Poe's face and Snap chuckles to himself before changing the subject. "Jess joined around the same time they did."
"Snap helped recruit me and get me up to scratch," Jess explains, and there's something equally likeable and tragic about her, a toughness to her that only comes from an unfortunate experience. I'd know. "We've all been waiting to get out there and take the fight to the First Order."
I look at Poe with raised eyebrows, a quick read of the energy here telling me I might not be the only one he has to worry about when it comes to engaging.
"The three of us joined in the last six months with good reasons," Karé says. "Minus the two old timers of course. Surprised we haven't seen you around."
"I've been off world for the last year," I say, not elaborating too much but from the look on Snap and L'ulo's faces they're well aware whilst the rest aren't. "General asked me to come home since it seems things have picked up around here, before I left the Resistance was far smaller."
I'm surprised when I hear Jess gasp a little and see she's looking at R2. "Is this R2-D2, Luke Skywalker's astromech?"
Karé and Snap are both shaking their heads but I find it bittersweet, that some people in the galaxy can still see my family as heroes even if I can't. Well Luke that is, R2 will always be my hero. "He is, although he's all mine now. Be nice R2."
He snipes back that I'm the one who needs to be told that and I explain "R2's known for his colourful language."
"Like someone else I know," Poe jests and I hear L'ulo laughing to himself in the background as I scrunch my nose at him.
"You taught me well didn't you R2," I say bending down to his height. "Ready to get back in the x-wing?" He gives an enthusiastic yes. "Me too."
I run my hand over his dome as he beeps happily, rocking from side to side, and I don't think I've seen him this excited in a long time.
"Are the ships fueled up Oddy?" I hear Poe asking as R2 gets fit into his socket.
"Yeah Poe," the technician says, an Abednedo man whose age I can't quite place, although he's definitely older than Jess and I. "I wish I were going with you though."
I listen in and see that Poe's willingness to take a chance on people extends beyond myself as he puts a hand on Oddy's shoulder. "You'll get your shot buddy. Little more training and you'll be right up there with us. One thing the Resistance needs is pilots."
Despite everything he still surprises me with the extent of his encouragement, of his compassion, especially when his words are so genuine. I know that he'll be somewhat tough on me after the words we had in the mess, but it seems he might be one of the few commanders who knows the balance between that and praise.
I can't help myself when I think of how some at the temple would have jumped at the first opportunity to join, that it could be them I'm flying with. Knowing in a different galaxy I'd be flying with Ben, holding onto the knowledge that for just a moment he was part of the Resistance as well until Snoke no doubt got into his head and turned him against Mom and by extension everything she stood for. That for a moment he was right beside me at that first meeting no matter how reluctantly, but that's all gone now. It seems the next time I'll see my brother it will be on the battlefield, I just pray that when that day comes I'll still recognise him.
"Now, Hope's going to be flying second in command," Poe says and I try not to gauge the reactions of the people around me but surprisingly enough I don't sense any opposition. "She's a Jedi and a hell of a pilot so I trust her instincts, last mission we flew could have ended a lot worse than it did if she hadn't been there." He looks at me and holds my eye as he repeats. "I trust her and her judgement."
He doesn't need to reiterate what he's trying to tell me, and I can't verbalise how much those words mean to me. He'd know from the conversations he's overheard how desperate I am for trust, and despite not having a reason to he's putting that trust in me. I haven't led anyone before, and he knows that despite all my experience in the field that this is new to me. He wanted me in command with him but was denied so he's taken it into his own hands to give me that experience, and I don't think I could ever express how thankful I am for it whether it's my own pride or being unable to find the words. This is twice now he's gone out of his way for me, and I won't forget it.
"Where are we going anyway?" Jess asks and I look at Poe, realising they truly haven't been told anything. "I was working on my engines, had an idea to get my power converter efficiency up by like fifteen percent, and then you called us up for... whatever this is. Had to put the whole thing back together before I was finished."
I take interest in another pilot who puts so much time into modifying their ship, many leave it to the mechanics but I like those who get their hands a bit dirty, who actually enjoy the work that comes with it.
"I'm sorry Jess," Poe says and I keep my mouth closed, letting him choose how much to divulge. "It's classified, at least for now."
"Classified?" L'ulo questions and I smile to myself. "Pff, I've been fighting with Leia for decades, I was at Endor, you'd think that'd earn me a little trust."
"It has," I assure him, knowing how highly Mom regards all the veterans who've joined, knowing Mom asked him specifically to take me through my advanced training when I was seventeen.
"And Snap fought at Jakku," Karé says and teases. "You're lucky they ley let either one of you old timers anywhere near a fighter these days. Don't complain."
"Come on Karé, I was like sixteen at Jakku," Snap points out and I think I may just like this team, nobody self seriousness or overly caught up on protocol.
"You are my team, my friends," Poe tells them, his voice thick with a pride and warmth that is so painfully rare. "We are Black Squadron, and it's an honour."
I don't expect Poe to look at me as everyone goes to their ships and give an assuring nod of his head, telling me that I'm no exception to that, and I return the nod not quite knowing how it makes me feel. I've found myself hostile these past years, never getting too close to anyone or anything, making sure nobody would want to get too close to me but to have someone want to give me a chance despite seeing that... I just don't want another person to disappoint.
