"Watch out, you've got two on your tail!"
"I can't shake 'em! I can't shake 'em!"
"Take them through that asteroid field!"
"I'm not gonna make it commander!"
"Hey! Don't you give up on me!"
"I can't shake em! I can't!"
"I'm almost there....
Got one!"
"He's locking onto me!"
"Hang in there!"
"I can't sha-" ... ...
"God Dammit."
From inside the safety of the cruisers bridge, Rey was helpless to watch and listen to another fighter pilot lose to the war. She felt her stomach churn. That was the third pilot in two minutes. Despite this, the fact was that there were many more TIE Fighters going down than there were Resistance pilots. Yet it was only a matter of time before they ran out of resistance fighters. Who knew how many TIE Fighters the First Order was able to shoot out.
"We need to leave, Poe. It's too dangerous. They have more fighters than we anticipated." Leias voice was soft but worried. She'd lived through war for long enough to know that fights with this ratio never ended well for the lesser side. And unfortunately, in this situation, they didn't have the numbers.
"We can't leave unless we take down their crew ship! They will track us otherwise and we will be stuck with no fuel and no where to hide." Poe called back through the communicator, the sound of his blaster guns firing echoing through the speaker as well as his voice.
The battle was vibrantly visible through the large front window of the cruiser. Many of the TIE Fighters were trying to break through the shield and damage the exterior of the ship, but so far hadn't made it past thanks to the efforts of the resistance. It was almost like watching fireworks as fighter after fighter would explode in a painful burst of death. Shivers ran down Reys spine, and she was left to feel useless standing doing nothing on the bridge.
"With all do respect, we can't leave the cruiser unprotected. Otherwise taking down the crew ship would be pointless with nothing to return to." Finn chirped in through the communicator, flying behind Poe before splitting off to the left, following after a stray fighter that he knew was trying some form of trick.
"Finn's right, Poe. We can't leave the cruiser vulnerable." Leia responded as she narrowed her eyes, desperately trying to think of a solution. Chewie suddenly growled, stealing both Rey and Leias attention immediately.
"Are you sure?" Leia questioned cautiously. In any other situation, she would have refused, but this time they were desperate. Plus, it had worked very well at the rebel base a week or so ago.
"Let's do it. We don't have another choice." Rey rasped enthusiastically, looking to Chewie with a confident smile that they could pull this off. That seemed to be enough to convince Leia, and she gave them the nod of approval.
"May the force be with you." Rey smiled widely and nodded thanks before racing out of the room with Chewie. In the hanger, they lept onto the Falcon and started it up immediately. Chewie flew the ship out of the hanger and remained low for a moment, allowing Rey enough time to make it to the blaster on the bottom of the ship and get herself prepared.
Like bugs to lantern, all the TIE Fighters immediately spun around and raced after the Falcon. Without a second glance towards the fleet and their intentions, their main goal had just shifted without command to destroying the ship they knew as 'junk'.
Kylo stood straight at the front of the bridge, overlooking the fight with a bland expression. Since Hux had caught his closeness with Rey, he knew he had to start playing his delicate game carefully. He over watched the events outside as though watching over a routine, taking note of every mistake and every wrong decision. To his disgust, he watched as all the Fighters flung themselves to the Falcon and let themselves be lured away. He clenched his fists, sensing Rey on that ship. It was time for him to interfere.
The resistance was flying headfirst towards the crew ship, firing rapidly at its surface guns in order to minimize possible casualties. They had made it relatively far when a new batch of TIE Fighters were sent out, their eyes set on destroying that fleet. In the middle of the fleet was Kylo Rens Fighter, cautiously weaving his way over the surface of the ship. Before they all knew it, everyone was scattered out, and it became a free for all.
"Rey? Rey! Do you copy? Fleet Commander Dameron to Falcon, do you read?" Chewie immediately growled back through the communicator, focusing on flying as the small family of Porgs that had taken refuge on the ship sat in the seat beside him.
"We need backup! Ren's here and he's just out numbered us two to one!" Poes voice was fast and desperate as he was dodging fire whilst attempting to take down surface cannons and damage the crew ship. Chewie growled back suddenly and a smile twisted across Poes lips.
"Good man! Don't take too long!"
Only a few moments later almost everyone was involved. It became a hands on mess and not a single person was safe. Casualties for both sides were heavier than necessary, yet the resistance managed to bring the First Orders count of Fighters down to match theirs. It was an even playing field now, yet it still didn't seem to make a difference towards their progress. The resistance cruiser was taking light damage, but in several different places. It wasn't going to take long before something important would malfunction.
"Come on Poe. We haven't got much time left." Leia warned through the communicator, watching on a screen as pilot by pilot the number of resistance fighters dropped.
"I'm working on it! We need to flank around the back and take out the core engines from there." Poe instructed as he looked around at what had become a battle field and saw no other option.
"On it." Finn responded, taking most of the fighters away with him.
Soon enough, the crew ship started sinking into its own flames, the resistance rushing back to the main cruiser for shelter. On the way back, the Falcon raced passed Kylos fighter, and for Rey it felt like everything stopped in that one moment. She looked down to his fighter, unable to see him due to the tinted black glass that shaded his identity. He was radiating anger, hatred and disappointment, causing Reys heart to sink. She felt all her progress slip away in the blink of an eye, and felt her thumb slip down onto the trigger.
All in that same moment, Kylo Ren felt the galaxy around him stop for a moment, allowing him to glance towards the woman who pained his conscience. Her delicate skin, her lips he only imagined to be as soft as silk. He closed his eyes a moment, purely remembering the feeling of her hand in his. The way their fingers interlocked as though made for only each other. He looked to her, seeing her looking to him. He watched her carefully for the moment. But then it all slipped away.
A blast shot from the Falcon, aiming directly for Kylos Fighter. In an instinctive struggle, Kylo managed to man-oeuvre out of harm's way, only inches from the misfire that could have ended him. Before he could comprehend the situation, he was flying well above the imploding crew ship, eyeing off the Falcon as it flew back to the resistance cruiser without fault. Anger swelled within him more than before. He felt a lump form in his throat as tears pricked his eyes. All the trust that they had built was out of reach now. He felt words being pulled from his mouth as he sat speechless in his fighter, idle among the chaos. He let out a groan of anger and slammed his hands down on the control panel, pushing away any thought of her he possibly could.
Right as the crew ship saw its last moments, the cruiser jumped to light speed, now safely un-tracked by the First Order. On the bridge, everyone was celebrating a successful escape. Rey stood to the back of the room, a tear slipping down her cheek. She felt Kylos soul ripping in two once again, and this time it was her fault.
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A/N:
Hey guys! I hope you are all enjoying so far!
Don't forget to leave comments and votes if you are enjoying so far!
Just a heads up as well, school isstarting to get flipping wild and I'm struggling to keep up. So due to the fact that I've only actually got a couple more chapters written, updates may shortly go from every 2nd day to every week.
Thanks guys x
M. Van xxxx