Especially not when I don't even know how I feel about him, not when one day sparks are flying and I'm aching to feel him in the worst sort of way and the next he's chewing me out and I'm throwing things across the room. Not when his face is so stupidly perfect it still frustrates me. Not when I can't shake the nagging feeling I get when I look at him, that whether I like it or not, he's not going anywhere.
And something tells me neither am I.
~
We're flying over Ovaris, a planet I'm not familiar with but that seems to be mostly made up of caverns below its thick surface of rock. Immediately I find myself struggling to sense what's below and that's never a good sign, but I have to hold out hope that Lor San Tekka is still here.
He has to be.
He might just be the last person who can help me not just find Luke, but find the answers I've long been looking for as to my place in all of this. The answers I've struggled to find despite the Jedi relics I've recovered over the past few years, answers to questions I haven't even been able to form yet. Lor San Tekka knew me back when I was still young and wide eyed and wanting nothing more than to experience the galaxy with the same curiosity he'd held all his life.
He'd guided me towards the Jedi path back when Luke himself had tried to deter me, and I know I can trust him to help me find my way now.
"Master Luke tells me you want to be a pilot like your father," Lor San Tekka said, speaking to me with just as much importance as if I was a grown Jedi at the age of eight "I trust you dream of exploring the stars as most pilots do."
"I already am a pilot," I told him and heard Luke chuckle to himself. "Even if Uncle Luke won't let me fly Dad does, he always lets me fly the Falcon with him."
"Is that so?"
I nodded proudly. "I want to go with him and see all the planets there are, fly to all the star systems and see them all, but I want to be a Jedi like Ben too."
It used to be so simple. What happened?
"Alright Black Squadron, keep an eye overhead I'm going to descend below ground," Poe says through the comms, snapping me back to reality as he instructs "Black Two you follow me down."
"Copy that," I say, finding call signs still unfamiliar to use considering I've mostly flown alone in the years since leaving Naboo's starfighter corps. I'm out of practice when it comes to this side of flying, but I'll be damned if I let anyone else pick up on that.
We enter a cave system and he opens a private communication line between the two of us, separate from the one used by the rest of the squadron as he inquires "Alright, so we're looking for Lor San Tekka. Leia said he was an explorer but you seemed to know him more personally than that?"
"I've known him since I was a kid, he was a close friend of the family and I grew quite close to him," I say fondly. "He helped Luke find all sorts of old relics and temples since he was a member of the Church of the Force, an offshoot group of force worshippers."
"That's a thing?" Poe asks. "I thought only the Jedi could use the force?"
"Not quite, some would say anyone could use the force if they put their minds to it, while others believed it was the strength you were born with. The old Jedi believed in a combination of the two, however they were quite strict about who they let into their ranks," I explain to him, knowing Ben always had me believe it was raw strength more than anything else. "Lor certainly isn't a Jedi or a force user by any means, but an archeologist who specialises in the force and Jedi history. He'd always say that although he cannot touch the force it certainly touches him."
"I like that," Poe says, although I can't see his face from where he flies ahead of me I could imagine his expression from the softness of his voice, as if he's had a revelation. "I'm definitely not a Jedi but I was always raised to believe in the force, I can't feel it like you do but that... I like that saying."
I can't help but smile to myself a little, having almost forgotten what an awe striking thing the force can be to those who've never been touched by the darker sides of it. "He's a brilliant man who taught me a lot, it makes sense that Luke would have gone to him if he was searching for the first Jedi temple."
"You said you'd travelled to all the locations you could think of?"
"It's a big galaxy and it's been my suspicion he's ended up somewhere in the Unknown Regions, so even if he tells us which planet he was searching for, finding the planet itself will no doubt be difficult," I murmur in frustration, knowing nothing's ever that simple. "Wherever Luke's gone, he doesn't want to be found."
The line's quiet as we slowly make our way through the tight cavern, traversing what seems to almost be a maze until he finally asks "Did he really never tell anyone where he was going? I mean- in the aftermath he never let you or Leia, or even R2 know anything?"
R2 makes a sad sound and I laugh quietly at the question, remembering Luke's horrified face amongst the smoke and little else. "He didn't even wait until I was conscious to disappear. He just sent a distress signal and left before my parents even knew what had happened."
"What?" he says in quiet disbelief "He left you there?"
"Maybe he thought I was dead, maybe he thought I had a part in it, I don't know," I say roughly, having had a thousand theories. "But he doesn't want to be found, that much I'm sure of."
Before he can ask anything more both BB-8 and R2 start alerting us to a signal.
Poe brushes off his droids concern but I know not to do that when it comes to R2.
"R2 what kind of signal, could it be coming from a civilisation?"
"Most likely," Poe answers but it's not his answer I want as we navigate our way through the tight turns. "Besides we've got some more immediate problems. BB-8, see if you can send out a bounce pulse, get a map going." R2 beats his BB-8 to it and I sense a bit of competitiveness between our astromechs, like droid like owner. "Maybe let me see some of these turns ahead-"
"The cavern gets wider up ahead," I interrupt, having the map in front of me. "Should be easy flying from there on."
"Already?" Poe asks. "I thought his processing unit would be slower since BB-8 was only manufactured a few years back."
R2 beeps something quite rude in response to being called slow and I assure Poe "Oh I do R2's maintenance frequently to ensure he is quite superior to the newer droids." BB-8's now the one that makes an offended sound. "Nothing personal."
"Don't listen BB-8, you're perfect," Poe tells his droid but we can hear BB-8 arguing against pushing forward and I look back at R2 when he begins to mock him.
"R2 be nice, not everyone has sixty something years and two galactic wars worth of military service, yes- sorry three," I correct, even if Mom would argue otherwise. "We're up to the third one now."
"Three?" Poe repeats.
"R2 belonged to my grandparents during the Clone Wars and has a hell of a service record, even led his own squadron of reprogrammed Separatist battle droids," I say, but neglect to mention which grandparents. "Found his way to Mom and Luke by the time of the Rebellion."
"Wow," Poe says, rightfully awestruck. "I knew about his service in the Rebellion but-" he's cut off by BB-8 whose beginning to fret. "No we can't turn around, got no choice here pal. This is the only way in and I don't feel like flying home and telling General Organa we couldn't complete the mission because we got scared of a cave."
"It's alright BB-8, you're safe down here with us," I try to assure BB-8 although R2 refutes that notion. "Don't you start R2, I'm the only Skywalker who hasn't nearly destroyed you. I know exactly what Anakin-" He begins to go on about one skirmish that I made him swear to keep to himself and quickly shush him but it's too late.
"What was that R2?" Poe asks, able to hear the grin in his voice. "Something about getting blown off over Tatooine?"
"He's old, he's thinking of Luke," I quickly say much to R2's offence. "Which is why we're here R2, to make it out of this maze so we can find Lor San Tekka and get a lead on him."
"Besides," Poe says to the droids. "Don't you want to see what's down here? I know I do."
The cavern opens up and it gives us more room but something doesn't feel right. "The droid might be right Commander, be on your guard, something's waiting for us."
"I'm sure we'll be fine."
"Alright," I say, as I look over the map and reach out into the force to try to get a read of what could be waiting as we make our way out of the maze. "Go ahead and ignore the Jedi, see how that one turns out."
"Alright, we'll slow it down, catch our breaths," he says, mostly for his droids sake. "And what was it you told me when we met Lieutenant? Don't be a-"
He's appropriately cut off by an explosion right up above us and I curse before yelling "I told you!"
"Now's not the time for I told you!" he yells back as we take off. "Proximity mines in the ceiling, the whole thing's coming down on us!"
"You think!" I yell, the last thing I want is to die trapped under burning rubble. "R2, get on it!"
"It's a killbox," he yells to BB-8. "Find us a way out of here."
R2 and BB8 both bring up a way out and we punch it, narrowingly avoiding the cascade of rocks and explosions from above as we eye a blast door ahead.
"Yes BB-8," I hear Poe yelling through the coms. "I see that the door is closing!"
"Go faster!" I yell since I'm stuck behind him with the ceiling coming down right behind me. "If it closes I'm blowing a hole in it!"
"If it closes you're going to be the only thing blowing up!"
"So fly faster!"
We both divert all power to the engines and while he punches it I flip my x-wing to the side, only just fitting through the blast doors the second before it shuts and we enter a larger cavern. Poe and I's breathing is equally heavy as he checks in with me "You alright? That was a close call."
"I'm alright," I assure him as we make our way through. "Let's take it- oh."
I fall quiet as we fly over a below ground settlement, or at least what was once one, it seems all but abandoned but still I can sense lifeforms, although that isn't what catches my attention.
"Woah," I hear Poe say and we both take in the obscenely large glowing ball that's suspended from the top of the cavern, but it's what I sense within that leaves me bewildered."
"Yeah this is going to get weird," I say to myself as we descend and land, there still being no sign of lifeforms despite being able to sense them.
Poe uses a ladder to get down from his cockpit whilst I jump down, using the force to break the fall enough that I land elegantly, maybe still a little mad over that ladder comment when he had me jumping for my file.
"Who needs the ladder again?" I ask as he comes to stand beside me and knows that one's deserved. Although while he appreciates the jab our attention's elsewhere.
"You seen anything like it?" he asks and I shake my head slowly while they droids both beep in surprise at the sight.
"No, and I don't want to see what's inside."
"Inside?" he questions as I realise just what it is.
"It's an egg."
He tilts his head, not able to see it. "How do you know it's an egg?"
"Because I can sense the bigass lifeform inside it," I say, sometimes forgetting that others aren't quite attuned to those senses as I am. "Jedi remember?"
"Right."
I look back at the scorch marks on the x-wings and clear my throat. "So, next time I tell you to be careful are you gonna listen?"
He knows I've got him there and tries to play it off. "I thought you liked risks."
"Calculated risks," I correct. "Which means I'm not the pussy."
I can't help but flash him a teasing smile and he doesn't argue "Alright, I'll let you have that one. I'll check in with the others to let them know we made it."
I step closer to the egg, sensing something massive within and even more through the cave. "There's more lifeforms down here, so be careful."
"Gotcha," he says and heads back to his x-wing to grab his com. "Black Three come in."
"I read you Black Leader," Snap says. "You make it through alright?"
But it's then I sense something dark, something violent, and no Lor San Tekka. "No, we're leaving. Now!"
"What?" Poe says as I head back to my x-wing. "We haven't found-"
"He's not here but something else is," I hiss, as I climb up to the cockpit. "X-wing, now."
He shakes his head, alarmed as he tells Snap "Solo's freaking out, find somewhere to land." He looks back over and tries to reassure me. "Hope you heard what Leia said, we can't fail. Let's just regroup and-"
"What was it you were saying about trusting my-" I'm cut off by the sound of blasters being readied and we look to see the caves civilisation with their weapons aimed right on us. "I told you-"
"Ah!" he hisses as his comlinks shot out of his hand and I duck down into the cockpit as a second blast is fired towards me. "There's no need for that!" Pulling my saber free I jump down from the cockpit and ignite it the same moment R2 and BB8 pull out their electric rods. The people very quickly step backwards and Poe yells out "No, there's no need for that either!"
I ignore him as I come to his side, close enough that I can deflect any blaster fire that comes our way, and a woman steps forward who presents herself as their leader, like most of the others she is tall and human with blue markings adorning her forehead. "Jedi," she says and tilts her head. "Or did you kill a Jedi?"
"My name is Hope Solo, I am the niece of Luke Skywalker, the Last Jedi," I tell them, introducing myself how Luke always would. "I have come in search of my friend Lor San Tekka."
BB8 projects the hologram and R2 is visibly offended he wasn't the one given it, but it does the trick as they recognise him. "That's the explorer."
They speak of him as a friend. "Yes, he is a great explorer and has great knowledge of the force and all that surrounds it." I look at the egg and know it must certainly be connected to the force somehow for Lor to come here, hell I can feel how concentrated it is within, which means these people are likely independent worshippers and therefore we have common ground. "There is no need for violence."
Poe steps up to my side, his fingers seeming alright as he shakes his hand out. "We just need to talk to him and then we'll be out of your hair, where is he?"
They look between us and I realise it's a test as I tell them "I can sense Lor San Tekka is no longer here but..." I blink as I feel him, see him standing there with the egg, communing with these people as friends. "He was, and he was a friend of yours. I take it he came to study the egg-"
At the mention of the egg the blasters are lifted right back up and their leader confirms "He is no longer here, he left long ago."
"Do you know where he went?" Poe asks and they become defensive, liking him less than me.
"Even if I did," she begins. "Why would I tell you? I know him, I trust the explorer, you..."
"Please, listen," I say gently, peaceful negotiations Hope, peaceful. "R2, do you have any holorecordings of Luke's missions with Lor San Tekka?"
They wait as R2 searches his databank before displaying a hologram of one of their later missions, and I'm taken aback to see myself with Luke and Lor San Tekka, fifteen or so and standing beside Ben as we examined the ruins of Tython. Poe's head tilts towards me, and I wonder if he thinks the person next to me is my brother, or if he's Kylo Ren. I wonder if he believes that they're one and the same. I never asked Mom what conclusion she came to when she no doubt spoke with him, and my stomach twists at the thought but that doesn't matter right now.
"This was five years ago, Lor San Tekka took my brother and I to Tython to explore the ruins with our uncle Luke Skywalker," I tell them and they share contemplative looks. "I am a friend of his, I have known him since I was a young child. Please, he would want you to help me and a friend of his is a friend of mine."
On every mission Luke ever brought me on he taught me how the Jedi handle these situations, before I'd turned to shooting first I'd lecture Ben about staying true to those teachings and I have to honour that now.
Poe and I look at each other as she steps forward towards the egg and tells us "We are the Creche. This egg is our charge, our purpose and our salvation. We protect and nurture it, and in return we bathe in its radiance. Its presence guides our lives."
I carefully step forward "Yes, Lor San Tekka would have told you it's rich in the force. The charge that is within it guides us all."
She nods approvingly. "Yes. It holds salvation itself, our saviour unborn." Those words stir something in me, knowing the Jedi's prophesied saviour was far from what they believed him to be. "And someday the egg will hatch and we, or our descendants, shall receive our reward for keeping it safe these many generations."
"It is wonderful," I tell her while Poe watches warily. "Did Lor San-"
She cuts me off sharply "And we will not allow anyone, anyone! To prevent that from happening."
"What's with the tone?!" Poe exclaims while I blink at her. "I'm not here to hurt your egg, I like your egg!"
She seems doubtful and I step forward, taking a different approach considering it's going to be like that then.
"Of course you won't let anything happen to it, and neither will we," I say, knowing well enough how to talk my way in and out of almost anything and Poe listens carefully as I reveal "I myself came from the Jedi's prophecised saviour. He was born of the force but was prevented from fulfilling his purpose by an evil man, and now my lady, more evil men will seek to corrupt your saviour."
The words sound slightly more awkward leaving my mouth than I'd hoped and Poe turns his head towards me, incredulous at hearing Darth Vader be called the Jedi's saviour. The galaxy only knows Anakin Skywalker as the fallen hero who became Vader, not what he was destined to be.
Alarm echoes through the room as she inquires. "What evil men?"
"The First Order, the Empire reborn," I tell her, knowing those traps were not set for nothing. "And we must find Lor San Tekka in order to stop them from destroying your egg, and far more."
There's no real correlation between the two but she doesn't need to know that.
"Then if it is so important you will do as the Explorer did," she says and Poe gives me a hopeful look before she continues "He spent two full seasons learning our ways and becoming our brother, and in return we shared our secrets. Are you willing to do the same?"
"We're sort of on a deadline here," Poe quips and I I raise a hand to silence him and instead take a different approach, utilising the same mysticism that they worship.
"I am the heir to the Jedi's saviour, the force that created your own saviour... I am born of it," I say, knowing that much to be true. "It is my legacy to protect the same force that your saviour came from, that I came from. We see eye to eye."
R2 beeps in judgement at my dramatics and still she repeats "Are you willing to do the same?"
"Again, deadline," Poe says reiterates as he comes to stand beside me and as he talks I notice BB-8 going to his ship mentioning something about that signal he'd picked up and R2 follows him. "But she's right, if we don't find Lor San Tekka the First Order will come to you searching for him and they won't care what happens to that egg and this might be a little hard to believe, but the fate of the galaxy is at stake."
"I wouldn't go that far," I murmur under my breath considering it's Luke we're looking for, just loud enough only he can hear.
"Not helping," he murmurs back as the lady contemplates our words.
"Oh we completely agree," she says but still does not relent. "That is why we have given up everything for our lives here. No matter how turbulent the shape of the universe outside this place, as long as we protect the egg everything will be well in the end."
I sigh and decide to do what Luke certainly wouldn't. "Alright then." Poe reaches for my arm as I step forward but misses as I come to stand right before her with blasters drawn on me, looking into her eyes as I raise a hand and say slowly "We wish no harm, you are not afraid, and you will tell us where the explorer is."
For just a moment I see it in her eyes, the glazed over look, but it's gone just as quickly as the blasters are pulled off of me onto Poe and I look back to see him with a tracker in hand, holding it high.
But it does not look like a tracker.
"Alright!" he yells and ignores my look of panic. "You need to listen to me right now!"
"He's got a detonator, he's threatening the egg! Take him down!"
"Hey let's not be hasty-"
I curse under my breath and use the force to bring the tracker to my hand instead of his and the blasters are drawn back onto me despite Poe's protest, but with my saber in the other hand I'm far more protected than he is. "We are threatening nothing-"
The first blaster shot goes off and I throw the damn tracker to the ground to deflect the shots with my saber, careful for once not to hit anyone, but still use the force to push them to the ground and Poe has a blaster aimed at their leader.
"Alright, let's talk!" Poe says, visibly stunned but compartmentalizing for now. "We have asked you nicely, but this is urgent!"
"Please don't shoot the egg!" their leader cries out. "You- you can't."
"We aren't going to shoot your damn egg!" I yell, kicking the tracker over to Poe and he lifts it up for them to see.
"You know what this is? A tracker, my droid just found it on my ship." My stomach sinks now that I have a moment to realise what it means. The First Order knows where we are. "It's been signalling our location ever since I arrived on this planet." I stare at him in utter confusion, we didn't stop anywhere from the Resistance base to here for anyone to be able to put a tracker on, but it's then I feel it.
"Poe," I grit out, not having any time to form theories. "They'll be here any moment."
"I don't understand," their leader says. "Who's been tracking you."
"The First Order," I say, not holding back my frustration but it quickly turns to desperation when I realise just who'll be leading them. If Ben knows I'm here, then he'll be right behind us. "And they're going to blow your precious egg to bits along with the rest of you if you don't give them what they want. Live or die, it's your choice, but if you want to live you better start listening."
"What she said," Poe says backing me up. "I've got people up on the surface, they've got weapons, ships. You let me get word to them and we will protect you." His eyes move to me. "We promise."
I nod in affirmation and as they get to work preparing for an assault I grab Poe's arm, his eyes widen in concern at the sight of me and I warn "If they're tracking us, if they know I'm down here..."
He doesn't need me to finish that sentence and he nods but doesn't let any panic cross his face, instead focusing on the task at hand. "We need to keep these people safe, can you do that?"
"Believe it or not I was trained to defend life, not just take it," I say, my hand tight around my saber. "Poe, this isn't going to be pretty."
"If he walks through those blast doors will it end in a fight?" he asks, forcing me to confront the reality of this situation.
"Yes," I answer shortly.
Slowly stress starts to show itself but he remains braver than I am right now. "Can you win it?"
I don't let myself consider the alternative. "Yes."
He puts a hand on my shoulder and promises me "Then we'll be walking out of here and so will these people, now let's get to work."
While he contacts the squadron I come to the egg, certainly feeling some strange abnormality but that's not important, what's important is reaching out into the force to sense just who and what is coming.
"Hope!" I hear Poe call out just as I start to get into the state I need.
"Shush and let me concentrate," I say and he leaves me alone to start giving commands to BB-8 and R2, who echoes my own sentiments towards being ordered about but does what he asks.
For the first time in a long time I actually put effort into reaching out into the force, and it seems poor concentration is still the bane of my force abilities.
"Come on," I murmur, trying to sense what's out there, but when I fail to pick up anything beyond the people in this cave I dare to reach a little closer to home. I dare to reach into that bond that's long laid dormant, cautiously cut off by my own will for my safety long ago. I reach out into it as I would over the years whenever we were separated, searching for the quiet reassurance that I wasn't completely alone in my own loneliness.
In the distance there's pain, suffering, agony, but it's so far away, so far out of reach.
He isn't here.
He isn't even close.
Which means whatever's brought the First Order here, it isn't me for once.
"Solo!" Poe calls out from his cockpit, having moved the x-wings deeper into the cavern where they're out of direct sight. "I've got confirmation of tie fighters!"
"Commander," I yell up at him. "Who have you pissed off?"
"What?" he exclaims, too stressed for this. "Is that seriously what you're asking me right now when you're the one who's been using them as target practice!"
"For the record the First Order thinks I'm off acting like a rogue pirate," I remind him, but there's also no way they could know he helped steal the yacht. "If they were here for me or Lor San Tekka then Kylo Ren would be here, but he's not."
"How do you-"
"I just know," I grit out as he jumps down from his ship and I reiterate. "For the fifth time today stop questioning me when I tell you I know something otherwise you're going to end up dead. Kylo Ren isn't out there with the rest of the First Order, if they were after me then he'd be there. Which means they're here for you or another member of your squadron, but I'm willing to bet you."
He opens his mouth to argue but shuts it, knowing we don't have time. "I don't know alright, I don't know why they're here or how that tracker got onto my ship, but something tells me we're going to find out because Karé just told me they're coming in hot."
Suddenly I sense them and raise my head towards the tunnel we came through. "They're approaching the blast doors, you got a plan Commander?"
"Yeah, live."
Their leader instructs some of her people to meditate around the egg while Poe grabs my wrist and pulls me up to higher ground behind a rock formation within the cave and out of sight. We take cover with our hands readied over our weapons, Luke always did tell me if you want to be anywhere in a fight it's the high ground.
"We aren't shooting our way out of this," he tells me as R2 and BB8 catch up to us, although I'd be willing to try. "We need to be smart and give the team some time to figure things out up there while we do the same down here. I don't suppose you've got any bright ideas?"
He'd sound sarcastic if he wasn't so desperate, we expected there could be conflict but not this.
"Improvise," I say optimistically and he goes along with that.
"We can do that," he says as I peak out to get a glimpse of the blast doors. "You uh- feel anything?"
"Yeah, a big group of stormtroopers about to blast their way in here."
"Well, I'm not gonna lie, you weren't very convincing when you were stalling before about not acting on Resistance orders," he shrugs considering the odds of dying are already considerably high. "They definitely knew Leia sent you there."
"Alright," I admit, backtracking from my earlier statement even if I can't make sense of Ben not being here. "They might be here for us."
"Us? You mean you?" he corrects. "They know that you stole the yacht, not me. You're the one who's pissed them off."
"Well if I have it's natural talent rather than intention."
"Oh you do have a natural talent of that," he assures me, choosing to spend his potential last moments making quips and I narrow my eyes at him.
"Let me handle this."
"No, you are not handling this."
I look at him, knowing I have an immunity he doesn't. "They aren't going to kill me."
"Oh for the love of - Hope," he grits out, hands pressed together in front of him as he tries to drill into my head. "I'm sorry, but you proved that theory wrong when they were trying to blow us up remember!"
It still falls on deaf ears. "They were bluffing, I'm too important to kill."
"Has anyone ever told you that you have a god complex because-" He's cut off by the doors being blasted clean off and we quickly slide down to the ground out of sight. We both ready ourselves and I have my blaster in one hand and my saber in the other, not a style Luke would approve of but sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures.
R2 brandishes his electric rod in unity with BB-8 quickly following. At least I know R2 could probably take out half of these guys on his own from the reports I've read. Chances are he's been waiting for round two with stormtroopers.
"How dare you blast your way into this secret chamber!" the lady yells, and I'm considering how I can use the cavern itself to take them out. I could bring down parts of the unstable rockface but not without risking a total collapse killing all of us. I turn to fire and look at the x-wings.
Poe follows my trail of sight. "What?" he asks quietly and thankfully the cave doesn't echo.
"If worst comes to worst, R2 will create a fuel spill and I'll do the rest."
He blinks at me and takes a moment to realise what I'm suggesting. "So burning us all alive is your solution?"
"You got a better one?"
R2 decides to chime in telling him we've done it before but leaves out the fact it was not on this scale, and for just a moment he contemplates it as we listen and hear the voice of a man "My, my, look at all these guns. Glad I brought some too."
We look up to see stormtroopers with jetpacks flying in and I curse, knowing these are the guys they send when it's serious, not barely trained randoms marching about the Outer Rims.
"I am sorry about the door, perhaps I should have just knocked, but we'll fix it I promise," the man says and I tilt my head, Poe and I both realising that he isn't another stuck up officer. This one has some personality, and that is never good in the first order. "We'll fix that door right."
"Yes sir, of course," a stormtrooper answers and I try to get an estimate on numbers from the obstructed viewpoint, but it's not looking good.
"My name is Agent Terex of the First Order," he says and we both silently ask each other if we've heard of him, only for us both to be at a loss. "What's going on with that egg by the way? Just fabulous."
I go to better assess the situation and he pulls me back down with a stern warning. "You cannot attack first."
It's all I can do not to roll my eyes and we keep listening. "It's our charge, we are the creche. The egg nurtures the saviour unborn who will one day save us on the day of its emergence. Why have you come here? What do you want?"
"Why that's simple," he says and for a moment I listen, reconsidering the fact that I could have been wrong, but it seems we both were. "Poe Dameron and Hope Solo of course."
Poe looks utterly confused, flattered, but confused until he catches my eye "Don't you dare tell me you told me so."
"Then stop giving me opportunities to."
"I'm sorry, last I checked you were the one who gave up your name while stalling, mine was never brought up," he points out. "And I should be the one telling you that considering you'd been so sure they weren't here for you."
Still the question lingers in my mind, if the First Order knew we were here then where the hell is Ben?
"Poe Dameron. Hope Solo?" the lady asks, having our backs and now we need to have hers. "Who are they?"
"BB-8, get in touch with Snap and the rest of Black Squadron," Poe instructs. "This could get bad, I can feel it, we have to try to help these people."
This agent keeps making his threats and Poe and I look at each other, neither of us in good conscious able to just sit here and do nothing but we have to be smart about this.
"R2," I say and know he's ready for action. "If this goes south or we need a distraction, remember the plan you had on Theron for those thugs?" He beeps affirmatively. "Use that."
Poe goes to open his mouth to no doubt remind me about the rule of engagement but upon catching my glare quickly shuts his mouth, he doesn't seem utterly opposed to the thought either considering the circumstances. Either way, I'm itching to get up and fight but know if I break the rules of engagement so soon I'm going to be grounded forever.
BB-8 comes back and tells us he got through to the others much to Poe's relief. "Hopefully the rest of Black Squadron can figure something out, because I have a feeling-"
"Oh so when you have a feeling you take it seriously?" I try to jest, but it falls short knowing that this isn't going to end pretty. Engaging the First Order is one thing, but when there's collateral... the last thing I need is any more innocent blood on my hands.
Before he can argue one of the stormtroopers calls out "Picked up the tracker's signal sir. It's a bit degraded, looks like they tried to destroy it but the device is hardened, it can survive just about anything." I have to resist the urge to use the force to crush it right now to prove them wrong. "They're still here, probably still are."
"Great," Poe mutters under his breath, feeling his panic rife through the force I try to make sure he's got his head screwed on and with no plans above or below ground to get out of this I decide to take the lead.
"Calm down and think."
"I am calm."
"No you're not," I say, able to sense the fear he so desperately tries to hide and reassure him. "I need you to figure out how we're getting out of this. You have a blaster and I have a lightsaber, I can hold them off but we need to improvise sooner rather than later."
"Oh wow did you hear that?" Terex says to the people and I can recognise the feeling of bloodlust well enough by now, and if they don't talk they're going to die. "Guess you guys are just a bunch of liars." He raises his voice so it echoes. "And it seems the Jedi you're hiding's as much of a coward as all the rest!"
And that does it.
Poe grabs my wrist, voice quiet as he warns "No."
"You figure something out with the squadron, I'll stall for time."
I go to stand but he pulls me back down, speaking in a harsh whisper "You are not getting yourself killed!"
"They're not killing me."
"Hope-" Poe spits out as I stand and show myself, jumping down from the rocks and landing with ease, surprising the stormtroopers and certainly the agent.
"They aren't liars, because he's not here," I tell them, at this point hoping this ends in a fight. "I am."
The agent looks at me in impressed surprise. "Hope Solo, I'll admit I wasn't sure if you'd even be on this mission considering your reputation for desertion. Last we were aware you were illegally attacking First Order outposts in the Outer Rims. What is that crucial rule, do not engage unless engaged first?"
The corner of my mouth turns upwards. "Good thing nobody survives to tell do they?"
He laughs and tells me "Now that I can respect. Two people wanting to take action and spill some blood despite our superiors' orders. It's past time this cold war turned into something real."
"So, who shoots first then?" I ask him and draw my saber, recognising an unhinged ego when I see one. "It's been a while since I've had some good target practice that wasn't in a starfighter."
All I'd need to do is use the force to pull a trigger and I'm justified in whatever action I take, it seems the Clone Wars didn't set a good precedent for the rules of warfare.
"We'll get to that but first," he says and asks again "Where is Poe Dameron?"
"Not here," I answer as if I couldn't care less. "This is my mission, and I have no hesitation about attacking first."
"Really?" he questions and steps closer. "Now despite all your big girl talk I know you're bluffing because how would that look, Darth Vader's granddaughter starting a full blown war? Your poor mother would never recover."
I shrug it off. "She's dealt with worse."
'Yes," he says and smirks. "Like your brother." My face falls and there's a sick pleasure in his eye. "Tell me, how did General Organa hide from her Resistance the fact that it was her son who attacked his master and burned down the Jedi temple? Killing every last Jedi except for one and then running off to join Snoke."
I feel shock through the force, from the stormtroopers and Poe alike, his isn't as strong as it should be but he's smarter than I'd given him credit for.
Even now I remain insistent. "That's not what happened."
"Isn't it?" he asks me. "Let me introduce myself, my name is Terex and it's my job to know things, and I know many things about you Hope Solo, you're quite the curiosity,"
"Do you?" I question doubtfully.
"Let's see I could talk about your military history, your powers in the force, but let's get in gritty shall we? How about we start with some childhood trauma!" he exclaims, truly missing a few screws. "Four years old when her best friend is kidnapped right in front of her and her beloved heroic big brother shoots the one who grabbed you, thank the maker daddy left his blasters out on the counter that day. Leaving you covered in blood and brains before force choking another to death true Vader style. He's sent away and you're left all alone, a disturbed child whose parents thought you'd simply believe it was all a bad dream."
Slowly I begin to realise he isn't just raving mad, but that he actually does know more than anyone should as he continues on "You'd grow up to be the sweet golden child who didn't want to be a burden after seeing her brother get sent away so she keeps her mouth shut and her head down, always hiding your anger and fears of abandonment perfectly, until you didn't."
"Get on with it," I say stiffly, but he's enjoying this far too much and I need to buy Poe and the team time.
"The first time you open your mouth it makes intergalactic news, a dangerous force user threatening her teacher. Lies of course but that was all the ammunition the Centrists needed to start their attack. You run away to your daddy, still the golden child in his eyes and all seems well until some men he owned money to tried to kidnap you in the street and you had to stop your beloved brother from killing them." Something inside of me runs cold, no one should know anything about that night. "Only for him to turn on you. I can only imagine how shocked you must have been when he pushed you into a wall and screamed and shook you for daring to think you were above him."
"Don't," I warn, my hand tightening around my saber.
"Your beloved big brother, slowly losing his mind and still you were the golden child, even when you set someone on fire! Your first kill but far from the last," he reveals and he may just be the first officer I've met to not bluff about what he knows. "And then good old family history would come to bite you in the ass as the grand secret is revealed. The heirs of Anakin Skywalker, the Jedi's chosen one, are the heirs of Vader!"
I raise an eyebrow, trying to remain composed. "I thought you were supposed to be telling me something people didn't know?"
"Alright, to the point, I like it," he says and goes on. "Everyone has their theories about what happened after this when Luke Skywalker's temple burned to the ground but I'm partial to the theory that you're the one responsible, especially since that seems to be the only theory with evidence to support it."
I just scoff, genuinely at a loss as to what he could mean. "Evidence? You mean circumstance?"
"You see, the First Order is very interested in finding out if Vader's other heir is just as powerful and dangerous as the first. I, like many others, believe that you're the one who takes after Anakin Skywalker and that he's just a sick wannabe. Your girlfriend seemed to think so, what was her name, Aylee?" I stare at him with wide eyes now as he holds up a holoprojector and for the first time in years I see her face. "She was quite distressed, in fact I believe this was sent less than an hour before the temple was destroyed."
For the first time in a very long time I'm left utterly and completely blindsided, unable to do anything but watch in shock as he plays the recording.
"Hope's out of her mind," she begins by saying, her blue face flushed a shade of purple even through the hologram and her lekku's heavy over her shoulders, eyes wide with distress. "She was training with Ben and then out of nowhere she just snapped, I-I really think she would have killed him if Master Luke didn't intervene. She's tapped into the dark side, I can feel it and so can everyone else. Master Luke's dragged them both into his hut and I can hear them fighting from here. You're Ben's friends, or at least the closest he has to it, the only people he listens to. Meanwhile she isn't listening to anyone, not even him. She- she used to listen to me, but we haven't even spoken since that last fight when she kissed me and took off back to Hosnian Prime and joined this militia that Leia's putting together. I don't know what's happened between her and Ben since then but you need to return to the temple now, I- I don't think we're going to make it through the night without one of them turning on Luke, or maybe even each other. Please, hurry, I have a terrible feeling that this night... it may just be our last." She looks over her shoulder and rasps. "She's coming I have to go."
I stand there with my mouth open and confused tears in my eyes. I'd spoken to her what had to have been moments after this was recorded as she simultaneously wrote me off as being all but Sith and appealed to what we'd once shared to try to reason with me, but all I wanted was to leave that planet and not come back. I'd begged her to come with me. I- I never wanted to hurt anyone, all I wanted was to escape.
"Where-" I breathe, holstering my blaster to pull the projector to my hand and even when I feel it's metal it still doesn't feel real. "Where did you get this?"
"This was recovered from Elphrona, from the ship Hennix, Tai and possibly Voe escaped you and your brother on, although Voe's body was never found beneath the rubble," he says much to my confusion. "Tell me, which one of those two girls did you kill first?"
"What?" I ask in pure bewilderment.
"I can only assume you cut down Voe, and that your brother took care of the other two when they tried to chase him down, after all they had to have assumed both of you were behind it after that message," he says and slowly long repressed memories begin to resurface, horrified accusations and words of anger spoken amongst smoke and agony. "I wonder, did your girlfriend die in the flames, or did you murder her like Anakin Skywalker murdered your pregnant grandmoth-" He chokes on his words and suddenly all blasters are on me as he reaches for his throat.
Immediately I feel Poe's panic and silent yelling through the force, appealing for just another minute, to keep myself from snapping as I struggle to maintain any type of control. It's only when the blasters are moved onto R2 by my side that I release Terex and he just smiles as he catches his breath.
"Wow, I'd always wondered what that felt like," he remarks, relatively unphased. "Like grandfather like granddaughter it seems, and unlike your brother you don't even have to try!" He laughs and keeps trying to twist the knife. "Bet you're wondering where he is huh? Why he hasn't done you the honour of coming here himself? You'll be disappointed to know that he's kept on a tight leash. Snoke knows he's no Vader, no matter how hard he pretends to be with that helmet."
But I can read through the lines, a weight lifting off my chest as I realise the only reason he isn't here is because Snoke doesn't trust him. He knows that if he lets Ben free to come and find me that he won't be returning to them. He knows I can still turn him back to the light.
Just as hope rises it's clouded by darkness just as quickly.
"Oh the scandal that would be for the Resistance," Terex continues as R2 moves towards BB-8 in the distance, a plan at work. "That Leia Organa's only son has become Kylo Ren, a wannabe Vader serving the Supreme Leader. I know for a fact I would get the biggest promotion there is for bringing you in too but, you see, I'm more entertained by the thought of Vader's heirs on opposite sides of this war. Equals in strength, although that's up for debate, brother and sister forced to fight one another to what will inevitably be the death. It's rather poetic."
A cold chill washes over me and I tilt my head towards him as I use the force to cause a stormtrooper's blaster to misfire, twisting my body to only just avoid being hit and smile to myself as his eyes widen.
"Look at that, one of your men just tried to kill me, it's a shame you won't live to see it isn't it?" I deadpan and raise my hand again, crushing his windpipe with intent this time. "How would you like me to kill you then? As a Jedi or as Vader's heir?"